Thought I'd troll for suggestions. I want a reasonably priced hydraulic jack for servicing. I am familiar with the two central jack points, one at the rear differential, and one on a subframe member just forward of the oil pan -- but, clearance is only 4.7-5 inches, and I can't find a decent 3 ton jack that will fit underneath. What are others doing to get the car up on jack stands for oil change, etc. Any products especially well suited to this task?

 

Most that I know either drive on low ramps to get clearance for the floor jack or use the OEM scissors jack to lift the car enough to use the floor jack. I have done both and find it a pain but don

 

use the scissor jack that comes with the car to jack up the side just enough to get the floor jack up - then, lift the car up with the floor jack, set your jackstands up, and there you go!

 

Just a couple of short pieces of 2 x 10 or 2 x 12 lumber will raise it enough to get my floor jack under it. I then use short throws of the handle until it gets higher. You can nail front lips to the wood pices if you want to and taper the ends to make them easier to drive onto. Took me about 10 min total with a saw and 4 feet of 2 x 12.

 

I found this nifty 3 ton floor jack at my local Wal-mart.
It has been invaluable in switching from summer to winter tires and to my new SSR GT1s.


Yes, I even had to remove the tray that sits on top of the jack, as this would even make it too tall to fit under the side jack points.

It even comes with a nifty travel bag!


James

 

Hey, you took my jack! I've got the same one. I drive my front wheels onto a 2x6 piece of wood so I can use the floor-jack.

 

Hey Joe,

Take the black thing off(add padding) and it fits without using the 2x6s.

James

 

The trim floor jack approach appears a better solution than the two step scissers jack method... with the scissers if you get distracted (and forget to switch back), lowering it all the way with the high floor jack could cause some damage??.

 

I usually use the scissors jack approach myself, but when I had to bring my car in to have a flat repaired, the mechanic just reached down and lifted the car an inch or two and rolled the jack under. Certainly is doable if you have someone around that could either lift or roll.

I think the 2X6 approach is the easiest. By the way, Griot's sells a special, low profile jack just for this purpose.

 

Thanks Reed,

I'll give that a try.