Where are the best/safest places to put jack stands in the front and rear? The couple of times I've used them, I've put them just in front of the notch in the unibody where the jack goes.

Can you put them under the rear axle tubes and live to tell about it? And, up front, is there a cross member that is strong enough?

You guys who have been working under your cars a lot, where are the best places (and what should I stay away from)?

 

In front of the car their are plenty of frame points to put them on. Some have jacked them up from the axle tubes, but I dont recommend that. Taco Bill had a pic up somewhere here and he showed where he does it.

 

Just installed long tube headers. Supported the rear by the axle tubes, the front on each side of the k-member. Was able to get the entire car about a foot off the ground for lots of clearence. Seemed to work just fine.

 

Hey 281GT how did the headers work out for you, which ones did you go with? I am glad to hear that you got a foot of clearance

 

Debated my choice of headers for a long time while I was saving money for them. I eventually choose American Racing headers with their catted x-pipe.
While some of the bolts were a little tight to get too the headers fit VERY well. Lots of clearence for everything. I didn't even have to pull the starter to get the passenger side header in!
I also changed the engine mounts at the same time. This is essential because the factory mounts allow so much engine movement that your primary tubes can interfere with the steering shaft.
To get the new engine mounts in you have to support the engine and remove the aluminum engine mount brackets first. This also makes it a LOT easier to tighten the header bolts. I removed this bracket first on the passenger side and it made it easy to tighten all the header bolts. I did not remove it first on the driver's side and those bolts were harder to reach. If I were to do it all over again I would suggest removing both engine mount brackets, then get your headers in and tighten all the bolts, then put the brackets back in and let the engine down.
You also have to remove the steering shaft but that's easy.
Overall the job wasn't bad. Having that much clearence really helped.

 

Supporting the rear of the car with jack stands under the axles tubes is okay. Jacking the car up on the differential is controversial. The owner’s manual says NOT TO. A lot of the members here will tell you they do it all the time. I did mine once but it made me very nervous.

On the front of the car I think the best spot for jack stands is just inboard of the forward lower a-arm pivot at the cross member. The Ford manual is silent on whether to jack or not under the center of that cross member, but again, many others here have done it w/o event.

Guess it depends on your risk tolerance.

If you jack on the unibody, you want to select a hard point ... usually where there is a major connection. A thin piece of wood or rubber block is recommended between the jack and the under body to ensure the jack load is distributed evenly.

 

To get mine supported by the axle tubes I did jack mine on the differential but I was very careful. The reason that Ford doesn't want you to do this is because the cover extends a little below the casting and it's easy to damage the cover if you are not aware of it.
I used a small block of wood between the jack and the differential housing to make sure I wouldn't damage the cover.

 

Opinions may vary, but this is where I place my jack pad and stands...













And, always chock your tires.

 

Thanks a bunch Bill. The pics are invaluable to me. If I can't see something or draw a diagram of it...to me it doesn't exist (if you know what I mean). I guess you would call me a visual learner. Brain is wired that way.

 

Here's the "official" version:

 

lastime i lifted the car i did it from the LCA mounts, used a wooden block that just formed to the shape of the LCA mount so nothing was bent

 

adding to subscriptions...

 

I'm not so sure, that doesn't look anything like the underside of an S197 to me

 

I jacked mine up for the first time last weekend and I noticed that the differential cover on mine doesnt come anywhere near the bottom edge. I have the optional 3.55 rear and was wondering if it had something to do with that or maybe a diff. cover change for the 07 models????
As a result, I felt confident jacking it up from that point at the rear and no issues.

 

Yea I'm not sure either, looks like it has some camber issues too

I pretty much do it exactly like the crazy Taco, except for putting detail dressings on the fuel lines and parking brake cable covers of course

 

LOL!! Hey Kevin, I don't put any dressing on the undercarriage (well maybe just a little )

 

Your garage floor is tiled?!?!?!?!
You're more A/R than I am!!!!

J/K

 

where tacobill placed his jack stands, do you think it would work for having them in place for 4-6 months? would that create problems up that long?

 

Update: When I did my brakes this weekend, I jacked the rear diff w/ a wooden block, being careful not to hit the cover. Worked great!
I placed jackstands under the axle tubes, directly under the rear spring mounts. This way, if the jack failed and the car hit the stands, the springs would directly absorb the impact, and the axle tubes wouldn't see any weird bending moment from the impact.

Jacked up & placed jackstands Taco-Bill-Style in the front

 

Same here. The cover on my 07 doesn't go near the bottom edge. Thanks for the pics TacoBill.