VIRGIN JACKER!

Rusky

Senior member
 Cambridgeshire
OK before i start let me just state a couple of things, firstly i am well chuffed with what i have done this evening, secondly i have owned a car since i was 18 and i am now 47 so keep that in mind.
So nine days ago my wife bought me a trolley jack and axle stands for my birthday :thumbsup: Well my wheel brace and torque wrench turned up this week and i had a full replacement set of bulbs waiting to be fitted.
Yes ya guessed it i jacked the car up this evening took the wheels off to change the bulbs, yes it is the first time i have ever jacked up a car and taken the wheels off :oops: :oops: But much to my pleasure i did it without any incident, probably over careful on my first lift as i raised it bit by bit :rofl: :rofl:
Thanks to the forum posts on advice for jacking a zed :thumbsup: :thumbsup:
I did forget to refit the wheel arch panel on one side so had to lift that side a second time and remove the wheel. All bolts torqued square to 130nm :thumbsup:
Downside, i didnt take any pics :thumbsdown: just too concerned with getting it right. plus side the new bulbs give it a better look.

And there you have it, well chuffed. :thumbsup: :thumbsup: No longer a VIRGIN JACKER :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :thumbsup: :thumbsup:
 
Glad to hear you've popped your cherry :D

I must have done thousands over the years.. And probably jacked up a few cars too :oops:

Mike
 
Good work, very satisfying :thumbsup:

If it's any consolation its a right of passage to finish refitting parts ending up with a spring/bolt/clip left over :)
 
Congratulations :thumbsup: Its a great feeling isn't it
I'm going to buy a proper hydraulic jack now that I've a set of winter wheels. I used an old scissor jack when I swapped to my new 224s and it wasn't great - it started leaning at 30% as I raised it :cry:
 
Things will never be the same again!! :P
You'll realise that when you get your tyres changed they never torque it up properly... hey, if you want something done right, you gotta do it yourself! Well played my SMG brother! :)
 
Marlon said:
Congratulations :thumbsup: Its a great feeling isn't it
I'm going to buy a proper hydraulic jack now that I've a set of winter wheels. I used an old scissor jack when I swapped to my new 224s and it wasn't great - it started leaning at 30% as I raised it :cry:

Still using a scissor Jack, plus our drive is far from flat. Last time I jacked her up, was to repaint my calipers. I put stack of breeze blocks in place, as I didn't trust the dam thing with my head stuck under the car. Oh for a trolley jack and double garage or a flat drive. 8)
 
buzyg said:
Marlon said:
Congratulations :thumbsup: Its a great feeling isn't it
I'm going to buy a proper hydraulic jack now that I've a set of winter wheels. I used an old scissor jack when I swapped to my new 224s and it wasn't great - it started leaning at 30% as I raised it :cry:

Still using a scissor Jack, plus our drive is far from flat. Last time I jacked her up, was to repaint my calipers. I put stack of breeze blocks in place, as I didn't trust the dam thing with my head stuck under the car. Oh for a trolley jack and double garage or a flat drive. 8)

Even with my jack (proper hydraulic one) I still chuck the wheel under the car... not that anything has ever happened but just for my heads peace of mind while I'm under the car!!
 
For those wanting a "proper" jack - [ref]Marlon[/ref] :) The Alcan one that Costco sell is great. Lox enough for the Zed, and not too heavy, although the "older" one they did 10 years ago was lighter than the "newer" one as it was all alloy, whereas the newer one is alloy & steel.

About £85 with the VAT instore, or £99 delivered to non members, but worth every penny.

http://www.costco.co.uk/view/p/arcan-2000kg-aluminiumsteel-service-jack-model-hj2000eu-900930

Mike
 
Now that looks heavy duty! I'm probably using a dinosaur jack in comparison!
 
Congratulations!
Bought my first trolley jack when I was 18, along with a good socket set and a torque wrench. The jack was a Draper model and lasted 25 years before it needed replacing after some serious abuse. Now 53, have a Clarke strong arm 2 tonne jack which has done about 10 years without any issues and the original socket set and torque wrench are still going strong.
 
I bought my first socket set 'Georde'? Back in '72, still going strong along with Halfords traditional axle stands & ramps, lord that makes me feel old! :| :|
 
Lol,

Bought my first proper told when I was 17 and doing my time, a set of metric combi wrenches and 3/8" deep six sided sockets cation the snap on van. Still have them all 31 years later and only a 10mm socket I killed with an impact wrench has needed replacing.

Mike
 
Always satisfying doing these things yourself, and jacking the car is a good skill to have. :thumbsup:
A couple of suggestions:
1. Always use axle stands when jacking, ESPECIALLY if you plan on getting under it. Hydraulics can fail, things can shift/slip at any time.
2. This is just my personal preference, but see if you can get an 'adapter block' (can't remember what the official name is for it) to go between the jack and the jack mount on the car so that you don't damage the plastic jack mount on the car. I use a small piece of wood as I haven't found an adapter for sale here. Something like this:
202461_x800.jpg
 
Type hockey puck adapter bmw into ebay,you can get them for a £5 they are a great bit of kit to ensure you are not damaging anything and the car is lifted at exactly the right point .
A good tip from the man above.
 
I have a small disc adaptor which seems to fit quite nicely. Yeah the axle stands go under and i chock the other side. Thanks for the advice enzed. :thumbsup:
 
You should use wheel chocks on the side of the car that is still in touch with the ground as even with the handbrake on the whole car can twist when one back wheel comes up. Both wheels come off the ground on one side regardless of which end you lift.

Wheel bolts should be 120nm but 130nm is no problem as garages regularly do them to 200+.

I'm really tempted by a Quickjack but at over a grand it's a lot. Anything more than one corner is a pain in the backside with a trolley jack.
 
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