Where to place the jack and jack stands when jacking the Vibe up?

[ganderso]

I had the Vibe in at the dealer and they wanted $16 to rotate the tires! So I figured that's a rip-off and now I want to jack up one side of the car at a time and switch the tires around. Looking underneath the car I can't really see where I can put my floor jack head, and I also can't see where I'll support the car with jack stands once I've got it up. I've read the manual and it says to look for notches close to the tire, but I can't even see those. Anybody have any ideas or preferrably pictures of where to jack?Thanks!

[d_m_kolb]

The notches are there. Did you lay down and stick your head under the vehicle very close to the front tire right under the front door? Look again. It's pretty visible.If your using the jack that comes with the Vibe I wouldn't recommend it. Yes you can and yes it will work but is it all that safe? No not really. You can pick up a cheap floor jack from Walmart for under $25 and is much saver than the stock jack. All ways remember to use the E brake when jacking the vehicle.Also another most in my opinion which most dealership, tire-shops etc don't do is make sure to use anti-sieze on the lug nut studs. This will prevent them from rusting, and you will most likely never run into a broken lug nut stud using this cheap grease.I rotate my tires on my vehicle. First slightly loosen the lug nuts with the vehicle still on the ground. This will keep the wheels from spinning while your trying to loosen the nuts with the tires in the air. Once the nuts are loose (BUT NOT REMOVED) lift the vehicle. Take off the nuts and move the front wheel to the back and the back to the front. Hand tighten the lug nuts (with your hand) until the wheel is somewhat secure. Then with the vehicle still in the air tighten the lug nuts (USING A STAR PATTERN) with a wrench the best you can while the vehicle is still off the ground.Now slowly lower the vehicle and again tighten the lug nuts the rest of the way using a star pattern with a wrench. With the vehicle now on the ground you can tighten the vehicle lug nuts with out the wheels spinning.It's all ways a good idea to use a torque wrench so you know how tight to have the lug nuts, but I don't have one and just tighten them until very tight. I have never had a problem. After about 50 to 100 miles go around the vehicle and tighten the lug nuts again just to be save.I do this every 6 months or 12,500 miles. The reason I do it this way is because that's when I change my oil filter so it's very easy to remember to rotate the tires at the same time.

[coratz]

you can safly floor jack the vibe under the control arms and under the center of the rear axle beam. always use the ebrake, chuck your wheels, and make sure the car is in gear

[MadBill]

Quote: "Also another most in my opinion which most dealership, tire-shops etc don't do is make sure to use anti-sieze on the lug nut studs. This will prevent them from rusting, and you will most likely never run into a broken lug nut stud using this cheap grease." End Quote.Not so, Admin II! p. 5-25 of the Owner's Manual has a caution against lube of any sort: "CAUTION: Never use oil or grease on studs or nuts. If you do, the nuts might come loose. Your wheel could fall off, causing a serious accident."Also, by reducing friction, the lubricant causes more tension to be developed in the stud than intended, and a broken fastener can easily result. [I have actually seen this on a Vibe. The mechanic used just a smear of white lube because he thought the studs looked rusty. He then compounded the error by using a torque wrench set just 9 lb. high (85 lb-ft) and broke the first stud he tightened!]!]