Tips wanted on hydraulic jacks and ramps

[toledo 0]

Hi

I need to buy a new reasonably priced hydraulic jack and ramps for my new Rado VR6 and just thought someone might have a recommendation or two.

 

What brand and where from please ?

[boost monkey 0]

Halfords, £30 a set? Not really something you need to shell out £££ for unless your car is silly low and you need a low profile jack which ARE £££.

[JohnCarlos 10]

When I started out working on cars I bought a 2 ton jack for about £30 at machine mart, and forked out for some decent axle stands.

 

The axle stands have been great, but those cheap jacks aren't worth it in my opinion.

 

I just recently got a Sealey 3003CXQ for about £100 and it is excellent. 'Car mechanics' magazine reviewed jacks a number of months ago and this one was highly recommended.

 

It depends on what you are going to use the jack for, but I would say buy the best you can afford and avoid the cheap ones unless you just need to change a tyre and service the car occasionally.

 

Also, I looked at ramps but could never get ones with enough clearance, maybe others might have had a better experience.

[fla 9]

ramps - i got some sections of 8x2 (or 8x3, can't remember) wood, and cut them into steps. They're not fixed together for easy storage and to make them easier to move. I have 5 steps which raises the car a good comfortable height and is also thin enough to allow the car to drive up it unlike normal ramps, which are too steep.

[Supercharged 2]

Stick to Halfords for a jack, very good quality!

 

Ramps might be a bit tricky as you need fairly heavy duty ones for 205 width tyres.

[fendervg 32]

I think it's worth spending a bit extra for a quick lift jack - much easier to lift the car and a simple twist or a pedal will lower, rather than having to turn the release valve - I bought a Halford's 3 tonne one a few years ago and can't complain. It's heavy though, so yuo wouldn't be carrying it about much.

[boost monkey 0]

the halfords ones work fine, but as said you get what you pay for. paying a lot for jack is a waste of money for me, my car only cost £400 so having a single tool worth 1/4 of its value is a bit of a worry.

[neuon2003 0]

ramps - i got some sections of 8x2 (or 8x3, can't remember) wood, and cut them into steps. They're not fixed together for easy storage and to make them easier to move. I have 5 steps which raises the car a good comfortable height and is also thin enough to allow the car to drive up it unlike normal ramps, which are too steep.

 

I like this idea. Some time ago I came across this guide but have yet to do anything about it [build your own ramps].

[jamiehamy 0]

On the Halfords ones, I've got mixed views. I've had the smallest one for years and it served well, only begining to die in the last few months.

 

Got bought a Halfords Pro 2.25tonnes jack for Xmas 2009 and it's already started to rust. It's rarely, if ever been outside and regularly cleaned, so I'm not impressed.

 

Next time it'll be a proper Sealey one.

[fla 9]

I like this idea. Some time ago I came across this guide but have yet to do anything about it [build your own ramps].

 

same idea as mine, cheap, solid and easy to use.

[boost monkey 0]

I don't like the idea of anything that can potentially allow the car to slip off, especially when you're underneath it so I'd never recommend ramps. Especially home made ones!

 

Give me a pair of small metal tripods any day.

[sexybourbon 0]

i think the wooden ramps are a great idea and you could also make two for the back just lower than the body of the car to give the back a little raise and level aswell

at the end of the day if trains can use beams of wood to run rails on and house roofs can can hold all the weight of all the tiles on im sure it can hold the weight of a little corrado

[Supercharged 2]

^ Yep - I know someone that made a rasied pit type thing using railway sleepers.

[neuon2003 0]

Not sure about this, though...

[boost monkey 0]

i think the wooden ramps are a great idea and you could also make two for the back just lower than the body of the car to give the back a little raise and level aswell

at the end of the day if trains can use beams of wood to run rails on and house roofs can can hold all the weight of all the tiles on im sure it can hold the weight of a little corrado

 

Trains can't roll OFF their tracks and houses don't tend to move either :lol:

[toledo 0]

Not sure about this, though...

 

Awesome !! If not just a little anal !

[Kevin Bacon 5]

Loving the DIY ramps, such a simple idea and great for oil changes and doing jobs on the exhaust.

 

Off to B&Q to buy some planks....

[sexybourbon 0]

Trains can't roll OFF their tracks and houses don't tend to move either :lol:

 

what im saying is that wood can withstand alot of weight being put on it like .... a train , maybe you should stick with metal tripods personally i would use the wooden ramps , id just make sure the hand brake was on before i started work or is there a problem with this method asweal!!

[Kevin Bacon 5]

Wood FTW. Morgan cars have wooden chassis. Railway sleepers are gradually being replaced with concrete ones it seems, although that's probably more to do with cost that strength. Reclaimed sleepers make excellent garden walls / flower beds / footings for decking etc!

[neuon2003 0]

Loving the DIY ramps, such a simple idea and great for oil changes and doing jobs on the exhaust.

 

Off to B&Q to buy some planks....

 

Here you go...

[carrots 1]

try unipart for a jack,i heard kevin off coronation street has bought a poor quality 1 lol

[toledo 0]

I got the lifting pack from Halfords for £44.99 on offer from £59.99

Contains 2 tonne jack, 2 axle stands, 2 chocks and a creeper board.

Will post when i've had chance to use it, if TPS pull their fingure out and supply me the parts i ordered !

[Wild-Animal 0]

I use a 6 tonne trolley jack, Its for using on tractors ! But because its so big its so much more stable, I would say go for a decent size. As for Halfords jacks..... I would go elsewhere there small jacks are from what I have used a pain in the butt and it ended up loosing fluid not after very long.

 

The best axle stand I have ever seen was in a srappy with one side of the car being held up by a brake disc lying flat and another disc sitting inside it verticle holding up the side of the car. Safe to say I never put my head under it!