Correct mounting of exhaust on my 100-6?

[Chet Zerlin]

Hello all,

I just had a 2 post lift installed in my garage and quickly found out that, while the lift arms fit fine under the passenger side, on the driver side the exhaust and muffler sit about 1 inch too low - preventing the lift arms from reaching past them to the frame. Could someone on the forum tell me what the correct ground clearance should be on the exhaust side? Is what I am experiencing "normal" - do others have similar issues getting their car onto a lift?

Looking under the car I can see one or two inches of clearance between the top of the muffler and the floor of the car but I'm not sure how much play there actually is to raise the whole assembly up (also....considering that the muffler is one of the big heat sources on my Healey I'm not really anxious to move it too close to the floor!). That said...How close to the floor of the car should the muffler be mounted?

Any information, suggestions or ideas would be much appreciated.

Thanks!

 

[Randy Forbes]

With a new lift, you're going to find ALL KINDS of things wrong with your car now! Some of them may not even be imaginary

With my 100/6, I have been lifting it by the LH outriggers, near the pinch-welds; I place blocks of wood between the lift's pads and the outrigger to clear the bodywork. You'll probably have to cut something special to fit. I've been lifting my Healey that way for a decade now, and there hasn't been any repercussions from it (like bending the bodywork, but on a weaker chassis, I could see that as a possibility).

One of the things that I cannot stress enough, is what ever car you're lifting, raise it only enough to get the tires 3-4" off the floor, then walk around and give it a good SHAKE on each__front/rear__bumper. If it's going to fall, better to be a few inches than on top of your head!

Here's a link to the rest of that album: https://spcarsplus.com/gallery3/index.php/Healey-at-home/monza_exh
There are no pictures that specifically focus on the lift points, but maybe they'll help.

Even lifting by the outriggers (LH side extreme outboard ends only, RH side under the outriggers, but closer to the frame) I still have to drive my Healey (and some M Rdstrs/Coupes that are lowered) onto some 2 x 6s that I cut with beveled ends; you could conceivably do the same thing with 6 x 6s to get the car high enough for the lift arms to pass under the exhaust, then use the "truck adapters" to get the pads back up to the frame. That's more work than I want to do...

Whatever means you settle on, ALWAYS give it the shake test__regardless of car__and keep your spacers even from side to side (I'm more concerned about that than I am fore/aft, depending on the task at hand).

I strongly urge you to familiarize yourself, if you have not already done so, with lifting guidelines for safety. Your life depends on it.

 

[Healey Nut]

Randy mentions pieces of wood to use as spacers etc to assist with the space between the pads and body to avoid obstructions like exhausts etc .
If you have a fully detailed chassis and don't want to damage paint etc then try using hockey pucks , they are super hard but have a bit of a cushion effect and don't mark paint , they never split ,splinter or deteriorate and are really cheap . You can also cut them if you need a specific shape to fit somewhere .

 

[healeyblue]

I have to jack up the rear of Healeys to get the left rear lift arm under the exhaust. It then use the lift arm spacer to raise the pad up enough so the arm clears the exhaust (the short spacer is usually enough). While this is not the quickest way to work on the cars it sure beats lying on the floor with the car on jack stands, so yes this is normal on a Healey.

 

[Randy Forbes]

Randy mentions pieces of wood to use as spacers etc to assist with the space between the pads and body to avoid obstructions like exhausts etc .
If you have a fully detailed chassis and don't want to damage paint etc then try using hockey pucks , they are super hard but have a bit of a cushion effect and don't mark paint , they never split ,splinter or deteriorate and are really cheap . You can also cut them if you need a specific shape to fit somewhere .

That's because I usually just grab what's readily to hand, but I liked the puck idea the first time I saw it brought up (either here or another forum?) some months ago, just never got around to ordering them...

Until just now! Bag of a dozen of them for $20.00 on Amazon (I have two lifts, one in each garage).

Be careful when searching/ordering, because there's a whole lot more products under the name hockey pucks compared to the last time I flooded the backyard for a rink (mid-60s). You'll see what I mean, but had a few false starts, until I narrowed the search to ice hockey pucks.

 

[Chet Zerlin]

Thanks everyone for your replies! Randy, as usual your picture helps greatly. Never thought of hockey pucks as being a useful Healey tool until now but it sure makes sense...

Randy...where did you get the insulation that you installed above the muffler as shown in the picture? That's exactly what I am looking for....did you fabricate it?

 

[healeyblue]

You can use hardie board purchased from home depot. It looks very similar to the original asbestos stuff.

 

[Rob Glasgow]

Chet, I just sent you a Private Message.

 

[blueskies]

These cars certainly are low. Back in 1969, I missed a driveway with the BN6 and went over a curb. The results were not pretty. Last week, I tried slipping a trouble light under the BJ7 from the driver's side: it would not clear the muffler. And the muffler on the '61 lightly touches the concrete on the way into the garage. Definitely not off road vehicles!

 

[John Turney]

Yes, you have to be careful not to drive over roadkill.