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Thread: (Jack Stands) - Help me from getting my face crushed in!

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    Senior Member Charlie's Avatar
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    (Jack Stands) - Help me from getting my face crushed in!

    Hi guys, due to what I've been hearing, I am planning on doing my first oil change probably at 1500 miles.

    Since I will be doing it myself, I am concerned about safety.

    I used to help my dad out with oil changes on his car when I was a kid..facepalm - you would not believe what we did! Since I did not know any better and my dad was doing it, I thought it was fine. I would go under the car with one scissor jack on each side of the car and..that's it! Now that I am wiser, and fully conscious of how stupid that was, I am not risking my face getting crushed in by 2000 pounds of car.

    Soooo..I will be getting some proper jack stands now!

    Any recommendations?? The only thing I could find at the auto store nearest me were Autocraft jack stands. Don't know about the quality. Since these will be the only things that will be standing between me and a world of pain, I want to make sure what I'm getting is good.

    ----------------------

    Also, where do you put the jack stands?? The 'normal' place where you put the scissor jacks for emergency tire replacement looks SOOOO thin. I can imagine it bending in on itself from the weight. Is there a better place??

    -Charlie-



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    From the Japanese manual:

    Name:  miragejack.jpg
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    To change the oil, I prefer jacking up the car using a trolley/service jack on the front-passenger side jack point. Then I put a jack stand under the car between the front wheels at the point indicated in the manual above, and another jack stand right next to the service jack as a backup. So, I have three things holding up the car at the same time.

    Alternatively, you can use the troller jack at the center point, and two jack stands on either side of the car at the jack points behind each wheel.

    The Autocraft brand seems decent.

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    Eggman (04-29-2017)

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    You use NO jacks at all,man! You use CAR RAMPS to change the oil. Autozone. $40.00

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    To be safe if you only have jacks, use two scissor jacks on the front jacking points, then put two pieces of wood under the wheels so it cannot fall.
    Scissor jacks have a lower failure rate

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    Hm .. I've always avoided ramps because it can be stressful trying to get the car up onto them .. wondering if one will slip or if I'll roll off the ramp's side or the end.

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    Senior Member Charlie's Avatar
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    I checked some ramps out yesterday actually. The heck? At least the ones I was looking at, they were these thin plastic things! NOT using those lol!

    Thanks so much for the recommendations guys. I will have to ponder this a bit more the rest of this week. I still have several hundred miles left till my first oil change.

    -Charlie-

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    The plastic ones are better than the steel. Ramps all day long for anything not requiring the front wheels to come off. If that, then jackstands.

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2014 Mirage ES 1.2 manual: 44.4 mpg (US) ... 18.9 km/L ... 5.3 L/100 km ... 53.3 mpg (Imp)


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    I use the dealer for oil changes. More expensive than doing it your self, but I minimize cost by using my local dealer who offers free popcorn and soda/coffee in their waiting area.

    I figure the price of the oil change/service - $1.50 for a soda - $1.25 for popcorn (not using movie theater prices here) helps cut the cost of the service. Ironically, the longer they take, the cheaper it becomes as the refills are also on them.

    This doesn't even count the two paper towels I use cleaning up my hands from the popcorn salt and oil. Bound to be another penny or so there!!

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    ミラージュ Minihaha's Avatar
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    gettin' the car jacked

    Rhino Ramps will work like a charm.
    I have used both ramps & jack-stands in the past (on other vehicles).

    For an oil change I recommend the ramps, they add an angle to the drain-pan that can increase the drainage. Also, they work awesome: roll-up and you're good to go - that simple, no need to find any jack points.

    However, when I just added my wheels (& changed the oil) I wanted the car up at all 4 corners, so i jacked it up and used stands.

    1. In the front I used the hydraulic jack on a massive bolthead/nut (can't remember which it was) at the back of the front suspension mounts. It worked great.
    2. Once the car was up I put a jack-stands towards the front of the "frame-rails," this is a tubular section of the uni-body that runs longitudinally on both sides of the car (parallel to the rocker panel) from behind the front suspension to just before the rear suspension.
    3.With the front (both sides) on stands, jack the rear in the middle at the point the owner's manual recommends (the center tie-down point). Once the car is up, place stands under solid suspension parts or suspension attachment points. [DO NOT put jack-stands on the u-beam axle].
    4. After settling down on all stands, attempt to 'shake' the car to verify it's solidly held. Once the solidity is confirmed go to town doing what you need.

    (Pro-Tip: if you are removing your wheels, be sure to 'break' the bolts while the wheels are still on the ground, not hanging in the air)
    ゼロ

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2014 Mirage DE 1.2 manual: 33.4 mpg (US) ... 14.2 km/L ... 7.0 L/100 km ... 40.1 mpg (Imp)


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    just drive it on a curb



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