2008 Jeep Patriot Owner's Manual - Page 274

272 STARTING AND OPERATING surroundings, then using a tow strap to the vehicle tow hooks would be fast and easy. If the vehicle is severely hung up or in a situation where great care needs to be taken during the recovery, then nothing can do the job better than a winch. If you are severely hung up on something you should jack the vehicle up and stack something under the wheels to allow the vehicle to roll off the object without causing further damage. This should be tried before attempting any recovery method. CAUTION! Pulling the vehicle off an obstacle, without first clearing the object, may result in additional underbody damage. • Rock Cycling Your Vehicle - Rock cycling your vehicle is one of the easiest, fastest and most commonly used methods. This simply involves shifting your vehicle from DRIVE to REVERSE, while applying throttle after each shift. During this process, for additional traction, try turning your steering wheel quickly back and forth no more than a 1/4 turn. If you are stuck in mud, sand, or snow, try spinning your tires during this process to clean the debris from the tread and improve the traction. You want to create a rocking motion with the vehicle. This helps build vehicle momentum, which hopefully gets you out. Remember to ease off and on the accelerator before and after the shift. If after a few rock cycles your vehicle is not free, stop and try another method of recovery. Continuous rock cycling will only cause unnecessary damage to your vehicle and the environment.