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Jacking up the car

M

mr. shr

MB Enthusiast
Joined
Apr 22, 2004
Messages
1,881
Hi All,
I want to jack my car up so that I can get underneath it to get to the airmatic compressor pump on my 220.

I'm gonna get some axle stands from screwfix but trying to decide between a trolley jack and a bottle jack.
Bottle jacks are cheaper but don't know why.

What do you guys use and suggest I buy?
The 220 is a very heavy beast so will need a decent quality jack which ever option I go with.

Thanks,
shr.
 
Trolley jack is more stable and easier to use, IMO. Bottle jacks are cheaper because they're smaller and have less parts.
 
You can get a reasonable trolly jack from Halfrauds for not much money....
 
That one is what I would call a hobby jack, which are a PITA due to having to remove the handle to lower the jack then you can't get the handle back into the pump.
Also consider the minimum and maximum lift heights.

If you're going to by a trolley jack buy a decent one, it will last for years.

Alternatively buy ramps.
 
Dieselman said:
That one is what I would call a hobby jack, which are a PITA due to having to remove the handle to lower the jack then you can't get the handle back into the pump.
Also consider the minimum and maximum lift heights.

If you're going to by a trolley jack buy a decent one, it will last for years.

Alternatively buy ramps.
Click to expand...

I was also considering buying ramps. TBH I will only be using these things once in a blue moon. But as the first job will be to lift my S Class I realise it needs to be a serious jack cos it's sooooo heavy.

Might do a couple of little things on my 202 at a later stage but nothing serious and any jobs will be very infrequent.
 
Oh and BTW I have a airmatic compressor for sale.
 
Trolley jacks are more stable in the ground is not perfectly level. The car is more likely to topple of a bottle jack.
 
My son bought one from Screwfix and yes they are okay, but they will not lift a front wheel on a 213 Sprinter.


John
 
At the suggestion of someone on a bulletin board, I bought a trolley jack from CostCo and am delighted with it. Rock solid, very well made, very low minimum height, good range to maximum height, and all at a reasonable price (£75-ish, if I recall correctly). If you're not a member, perhaps you may know someone who is.

If you qualify -- it's basically for business traders and certain professionals -- then the annual subscription (<£25) pays off quickly given the other car stuff (cheapest source of Michelin tyres, Mobil 1, Castrol oils, Bosch batteries, cleaning stuff) and non-car products you can buy. Although I hate the warehouse-shopping experience, I am impressed by their concentration on top-quality brands, and am still working my way through some excellent smoked salmon (farming friends buy their beef there).
 
Thanks for all the input guys.
I managed to get under the car at the weekend without using anything. Basically, I raised the airmatic susspension and just layed on the floor under the front bumper so that i could remover the front section of engine cover.
I mangaged to access the part I was interested in.
I wont be able to change the pump in this manner as you can't see enough and move around enough to work properly so I will take it to me indy.

But thanks for the info on trolley jacks.
Turns out my neighbour has a screwfix one so I could always borrow his if essential.

I may buy one anyway as they can be useful to have. I once jacked up the S Class using the supplied jack. It DID NOT seem very sturdy at all so i would be reluctant to use it again.
 
Just one point regarding ramps, they are of no use for driving the car up onto as the skirt on the bumper will not allow this, they are ok to place under the wheel once jacked, but then you are better off with axle stands as the do not get in the way.

When using a decent trolley jack the cup is often deeper than the ball on the car. ½ a dough nut laying or glued in solves that problem. Do not use wood as the car can slide off
 
television said:
Just one point regarding ramps, they are of no use for driving the car up onto as the skirt on the bumper will not allow this, they are ok to place under the wheel once jacked, but then you are better off with axle stands as the do not get in the way.
Click to expand...

My neighbour also has a set of ramps.
I put one ramp up against the front wheel of the W220 (with the aitmatic raised) and it would clear the skirt/spoiler ok. (Unfortunatly, the ramps are not wide enough to take my 245mm wide tyres).

Just out of interest, I lined one if the ramps up against front wheel on my W202, and just like you say, the front skirt would touch the ramp BEFORE the wheel hits the bottom of it. This surprised me. It's an Elegance so not the lower susspension.

So it seems with suitably wide ramps, I'd be able to get the S up on ramps but only because of airmatic.

Unlikely to be able to get any Mercs (without air susspension) onto ramps in the conventional way (i.e. by driving up them).
 
mr. shr said:
I raised the airmatic susspension and just layed on the floor under the front bumper so that i could remover the front section of engine cover.
Click to expand...

Er ... and if the suspension had lowered for any reason while you were under there?! :eek:

I would never, ever, get under a car that wasn't supported on something solid (axle stands, blocks, ramps, etc.). I certainly wouldn't trust any jack with my life, for the sake of £10 worth of axle stands.
 
BTB 500 said:
Er ... and if the suspension had lowered for any reason while you were under there?! :eek:

I would never, ever, get under a car that wasn't supported on something solid (axle stands, blocks, ramps, etc.). I certainly wouldn't trust any jack with my life, for the sake of £10 worth of axle stands.
Click to expand...

To be fair, even if the car was to lower it still wouldn't crush my head (rest of my body was in front of car, not under).
I just raised the susspension to give me a few extra mm of space.
And it was only really my hands in there, with my head occassionally popping underneath to have a look.

Trust me, i'm aint got the guts to stick my head right under the car. It was only really under the front bumper.

Interstingly, I told the missus that I was thinking of jacking the car up using some rusty old ramps that I was considering buying from eBay.
She said, "No way!! They might break and then damage the car!!!!!"
 
Phew!

I have ADS on my SL which can lift the car a fair bit (looks like a monster truck at full raise :D), definitely wouldn't trust it though!

I did have a car fall off a jack once, doing an emergency roadside repair (rear brake shoe spring had come off after garage fitted new shoes). Scary.
 
BTB 500 said:
I would never, ever, get under a car that wasn't supported on something solid (axle stands, blocks, ramps, etc.). I certainly wouldn't trust any jack with my life, for the sake of £10 worth of axle stands.
Click to expand...
Totally 100% agree,
We bought both the trolley jack and the axle stands.

Make sure you mop up the blood before it dries, otherwise it's an absolute devil to clean. :devil: :D

Regards
John
 
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