maleficent

In your car emergency kit, you will probably want to have a set of road flares... and a good solid flashlight that you can put on the ground. to give you light.

what kind of jack is in the car? There are two main types of jack, as far as I know, the post type which has a metal thingie that fits into a hole at the jacking point on the car and the scissor type that has a pad which fits under the jacking point.

Hardest part is figuring out where to put the jack and getting the car up. The car owners manual should have that info for you.

Put the car in park.
It's best to be on a flat surface - -and it's even better to have your back not towards the road, but sometimes that can't be helped.
Put the jack in the appropriate place

remove the hubcap and place off to the side, of give ot your sidekick to hjold
Using the lug wrench (usually apart of the jack) to loosen the lug nuts (this goes out of order but I usually needed the wheel flat in order to get enough leverage to loosen em)
(Lefty - loosey righty tighty - remember that)

Jack up the car...

Take off the lug nuts...

Remove the tire.

Grab the donut and put on car (though I would suggest getting a regulation tire rather than a donut - donuts are only good really to get you to the service station)

Tighten lug nuts

Lower car (the jacking instructions should be in the owners manual - I'm maiking furioous hand motions trying to explain it -and can't do it0

When tire is flat on ground, use the lug wrench to tighten bolts..

put tire and hubcap away.

Drive carefully away

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Changing a tire really isn't that difficult, but it's something you might want to practice in the driveway... Every flat I have ever gotten has been late at night, or in the rain, or on a busy highway... basically a place where you want to get the job done and get out -- it's not a time for you to second guess yourself -- try it once or twice in the driveway - to make sure you can actually work the jack...

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