dam! and lucky to be alive !

[chrismanchr]

i was having a good look at the rear calipers today ,theyre reproduction or reconditioned units but theyre in bad condition ,so ive got it on the sissor jack ,huge bag of gravel in front of the front wheel and I get a phone call ,which was quite important ,while on the phone the car fell off the sissor jack ,luckily i put the wheel under suspension but !!! I'd been trying to free the rear handbrake pin as its siezed !!! and could quite eaily of lost my arm ,the disc was on the tarmac but there seems no damage ,but while looking around and nothing to do with what happened found that the rear track arm is a bit bent

[synXero]

Luckily escaped dude.

Get axel stands!

[Ben]

I'm constantly astonished at how many people will work under a car supported only by a jack

Still, lesson learnt. I'll bet you won't ever do it again!

[chrismanchr]

ive got axle stands but it wouldnt have mattered the drive is on a slight decline ,car ingear and chocked ,but the chocks we'rnt effective ,the wheel underneath was the real saver !!!! axle stands whould have done nothing
and it was a quick inspection to see weither to go for reconditioned calipers or not

[chrismanchr]

what i need is better chocks

[str160]

I had an OE scissor jack snap on me whilst I was jacking up a car. Thankfully I wasn't under the car and the wheel was still on, but damn, that scared me a bit. Since then, all OE jacks are ditched.

[un1eash]

Scissor jacks are dangerous fall stop, the old V shaped ones that came with vauxhalls should be banded. I only ever use a trolly jack and axle stands now, and i still put the wheel under the car once off.

[pistol pete]

Trolley jack and axel stands only
If you can't use th on the ground you are on due to incline etc then shouldn't be working under a car like it

Please get axel stands to many horror stories

[Nick]

Last year my neighbours lad went under a range rover using a bottle jack.
The jack failed and it squashed him dead .

Axle stands or big blocks of wood is the only safe way .

[kaiowas]

ive got axle stands but it wouldnt have mattered the drive is on a slight decline ,car ingear and chocked ,but the chocks we'rnt effective ,the wheel underneath was the real saver !!!! axle stands whould have done nothing
and it was a quick inspection to see weither to go for reconditioned calipers or not

I think you misunderstand.

If you're using axle stands correctly then the weight of the car is on them not the jack, ergo it can't fall off the jack. If your drive is so sloped that you can't safely use axle stands without them falling over then you shouldn't be working on the car there.

Those scissor jacks should really only be used in an emergency as they're horrible things to use compared to a proper trolley jack, and even then axle stands are a necessity for any work where you're placing limbs at risk. Hell I get nervous enough when I have to lean under the jack supported car to put the axle stands in place/remove them.

Oh and removed wheels go under the sill, if everything else fails that'll give you the best ground clearance and minimise the chance of you getting squashed or damaging anything.

[chrismanchr]

both rear brake calipers off ,it was safe as I quickly made a chock out of wood that held the car very steady and used both axle stands and even put the wheel under the suspension ,I do believe in safety ,and was only inspecting it the first time I lfted it up as the pins that keep the handbrake cable connected were seized solid and wanted to see how i was gonna get them off ,I work in a very health and safety orientaited industry ,I can work on the car in the garage but only one side at a time and theres not much space ,just need to get some reconditioned calipers now mine are mullered

[chrismanchr]

ive got axle stands but it wouldnt have mattered the drive is on a slight decline ,car ingear and chocked ,but the chocks we'rnt effective ,the wheel underneath was the real saver !!!! axle stands whould have done nothing
and it was a quick inspection to see weither to go for reconditioned calipers or not

I think you misunderstand.

If you're using axle stands correctly then the weight of the car is on them not the jack, ergo it can't fall off the jack. If your drive is so sloped that you can't safely use axle stands without them falling over then you shouldn't be working on the car there.

Those scissor jacks should really only be used in an emergency as they're horrible things to use compared to a proper trolley jack, and even then axle stands are a necessity for any work where you're placing limbs at risk. Hell I get nervous enough when I have to lean under the jack supported car to put the axle stands in place/remove them.

Oh and removed wheels go under the sill, if everything else fails that'll give you the best ground clearance and minimise the chance of you getting squashed or damaging anything.

as I said it was the decline , my chock failure ,and interupted by a phone call that was important and lenthy

[Draven]

Lesson to be learnt here.

Only work on your car on a flat surface with appropriate support in the form of axel stands..

I only ever use the standard jack to lift the car up slightly so I can get the proper jack under the body kit.

[BMR2L]

Mine fell off the trolley jack just as I was putting the axle stands underneath it. The jack was under the rear engine mount but must not have been properly centered on it and suddenly there was a huge bang followed by a loud scream.

The tip of my middle finger just got caught between the top of the axle stand and the underside of the car and burst open. 5 stitches to hold it all together. Not fun at all having stitches put through your fingernail...

+1 for not going under a car thats only supported by a jack.

-Alan

[MR2 Rich]

I'm really terrified of this happening so I jack it up with a trolley jack and then put it on axle stands AND I put some breezeblocks under the rear axle so if it was to come off the axle stands it would fall onto the blocks. Can never be too careful when under a car

[elbon50]

I'm really terrified of this happening so I jack it up with a trolley jack and then put it on axle stands AND I put some breezeblocks under the rear axle so if it was to come off the axle stands it would fall onto the blocks. Can never be too careful when under a car

Is that the belt & two pairs of braces approach ?

What if, when the car falls on the breeze blocks, they crumble & fall to pieces ?

[craig]

Lucky escape mate! I would never work under a car supported only by a jack though, trolley jack, axle stands and wheel chocks.

[jasongtr]

I'm really terrified of this happening so I jack it up with a trolley jack and then put it on axle stands AND I put some breezeblocks under the rear axle so if it was to come off the axle stands it would fall onto the blocks. Can never be too careful when under a car

Is that the belt & two pairs of braces approach ?

What if, when the car falls on the breeze blocks, they crumble & fall to pieces ? [/quote

maybe build a dwarf wall under the car and wait for the mortar to set - that should be safe enough

[KarlBristol]

Lucky escape

Times like this make me appreciate my inspection pit, axel stands and trolley jack. Also wouldn't be without my ramps

Pleased your not hurt buddy

[jasongtr]

glad i have a post ramp