Farrar's car blog

[sean]

I never do. But guess who is under the car positioning the jack stands...

Farrar

Well putting jack stands under the car is pretty low risk, it just sounded like you were going to be doing some work under there with just a jack.

[Farrar]

Well putting jack stands under the car is pretty low risk, it just sounded like you were going to be doing some work under there with just a jack.

Pretty low risk, true -- but if the jack fails while I am putting a jack stand under the car, I could end up with a rear tire on my arm. I do a lot of work on my own, so I don't want anything heavy falling on me which could pin me down unable to get help.

Farrar

[sean]

Pretty low risk, true -- but if the jack fails while I am putting a jack stand under the car, I could end up with a rear tire on my arm. I do a lot of work on my own, so I don't want anything heavy falling on me which could pin me down unable to get help.

Farrar

I tell ya what I do, if the back end has to come up I'll typically take off at least one wheel. Once jacked up enough I slide that wheel under the engine/cradle. I do this as a redundant fail safe in the event a jack stand gets bumped out for whatever reason. If im working on the engine area then I just slide the tire forward a bit. I do this anytime I work in the front as well.

[Farrar]

I tell ya what I do, if the back end has to come up I'll typically take off at least one wheel. Once jacked up enough I slide that wheel under the engine/cradle...

That sounds like a nice safety precaution. Also, with the rear wheels off I should have more room for my arms. Nice tip -- thanks!

Farrar

[AdmiralSenn]

Get a set of ramps - even if the car isn't running you can still jack it up first and slide them under. It makes life SO MUCH EASIER and I don't have to worry about jack stands collapsing. Any time I'm underneath the car I use the ramps unless I'm working so far in that I have to raise it up super high.

[Farrar]

Get a set of ramps - even if the car isn't running you can still jack it up first and slide them under.

This is what I do for the front -- jack the car up and put ramps under the wheels just like you said. The rear I still use jack-stands for, because I usually need to get the car up at least eight inches for me to work under there.

Farrar

[AdmiralSenn]

Fair enough. I think my ramps are a little higher than average so it's not been an issue for me.

I feel a little less weird about doing things that way now, knowing someone else does it too!

[Farrar]

Someone (I can't remember who -- sorry) mentioned that those low-pressure solenoid fuel pumps are better at pushing as opposed to pulling, since they're mostly used in situations where they're fed by gravity. This would seem to make mounting the fuel pump in the engine compartment a bad idea.

I haven't been underneath the car for a while, but I think there may be some free space above the LH trailing arm shield. That would be fairly low compared with the level of gasoline in the tank -- not exactly gravity-fed, I know ... but it would give me the opportunity to mount the pump sideways -- perhaps pulling/pushing fuel horizontally would be easier than pulling fuel up against gravity.

Thoughts?

Farrar

[content22207]

Thoughts?

Just leave the pump in the tank.

Bill Robertson
#5939

[Farrar]

With the current pump installed, the access cover under the spare tire well will not close.

I have now made the entire assembly as short as I can make it, and with the pickup screen sitting on the bottom of the tuna can, it is still too tall.

Just leave the pump in the tank.

Bill, are you being purposefully obtuse?

Farrar