jackstand location question

[fastasleep]

Im going to be removing my rear struts and front hubs shortly, so the car will have to be suspended with all four wheels in the air. Ive never had the entire car jacked up before so I just wanted to ask where the best place is to put the jackstands and if there is a best order in which to raise the whole car (front first then rear, or one side then the other). The pick of wopper's car jacked on all sides shows the jacks near those little arrows that indicated the stock jacking location on the frame rail, but I jacked up the car there one time and almost popped off a dogleg...

While Im at it, one more quick question. For removing the rear struts, do I want to put the spring compressors on the springs while the car is on the ground so they are compressed, then remove the strut/spring after raising the car?

 

[G]

the strongest place would be what looks like rails that run front to back on the car. they are part of the unibody.

 

[s_firestone]

For the front. I don't recommend jacking directly on the lip seam, rather on the flat area just to the inside of it (you can see the member extending to the center). Thats where I place my jackstands. If you place the jackstands directly under the lip that is a lot of force to be resting on 1/4" x 1" of metal and suspended in the air, any little shift and you have the potential for buckling, or sliding. I find the area directly inward from the lip to be solid and flat. Unlike the lip it does not deform when you lower the car onto the jackstands. I place the jackstand fingers front to back evenly across the member with adequate clearance from the front or rear edge.

Here is a thread showing someones car on jackstands. Notice they do not jack on the lip but rather on a block of wood resting on the frame member inside the lip. Personally even placing jackstands that close to the edge of a block of wood would make me a tad nervous. I would want to turn the wood block so the jackstand fingers are not near the edge where they could shift. I place mine directly on the frame member but I should probably use wood.

Jackstands


Another thread mentioned Colin AKA sleepyvrv almost getting killed when his car was supported on four jackstands. I think he has a gravel driveway which probably added to the danger. They recommend keeping a shop jack, jacked under the area your working on as a precaution. Don't forget a full tank of gas weighs a lot.

Scary

 

Quote:
the strongest place would be what looks like rails that run front to back on the car. they are part of the unibody.



No, I don't think so. That metal is actually fairly weak.

I suggest for the rear, the front attachment points of the rear sub frame for the jack stands and the rear diff as a jacking point. For the front, I usually use the lower A-arm attachment points for the the jack stands and either the hard point under the first crossmember or the factory, tire-change jack points for lifting the car.

The problem with the factory indicated jack points for changing a tire, is that each is made to support only the car when lifted from one corner and not the full weight of the car. It is very easy to fold the metal at these points especially if the ground is uneven or you are wrenching hard on something.

 

[G]

Always plenty strong for me, if they are rusted out then forget about it. It also depends on what type of jackstands you're using. Those red chinese ones in that link are scary. I have these 6600 lb capacity type & they work great.

 

[s_firestone]

Now thats a jackstand.

 

[fastasleep]

Ok, you guys are starting to scare me with talk of cheap red chinese jackstands and supporting it on the frame rail... The car needs to be suspended for one week until I return from vacation and I have my fab'ed Evo 9 struts and springs. I couldnt find factory galant rear struts and front hubs for sale, so I have to use mine (unless someone has some to sell).

Should I put my rear struts back in and set the car back down on its wheels until I find stock struts and hubs for sale, or am I safe as is? 4 jackstands on each corner of the rail. 1 jackstand at the back near the end of the gas tank. Jack supporting the crossmember under the motor. Whats the verdict?

 

[s_firestone]

No, your car will be fine. If your paranoid, once you start working on it place a jack under the end your working on as a backup.

 

[CP]

I use the brace underneath the tranny to jack up the front end. I place my stands (which have a rounded depression in the top of them) on the curved piece where the a-arm pivots against the chassis. Basically follow the rear-most front suspension arm to where it attached to the body. It's almost directly beneath the firewall. The two points are about 30" from each other laterally.

I was doing some routine maintenance today, so I snapped a few photos to make it crystal clear for you. Note the Porsche-esque blade type rims and British racing green paintjob:

 

[s_firestone]

Wheres the turbo?

 

[fastasleep]

Thanks for making that completely clear CP. Mower needs more JDM though. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

 

[CP]

Me again.

I've been jacking the front of the car by using the crossmember that runs beneath the tranny/engine joint front to rear, towards the passenger side of the car. It finally had enough, deformed a bit, and now translates lots of vibrations to the chassis where it has bent a little and now makes contact with the transmission.

A new crossmember just arrived from JNZ (not cheap) and I don't want to fudge this one up too. What's the ideal jacking point on the front of the car to jack from? I'd like to find one point in the middle somewhere so I don't have to jack up both sides of the vehicle.

Can I use the crossmember (left to right) beneath the radiator as a jacking point, or will it bend/buckle as well? Basically I don't want to mess up anymore metal underneath the car.

 

[CP]

Here's my cross member brace after 2+ years of using it to jack the front of the car:





Where can I safely jack the front end from in one fell swoop? This obviously isn't the best place.

 

[supervr4]

Right beside where that x member bolts to the radiator support is a spot i use from memory it has so raised bits pressed into it have a look under the car and you should see it.

 

[Ian M]

Quote:
Can I use the crossmember (left to right) beneath the radiator as a jacking point, or will it bend/buckle as well? Basically I don't want to mess up anymore metal underneath the car.




That's what I have always used (not the core support though...) to jack the front of mine up for the past 10 years or so. If you don't want the little tabs on the jack cup to leave littles ding marks in the cross member though,you should use one of the rubber pads that are commercially available or something similar.

To lift the back,I use the diff housing.

 

[spoulson]

I've lifted both my GVR4 and Trans Am on 4 jackstands the same way and ended up with the pictures fastasleep posted; a jackstand on each corner on the lip. I preferred to use jackstands that have a V shape to limit lateral sliding. Also be sure to use a block of 2x4 wood on the floor jack. The wood dents from the weight of the car and tends to grip it better that way, plus less metal-to-metal contact and scratching. Think what would you use on an exotic. (probably a rubber pad, but wood works nicely)

Safe or not, I've been able to jack up the side of the car under the front door so both front/rear are high enough to slip stands underneath. You just have to figure out where it jacks up balanced, which seems to be just behind the side view mirror for GVR4s. I repeat on the other side slowly. I feel that there's less leverage to topple the jackstands this way compared to the front/rear method. Plus, what would you do on a car with no jack points in the front and/or rear like my Trans Am? Don't jack a car up on the radiator support!

Just be smart about it. Use the e-brake before jacking the car and use wheel chocks so it doesn't roll while lifting it.

 

i would not reccomend lifting from center to get both up at once.. it will either bend your frame rail or the little lip of metal where you are supposed to jack up on only on the edges where it has the triangles on it as it is much stronger.. if you don't mind mangling your undercarridge do it the other way..

 

I jack mine from the middle front & rear all the time. I have yet to note any damage from doing it & feel the bolted in cross members are stronger than the edge "jacking rails" anyway.

 

[CP]

I don't like jacking one side and then the other. My car teeters too much this way and it makes me very uncomfortable. With the strut braces and suspension I've got, my rear wheel lifts after the front is 2" off the ground. It makes rotating tires very easy, but makes it difficult to put the car up on stands.

Forgive my newbie question, but that's the section we're in, right? Is the radiator support verticle or horizontal? I think it's the lateral piece that runs beneath the radiator. This is where I'll jack it up at from now on.

 

[spoulson]

Allow me to clarify. For things like oil changes, I jack my GVR4 on the front spot where the crossmember meets the radiator support. Using a block of 2x4, I prevent damage to the car while jacking. On my Trans Am, there was no such crossmember, and the radiator support is too weak to using for lifting the front. Therefore, I went with jacking from the side.

As for the rear, you can certainly lift at the pumpkin on either of these two cars. However, I don't have this option on a FWD car, so again I go with jacking from the side. I do stress 'carefully'.

If I had my way, there'd be a lift in my garage. (or a pit? hmm)