Which parts of a car are safe to use to jack it up using a floor jack?

Question

I know that there are designated areas for the jack that came with the car (the one for changing tires), but you can't use a floor jack on those areas without destroying them. Where are you supposed to use the floor jack?

Answer 1

Every car is different old cars were easy rear differential housing and cross member under the engine in front. Now with lots of aluminum parts and independant rear suspension about the only places are the pinch weld seams under the rocker panels. There are special jack plates with grooves to lift the car using the pinched weld areas. If your brave you can lift one side of the car at a time that way. Now where to place the Jack stands?

Answer 2

It is safe to put a car on 4 jack stands if it is on a very level surface and it is done correctly. It is important that after two stands are under one end, the other end lifted all at once (not one tire at a time which could twist the car off the front stands). Whether you do the front or back first depends on where you can safely jack the car up from the center of either end (easy with a straight rear axle). One alternative is to use two jacks. To be extra safe or if you have to jack one tire at a time, leave all tires in place until all four corners of the car are firmly supported. Break all the lugs loose before each tire completely leaves the ground to save strain on the jack stands and make very sure each stand is in a proper place, firmly set and not tipping.

Answer 3

The Best Place To Use The Floor jack is on the chassis/ frame of the car, floorjacks are commonly used to either the rear or the front end for minor repair works, so I feel that when doing repair work on the rear end the best place to put the jack will be right in the center of the rear end, make sure you lift the car from the frame, or as you mentioned, you would have to shell out a lotta money for damaged body works.

Answer 4

If you have access to the manual they usually indicate factory specified jacking points, if not, look for where the axles or torsion bars attach to the frame or unibody as these are engineered to transfer the weight of vehicle+payload to the road, engine pans will collapse and lifting on the transmission alone can rip the driveline loose. Unibody cars will distort and if rusty collapse entirely, even framed chassis vehicles will do this when rusty, so it's always a good idea to use jackstands or concrete (not cinder) blocks, as jacks themselves can fail, tip or roll.

Answer 5

On the steel frame of the car. It is the only safe place to lift a car w/o doing any damage.

Answer 6

most newer cars have a contact point for a jack under the body directly behind the front wheels and in front of the rear wheels.

Answer 7

Honda Civic or Ford F-350?

Answer 8

ne spot along the frame of the car would most likely b ur best bet

Answer 9

put it on the frame itself, it carries the rest of the vehicle.

Answer 10

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