Safe use of axle stands

shauncr91

shauncr91

shauncr91

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Can anyone inform me of the safest way to use axle stands?

I've been gradually getting more and more hands on with my car and although I've been happy doing simple brake jobs etc with just a trolley jack for support I want to start messing about more such as doing my own oil changes and other stuff which may require getting under the car.. Because of this I've bought a set of Sealey stands.

Am I right in thinking that you should only put them under the axles? Was chatting with my dad about it and he said you can put them under the jacking points but I don't want to risk bending the sills...

Ta :)
 
When using some ebay axle stand I put some bricks under the sills too as I don't trust what China classifies as steel. I've had them on the subframe but i prefer the jacking points, feels more stable.

<3 front and rear jacking points. amirite bledd
 
Jack off the subframe and put them on the reinforced jacking point on the sill, tiny bit of wood or rubber if your worried about marking.
 
Ideally you need to know where on your car is safe to jack and support from, but usually you can jack from somewhere on the subframe and place the stand on one of the reinforced sections of the sill which will be designed for you to jack from using the scissor jack - this is where most people will jack and support from - this part of the sill sits in the 'V' shape of the axle stands nicely and it won't bend, move, or fall off. With my car I jack from here and place the stands next to the jack on the same section of sill. Not bent anything yet. You're not supporting the whole weight of the car on that one section don't forget.

I do hope you've not been placing yourself or any parts of your body underneath the car with just the trolley jack for support. :)
 
Howard said:
this part of the sill sits in the 'V' shape of the axle stands nicely and it won't bend, move, or fall off. With my car I jack from here and place the stands next to the jack on the same section of sill. Not bent anything yet.
Click to expand...

This is what I generally do but it depends on the car as some cars don't have enough space.

Ironically with the Smart I can jack up the rear and stick the axle stand under the front jacking point as the whole thing lifts up :D
 
I jack mine up and place the stands on the control arm mounting point.

It sits in the v shape of the stand perfectly.

I don't like touching my 90s Nissan sills...
 
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If you don't use the stand adapter then you will end up with messed up sills. Certainly never jack from the sill, 100% it will damage it and that's when rust starts setting in. I just put the stands under anywhere solid, subframe, frame rails etc..
 
If you want to use axle stands at the jack points, buy yourself four of these:http://www.amazon.co.uk/varies-Ice-...id=1393675383&sr=8-1&keywords=ice+hockey+puck

They are made of thick rubber. Drill a hole through the middle of them (as in, across their diameter), then cut a groove in the top down to the hole, about the same depth as your car's sill.

Shove the modified puck on your axle stand and Bob's your uncle....great way to support your car under it's jack points without damaging the sill.

Buy a fifth puck and modify it to fit in your trolley jack cup and you can then use the trolley jack to lift the car at the sill as well, if needed :)

Funny fact about the pucks I linked to above....there's 27 customer reviews, and pretty much every single one is from someone who bought them to use as car jacking accessories rather than for ice hockey :D
 
Unless you using them on a concrete floor, in the past I have always placed them on a piece of thick plywhen using on tarmac driveway, spreads the load, & stops them suddenly sinking.

And they should be used in pairs, also I use pieces of thick old car mats on the heads, saves marking the chassis.
 
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Conscript said:
If you want to use axle stands at the jack points, buy yourself four of these:http://www.amazon.co.uk/varies-Ice-...id=1393675383&sr=8-1&keywords=ice+hockey+puck

They are made of thick rubber. Drill a hole through the middle of them (as in, across their diameter), then cut a groove in the top down to the hole, about the same depth as your car's sill.

Shove the modified puck on your axle stand and Bob's your uncle....great way to support your car under it's jack points without damaging the sill.

Buy a fifth puck and modify it to fit in your trolley jack cup and you can then use the trolley jack to lift the car at the sill as well, if needed :)

Funny fact about the pucks I linked to above....there's 27 customer reviews, and pretty much every single one is from someone who bought them to use as car jacking accessories rather than for ice hockey :D
Click to expand...

What did you use to cut the puck?

I bought some for this very purpose but couldn't cut the buggers so just cut some wood instead, far less hassle.
 
I always give the car a decent shove while on stands to make sure I'm happy it won't move before getting under it.

But no matter what I do, it always gives me the willys getting under a car.
 
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