Lesson 1:Safety & Vehicle Identification

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Part 1: SafetyLast year thousands of people were injured or killed while working on cars. However, virtually every one of these accidents could have been prevented if the person would have followed basic safety guidelines.

In the following slides, we will discuss some of these guidelines that will help to ensure that you have a safe experience with your vehicle.

• Dressing for safety• How to lift and support a car• Carbon monoxide dangers• Starting a car• Fires• Battery safety

The topics we will cover include:

Dressing for SafetyWhen working on or around a car, always follow these

rules: Don’t wear loose clothing (like neckties or hoodies) Don’t wear open-toed footwear Don’t wear rings, watches, or other jewelry Do secure long hair Do wear safety glasses

WHY? Loose clothing can get caught in moving parts such as fans or belts

Sharp or heavy parts can fall on your feet; foot injuries will be prevented with good work shoes

Rings and watches can accidentally short-circuit electrical components & cause severe burns

Long hair can get caught in tools and other moving parts Eyes cannot be replaced! They are very susceptible to

injury by chemicals, tools, or debris

Physical Injuries

When pushing on a wrench, push away with an open hand

Use more leverage (a longer handle) if needed

Never push a screwdriver toward yourself

Don’t use your hand as a hammer

The most common types of injuries are minor injuries which, again, are easily prevented. Here are some tips from professionals:

Lifting & Jacking a Car

Rules: Identify correct lift points for your vehicle and plan out what

points you will use to lift and what points you will support with the jack stands.

Always use jack stands and wheel chocks (they should be used in pairs—never alone).

Once the car is properly supported and chocked, remove the jack. Check the car before working underneath of it. This includes

making sure the jack stands are not sinking into the ground and giving the car a gentle push to see if it moves or appears unsteady.

Cars have fallen on and killed many people because they believed it was safe to get under a car that was supported

only by a jack. THIS IS NEVER SAFE!

Jacks lift cars up, but the car must be properly supported by jack stands before anyone goes under the car. If these

rules are followed, working under a car WILL BE SAFE!

Wheel Chocks

Jack Stands

Jacking a car

JACK UP A VEHICLE SLOWLY AND SAFELY, MAKING SURE THAT YOU ARE LIFTING ON A STRUCTURAL PART OF THE VEHICLE. THEN,

SUPPORT THE CAR WITH JACK STANDS AND REMOVE THE JACK SO THAT IT IS NOT IN YOUR WAY AND NO ONE WILL TRIP OVER IT.

Some examples of jack stand placement

TIP: always place a wheel chock in the

opposite corner(s) of the jack stand. For instance, if you are lifting up the front, passenger-side tire

place a wheel chock behind the rear, driver-side tire.

Using Wheel Chocks

Return to I-learn now and watch the video entitled, “Lifting and Jacking a Car.”

A running engine produces carbon monoxide, a colorless, odorless, deadly gas. Never let a car run inside a garage or shop. Repair facilities often have an exhaust ventilation system that allows

them to run cars inside the shop. However, your garage probably does not. Do not let the car run inside of a

garage for any amount of time—even if the garage doors are open. Exhaust

gases can still accumulate in the garage and can enter through walls and ceilings

into other rooms in the building or house.

Symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning include headaches and

nausea. When someone experiences these symptoms, get them to fresh air

immediately.

Carbon Monoxide Poisoning

When starting a car. . .One of the most common causes of accidents when working around cars is someone starting a car without checking a couple of basic things. Always make sure that:

•The transmission is in park or neutral. Cars with manual transmissions are especially dangerous because people often turn them off, leaving them in gear. If the car does start while it is in gear it will lurch forward quickly possibly injuring someone or causing expensive damage. A good practice is to always place your foot firmly on the brake pedal before turning the key.

•No one is near the engine compartment if the hood is open. From the driver’s seat you can’t always see if someone else has decided to reach under the hood to make a quick adjustment.

Fires are capable of causing severe injury, death, and permanent scar tissue. When working on an automobile, be very cautious around flammable liquids such as gasoline, oil, transmission fluids, and brake fluid. There are numerous other combustible materials that can be found around your home or garage including oily rags, paints and thinners, and cleaning solvents.

First, do everything you can to prevent fires:•Clean up spills and combustible materials•Avoid sparksSecond, have a plan in case a fire does start:•Keep a fire extinguisher handy•Know how to use it•Have an evacuation plan in mind

Gasoline Safety Rules

Store gasoline and all other flammables in approved, sealed containers

Disconnect the battery before working on a fuel system

Wipe up gasoline spills immediately

Keep any source of heat away from fuel system parts

Never use gasoline as a cleaning solvent

Fire extinguishers

Know where they are located (once a fire has started is not a good time to go looking for one)

Make sure they are charged and have not expired

Know what types of fires they are for

Know how to use them (click this link)

Battery Safety

Another source of serious injuries that is often overlooked is the battery in your car. While there is no danger of being electrically shocked by a regular 12-volt car battery, the possibilities of chemical burns, electrical burns, and explosions are very real.

•Chemical burns: Batteries contain sulfuric acid, which will eat through clothing and cause burns on your skin. Try to always keep batteries upright, never holding them directly against your clothing or skin. Also, protect your eyes by wearing safety glasses. If you do come in contact with battery acid, dilute the acid by immediately washing it with water.

•Electrical burns: Electrical burns are caused when too much electrical current flows through a conductor. For example, if a wrench contacts both of the battery posts, or the positive battery post and the metal on the car, electricity will flow through the wrench creating enormous amounts of heat and causing severe burns. To reduce the chances of this, never wear jewelry when working on a car, always disconnect the battery before working on your car, and always disconnect the negative cable first!

•Explosions: When an automotive battery is charging, it gives off hydrogen gas. Because hydrogen gas is very explosive, any kind of spark, heat, or flame near the battery may cause it to explode, sending battery parts and acid everywhere. When using a battery charger to charge a battery, always turn off the charger before disconnecting it from the battery (to prevent sparks). When jump-starting a car, uninformed people often connect all of the jumper cables directly to the batteries, creating sparks, and sometimes causing a terrible explosion. The next two slides show you how to safely jump start a vehicle. Pay close attention!

Review question: Why is it so important that the last connection

is made on the metal on the engine and not on the negative

battery terminal?

Jump-Starting a Car Safely

A Precaution: watch what you are doing!

If you accidentally connect the wrong clamp to the wrong terminal—even for a second—chances are good that hundreds of dollars of

damage will be done to your car’s computers!

When jump-starting, whether you are using jumper cables or a

jumper pack, always look for the polarity symbols on the top of the battery. NEVER rely on the colors

of the cables to tell you which terminal is positive and which is

negative.

Return to I-learn now and watch the video entitled, “Jump-Starting.”

There several shop substances that can be harmful if they come in contact with your skin. Believe it or not, your skin absorbs chemicals into your body very quickly. Be aware of them and avoid contact by wearing protective gloves when handling them. These substances include:

Other shop substances that are harmful if inhaled. These include:

•Solvents (include parts cleaners from spray cans)•Battery acid•Used motor oil•Gasoline•Most other fluids and chemicals

• asbestos dust from brake or clutch linings• parts cleaners• paint spray

To avoid breathing asbestos dust or other harmful vapors, have adequate ventilation and use a liquid cleaner on brake parts. Never use air to blow the dust off!

Electric Shock

Never use an electric tool unless it has a functional ground prong

Never use an electric tool on a wet shop floor Don’t use damaged cords

Result of electric current passing through parts of your body, causing injury or death

Part 2: Vehicle Identification

A critical part of owning and maintaining an automobile is knowing how to identify important information on the vehicle. When you buy or sell a car, take it in for service, order parts, or try to find out if safety recalls apply, you will likely have to know some or all of the following information:

• Year, make, and model• VIN • Engine size• Manufacture date• Original tire size and recommended tire pressure• How to identify the left and right side of the car

There are many very common misconceptions about where to find this information. Frequently, people have confused the model year with the build date, or have used the

sidewall of the tire to determine recommended tire pressure. Making any mistake like this could cost you money! Let’s learn how it should be done!

Make & ModelThe make and model are the “brand” and the “name” of the car. You are probably

familiar with many makes and models. Here are some examples:

Make ModelToyota Tacoma

Ford Taurus

Dodge Ram 1500

Kia Sedona

Honda Civic

Infinity G35

The make and model are usually found right on the body of the car. Sometimes the model will include some additional characters such as LX, SE or SX

Model YearThe model year is the year that the car will always be known by. For example: 2003 Ford Focus, or 1993 Mitsubishi Galant. This is not necessarily the year the car was made or sold! The most accurate way to find the model year is to look on the under-hood sticker. Under-hood stickers can be found on all cars (provided they have not been wrecked and had the hood replaced). They are sometimes near the radiator or shock tower, but will be somewhere in the engine compartment.

Warning: Never use the date on the driver’s door as the model year. This is the manufacture

date, and it will be wrong 50% of the time.

Manufactures begin making cars a year or two ahead of time, so

the date it was made could be up to two years different than the

model year. Locations where you may find an under-hood sticker.

Engine SizeBecause certain models come with a variety of engine options, you will likely have to know what size your engine is to do something as simple as change your oil. The size of an engine is the volume of air that is displaced by the pistons that move up and down inside of it. In the past, engine size has been measured in cubic inches (CI or CID) and in cubic centimeters (CC). However, today most engines are measured in Liters (L). Sometimes the engine size can be found on a decal on the body of the car or stamped on the engine itself. But the under-hood sticker will always give you this information.

The next few slides will show examples of under-

hood stickers. Look for the model year and engine

size on each.

Under-hood sticker:What is the model year & engine size?

Under-hood sticker:What is the model year & engine size?

Under-hood sticker:What is the model year & engine size?

What is a VIN?The VIN (Vehicle Identification Number) is a unique 17-digit serial number

assigned to every car made after 1981. Each digit of the VIN provides information about that specific vehicle. For example digit one tells us which country the car was made in, digit eight tells us the engine size, and digit 10 tells us the model year. The VIN is an accurate place to find specific information about your car—

especially if an under-hood sticker cannot be located. Click here to learn what each digit of your VIN means

Where can you find your VIN?

Close-up of some VIN locations:

Manufacture Date This is NOT the “model year” of the car! This is the date it was made. Parts

stores will frequently ask for this date in order to get the correct parts for your car. This date is usually found on a sticker on or near the driver’s door jam.

Can you identify the month and year that this Honda was built?

Recommended tire size and pressure

Information about tire size and pressure specifications can be found on your vehicle’s “tire placard.” This is often on or near the same decal on the driver’s door that has the manufacture date. However, it is also frequently found on a sticker inside the glove box. Many people do not realize that in order to have the best road traction and to get the longest life out of their tires, they should follow these guidelines precisely. Can you find this information on the placard shown below? Go to your car and look for your tire placard!

Tire pressure

• People often mistakenly assume that their tires should be inflated to the pressure shown on the sidewall of the tire. This is only the maximum pressure that this tire can withstand. Over- or under- inflating your tires can cause poor traction, rapid tire wear, low fuel economy, and even a tire blow-out!

• Always follow the pressure specifications on the tire placard!

Which side is the right side?

Remember that positions of a car areidentified while sitting in the driver’sseat. (left, right, front, back)

The little arrow on a fuel gauge indicates which side of the car the gas cap is on.

The hood release is usually (but not always) on the driver’s side of car.

The remote trunk release could be anywhere! Always refer to the owner’s manual for location of

accessories and components.

ConclusionBy now you should realize that safety is no accident! This means that working around cars is

safe as long as hazards are recognized and safety guidelines are followed.

Think and act safely. This will ensure that you can enjoy a lifetime of taking care of your car.

Knowing how to locate and interpret key vehicle information is an indispensable part of owning and taking care of a car.

This skill will allow you to be accurate and correct when getting service or purchasing parts. It will also help you to save time and money!