jaholmes

I agree, I really do not understand the economics of this stuff being built in China. I have a greg smith lift and the thing is a ton, I can't see how it's cheaper to ship it across an ocean cheaper then paying someone in the US to make it. Their markup must be incredible to make it worth their while.

JPS

Stupid Q alert:
With a good jack and just doing stuff like bleeding brakes, changing oil, etc...are jack stands really needed? I totally get it if you are going to leave the car in the air for days at a time, but otherwise...?

AOW162435

Damn skippy. Just sayin'


Andreas

jungleboy

Thanks, I'll have to invest in a set.

Slow Guy

I wouldn't get under a car that was only up on a jack. I have seen them drop unexpectedly. I've also had a non-Porsche slip off a jack, good thing I had a stand as backup.

gonzilla

For what it's worth, I just got an email from Steve @ Ultimate Garage... There will be NO FURTHER DISCOUNTING at this time for the ESCO jack stands. He said his importer dropped their price $15, and he dropped his price $23 accordingly. He also said that he in fact had to change the price from $72 to $74 to account for heavy duty boxes that he uses in shipping them because the original Chinese boxes "won't hold up well in transit". I am guessing that this is the cheapest that we are going to be able to get these stands for a while. He also mentioned that he only has a few sets left.

Gus Sem

Related newbie question . . .
I'm considering buying 2 jack stands. However, is it ok to raise one side of the car up on jacks? I'd like to take both wheels off and clean the wheel-wells - one side at a time. As far as working on the car, this is my first excursion. Thanks.

Gus
'95 C2

GaryB

Just ordered 4. They should go well with the nice jack I bought at Costco last month. Time to start getting these new, shiny tools dirty.

Gary

jungleboy

I just ordered a set and the advertised $10 shipping (which is admittedly low for the weight) was increased to around $45... did you have the same result???

gonzilla

I did. Pretty sloppy. But it's still cheaper than anywhere else I could find them. They're even on Ebay right now for $99.00 + shipping!

jungleboy

I suppose you're right... but still, they need to be upfront about it.

gonzilla

I agree, that's why I said that it was "pretty sloppy". By the way, did you get an email telling you how much the shipping would actually be before the transaction went through?

jungleboy

I did, why did you not? In the end I can't complain tooooo much since they did tell me before the transaction was complete... but I was just irked because it was after I had committed to buy and excited about receiving them and working on my car yada yada... and a day later the e-mail comes . Of course I am not going to say no now, I want to work on my car in my garage!!

Steve D'Gerolamo

The item desciption always indicated that "actual freight"would be charged when processing the transaction. In the past, I padded the cost of the item to let the transaction slip under the flat $10 shipping rate. This was not fair to the East Coast and Central customers. Now a fair price is listed for the item ($74ea , previously $95ea for the AC Hydraulic versions) and actual freight is charged. The item listing on my site now gives a freight cost range (a pair of stands with special double wall packaging weighs 28 lbs)........

East Coast - $12-16/pair
Central - $18-24/pair
Rockies/West Coast - $25-32/pair

If you have a UPS account, I'd be happy to let you pick up the freight cost and charge you only for the stands.

Jungleboy....I just sent you an email explaining all this. Its not too late for me to cancel your order.

There will be no more stands after the current shipment until May-June and future pricing is not guaranteed. If anyone needs an exact freight quote, send me an email with your zip code before ordering online. Steve , Ultimate Garage

GaryB

"I just ordered a set and the advertised $10 shipping (which is admittedly low for the weight) was increased to around $45... did you have the same result???"


I did receive the following email a bit after placing the order:

Jackstands - 4x$74.00 = $296.00
Shipping, UPS ground - $31.00/pr x 2 = $62.00
Total with Freight - $358.00

If memory serves, during checkout when you arrive at the shippimg part of the order, the actual shipping costs are quoted, with the higher rates for the West Coast. I live on the upper West Ccoast so I think this is in the ballpark of expected costs.

The email from Steve D'Gerolamo of the Ultimate Garage, also asks for acceptance of the total of the Jacks and shopping. My price for 4 stands and shipping is $358.00