A fellow forum member recently PM'd me to ask what I thought about the Quickjacks that I mentioned in another post, and below is the reply that I sent. I thought it might be helpful for reference for someone.

"I love my Quickjacks - I have the 7000TL model, so the weight of the Jag is no problem at all (not that the Jag is a heavy car by today's standards). They lift the car just over two feet in the air, which was plenty of working space beneath the car and a comfortable height for sitting at each corner when doing all the suspension work that I recently did (and I am no spring chicken).

With that said, I find that I have to use the Quickjacks horizontally, across the underside of the car, rather than longitudinally between the wheels (so side to side, rather than front to back), if that makes sense. This is because the front and rear jacking points on either side of the Jag are not in line with each other, and each Quickjack is not wide enough to span the difference in the alignment between the front and rear jacking points. It is totally fine to use the Quickjacks horizontally (as well as longitudinally) provided they are both parallel to each other when lifting the car - this is confirmed on the vendor's website, I believe (and it worked fine for me, in practice).

One cautionary note - when using the Quickjack across the front two jacking points, the Quickjack exceeds the distance between the two front jacking points, and so what I did was use a rubber mounting block at one end of the Quickjack, and then at the other end I placed a small length of 2x4 across the Quickjack rails, beneath the other front jacking point of the car.

The Quickjacks are the only affordable solution I could find for the space that I have, and I have no regrets. I also purchased some rubber blocks - something like 3 inches x 4 inches - one for each corner - they are the actual, physical contact point between the Quickjack and the jacking points of the car (apart from the small piece of 2x4 on one end of the front Quickjack).

Bottom line is that a two-post lift would have been perfect, if I had the headroom in the garage, but Quickjacks - even with a bit of finagling for the front one - were the next best solution for me."

Cheers,

Steve.

 

Thanks, Steve. I would really like to get something like this. I found their site & they have 2 newer models, the 7000TLX ( $1,850) and the 6000ELX ($2,005). They list your model for $1,815. I believe the 2 newer models have greater capacities (length, etc.). I will measure my '04 R to see which one would work best.

2 questions:

1. From the picture on the site, it appears that the product used as shown, from front to back, would be under the plastic bottom covers. Does this cause any damage to the bottom covers? Mine are pretty brittle and are starting to look shabby. I realize that you employ yours from side to side, but the same would likely apply.

2. Does it store easily when not in use? My wife is threatening to beat me around the head and shoulders if my part of the garage gets any more chaotic.

Also, does anyone have any other suggestions about this product or others?

Thanks & have a nice weekend,

Steve

 

Hey, Steve,

Answering the second question first .... I store my Quickjacks side by side on the floor and then just park my XJ8 over them in the garage - it's a neat solution as you don't see them when the car is in the garage and it uses otherwise 'dead' space rather than taking up valuable real estate elsewhere in the garage. I think they are 3 inches high when not in use. With that said, if your Jag loses height then you may want to park a different car over them ha!

For your first question, the Quickjacks may work longitudinally with those lifting points (although my 7000TL is nowhere near long enough for the XJ8 - even the SWB - to reach both). However, I used a page from the Jaguar manual as my source of truth for where to position the Quickjacks. The page from the manual is below (and the lifting points that I used with my Quickjack are circled in red):



In the other PM conversation I am having with a fellow member, the other member sent a picture showing the car lifted with a two post lift, and which seems to show the front lifting points being ones you describe in your question. It looks like you might be able to use the Quickjacks longitudinally - IF they were long enough - since I imagine the lifting points being used in the two-post lift picture below, are only designed to be used if the whole car is to be lifted squarely at the same time. But with that said, and looking at the picture, I still think the design of the Quickjacks will make it difficult to use them longitudinally, because a) they don't lift the car vertically up, they lift it up and back, or up and forward depending on which way around you have them, and b) one end of the bottom section of each Quickjack - that is in contact with the floor - extends slightly beyond the upper part that actually makes contact with the car, and so the positioning may be hindered by the proximity of the Jag's lifting points to the wheels

Here is the picture that the other member sent to me (and I have circled the front jacking points that I used - horizontally, not longitudinally, in red): The picture does a good job of illustrating that front to back, the lift points are too widely spaced/misaligned for the width of the Quickjack, to be able to use the Quickjack longitudinally between those points).



Hope this all makes sense!

Cheers,

Steve.

 

Thanks so much, Steve, for providing such detailed info; you have really clarified things.The diagrams and pictures are invaluable.

Because my R is approaching 20 years old, & I'm no chicken, it would be great for both of us if I could find the "best", within reason, method of hoisting her. A thought that intrigues me is to procure 4 - 14 x 14 oak blocks with a metal resting point dead center under each jacking point. Also, I believe soil conditions under my garage floor are such that a bay could be dug in the floor; this would require extensive structural concrete work, etc. & I can't imagine a time that would allow such a mess. However, these are subjects for another thread.

Thanks again for your gracious help.

Have a nice weekend, Steve S.

P.S. Have many fond memories of Cashiers and Flat Rock. Haven't been there in over 40 years. Hope modernity hasn't ruined them.

 

Very useful thread. Thank you. I have a set and they've not given me a problem,yet. Work fine on the 04 SWB XJR, but too short for the LWB Super V8. So the crosswise solution is a revelation to me and a great solution. If I'd only had the sense to do that when the LWB was in the air for 3 or 4 days to replace the diff. This will work for oil changes too.
And I just noticed the Cashiers and Flat Rock comments. I'm in Greenville, so that used to be a Sunday drive route. Not so much any more. Even if you can get up there on a Sunday morning, you'll be following a 15mph van driver on the way back. Honestly, the reason I plan to move out to Oklahoma. Just no place to go for a nice drive any longer. Too much traffic.
Thanks for the great post though.

 

Hi, @wolvesfan , when you lift car with quickjacks perpendicular to car's long axis, I would expect car to slide relative to quickjacks while wheels still in contact with floor. Does this motion kicks rubber pads from under support points? Or, do you do something to preempt car sliding on quickjacks? I can see how lifting by pinch weld may be not an issue. With transfers arrangement, there are some questions. Whould it be too much to ask you to post a quick video clip next time you lift car with quickjacks?
Thanks in advance.
P.S. I am considering rebuilding rear suspension arms/bushings during winter period, while car is taken off the road. and debating if money saved on labor will be put to a good use with acquiring quickjack. Getting up and down around car does not get easier with time!

 

Hi, Big Koshka,

I get what you're saying but it wasn't an issue for me. I'm sure there's a scientific explanation around radial shift, but from what I remember, the first few inches of QJ travel were more vertical than radial, which just took the weight off the wheels enough so that by the time the radial shifting got going, there wasn't as much friction between the tire and the ground to cause the sliding issue you were asking about. None of the rubber mounting blocks (three of them) or the piece of 2x4 I used across frame of the front QJ because the QJ was longer than the gap between the inner mounting points, shifted or moved or otherwise caused any issues. I also Googled about using the QJ laterally beforehand - and I think they even mention it on the vendor's website - and couldn't see any mention of potential sliding issues.

Hope that helps. Good luck with the suspension job! As far as purchasing the QJ's. I have no regrets. They're one of those things I consider as "better to have and not need, than need and not have"

Edit: No plans to lift the car any time soon but will try to remember to video.

Further Edit: It goes without saying that the QJ's have to be parallel to each other - whether you use them laterally or longitudinally. I just used a tape measure to measure the distance between the respective ends of each QJ - and nudged them as needed until the gap was the same (give or take an inch) at both ends - before starting the lift. If they are not parallel to each other then something could, and probably would slide, for sure.

Cheers,

Steve.