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My XC has an aftermarket tow hitch from Curt, and I was curious if it would cause any damage to jack up the rear from the tow hitch. It seems like it would be more effective than jacking up one side at a time to get both rear wheels off the ground. I know on some other cars it is recommended to do it this way, but I want to make sure it's not gonna break something on my car.
Sounds risky. The safest and most efficient lift point is the rear-wheel truss adjacent to the wheel -- if you lift the fixed frame, the wheel will spring down and you have to jack the frame high-up to get the wheel off the ground. The wheel truss is designed to carry 100% of the weight above it. I don't think that's true of a tow hitch, and anyway, it's attached to the body which is not an efficient lift point.
I would check the owners manual. The instructions for jacking is there. I have a Curt hitch too but I would not attempt that.
For a safety-minded company, the scissors car jack "system" provided for tire changes is IMHO a serious problem. First, as a midpoint lift point, the jack is lifting 1/2 the weight of the car instead of 1/4 needed to change a tire. Second, if the jack is misaligned under the lift point, a scissors jack can sheer sideways and collapse. On the jack removal, I've had this scissors jack "spit" out, almost ripping my arm off. I would only use it in an emergency on level ground, and monitoring the jack shape continuously for sideways warp. If the lead-screw gets hard to crank, something is wrong -- let her down, shift the jack foot, and try again.Quote:
Originally Posted by Voldog
In the garage, I use a hydraulic jack lifting one wheel at a time, and jack stands.
I hate scissor jacks and avoid using if I can help it. They are not stable. I too have floor jacks in my garage. Plus I supplement with jack stands especially if I think the work will take long.Quote:
Originally Posted by pbierre