Is it possible to bend the car if you jack it up from the wrong points?

Ben

 

add a few one off bumps in the floor pan



look under the car, u can tell exactly where the lift points are

 

I doubt it but I'm no expert. You could break a crossmember or something like that. But I'm curious what the more experienced folks will say.



BTW get a set of jacking pucks, I did about a week ago. I used two floor jacks to jack up the rear end. It worked fine.

 

also check this out... http://forums.corvetteforum.com/show....php?t=1117639

 

You won't deform the chassis globally, but you could of course cause local damage. For example, if you position the jack under a floorboard you will rip a hole through the floor.

I recommend inserting lift pucks at the four perimeter locations and using a big floor jack with a wide lifting pad with a raised edge. Much more convenient than the so-called "preferred" locations. Remember to use lots of jack stands for safety.

 

Get some jack pucks and use the preferred jacking points. Some guys have reported damage by incorrect lifting. Lots of stuff on forum about jacking.

 

I've searched and searched,but never see a part that explains how to jack the car up for hte normal guy with normal tools. Assuming someone picks up a low profile jack from costco or something, one of those aluminum racing jobs for 100 bucks or so and some jack stands. I'm assuming you can still make the pucks out of hockey pucks and eylet screws for the C6, how the heck do you jack it up?? do you really need 2 jacks or homemade devices? This sounds way too damn complicated. What ever happened to throwing a jack under the front of the jack and jacking up and under the rear ofthe car and jacking up??

 

here is everything you want to know about jacking

http://www.bugmanweb.com/c6/c6index.html

btw the pucks are not the primary lift points the rear support member and front support are you need to get some lumber to drive teh wheels onto so you can get your jack under the car

 

http://forums.corvetteforum.com/show...55&forum_id=74

I'd personally try to stick to using the exact preferred jacking points. This means the outer ends of the aluminum cross members (as shown in the GM C6 preferred jacking diagrams), not the center of the crossmembers.

Some feel that spanning a 2X4 across the cross member will remove stress from the center if jacking from the center. Doing so will help distribute load only very slightly, not enough to make much a difference. A 2X4 is a match stick relative to the load at hand here and will flex like such. Heavier-duty lumber would be a bit better, but in general, wood compresses, flexes and can split... you cannot fully count on it distributing most or all of the load from the center to the outer ends.

A steel cross beam adapter (as shown in above linked thread) is the only way to truly do it right. Either that or use a seperate jack under each preferred point.

Having said the above, I have not yet heard of anyone cracking an aluminum cross member by jacking it in the center... but GM provided that diagram for a reason, I don't think it's very wise to jack from areas not recommended.

For older Mustangs, Ford said to not jack from the center of the rear axle. A lot of Mustang guys said "it's fine, I jack from the center of the axle all the time"... then they wondered why they soon started experiencing axle case leaks. Point is, listen to the manufacturer if you don't want headaches.

 

You can damage the floor and a few other spots !

look at your ownesr guide

 

I agree...get some jacking pucks but the jacking pucks have nothing to do with the 'preferred jacking points.'

There are the Preferred Vehicle Jacking Locations; the Optional Vehicle Jacking Locations; the Frame Contact Hoist Locations; and the Suspension Contact Hoist Locations.

Without a lift, your best bet is to use the preferred jacking points....get a decent floor jack and the $29.00 Northern Tool cross-beam adaptors (jacking pucks and jack stands are also IMO essential).

 

It is. Just do this: get a good jack with a WIDE lift pad, preferably with a raised lip. Buy 4 BMW jacking pads. Click them into the four lift points on the frame and leave them there forever. Position the jack under one of the lift points and lift; both wheels on that side will come off the ground. Insert several jack stands for safety and go to work.

Do not obsess about using the barely-accessible "recommended" lift points on the subframes. How do you suppose one lifts the car to remove the subframes? How does one lift the car using a 2-post lift (like the ones in every shop in the country, and at the end of the Bowling Green assembly line)? One lifts off the perimeter lift points.

If I had to guess, I'd say that GM recommends using the subframes because the perimeter points are a little sketchy if you don't have the pucks installed.

 

2 post - 4 arm hoist, use lifting pucks and those 4 frame locations.

At home with a floor jack - doesn't even need to be a low profile. Just drive up onto a couple of 2 x 12 pieces. Then put the floor jack with a piece of wood (or the fancy adapter) under the crossmembers and jack it up.

Trying to use the pucks with a floor jack one corner at a time, I've seen people's vettes slip off those several times and jam the floor jack up the side of the door. Those points work best with a hoist where the car is going straight up.

I use the floor jack and ramps. If I'm not taking the wheels off, I just floor jack it up at the crossmembers and set the tires down on the ramps. If the wheels are coming off, then I use jackstands under the crossmembers. I don't drive up and down ramps, seen too many people drive off those and cause all kinds of damage. But they work great to just set the tires down on, if your just getting under there to change the oil or something.

 

Make yourself some low-profile cheater ramps - much easier to jack at the preferred lifting points if you get the tires up about 4 inches.

 

Grey 6K# Rhino Ramps are inexpensive, lightweight, well-constructed ramps that are adequately wide and supportive.

The problem with these ramps is that their angle of approach causes the flexible air dam of the C6 to impinge on them.

Options exist to eliminate this issue. One is to place a board or two at the beginning of the ramp to elevate the front of the C6. The problem with this method is the potential for board and /or ramp slippage. The other option is to purchase extra long, very low angle of approach ramps.

The following simple project allows the use of the DIY ramps as stand alone ramps to elevate the vehicle or as Rhino Ramp extensions if greater lift is required.

Steps:

1. Go to your local lumber yard and purchase 2x12 Douglas fir boards.
If they're damp, let them dry slowly.

2. Cut the boards to the following lengths:
(2) 51"
(2) 27"

3. Cut one of the ends of each board at a 45 degree angle to faciltate approach of the vehicle onto the board. 45 degrees is an easy cut with a circular or table saw and is adequate to keep the ramps from being pushed by the tires.

4. Drill a 7/16" or slightly smaller hole in the shorter board 1 3/8" from the straight end and centered.

5. Using steel screws, attach the shorter board to the longer board, offset by 3".

6. Cut the threads off of a carriage bolt, grind off the shoulders under the cap if you prefer, and drive the bolt, now an indexing pin, through the hole.

7. Cut a 2x4 to the width of the ramp, predrill and attach it to the ramp about one inch back from the end of the lower board. This is essential to eliminate any risk of the ramp tipping when used independently from the Rhino Ramps. Needless to say, the 2x4 stop is removed when the ramps are used in conjunction with Rhino Ramps. (Duh.)

8. When the ramps are utilized with Rhino Ramps, simply slip the indexing pin into the Rhino Ramp hole located at the beginning of the ramp to prevent the Rhino Ramp from slipping as the vehicle starts its ascent on them.

 

That's what I do, it seems to work OK.

 

If I am not mistaken there should be proper jacking locations in the owners manual of any car. And yes you can do damage if you place the jack in the wrong places. Jacking locations are so you dont damage anything!