what can i use to support the car besides jackstands?

[Boomerang]

i didnt realize jack stands were so cheap, ive used the craftsman ones my dad bought some odd years ago
there is a harbor freight about 17 miles away from me :)

[FredK]

Sweet! If the round trip is 34 miles, and your car gets 26 mpg, and a gallon of regular costs four bucks, the roundtrip will only cost $5.23!

[Turf1600]

Have your friends hold the car up while you're working on it.

[Boomerang]

i thought this was a good idea (this pic always cracks me up)

[diegom6]

i thought this was a good idea (this pic always cracks me up)

hahaha, that pics must be somehwere over here...classic watch this in my country. 8-)

[delatlanta1281]

i really really need my jackstands to work on my car but they are currently supporting my wrecked parts car.
is there ANYTHING i can buy on the cheap that i can use to keep the car raised in the air like it is now? I dont want to use bricks cause thats a lot of bricks to use, i still need to pull the tranny, diff, and subframe so i need at least that much room to work under....any ideas?

thanks

a mechanic with a lift..... clearly you don't belong under a car.

[Brian D]

Do NOT work under a car without jackstands. Let's not have a thread like this......

http://www.syty.net/forums/showthread.php?t=46822

Real guy, real bad mistake, and he paid for it with his life. His wife is on her own now.

And you guys suggesting cinder blocks....think about the advice you're giving.

[Turf1600]

And you guys suggesting cinder blocks.....

Chock it up to ignorance man. The guy meant no harm.

Safety is key guys - go way overkill if you need to.

[Brian D]

Chock it up to ignorance man. The guy meant no harm.

Safety is key guys - go way overkill if you need to.

You're right I know, but there is so much bad advice given on all these forums-this could kill someone. If someone were to die because of something I suggested on the internet, I couldn't live with myself.

--Edited first post--

[Farbin Kaiber]

cinder blocks with wood over them works well enough for working on stuff.

Crumbly concrete support FTW? I'd suggest "Firefighter cribbing" over wood and cinder blocks all day long. Or an airbag of the rear end of a Peterbuilt and a 2 gal compressor on meth.

[Brian D]

Here, just a little more to think about before climbing under a car without jackstands-

http://www.pro-touring.com/forum/showpost.php?p=247351&postcount=30

Imagine your wife or girlfriend posting that. Imagine your parents coming home to find you crushed under your car.

Sorry, I'm an old fart with 2 boys the age of a lot of you guys. I've made sure they are fully aware of the dangers of working under a car. Can't help preaching a little.

[Farbin Kaiber]

Here, just a little more to think about before climbing under a car without jackstands-

http://www.pro-touring.com/forum/showpost.php?p=247351&postcount=30

Imagine your wife or girlfriend posting that. Imagine your parents coming home to find you crushed under your car.

Sorry, I'm an old fart with 2 boys the age of a lot of you guys. I've made sure they are fully aware of the dangers of working under a car. Can't help preaching a little.

I agree wholeheartedly. I work in the field. Seven years ago I watched a Mercedes Benz Dealer Tech roll a 1989 560 off an alignment rack and sandwitch his sternum between a front bumper and a concrete shop floor. The bumper only allowed his chest about 2 in of space. The rest squirted out all over the shop. I still have nightmares about that. It is one thing to see these pics and text, but another all together to see it happen 15 feet away as your selling a waterpump on an infiniti i30. I check the load about 10 times before I crawl under a car.


What about the one time a rookie tech dropped a ranger of a two post lift onto his toolcart. Thats another story all together.




I'm not an old fart though.

Another thing, I never, NEVER work on a car alone. Even if its my future wife sitting in the garage painting her nails. And always keep a cordless phone within reach, or a cell phone.

[Skoobeesnak]

You could always use a severed human head. I am sure you have a few of those lying round not doing much.

[Farbin Kaiber]

( walks to deep freezer hidden in seceret basement side room looking for "new" automotive tools )

[makaio]

Not only should you use jack stands, but in the Bay Area you should always have a secondary back-up just in case. I watched a Porsche 911 fall off 4 perfectly good jack stands in San Jose once during an earth quake.