Bottle jack points?

nottingham13

Hi

I have just got a bottle jack, and has a cross haired top. Is it possible to use my old lifting point (did have scissor jack) on the sill?

Or do i have to find a lifting point under my car?

Thanks

[Deleted User]

Hi,

should be fine, stick a wee block of wood in, if you can.

forgotmyname

Unless your on perfectly flat level ground then dont use that bottle jack. they are unstable. The scissor jacks have their moments but bottle ones are much worse.

nottingham13

Just to clarify, i have a peugeot and there are dedicated lifting points on the sills

forgotmyname

The small base on the bottle jack makes them unstable though.

AdrianC

I'd use a bottle in preference to a flimsy scissor any day of the week - but I'd put it under a solid point on the suspension or subframe, rather than the sill's bracket. That bracket is designed to mate with the top of the scissor. A bottle or trolley won't fit it in the same way.

colino

I have to confess I have a few bottle jacks kicking around, but haven't had for years a car through that was high enough to use a bottle jack on.

Strider590

Bottle jacks, used in the wrong location are VERY good at punching holes in the bottom of your car. Your looking at holding 250kg to maybe 1000kg on a spot the size of a 2p piece.

They should only ever really be used in conjunction with a trolley jack. For example when doing suspension work, you'd lift the car on the trolley jack and lift the suspension on the bottle jack to compress the springs and to get everything lined up.

AdrianC

Strider590 wrote: »

Bottle jacks, used in the wrong location are VERY good at punching holes in the bottom of your car.

Any jack, used in the wrong place, is going to do damage - or, worse, drop a car on your head.

The easy answer is not to put it in the wrong place, rather than get overly excited about which type of jack is preferable. If you look carefully, you will ALWAYS find a suitable place to lift a car. Once it's up, you either change the wheel and drop it again, or you put an axle stand under and release the jack.