Jacking up a vehicle for an oil change

[orezok]

That's not safe at all! Don't this idiot know he should have also slid the welder under it as a second safety device.....

Some people!


Chris

Nah... he was worried that if it collapsed with his welder under ther that it would damage the welder!

 

[dfkrug]

After about the second time changing a mech fuel pump I just replaced them wit low pressure electric pumps. The early Vega's had one that would mount to the fender well that worked great for pretty much any carb. For $20 you never had to deal with mech pumps or that stupid shaft that operated it.

I put one of those electric low-pressure pumps on my 240Z, and it worked great. No more vapor-lock, either. Remember vapor-lock, anyone?

I dodged a bullet on the Chevy Vegas....almost bought one in 74, before they were known to be crap. Vegas are rarer than Ferraris now.

In the 70s, I used ramps for oil changes, but I had a ramp leg collapse once when driving up one, and you do have to slip the clutch a lot to ascend them. Modern ramps don't have spindly legs, from what I see out there.

 

[My Hoe]

I agree, set the brake, jack stands to support & chock the wheels THEN test (shake a bit) for stability before venturing anywhere underneath. If you're working alone, have your mobile phone on you too.

But we live in a constantly 'dumbing-down' (first) world where you take your vehicle in to be serviced or have road-side assistance to change a flat tyre, etc...

Wagtail,

(I didn't read the whole thread, as I responded at the beginning, but...) I couldn't agree more, with everything you (and Diamondpilot) said.

 

[crazyal]

I put one of those electric low-pressure pumps on my 240Z, and it worked great. No more vapor-lock, either. Remember vapor-lock, anyone?

I dodged a bullet on the Chevy Vegas....almost bought one in 74, before they were known to be crap. Vegas are rarer than Ferraris now.

In the 70s, I used ramps for oil changes, but I had a ramp leg collapse once when driving up one, and you do have to slip the clutch a lot to ascend them. Modern ramps don't have spindly legs, from what I see out there.

Back in the day I had a set of heavy duty ramps. They had the leg in the middle. Still dangerous. Either you slipped the clutch trying to get up them or you got a little speed up and risked having your tire hit the stop and the ramp tipping forward. Never really trusted stamped sheet metal.

 

[Happy Gilmore]

My Dad always drilled into my head to put solid wood blocks under anything I had jacked up. I always keep a hefty supply on hand. He knew a fella who was crushed in the driveway back in the day.

 

[JDgreen227]

My Dad always drilled into my head to put solid wood blocks under anything I had jacked up. I always keep a hefty supply on hand. He knew a fella who was crushed in the driveway back in the day.

"Solid wood blocks".....??? All wood can split. I have never used wood for that purpose nor cement blocks....and I don't know if anyone has ever used my method for when a jack stand will not work: I have a number of older 14 inch rims and tires, stacking two of those atop each other will work great as an emergency support. I recently had to put new rear brakes on my GMC and there wasn't enough room on the axle for both a floor jack and jack stand, so I used a pair of those rims and tires under the frame toward the front of the vehicle. I never got underneath it but wanted the backup support just in case the floor jack might fail as I was working on the truck.

 

[Depmandog]

"Solid wood blocks".....??? All wood can split. Snip /QUOTE]

I have a stack of 6x6 pressure treated nubs left over from building my barn. They range from 12-16". When used like cribbing - alternating the direction of placement per row, I find it makes a perfectly solid support. Used this way there isn't any concern for splitting. If I have to climb under, I will also grab a piece of 3/4" ply that I have cut to place on the top of the cribbing. I will also run a few screws in to lock it all together.

I have enough blocks to raise my 13' Bush Hog 3 spindle flat RC about 24" on four corners. Not sure how much that thing weighs, but it strains the hi-lift. Gives me major willys going under that thing...reminds me of a giant cookie cutter and with me being the potential dough. YIKES!!

 

[doxford jim]

I guess I am lucky in that I can change the oil in all my vehicles without using a jack. Just have to slide under to get to the drains is all. Even my tractor has high enough ground clearance to work on pretty much everything.

Wooden blocks work well and in good condition, would work well as a backup should the axle stand get knocked etc.

 

[The Suburban Farmer]

I guess I am lucky in that I can change the oil in all my vehicles without using a jack.

Yep - this is one of the benefits of the 3" lift I put on my Tacoma... now if my wife will just let me lift her sedan, we'll be all set.

But on a more serious note -- I've used the wooden 6x6 block approach most of my life. Like Happy Gilmore said, my daddy taught me to do it that way, so that's how I've done it. But recently I switched over to using the metal jack stands that came as a "free bonus item" when I bought a new floor jack thinking they were safer... after using them for a bit, I think I was wrong. They seem less stable to me than the old trusty 6x6 approach.

I think I'm going back to my old 6x6 blocks, with 4x4 chocks behind the tires.

 

[Threepoint]

The big Titan turf tires on my Kioti NX are much too wide for 6 x 6s. I drive up on doubled 2 x 10s or 2 x 12s, then also place 3 ton and 6 ton jack stands under the front and back axles, respectively. The tractor's north of 6 K lbs. I agree that wood can split, but I've also thought this was pretty safe, since the load on the 2-by material is in compression and well distributed. No? Not sure how I could make things safer. :confused3: