Working under a jacked vehicle

I wouldn't. The base is too narrow and even bolting it down to a piece of steel still leaves one side in tension, if you bump the vehicle at all. That's not for me.

If it has a rack and a positive lock for the rack, and I mean POSITIVE, I would accept that, but not the narrow base.

If you're going to work under cars and trucks, you really want some broad-base, really solid standing jacks. They're a lifetime investment. Mine are 45 years old.

Those are only approved for liberal Democrats.

It's never safe to work under a vehicle that is asymmetrically supported. Supports should always be used in pairs if you're going to be underneath it.

Those are great jacks, but not a substitute for a pair of proper jack stands. A pair of proper 6T jack stands is

The old advice is correct, NEVER work under a vehicle supported just by a jack. Seals fail on hydraulics, mechaincal ones can twist or tip. HF has jackstands so cheap, it's foolish not to have a pair or two. I've personally had a car roll on me supported just by a jack, I rolled out just before it came down or I would have been squished. Jack it up, stick the jackstand under it and set it down on that. Either that or get some heavy duty ramps. Have a set of those, too. If you're working on the rear and want to jack that up, block the fronts with wheel chocks. All this stuff costs peanuts compared with what COULD happen if the thing rolls while you're under there.

Stan

NO WAY would I trust my precious self to that. My personal standard is two ramps, two wide-based jack stands with feet added to protect the asphalt, and try real hard to shake the vehicle off the stands before crawling under. If at all possible I leave the tires on, otherwise (hubs, ball joints etc) I add another stand or large wooden blocks.

jsw

I'd be happier if a nice chunk of firewood was backing that jack up.

I tend to use ramps, wood or metal but even with those, a blowout of a tire could ruin my day.

Use the jacks if you want to but have something else to save you from a crushing injury if the jack slips or fails.

I can't bench press my vehicle, I doubt you can either.

Wes

Or Red Army enlisted soldiers.

Something that's kept me alive and with all my limbs is the philosophy of always being at least

2 and ideally 3 mistakes away from an accident.

Jack up your car, one mistake away. Stick a jack stand under it, two mistakes. Roll the wheel under it as well, three mistakes.

>

I second that, as you only get one chance. I use a hydraulic jack backed up by 2 jackstands & wheel chock plus if I have to take a tire off, that goes under the frame as well. I had a friend mangle his hand due to a jack slipping, so I am very paranoid. Torquing on bolts rock a car around...

MikeB

I think it is safe 29 times out of 30. Not a high enough number to risk the results when it is not safe.

Dan

Yes, if you use a jack stand with it (with any jack.)

If I'd had a jack stand on the tow truck 27 years ago, I wouldn't have hurt my back by trying to life something at extension.

-- Learning to ignore things is one of the great paths to inner peace. -- Robert J. Sawyer

Even if all your relatives have to pay for is a cheap funeral, that's still more expensive.

And if it squishes you and leaves you brain-damaged but alive and needy

-- that's _way_ more expensive than jack stands.

Always use jack stands, and think about what's under them (the driveway at my old place featured concrete that was only 1/2" thick in places -- I learned this one day when I stuck a jack under a car and jacked the driveway down an inch or two. After that, jack stands always went onto pads of thick plywood or sections of 2x12).

Yes, the base on most consumer-grade jacks is not up to the job. It gives me the creeps just to look at them and imagine someone coming up and leaning on a fender while I'm underneath...

Roughly as safe as the space shuttle.

Best regards, Spehro Pefhany

Some 25 years ago, I was out riding my motorcycle, and decided to stop by a friend's house that I was passing by. He was sitting on the ground next to his car, which had the right front wheel off, and the body just behind the wheel well was resting directly on the wheel. My first impression was that he was using that as a stand. Heh, nice and stable! But then I saw the look in his eyes and noticed some minor cuts and scratches on his face. He'd been under the car while it was supported solely by a jack. What type I don't recall. Anyway, wrenching a bolt loose, the jack shifted and the car fell on him. The only reason I came by to hear the tale, and not find him dead under his car, was the tire, and he freely admitted it just happened to get shoved under the body, that wasn't a safety backup.

I'm always very very cautious about working under any vehicle that's on supports/stands. I've got a pair my grandfather made in the 40's, 12" square base, they'd hold the front end of anything I'd ever own with no worries. But few modern stands have a wide base for me.

Iggy's jack, I wouldn't trust even with my ex under the car...

Jon

I've been using a pair of these for the last few years:

They are the cat's pajamas. Very strong and lightweight.

--Winston

I think that I got it. Thanks guys.

i

Note Winston's suggestion about ramps. They're good. I use ramps for changing oil, etc. But they get in the way when you're working out on the corners, and you can't use them for jobs that require the suspension to be unloaded, like changing struts or replacing half-axles.

Be careful not to drive over the end of a ramp, or you're in deep doo-doo. In about 48 years of using them, I have not yet driven over the end of one. But I expect to every time I do it.