jjbunn

I recently bought a Craftsman 2 1/2 ton floor jack, and was using it yesterday to lift the car while I changed one of the wheels on my 964.

I used a rear jacking point, just in front of the rear wheel arch, and a small piece of wood between the jack's lifting head and the jacking point.

As I lifted the car, there was a lot of creaking going on. It worried me a bit. I wondered whether I should have released the handbrake, and used some bricks each side of the wheels I wasn't lifting. Should the handbrake be released?

Also, as the car went higher, it became increasingly difficult to work the jack's lever: I was having to use quite a lot of force. This also worried me, but maybe that's normal with a hydraulic floor jack (I'm used to standard jacks which employ a worm screw)?

From what I read, 2 1/2 ton capacity should be more than enough, but am I wrong? I must say, the idea of using this jack to lift the whole of the rear, by jacking at the base of the engine, fills me with horror. What if the hydraulic system fails just as it's at maximum height?

I'd be grateful for advice/comments.

ilko

I always use wheel chocks when jacking up the car. I always have the hand brake on as well. I take it off if necessary after all 4 wheels are off the ground.

I've never had my P-car make creaking noises, but I had a VW that did. I *think* it was the coil springs in the suspension, but I can't say for sure, it's been a while.

The jack will be harder to operate as the car goes higher, but not so much that you would have to really "work" it. Maybe since it's new it hasn't been broken in yet.

Are you using jack stands for support after you jack up the car? Floor jacks have been known to settle down and even completely fail, jack stands are much safer.

wf758

would anyone mind posting some best practices for jacking and putting our cars on jack stands? I know there have been a number of threads on this topic, and I'm still confused as a newbie to getting my hands dirty...

ilko

Here's a few how-to's:

http://www.ehow.com/how_1864_jack-car-safely.html
http://www.dummies.com/WileyCDA/Dumm...le/id-426.html
http://www.livescience.com/php/video..._id=jackupacar - video

It's the same for our cars, but we can also use the bottom of the engine case as a jacking point. A lot of those front engined dudes can't do that cuz all they have is a fragile oil pan at the bottom of their engines

ddubois

NEVER get under the car unless it's supported with jack stands. That is Russian roulette. You can get away with it under an SUV, assuming you like things like bungee jumping. As in watching something big approaching your face rapidly, only to stop inches from your nose.

I have no problem jacking the rear under the engine. Did it for years with VWs. In fact I don't even remove the tray before jacking. Just place a 8" piece of 2x4 centered on the case center line protrusion. The tray plastic is pliable enough that it won't crack, but not so pliable that the protrusion will 'push' a hole through the tray.

tbennett017

The problem I end up with is that the jack points in the 4 corners inside the wheels are relatively small. If you get a floor jack under one, it is hard to then put a jack stand in the same place. I have had success recently by starting with the rear of the car, jacking both wheels off the ground by using the bottom of the engine case. That gets jackstands under both sides at the rear. I then lift with the jack at one of the sides up front at the jacking points, that lifts the front end of the car more or less evenly, as the body won't flex, and the jackstands at the rear act as a pivot point. This gets a third jack stand under one of the front points. I finally gently lift the car from under one of tow hooks up front (inside the wheel well) to get the final 4th jackstand in place. It takes 3 jack setups, but it gets the job done without too much drama.

deep_uv

Here's some good links on the subject:

https://rennlist.com/forums/showthre...ht=jack+stands

https://rennlist.com/forums/showthre...ht=jack+stands

https://rennlist.com/forums/showthre...ht=jack+stands


Regards,

Steve

AOW162435

Will,
Here is what I do and I have had the car on 4 stands an inordinate amount of times since buying it in '05. This takes me less than 10 minutes and results in a very stable setup.

Since my 993 is slightly lowered, I first drive the front wheels on to a set of short 2x6" boards. Then using a normal Craftsman aluminum floor jack, I lift the rear by the engine case (hockey puck under the case) high enough to get one set of flat-top AC stands under the rear lift points. I let the car rest on the rear stands and then place a 2' length of 2x6" on the jack cradle. I fold a towel a few times to cover the board and then lift the entire front very easily by placing the board directly behind where the front bumper plastic ends (same place that a FPB would go). Since the weight of the engine and tranny are behind the rear stands, the car will pivot nicely as the front is raised. I then place the stands under the front lift points and get to work. Depending on what I'm doing under the car, I may then raise the rear a bit more, but you get the point. I've never had an issue with this method and feel very safe under the car using the AC stands.

Andreas

jjbunn

Thanks for all the great advice.

It sounds like my 2 1/2 ton floor jack is man enough for the job.

Nobody else has creaking when they lift the car?

I did all four wheels this afternoon. My problem is that the space in my garage is limited, and so I have to start with the car facing in, do two wheels, then reverse out, back in, and do the other two. I hate starting and stopping the engine like that: drives me nuts. But there's no other way.

JasonAndreas

One problem with jacking the 964 by the engine case is that the hydraulic motor mounts have a habit of failing.

AOW162435

I presume this a potential issue with the 993 camp as well?

It would be nice if the mounts featured a mechanical lock-out - for those of us intent on lifting the car on a monthly basis

Andreas

wf758

thanks guys, although I'm now confused on the engine case issue. What is the issue with the motor mounts? I thought jacking by the engine case was an accepted "good practice" by the crowd. Guessing I shouldn't be a lemming????

jjbunn

The frightening story I read is that you can lose the fluid out of the mounts if you jack the engine up ... I think it was someone in this forum a while back: they had a load of fluid gush out and drip onto the garage floor

Marc Shaw

Just replace the engine mounts with Wevo or RS.

Marc

JasonAndreas

Yes the mounts are the same.

This is one of those things where you are not left with too many alternatives. Lots and lots of people have jacked by the engine case without a problem (myself included) but there are more than a few that have had problems. So people need to be aware of the consequences. If both mounts fail it can get expensive, the MSRP is $258.74USD.