2013 Ram 1500 tow

WHAT TO DO IN EMERGENCIES
CONTENTS
HAZARD WARNING FLASHERS ...........571
 IF YOUR ENGINE OVERHEATS ............571
 JACKING AND TIRE CHANGING 1500 SERIES
TRUCKS ............................ .572
▫ Jack Location ........................ .591
▫ Removal Of Jack And Tools (1500 Series) .....573
▫ Removing The Spare Tire ................593
▫ Preparations ........................ .596
▫ Jack Instructions (1500 Series) .............579
▫ To Stow The Flat Or Spare ...............585 ▫
Reinstalling The Jack And Tools (1500 Series) . .587
▫ Hub Caps/Wheel Covers — If Equipped . . . .589
▫ Wheel Nuts ........................ .590
 JACKING AND TIRE CHANGING 2500 AND
3500 SERIES TRUCKS ...................591
▫ Jack Location ........................ .591
▫ Removal Of Jack And Tools
(2500, 3500 Series) .....................591
▫ Removing The Spare Tire ................593
▫ Preparations ........................ .596
6

▫Jack Instructions (2500, 3500 Series) .........597
▫ To Stow The Flat Or Spare ...............604
▫ Reinstalling The Jack And Tools (2500 And
3500 Series) ......................... .606
▫ Hub Caps/Wheel Covers — If Equipped . . . .608
▫ Wheel Nuts ........................ .590
 HOISTING .......................... .612
 JUMP-STARTING PROCEDURES ............612
▫ Preparations For Jump-Start ..............613
▫ Jump-Starting Procedure ................614 
FREEING A STUCK VEHICLE .............616
 EMERGENCY TOW HOOKS — IF EQUIPPED . .618
 SHIFT LEVER OVERRIDE ................618
▫ Column Shifter — If Equipped ............619
▫ Center Console Shifter — If Equipped .......620
 MANUAL PARK RELEASE — 8 SPEED
TRANSMISSION (3.6L Engine) .............621
 TOWING A DISABLED VEHICLE ...........622
▫ Two-Wheel Drive Models ................625
▫ Four-Wheel Drive Models ................626
570 WHAT TO DO IN EMERGENCIES

WARNING!(Continued)
•Being under a jacked-up vehicle is dangerous. The
vehicle could slip off the jack and fall on you. You
could be crushed. Never put any part of your body
under a vehicle that is on a jack. If you need to get
under a raised vehicle, take it to a service center
where it can be raised on a lift.
• Never start or run the engine while the vehicle is
on a jack.
• The jack is designed to be used as a tool for
changing tires only. The jack should not be used to
lift the vehicle for service purposes. The vehicle
should be jacked on a firm level surface only.
Avoid ice or slippery areas. NOTE:
To assist with changing a spare tire, the air
suspension system has a feature which allows the auto-
matic leveling to be disabled. Refer to “Electronic Vehicle
Information Center (EVIC)” in “Understanding Your
Instrument Panel” for further information.
Jack Location
The jack and jack tools are stored under the front
passenger seat.
Removal Of Jack And Tools (1500 Series)
To access the jack and jack tools you must remove the
plastic access cover, located on the side of the front
passengers seat. To remove the cover, pull the front part
of the cover (closest to the front of the seat) toward you
to release a locking tab. Once the front of the cover is
loose, slide the cover toward the front of the seat until it
is free from the seat frame.6
WHAT TO DO IN EMERGENCIES 573

WARNING!(Continued)
•Only use the jack in the positions indicated and for
lifting this vehicle during a tire change.
• If working on or near a roadway, be extremely
careful of motor traffic.
• To assure that spare tires, flat or inflated, are
securely stowed, spares must be stowed with the
valve stem facing out.
CAUTION!
Do not attempt to raise the vehicle by jacking on
locations other than those indicated in the Jacking
Instructions for this vehicle.
1. Remove the spare wheel, jack, and tools from storage.
2. Using the wheel wrench, loosen, but do not remove, the wheel nuts by turning them counterclockwise one
turn while the wheel is still on the ground.
3. Placement of the jack:
4x2 Series Trucks Front Jacking Location
There is a jack location indicator on the rear portion of the
lower control arm.
Jack Warning Label
580 WHAT TO DO IN EMERGENCIES

5. Remove the wheel nuts and pull the wheel off. Installthe spare wheel and wheel nuts with the cone shaped
end of the wheel nuts toward the wheel. To avoid the
risk of forcing the vehicle off the jack, do not fully
tighten the wheel nuts until the vehicle has been
lowered.
6. Using the lug wrench, finish tightening the wheel nuts using a crisscross pattern. The correct wheel nut
tightness for a cone type wheel nut is 120–140 ft lbs
(160–190 N·m) torque, for a flanged type wheel nut is
130–160 ft lbs (175–215 N·m) torque. If in doubt about
the correct tightness, have them checked with a torque
wrench by your authorized dealer or at a service
station.WARNING!
A loose tire or jack thrown forward in a collision or
hard stop could injure someone in the vehicle. Al-
ways stow the jack parts and the extra tire and wheel
in the places provided.
7. Install the wheel center cap and remove the wheel blocks. Do not install chrome or aluminum wheel
center caps on the spare wheel. This may result in cap
damage.
8. Lower the jack to its fully closed position. If the bottle jack will not lower by turning the dial (thumbwheel)
by hand, it may be necessary to use the jack drive tube
in order to lower the jack. Stow the replaced tire, jack,
and tools as previously described.
9. Adjust the tire pressure when possible.
584 WHAT TO DO IN EMERGENCIES

NOTE:Do not oil wheel studs. For chrome wheels, do
not substitute with chrome plated wheel nuts.
To Stow The Flat Or Spare
NOTE: Vehicles equipped with aluminum wheels can-
not be stored under the vehicle because the wheel
retainer will not fit through the wheel pilot hole. Secure
the flat tire in the bed of the truck. Have the flat tire
repaired or replaced immediately.
WARNING!
A loose tire thrown forward in a collision or hard
stop could injure the occupants in the vehicle. Have
the deflated (flat) tire repaired or replaced immedi-
ately. 1. Turn the wheel so that the valve stem is facing the
ground and toward the rear of the vehicle for conve-
nience in checking the spare tire inflation. Slide the
wheel retainer through the center of the wheel.6
WHAT TO DO IN EMERGENCIES 585

WARNING!(Continued)
•Never start or run the engine while the vehicle is
on a jack.
• The jack is designed to be used as a tool for
changing tires only. The jack should not be used to
lift the vehicle for service purposes. The vehicle
should be jacked on a firm level surface only.
Avoid ice or slippery areas.
Jack Location
The jack and jack tools are stored under the front
passenger seat.
Removal Of Jack And Tools (2500, 3500 Series)
To access the jack and jack tools you must remove the
plastic access cover, located on the side of the front
passengers seat. To remove the cover, pull the front part
of the cover (closest to the front of the seat) toward you to release a locking tab. Once the front of the cover is
loose, slide the cover toward the front of the seat until it
is free from the seat frame.
Remove the jack and tools by turning the wing bolt
counterclockwise, remove the wing bolt and then slide
the assembly out from under the seat.Jack Access Cover
592 WHAT TO DO IN EMERGENCIES

Jack Instructions (2500, 3500 Series)
WARNING!
Carefully follow these tire changing warnings to help
prevent personal injury or damage to your vehicle:
•Always park on a firm, level surface as far from the
edge of the roadway as possible before raising the
vehicle.
• Turn on the Hazard Warning flasher.
• Block the wheel diagonally opposite the wheel to
be raised.
• Set the parking brake firmly and set an automatic
transmission in PARK; a manual transmission in
REVERSE.
• Never start or run the engine with the vehicle on a
jack.
(Continued)
WARNING! (Continued)
•Do not let anyone sit in the vehicle when it is on a
jack.
• Do not get under the vehicle when it is on a jack. If
you need to get under a raised vehicle, take it to a
service center where it can be raised on a lift.
• Only use the jack in the positions indicated and for
lifting this vehicle during a tire change.
• If working on or near a roadway, be extremely
careful of motor traffic.
• To assure that spare tires, flat or inflated, are
securely stowed, spares must be stowed with the
valve stem facing out.
598 WHAT TO DO IN EMERGENCIES