What is the safest way to Jack/Lift my Boxster?

[gandrade1]

Hi Guys,

I am planing to start doing my own oil changes and would like to know whats is the safest way to lift my Boxster for service. I have heard some horror stories (none particular to Porsches) about people getting smashed by their cars.

There is a PepBoys across from my house...Is there anything I could get there or in any alike store that would do the job?

Any tips on how to lift the car, such as how far to put the ramps and how to distribute the jack(s)?

Thank you very much,

Gus

:renntech:

Edited February 13, 2008 by gandrade1

[kbrandsma]

There is lots of threads on this via the search engine on Renntech and others. Here is one I found via a thread search not to long ago.click here

[itzbob46]

There are some threads that describe how to use hockey pucks to protect the 4 jacking points. I can't figure out why anyone is worried about the paint finish on the bottom of a jack point. Only a mechanic will ever see it. Therefore, any jack that fits firmly under the jack point will do, in my opinion. Personally, I use a Torin Aluminum Race Jack with Single Piston Pump — 1 1/2-Ton, Model# T8150121 which is a nice lightweight jack for under $100 that handles the car easily. For jack stands, personally I made mine out of wood blocks with a 6x6 base and 3.5x3.5 inch top about 10.5” high which just gets the tire off the ground for removal of wheels (there's photos and descripts somewhere in Boxster forums, but which I can't recall). I own 2 sets of heavy duty steel jack stands but the tops are sort of U shaped and will not fit firmly under the jack point. Besides, their min height is unnecessarily high.

As for "alternate jacking points", the area several inches behind the front jack point and several inches in front of the rear jack points is a great spot, but personally I would distribute the weight better than the concentration of a hockey puck (guess that I'm just not much of a hockey fan!). I made a roughly one foot long piece of 4x4 with a saw slot approx 3/8" deep and 1/4" wide along it's length. This supports the body along the entire foot of length and has clearance to the delicate rocker panel. Just slide your low racing jack under it and pump.

Ramps… There are plenty in stores, but I built mine from 3 progressive layers of 2x6s with angles at the ends to allow the car to climb on. I have 4 such ramps with the only difference that only the back ramps have wheel stops. The resulting 4.5 inches is usually enough, but in some cases I want it a bit higher, so I have a few longer precut 2x6s to boost it to 6” of lift…just tack them on with a screw when needed. I’m changing the oil as we speak with this and it’s a great height. I advise making ramps longer than you think you need them. You want the car to be fully up each 1.5” before rising up the next 1.5”.

OK, all of this stuff is wood. I can afford the ’01 Boxster but not every service device on the market, so DIY items like these are saving me money and are much more stable than factory build items, sacrificing versatility and light weight. I don’t mind!!!

Good luck,

Bob

[kbrandsma]

I think the hockey pucks are more to ensure that their is a good solid foundation/connection between a jack stand and the lifting point. Never work on your car when it is only supported by a hydraulic jack. That means for most people jack stands. The stands I had did not mate up well with the Boxster so I used hockey pucks to mate the two.

Here is a link that explains in detail what I did. CLICK HERE

Good luck and let us know what your solution was.

[liifesfun]

Theres an obvious answer usually under your nose if you dont have anything, and thats a wheel, I often slid a wheel under the car even as a back up to floor stands

I think the hockey pucks are more to ensure that their is a good solid foundation/connection between a jack stand and the lifting point. Never work on your car when it is only supported by a hydraulic jack. That means for most people jack stands. The stands I had did not mate up well with the Boxster so I used hockey pucks to mate the two.

Here is a link that explains in detail what I did. CLICK HERE

Good luck and let us know what your solution was.

[Peter in Reno]

Try this floor jack adapter. It works great for me.

http://www.eastwoodco.com/jump.jsp?itemID=...temType=PRODUCT

Peter

[gandrade1]

There are some threads that describe how to use hockey pucks to protect the 4 jacking points. I can't figure out why anyone is worried about the paint finish on the bottom of a jack point. Only a mechanic will ever see it. Therefore, any jack that fits firmly under the jack point will do, in my opinion. Personally, I use a Torin Aluminum Race Jack with Single Piston Pump — 1 1/2-Ton, Model# T8150121 which is a nice lightweight jack for under $100 that handles the car easily. For jack stands, personally I made mine out of wood blocks with a 6x6 base and 3.5x3.5 inch top about 10.5” high which just gets the tire off the ground for removal of wheels (there's photos and descripts somewhere in Boxster forums, but which I can't recall). I own 2 sets of heavy duty steel jack stands but the tops are sort of U shaped and will not fit firmly under the jack point. Besides, their min height is unnecessarily high.

As for "alternate jacking points", the area several inches behind the front jack point and several inches in front of the rear jack points is a great spot, but personally I would distribute the weight better than the concentration of a hockey puck (guess that I'm just not much of a hockey fan!). I made a roughly one foot long piece of 4x4 with a saw slot approx 3/8" deep and 1/4" wide along it's length. This supports the body along the entire foot of length and has clearance to the delicate rocker panel. Just slide your low racing jack under it and pump.

Ramps… There are plenty in stores, but I built mine from 3 progressive layers of 2x6s with angles at the ends to allow the car to climb on. I have 4 such ramps with the only difference that only the back ramps have wheel stops. The resulting 4.5 inches is usually enough, but in some cases I want it a bit higher, so I have a few longer precut 2x6s to boost it to 6” of lift…just tack them on with a screw when needed. I’m changing the oil as we speak with this and it’s a great height. I advise making ramps longer than you think you need them. You want the car to be fully up each 1.5” before rising up the next 1.5”.

OK, all of this stuff is wood. I can afford the ’01 Boxster but not every service device on the market, so DIY items like these are saving me money and are much more stable than factory build items, sacrificing versatility and light weight. I don’t mind!!!

Good luck,

Bob

Thank you guys for all the help...

I am leaning towards a not so expensive jack adapted with the hockey puck...

My big concern now is how to keep the car stable and safe during the repair, should I go for jack stands ? If so, what kind works?

I wish I were good at wood working, but that is another skill I am still to acquire.

My other question is: dont ramps replace the need for jack and stands? I found these online:ramp What do you guys think?

Best,

Gus

Edited February 14, 2008 by gandrade1

[Sputter]

Always use jack stands in pairs (safety first always). 2 -3 tons will be fine and a good quality lift. Don't work on your brakes etc using the carjack. It's just not stable enough, again, safety first. Buying inexpensive equipment will give you, well, inexpensive stuff. I prefer to spend the money when i'm under a car. Be sure to match the stand height to the jack height eg the jack being able to raise 1'' higher than the height of the stands. You don't want to find out later that you maxed the height stands/jack and then can't get your car off the stands lol.

You can "juryrig" lots of things using wood but i was never comfortable doing so.

Ramps are ok when you block the wheels. I always found they are a bit trickier to use,they can slide ahead when trying to get on them, driving off the backs (ask me how i know) stuff like that. The car of course has to be drivable. :-) They won't do you much good when you want to do brake/wheel work however.

These are just my personal opinions man, and many people will have a different view.

Jim

[itzbob46]

There are some threads that describe how to use hockey pucks to protect the 4 jacking points. I can't figure out why anyone is worried about the paint finish on the bottom of a jack point. Only a mechanic will ever see it. Therefore, any jack that fits firmly under the jack point will do, in my opinion. Personally, I use a Torin Aluminum Race Jack with Single Piston Pump — 1 1/2-Ton, Model# T8150121 which is a nice lightweight jack for under $100 that handles the car easily. For jack stands, personally I made mine out of wood blocks with a 6x6 base and 3.5x3.5 inch top about 10.5” high which just gets the tire off the ground for removal of wheels (there's photos and descripts somewhere in Boxster forums, but which I can't recall). I own 2 sets of heavy duty steel jack stands but the tops are sort of U shaped and will not fit firmly under the jack point. Besides, their min height is unnecessarily high.

As for "alternate jacking points", the area several inches behind the front jack point and several inches in front of the rear jack points is a great spot, but personally I would distribute the weight better than the concentration of a hockey puck (guess that I'm just not much of a hockey fan!). I made a roughly one foot long piece of 4x4 with a saw slot approx 3/8" deep and 1/4" wide along it's length. This supports the body along the entire foot of length and has clearance to the delicate rocker panel. Just slide your low racing jack under it and pump.

Ramps… There are plenty in stores, but I built mine from 3 progressive layers of 2x6s with angles at the ends to allow the car to climb on. I have 4 such ramps with the only difference that only the back ramps have wheel stops. The resulting 4.5 inches is usually enough, but in some cases I want it a bit higher, so I have a few longer precut 2x6s to boost it to 6” of lift…just tack them on with a screw when needed. I’m changing the oil as we speak with this and it’s a great height. I advise making ramps longer than you think you need them. You want the car to be fully up each 1.5” before rising up the next 1.5”.

OK, all of this stuff is wood. I can afford the ’01 Boxster but not every service device on the market, so DIY items like these are saving me money and are much more stable than factory build items, sacrificing versatility and light weight. I don’t mind!!!

Good luck,

Bob

Thank you guys for all the help...

I am leaning towards a not so expensive jack adapted with the hockey puck...

My big concern now is how to keep the car stable and safe during the repair, should I go for jack stands ? If so, what kind works?

I wish I were good at wood working, but that is another skill I am still to acquire.

My other question is: dont ramps replace the need for jack and stands? I found these online:ramp What do you guys think?

Best,

Gus

The ramps in your link are typical of what you can get and any parts store, sears, etc. There are plastic alternatives now which may not slide (be pushed) as easily. These ramps are a quick, steep rise....therefore the car may try to push them when attempting to drive up. The ones that I described made of wood are a gradual incline, 1.5" at a time. I have 4 ramps so I can elevate all 4 wheels at once if I want. Can't do that with the commercial ones like in the link. Not enough clearance under the car for the second set. Often a pair of ramps AND a pair of jackstands are a good alternative.

Oh...one other safety issue....don't forget to chock wheels so the car can't possibly roll when jacking, while on ramps, etc. The brake should be set, but don't count on it without wheel chocking. Leave the car in gear if possible (first gear or reverse) too. Be sure that the car can't be tapped by another vehicle while raised. Before getting under the car, I like to lean a thigh into it and see if there is any shake. If so, DON'T go under it until it's stablized.

Bob

[gandrade1]

There are some threads that describe how to use hockey pucks to protect the 4 jacking points. I can't figure out why anyone is worried about the paint finish on the bottom of a jack point. Only a mechanic will ever see it. Therefore, any jack that fits firmly under the jack point will do, in my opinion. Personally, I use a Torin Aluminum Race Jack with Single Piston Pump — 1 1/2-Ton, Model# T8150121 which is a nice lightweight jack for under $100 that handles the car easily. For jack stands, personally I made mine out of wood blocks with a 6x6 base and 3.5x3.5 inch top about 10.5” high which just gets the tire off the ground for removal of wheels (there's photos and descripts somewhere in Boxster forums, but which I can't recall). I own 2 sets of heavy duty steel jack stands but the tops are sort of U shaped and will not fit firmly under the jack point. Besides, their min height is unnecessarily high.

As for "alternate jacking points", the area several inches behind the front jack point and several inches in front of the rear jack points is a great spot, but personally I would distribute the weight better than the concentration of a hockey puck (guess that I'm just not much of a hockey fan!). I made a roughly one foot long piece of 4x4 with a saw slot approx 3/8" deep and 1/4" wide along it's length. This supports the body along the entire foot of length and has clearance to the delicate rocker panel. Just slide your low racing jack under it and pump.

Ramps… There are plenty in stores, but I built mine from 3 progressive layers of 2x6s with angles at the ends to allow the car to climb on. I have 4 such ramps with the only difference that only the back ramps have wheel stops. The resulting 4.5 inches is usually enough, but in some cases I want it a bit higher, so I have a few longer precut 2x6s to boost it to 6” of lift…just tack them on with a screw when needed. I’m changing the oil as we speak with this and it’s a great height. I advise making ramps longer than you think you need them. You want the car to be fully up each 1.5” before rising up the next 1.5”.

OK, all of this stuff is wood. I can afford the ’01 Boxster but not every service device on the market, so DIY items like these are saving me money and are much more stable than factory build items, sacrificing versatility and light weight. I don’t mind!!!

Good luck,

Bob

Thank you guys for all the help...

I am leaning towards a not so expensive jack adapted with the hockey puck...

My big concern now is how to keep the car stable and safe during the repair, should I go for jack stands ? If so, what kind works?

I wish I were good at wood working, but that is another skill I am still to acquire.

My other question is: dont ramps replace the need for jack and stands? I found these online:ramp What do you guys think?

Best,

Gus

The ramps in your link are typical of what you can get and any parts store, sears, etc. There are plastic alternatives now which may not slide (be pushed) as easily. These ramps are a quick, steep rise....therefore the car may try to push them when attempting to drive up. The ones that I described made of wood are a gradual incline, 1.5" at a time. I have 4 ramps so I can elevate all 4 wheels at once if I want. Can't do that with the commercial ones like in the link. Not enough clearance under the car for the second set. Often a pair of ramps AND a pair of jackstands are a good alternative.

Oh...one other safety issue....don't forget to chock wheels so the car can't possibly roll when jacking, while on ramps, etc. The brake should be set, but don't count on it without wheel chocking. Leave the car in gear if possible (first gear or reverse) too. Be sure that the car can't be tapped by another vehicle while raised. Before getting under the car, I like to lean a thigh into it and see if there is any shake. If so, DON'T go under it until it's stablized.

Bob

Thanks, Bob

For now I think I am gonna settle for a jack and a pair of stands...

Will this Jack work?

Jack

[kbrandsma]

Car ramps don't allow you to remove your wheels. Good for oil changes though.

[itzbob46]

Gus...

That jack is fine for dimensions. Great price. Probably just a bit heavy for it's size, but for occasional work that's OK.

Make sure that your jack stands will go as low as 11" or so. Don't want to prop the car any higher than necessary.....stability, body twist, etc.

And be really careful about that alternative jacking point. Just use to jack and distribute the weight of=ver several inches with some device like I described earlier. Use the jackstands under the desgnated flat jack point.