TRINITONY

Works fine...

srf506

The other issue with using it with the plate horizontal is that as the car is raised the bar is at an angle to the jack pad. There's not too much to keep the jack from squirting out backwards and dropping the whole rig on the floor. I've never seen the plate bend or break, but that doesn't mean it couldn't happen I'm sure.

Oshin11

Ok so I bought a craftsman jack today and boy is it divine, my friend laughed at how excited I was about a floor jack. Instead of dropping my car like a rock it smoothly lowered it at a snails pace. I get to control the pace, that makes me feel very warm and fuzzy inside There were 3 craftsman jacks, a full steel one for $59, an aluminum/steel hybrid that is still quite heavy for $100, and a full lightweight aluminum racing jack for $190. I opted for the hybrid, its light enough and works GREAT. I recommend it to anyone who wants a reliable jack that wont launch your car to the ground.

geoffct

I have the same jack, its nice, but as a reference it doesn't actually lift until a fairly low angle, mines close to the angle in the first pic. As such it requires a lot of clearance around the car. I sometimes use just half the handle when it gets really tight.

theiceman

Hey Oshin what is the jacking height on you hybrid.

Oshin11

I believe the jacking height on the hybrid is just a little short of 20". 19 1/4" I think. She works really well but still slightly heavy to carry around.

theiceman

just don't walk near your car with it ... I learned to just drag it around by the handle, you do less damage that way ..

Oshin11

Damn, I am such a fool, turns out the hybrids only have a 3000lb/1.5 ton capacity. I went to sears today and got the full aluminum one! Only 44 POUNDS! Still feels heavy but its really light compared to the hybrid and full steel one. This one has a 2 ton/4000 lb capacity. I bought simple green and some stiff brushes in addition to a wire brush. I will take before and after pictures of parts of the underside of my car. Are wire brushes a no-no for cleaning the underside of my car?

theiceman

wire brushes are a no no hard stell wies against soft aluminum casing ... you do the math ... I use a stiff nylon brush and it works great.

PS what's the lift on your new Jack oshin ?

Oshin11

The lift is still about 20 inches. It works well, but the wood I put in between the jack and the sump crackles, it worries me. I don't think it will break but i still worry. I will order a jack pad because it's too hard to get my jack under the front of the car anyhow. It seems the jackpad is the easiest way. I also started cleaning, but it seems that this P-car hasn't had that type of TLC in YEARS, possibly a decade. I think I will first have to pay a detailing shop 40 dollars to clean the underside and the wheel ducts first. Then I will go in and finish what they couldn't get. I will also do the engine myself I think, or maybe wait 15K miles until I do a rebuild. I drive the car a lot so that could be under 2 years.

MessyMarvin

I have a Husky jack and have used it for years with no problems at all. I turn the screw slow and it drops the car very slowly. You must of had a defective one. I bought the Husky jack stands as well and they work great for the price. Just an FYI, good luck with your Craftsman.

Spodie!

I've learned from other wise posters that it's good to have a couple of stacked 2X6s or 2X10s to drive the front wheels up on in order to use your jack.

Definitely get the jack pads, but lumber is a useful and cheap tool also.

Danny_Ocean

Craftsman jacks are not the quality jacks they used to be. They are now made in China (as are Husky).

Here is a quality jack:

http://www.jackxchange.com/products/HW93642.cfm

Chuck Jones

Last week I went and bought the Costco aluminum ARCAN 2 ton race jack. It's a really nice piece of equipment...even tho it's aluminum, it still weighs in at right at 50 pounds...so it's beefy, but still manageable.

What I really liked is that the minimum height is 3.5 inches, which gets it under my 930 as well as the other one. The workmanship is great, and for you guys with the super clean garages, it's esthetically pleasing, and comes with the built in hard rubber pad in the steel cup, and a foam bumper guard around the jack handle....and today I was at a professional racecar rebuilder's shop, and saw that he had the exact same one....said he bought it from Costco last year and that it stood up better than his Craftsman. It was beat to $hit, but has kept right on tickin'. To me, that was an endorsement to see that it had stood up and was hanging in there after all that abuse from a guy who used it daily.

The jack has a max lift range of 19.5 inches, and can hit the top in 6 pumps. I would encourage you folks to go check it out....right now they're going for $99.

mo_gearhead

Just a passing thought on cleaning Porsche engines/transaxles. I have read (somewhere???) to NEVER use high pressure washers (relates to taking it to a professional shop for cleaning). The author of the article stated that although transaxle seals are made to contain fluids at low internal pressures they are NOT made to withstand EXTERNAL HIGH pressure! You could end up with a transaxle full of WATER! The story related to someone wanting to take his removed transaxle to a car wash for cleaning. Not sure if that also applies to the engine, but it made sense to me ...just a "heads-up" gentlemen.