“Jack stands aren’t that expensive,” Phil notes. “Be smart.”
At the end of the day, I don't think you can put a price on safety.
“You shook that car pretty hard. What if it fell?” people tell BimmerWorld’s Phil Wurz.
“Well,” he replies, “I’d much rather have it fall now than when I’m under it.”
Jack stands are your last line of defense between a sick project car update and a serious accident.
So, where to place your jack stands? It’s all about location, location, location. Take your time and double-check all your jack points. Hint: Check your owner’s manual or service guide for this info.
“[Make] sure you are jacking from the correct location and also that you place the jack stand in the correct location,” shares Phil. “It is critical to make sure the car is properly supported in the right spots, as it can be a safety hazard, for one, but also it can damage the vehicle.”
Also, take a moment to look at the area around you. Are you on a level surface? Are you on asphalt or gravel? How steady will your stands sit?
“Having some sort of piece of plywood or other material to set under the stand is important to increase stability if you’re on gravel, sand or grass–which may be the case in certain race track paddocks,” Phil notes.
On a level surface? Don’t ditch the plywood just yet. Hot asphalt plus jack stands with pointy ends can lead to a problem, Phil continues.
Don’t feel like carrying around a piece of plywood? Buy stands that come with wide feet and pads. Or check out traditional cam-lock, stamped steel-style jack stands fitted with welded bases. Extra strength plus extra stability.
Phil is not a fan of using those boards to add height, though: “I prefer to have the correct jack stand for the job.”
And just like everything else, remember that jack stands have a lifespan. Regularly inspect yours. Are the mechanisms functioning as intended? Are there any cracks?
If the damage is more than cosmetic, pull that jack stand from service. “Jack stands aren’t that expensive,” Phil notes. “Be smart.”
And don’t forget to shake that car once it’s up in the air. Shake that thing like your life depends on it–because it does.
“Jack stands aren’t that expensive,” Phil notes. “Be smart.”
At the end of the day, I don't think you can put a price on safety.
To be honest, I don't even like getting under a car at all these days.
last line of defense
I always used to put my wheels off and put them under the car as another layer.
And DON'T use concrete blocks.
I've been using a couple of sets of Harbor Freight 3-ton aluminum jack stands for 15 years. I wonder about them on occasion, but they have held everything from the Abomination at 1500 pounds to my F350 at 9k pounds.
When the recall from HF came out, I was sure it was for the aluminum stands, but no, it was the steel stands that were failing.
The aluminum ones never wiggle, so I keep using them. But I still wonder...
Not enough to replace them, though. It's nice to be able to grab 4 stands in one hand and drag the jack with the other.
I just snagged a pair of old-school 5 ton stands that were headed to the dump, presumably due to the stuck lever on one of them. I'm going to go over them thoroughly before putting them into service, but they're not meaningfully rusty (except for that handle) and heavier than the ones I've had forever. That said, when possible I'm using the solid wood ramps I built last summer whenever possible.
Oh, and +1 for throwing any wheels you pull off the car under the rockers.
z31maniac said:To be honest, I don't even like getting under a car at all these days.
I feel so much better with my quickjacks.
theruleslawyer said:z31maniac said:To be honest, I don't even like getting under a car at all these days.
I feel so much better with my quickjacks.
If I still worked on my own stuff like I used to, I'd probably invest in some.
If you want to avoid the additional stack height of wood under your stands or jack, use thin 1/8" steel sheet metal with rounded corners. That's what we did when we ran PWC under the Realtime Racing tent. Spreads the load nicely, is easy to maneuver the jack or stand on it, and it very heavy. Our even had a nice handhold cut out in them.
RTR had all kinds of cool tool solutions like this they built bespoke over the years.
Because many race tracks don't like jackstands sinking into their nice pavement I welded 1/8" sheetmetal across the bottom of one set of my stands.
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