Quote:
Originally Posted by David.m
I only ever use jack stands (with jack pads) under the side jack points of the car after I have raised it using a jack under the front centre point and centre of rear subframe. I first drive onto some diy ramps to raise the front 60mm so I can get the jack under the front.
Depending on the working height I need/want I'll first get the car on 4 stands at their lowest setting then jack front again & raise before raising the rear again. To go to the stands highest setting takes more time, likewise when lowering I'll only do 1 step each end. Better to be safe than rush and make a mistake. I did think about a quickjack, lifting would be quicker but I don't know under car access would be any better and it's $$$ more expensive and bulkier to store away.
I just find the good rubber jack pads with those jack stands I linked to provide a very secure and stable working environment, even using the stands at their highest setting the car won't move.
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Well the issue is any claw style jack stand only supports the jack pad from the edges and that isn't really ideal in terms of stability - especially with rubber jack pads which literally deform and crack even when fully supported from the bottom. For instance how confident are you leaning back and then lunging forward and shoving your car with full body weight as hard as you can? Because I wouldn't be with a car supported on a jack pad that is supported by only a few cm's of surface area by a claw jack stand. especially with a rubber jack pad that cracks and deforms under the cars weight. I've had almost every single style of rubber jack pad on the market and they all sucked.
Now the reason why I prefer ramps (and utilize the bms jack pad adapters sheerly for jacking up the car, and for jobs where I need to remove all 4 wheels) is because of the significantly larger contact patch and stability this provides. I can literally run full speed and body slam the car and it will not move. This is great for high torque applications under the car - i.e. those massive torque to yield fasteners. I also have 4 bmw x5 scissor jacks at all 4 jack points + 2 jack stands on the rear subframe for even more additional security (I have 2 additional jack stands that I can use on the front subframe too - if they dont get in the way, but they don't hold much load so I don't risk damaging the frame), because I will take no chances while working under my car. The combined weight rating of all of these lifting devices also exceeds 20,000 lbs, so im fairly confident nothing will ever happen with my setup.