arghh, where to jack the car??
 

hm, i know this is stupid but where is the proper place to jack up a thirdgen with a floor jack and support it with jack stands? im unsure as to where i have em now... thanks

Dan,

If you are jacking at the front, the jack saddle can be placed beneath the crossmember. The stands can be placed at a couple of points:

http://homestead.juno.com/jlstrey/files/jackfront.jpg

Jacking at the rear should be done at the differential housing, and the stands can be placed under the axle tubes or rear subframe channels.

The stands must be placed on hard pavement not asphaltic concrete (blacktop) or bituminuous sufaces. Certainly not on gravel. Once the car is resting on the stands, walk up to the car and try to nudge it around to see that it doesn't shake, tip, rock, or tend to sway. You really don't want the car moving at all while you're under it.

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Later,
Vader
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"I'm'a do Things My Way - It's My way or the Highway."
Adobe Acrobat Reader

Damn, man thanks alot, im soo stupid i could have killed myself https://www.thirdgen.org/messgboard/eek.gif

I just used a floor jack on my A-arms and then set some boards under the tires. It raised the car high enough that I could get under it and easily do work from under the car.

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1987 Chevy Camaro IROC-Z
L98 TPI 350 (5.7L)
TH 700R-4 Transmission
Borg Warner 7.75" 9 Bolt Rear End

Current Mods: LT4 Hot Cam, Comp Cams 1.52:1 Roller Rocker Arms, Edelbrock TES 1 5/8" Headers, Hooker 3" Aerochamber Cat-Back System, Performance Resource Chip, Accel Ignition Coil, Cap, Rotor, 8.8mm Wires, K&N Filters, JET TPI Air Foil, All Free Mods, Falken ZIEX Z-Rated Tires.

Best ET (w/o LT4 cam): 14.32 @ 97.7mph
(corrected for elevation)

7.5" 10 Bolt with 3.42s soon to come!

In the front, I'll use the hydraulic on the center crossmember to raise the car up.

Then, I'll put a jackstand under each lower control arm. In Vader's pic, see how each lower control arm has an indented circle in it, from where the springs are? My jackstands grab the innermost edge of those circles, near the dual-drain-hole.

Oh, and I block the rear wheels, too.

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-Tom P (Hot rodded 1986 Firebird 2.8l) from http://www.f-body.net/mailbag/3rd/3rd_mailbag.html message boards
---Think your car could be pic of the week? Visit http://www.f-body.net for details!

Nice white walls Vader!

Bear Tracks

Just a note, but have fun trying to get a floor jack on the k-memeber on a later car. If you're really careful you can get to it from the side, but you ain't fitting a jack under the airdam, no how.
...ed (who's used cheapo jackstands in gravel more times than he'd admit publicly. Shake well before getting under it.)

Ed, here's a trick I do with my Firebird; altho it might not work that well on lowered f-bodies. After I park the car, I lift it up with my hands! I grab the center top of the front fender, and lift the side up. Then I go to the other side, and lift in the same spot. Finally, I'll go back and forth once more.

The struts get a kind of upward preload on them- they don't return to their original position. (If I was bouncing the car up & down, they would go back to their original spot.) This usually lifts the car up an inch or two; just enough for me to slide the jack underneath.

I've also heard of guys doing something like Dan87IROC-Z mentioned- they'll park the car so the front tires are on boards, and then slide the jack under the air dam, & under the k-member.

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-Tom P (Hot rodded 1986 Firebird 2.8l) from http://www.f-body.net/mailbag/3rd/3rd_mailbag.html message boards
---Think your car could be pic of the week? Visit http://www.f-body.net for details!

[This message has been edited by TomP (edited March 14, 2001).]