Normy

How stable is the car with these bars? I want a pair for my S2.

Man, I hate working on a car on jack stands! It makes me nervous as hell. I usually take one of the tires off and place it under the car, so that if something happens the car will fall on the wheel instead of my face....

N!

Andre Hedrick

Does anyone make liftbars that are side to side and not front to back?
IE central lift point on the centerline or would these just roll out?

Normy

Porken is the only person that I've ever encountered who has produced a product for the lifting of a car [liability insurance can't be cheap....], so I doubt it Andre.

He's the sort of guy that if you work with him a bit...you can probably get him to build a set of transverse bars, as you've described.

N!

sublimate

1. It'd be a PITA to get your jack under the center of your car and there'd be no room to pump the handle.
2. You'd have bars going across the underside right under some of the areas you might be trying to work on (clutch, exhaust, TT, etc)
3. The bars would have to extend down a lot more to clear the frame rails and exhaust.

AO

Normy-
I think the car is MUCH more stable with the liftbars becasue the bars contact the lift points very evenly and actually engage the front one with a "pin". And assuming you're using the HF style jack stands, the bars are nicely cradled in the stand. This make it virtually impossible for the car to slip off the stands. Your biggest danger is from the stand colapsing - which I think is pretty low.

Before the lift bars, I'd maybe have 1 square inch of contact patch between the lift points and the jack stands (and they were not engaged into the lift point). It was scary to say the least.

Hope this helps you make a decision to purchase these bars. They are a phenomenal addition to your tool collection.

Glen McCartney

I have to agree with Andrew, the car is much more stable when using these bars on the stands. I used to hate jacking the car up to work under it, a real PITA to get it raised high enough to work under. This is one of the best "tool" purchase I have made.

PorKen

I mailed six boxes today! Three remain and should go out Fri or Sat. If you have not received a tracking number, your bars have not shipped.

I have decided to listen to 'Honey Bunny's sage advice, and work on 'something that weighs less' for a while.

I have only a few custom boxes left. I'm not going to order more boxes anytime soon, so when they're gone, I'll be going on a liftbar hiatus.

I'll be working on the cam tools/conversions, and the PorKensioner instead.

bgrabner

I have to put in a good word for Ken's liftbars too IMO one of the best purchases i have made for my 928's. Craftsmanship is without equal, they are sturdy as hell, makes the lifting process much easier, and the cars are rock solid when they are on them. An added bonus is 3 more inches of clearance when the jack stands are fully extended due to the lift bar height! Those of you who haven't got them - get 'em before they are gone!

Dave H.

got mine today, thanks!

GT Jackson

OK Beginners question. I have watched the demo video and wonder how you get the car to the second stage height when your jack may only have a 15" lift? I suspect the typical block of wood or other to get that height.

Inquiring minds need to know.

Shane

Go to harbor freight... Heinrich and I just picked up new floor jacks from them for 35bucks. Plenty of height out of them with the lift bars to work with the car goes up on jack stands super easy.

Thanks Ken!!!

PorKen

You need a jack that can get the bars at least high enough for the lowest position of your stands! Do not use any spacer while lifting on to, or off of, the stands! The jack must be in good condition - even with a new jack, lubricate all the joints, and wheel axles with heavy lube. Always jack on a smooth level surface. The jack needs to be able to roll smoothly when lifting or lowering!

I don't recommend it, but you can use a spacer on the jack pad once the bars are on the stands. With or without a spacer, only raise the stands one or two teeth per side, then switch to the other side.

I have been able to do everything so far with my 6-ton stands at their lowest height.

dr bob

Baby bro' has a jack that Wal-Mart sells for SUV owners, lifted pad height is 21". It goes low enough to use the PorKen bars, and needs no blocks. You do need to lift in two steps, though, if you want to get the car up near the top of the 6T stand range.

There was a question about a transverse bar. I made a joke of that in another thread, and apparently didn't put a big enough smiley near the suggestion. First there is already a "factory" rear lift point in the middle of the gearbox saddle. Problem is that there is no room to work the jack handle when the front of the car is lifted. Tail of the car is too low when the front is at full height. That's the beauty of using the current liftbars-- the jack is always in an easy/safe position. For a front transverse bar, the center pad would be too low to get your jack underneath, thanks to the trays and the exhaust. Even if the jack would go in there, there would still be almost no room to work the handle due to height limits.

I stumble and fumble doing it the "old way". I have had have a couple chances to use the lift bars, at repair clinics here at the house, and they really speed up the lifting process. You do need multiple sets if you are working on multiple cars at the same time, though.

Repeating a previous thread on stands, folks who spend any time under the car will appreciate the much more robust 6-ton stands over those tiny 3-ton stands. You have the advantage of a much bigger footprint and therefor have better safety with regard to overturning at any given height. The biggers stands are regularly on sale at H-F, Sears, etc, and are always cheaper than a funeral.

SteveG

You kill me.

Ken: I have the S3 bars, but need to lift the GTS now. Could there be an adaptor? Or is the only solution 2 sets? I haven't even looked to see how much misalignment is involved.

Rob Edwards

I'm sure everyone here besides me, the Darwin award candidate, knows this, but if you're going to use the rear crossmember on which to jack, make sure it's not covered in too much grime, or, say, 90W from a leaky transmission...
The first weekend I had the GT (pre-liftbars), I put the jack (with my rubber hockeypuck saddle pad) on the crossmember, and got the rear wheels about 1/4" off the ground, when the whole car began skating sideways on the hockey puck. I got the car back down before the greasy crossmember slipped off the jack, but it was an experience I'd prefer not to repeat.

With the liftbars, I have made a habit of grabbing the A-pillar once the car's up and giving it a good tug- The car's stable as hell on the bars. Dr Bob once commented on the mechanics of how hard you'd have to push and how high, before you knock the car off the liftbars, but I don't recall the #'s. Bob?