Jacking points, trolley jacks and axle stands

[DXX]

A bit of an extension to this thread.Trolley jacks and axle stands are the answer for most jobs without a lift. Recently though I’ve had to lower the rear belly tank on my camper to access and repair drain pipes. The axle stands get in the way for this job so I used ramps. Although most manufacturers guarantee well over two ton capacity they look worryingly flimsy. I bought the heftiest looking I could find but welded lots of strengthening in before I tried it. It worked well and is the best access I can get without a workshop ramp. Reversing up there and stopping on that small platform at the top on your own is a new skill though. Any opinions or advice on those ramps?

What Have You Bought Today?

A friend donated an Outdoor Revolution Movelite awning to us. Their new awning has air tubes (??) but this required new poles. Now we have a dry day (Scotland) we have put it up, in the garden. It's a bit unsteady and definitely needs to be reinforced with much larger pegs on those storm straps...

www.t6forum.com

I ended up sending the unbelievably crap Cougar ramps back for refund.
I’ve since made some very solid sleeper platforms for attaching my Thule levelling ramps, although not certified I’m sure there is no chance of failure.

 

[Jonesy68]

Would anyone be able to take a pic and show were they position their axle stand please. I have had my sealey jack and stands but keep putting off painting my calipers in case I have it wrong. Looked at loads of threads but still no 100%.

 

[DXX]

Would anyone be able to take a pic and show were they position their axle stand please. I have had my sealey jack and stands but keep putting off painting my calipers in case I have it wrong. Looked at loads of threads but still no 100%.

There are only 4 official jacking points, obviously if you have a jack on them you can’t fit a stand.
You will need to mount the stand on the strongest part of the lower suspension arm pivot NOT the body or the suspension arm.
Some have used the subframe with a block to spread the load.
Just bare in mind that there are only official 4 jacking points, the point of the stand is to prevent the van falling in the event of a jack failure. The best way to ensure the stand is secure IMO is to share the load with the jack, using this method it is unlikely that the stand can move or fall over.
My advice is to never use the OEM scissor jack, it is an accident waiting to happen.

 

[Jonesy68]

There are only 4 official jacking points, obviously if you have a jack on them you can’t fit a stand.
You will need to mount the stand on the strongest part of the lower suspension arm pivot NOT the body or the suspension arm.
Some have used the subframe with a block to spread the load.
Just bare in mind that there are only official 4 jacking points, the point of the stand is to prevent the van falling in the event of a jack failure. The best way to ensure the stand is secure IMO is to share the load with the jack, using this method it is unlikely that the stand can move or fall over.
My advice is to never use the OEM scissor jack, it is an accident waiting to happen.

Thanks, yes I was intending to use both the jack and the stand.

 

[robbybobs]

Hi, this is the rear axle of my t6.1 highline , not lowered and I want to use the trolly Jack to raise the vehicle so I can use a couple of axle stands to raise the rear. If anyone knows a safe place to use put the trolly Jack, could they just circle in red. I’ve read and read so many posts about this without actually find where I can put it. Some posts refer to a video with no link, so I’m stuck.
Thanks lots, Robby

 

[TJH1985]

+1 for Halfords, I have the advanced 3T low profile and it’s worth every penny! Originally ordered a SGS but it came with some missing parts so went back.

If it’s a bigger job I have some ramps, got them a few years ago and honestly should have got them 15 years ago! Game changer, they have enabled me to do some jobs I wouldn’t otherwise have been able to do.

I use rubber blocks on the standard lifting points.





When I was looking I wasn't sure about the rear @robbybobs I have a picture of the back of mine in the air but didn't feel too comfortable on anything but the jacking points. I was only changing wheels so did a corner at a time.

 

[roadtripper]

Welcome to the forum @robbybobs , you don't seem to have attached an image to your post as you intended. Make sure it finishes upload before posting, you should be able to edit your post for a while to add the image in

Probably the best summary of advice is the DXX post quoted just above yours.

 

[moomin-j]

+1 for Halfords, I have the advanced 3T low profile and it’s worth every penny! Originally ordered a SGS but it came with some missing parts so went back.

If it’s a bigger job I have some ramps, got them a few years ago and honestly should have got them 15 years ago! Game changer, have enabled me to do some jobs I wouldn’t have otherwise been able to do.

I use rubber blocks on the standard lifting points.

View attachment 224316

@TJH1985
What a bloody good bit of kit...
Well impressive that is.
I think you ought to hire it out to fellow T6F members?
Lots of beer tokens in payment

Now - where is that "Big Brake" kit I need to fit

 

[TJH1985]

@TJH1985
What a bloody good bit of kit...
Well impressive that is.
I think you ought to hire it out to fellow T6F members?
Lots of beer tokens in payment

Now - where is that "Big Brake" kit I need to fit

When you have owned Land Rover products for the last 10+ years you sadly work on car's quite a bit and its usually major work.

That's the down side, lots of friend's who pop over with a box of bit's, and you can't help but get involved!

 

[DaveD]

+1 for Halfords, I have the advanced 3T low profile and it’s worth every penny! Originally ordered a SGS but it came with some missing parts so went back.

If it’s a bigger job I have some ramps, got them a few years ago and honestly should have got them 15 years ago! Game changer, have enabled me to do some jobs I wouldn’t have otherwise been able to do.

I use rubber blocks on the standard lifting points.

View attachment 224316

Now you're talking!!!
All previous answers can be disregarded!

 

[Dellmassive]

+1 for Halfords, I have the advanced 3T low profile and it’s worth every penny! Originally ordered a SGS but it came with some missing parts so went back.

If it’s a bigger job I have some ramps, got them a few years ago and honestly should have got them 15 years ago! Game changer, they have enabled me to do some jobs I wouldn’t otherwise have been able to do.

I use rubber blocks on the standard lifting points.

View attachment 224316

View attachment 224319

When I was looking I wasn't sure about the rear @robbybobs I have a picture of the back of mine in the air but didn't feel too comfortable on anything but the jacking points. I was only changing wheels so did a corner at a time.

Nice hydraulic blue lift thing.

Got a link for it?
..

 

[robbybobs]

Hi, this is the rear axle of my t6.1 highline , not lowered and I want to use the trolly Jack to raise the vehicle so I can use a couple of axle stands to raise the rear. If anyone knows a safe place to use put the trolly Jack, could they just circle in red. I’ve read and read so many posts about this without actually find where I can put it. Some posts refer to a video with no link, so I’m stuck.
Thanks lots, Robby

 

[robbybobs]

Welcome to the forum @robbybobs , you don't seem to have attached an image to your post as you intended. Make sure it finishes upload before posting, you should be able to edit your post for a while to add the image in

Probably the best summary of advice is the DXX post quoted just above yours.

Hi RT, I’ve attached that file now. The post above mine has a description of what to do, I’d hate to think I know what parts are being referred to and get it wrong….red circle marks the spot it difficult to misunderstand….I hope!

 

[BikerPa]

@TJH1985 What are the extension rails you are using on the platforms to reach the Transporter jacking points??

If you don’t mind me asking are they a commercially (tested) product or something you’ve had fabricated.

Reason I ask is most mobile mid rise scissor lift platforms aren’t long enough to reach even a SWB’s (apart from one I’ve found)

 

[TJH1985]

Hi @BikerPa they are a commercial solution, provided by Twin Busch for exactly this purpose.

TBF you could have something fabricated, and possibly even better but I wanted to go with something from the lift manufacturer.

Everything is absolutely rock solid when the van is on it.

 

[BikerPa]

Hi @BikerPa they are a commercial solution, provided by Twin Busch for exactly this purpose.

TBF you could have something fabricated, and possibly even better but I wanted to go with something from the lift manufacturer.

Everything is absolutely rock solid when the van is on it.

Ok cheers
I hadn’t spotted it was their lift

 

[TJH1985]

Ok cheers
I hadn’t spotted it was their lift

I agonised over which lift to go for tbh.. even drove to visit a few showrooms and kick the tyres so to speak! In the end these provided a decent service and these lift a good payload from low down with ease, and had a good total capacity and decent mechanical safety locks. Lifted my old L405 RR without hesitation!

 

[BikerPa]

I agonised over which lift to go for tbh.. even drove to visit a few showrooms and kick the tyres so to speak! In the end these provided a decent service and these lift a good payload from low down with ease, and had a good total capacity and decent mechanical safety locks. Lifted my old L405 RR without hesitation!

Did you look at the Strongman Clifton by any chance?
If so what was your opinion of it/them

It’s the only only mid rise mobile one I’d found that had long enough platforms (with the ends locked up)

Clifton Mid Rise Car Scissor Lift | Strongman Lifts

The Clifton mid rise car scissor lift comfortably raises cares over 1000m with central access between the platforms and a 3000kg lifting capacity.

www.strongmanlifts.co.uk

 

[TJH1985]

Yeah I really liked the strongman stuff I went to see them also, but it wasn’t quite as usable for the car’s I had at the time.

I had a Lotus Elise which was really short and then a Range Rover that was really wide and a Skoda Octavia that was bang average!

From memory the Clifton was longer but a fair bit narrower and also had a fairly large cross section between the two which further obstructed access which is why I didn’t go for it in the end.

The Tamar was perfect for the Elise, the TW S3.5-10E was perfect for the Range Rover as the pick up points were quite wide. There really was not the perfect allrounder but the TW S3.5-10E felt as close as I could get at the time and with the extensions works perfectly for the Van.

I was on the fence for ages, but really should have brought one years ago!

This gives you a idea of the room underneath:



But by comparison the Elise is really narrow and the extra width ends up being a nice place to put wheel nuts etc.




Are you doing a buy on one?

 

[roadtripper]

Hi RT, I’ve attached that file now. The post above mine has a description of what to do, I’d hate to think I know what parts are being referred to and get it wrong….red circle marks the spot it difficult to misunderstand….I hope!

The challenge is, as someone said on another thread, with only 4 official jacking points the only truly approved way to lift the van is with a four point lift on those jacking points. Beyond that people are likely nervous of becoming the "definitive answer" in case the worst happens when people follow their suggestion.

The official jacking points are the 4 angle iron pieces highlighted in the first post of this thread. You will need to use a jacking pad to protect it on a normal jack as it's designed mostly for the "hook" of a scissor jack.

The problem is with a single point jack on the jacking point there is no where to put an axle stand, and it is unsafe to work under a van with only a single thing stopping it falling on you. The best you can do is to take the weight on the jack on the jacking point and put an axle stand as DXX suggests on the body lower wishbone mount. On the rear the challenge is the anti roll bar, which is in the way and not strong enough to use instead. Someone else has posted a picture of a bottle jack and a stand arranged very close together on a large block on the jack point. You need to decide if that is safe enough for you considering the place you have to work on your van and the tools you have.

If you are not comfortable with the safety of that there are places you can hire servicing bays with a four point lift such as:

Self Service Garage Oxford - Vehicle Owners Club

Self Service Garage Oxford - Vehicle owners club based in Oxford. A self service garage with all the tools and equipment that you need - Car lifts Oxford

thisisyourgarage.com