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Having recently rehung the exhaust, replaced the rear hub seals, rear brakes, replaced the rear wire loom, serviced the trans fluids, installed new elevated/sloped seat bracket shims, and just generally did everthing I could except scrape off all 40 years of chassis grime I want to pass on a bit of insight regarding the use of jacks on these Healeys.
Like other lightweigh cars, I don't like to lift them from the corners, but rather from the center. The Healey chassis is great for this on account of the for and aft cross memebers. However, in my opinion I think it is essential to spread the load from the jack lifting pad across the cross member with a board. A sturdy 3/4 inch plywood seemed to do the job well. The cross members had plenty of dents from DPO's lifting the car with less care.
I use one of these new "raceing" aluminum floor jacks. (I wonder who came in first in the international competition?). These are a long handle, wide, and lightweight rolling jack with alrge lifting pad. The valve is operated by rotating the handle. They lift the car super high, too! Yet are low enough to slide under the front anti-sway bar.
But this is a potiential hazard I wish to caution you about. As these type of jacks lift the car so high, they do so in an arc back toward you. This means two things. First, if you have the wheels braked or chocked at the other end, the jack has to roll under the car as it lifts. If the ground is rough, and the jack wheels don't easily roll, the jack could pull its lifting pad right off the chassis cross memember. Especially if there is a lot of oily girm on the chassis. This did not happen to me on the Healey, but it did happen on a Spitfire. The trunk bottom came down on the jack pad with a WHAM. Put a big dent in it. Later had to hop up and down in the trunk to push it back out. But on the Healey with only the gas tank there... Be careful.
And second, remember that as the car is elevated, the cross member begins to slope. And very steeply as the car rises, making it want to slid off the lifting pad.
Now if you set the car on jack stands, as the car comes down to them, it may want to move away from you on account of the lifting arc, tilting the stands as it contacts them. At some point this could get away from you, making for a very bad day. So be certain the rear brakes are firmly on if lifting the front, or the front wheels are fully chocked if lifting the rear. This will help the car come as straight down as possible onto the jackstands.
So to help the front stay put when lifting the rear, I made four 8" long chock blocks from scrap 4" by 4" fence post material. Then from these four made two attached pairs by first setting them for and aft of each front tire to set the spacing and used a couple of long scraps of 1 x 3 to connect each for with each aft chock. Now I have a set of tire chocks that block both for and aft tire movement. These can easily be set under each tire, no adjustment needed and they hold in place.
The result is great! When lifting the car, especially really high like these new lifting jacks are capable of doing, the car stays put, the the jack is forced to roll, leaving the car where you put it. A good thing. The last thing you want is the car going where you don't want it to go. Especially when it is up high.
Also, when working under the car, I set the wheels down on ramps, instead of jacks, when possible. Just a lot safer. (unless of course you need to do wheel removal sort of things.) Even putting a couple of boards on top of the ramps for another inch or two of height is OK. I just don't trust jack stands forged and welded together by people making only $4 a day using questionable raw materials.
In 35 years I have had several cars come off of jacks. Fortunately I was not under the cars. But in each case the car was very high up. A convenient thing, but also a potentially dangerous thing.
For your safety. Not just "Safety Fast". But saftey while off the ground.
As someone used to say, "Gravity is a harsh mistress."
Like other lightweigh cars, I don't like to lift them from the corners, but rather from the center. The Healey chassis is great for this on account of the for and aft cross memebers. However, in my opinion I think it is essential to spread the load from the jack lifting pad across the cross member with a board. A sturdy 3/4 inch plywood seemed to do the job well. The cross members had plenty of dents from DPO's lifting the car with less care.
I use one of these new "raceing" aluminum floor jacks. (I wonder who came in first in the international competition?). These are a long handle, wide, and lightweight rolling jack with alrge lifting pad. The valve is operated by rotating the handle. They lift the car super high, too! Yet are low enough to slide under the front anti-sway bar.
But this is a potiential hazard I wish to caution you about. As these type of jacks lift the car so high, they do so in an arc back toward you. This means two things. First, if you have the wheels braked or chocked at the other end, the jack has to roll under the car as it lifts. If the ground is rough, and the jack wheels don't easily roll, the jack could pull its lifting pad right off the chassis cross memember. Especially if there is a lot of oily girm on the chassis. This did not happen to me on the Healey, but it did happen on a Spitfire. The trunk bottom came down on the jack pad with a WHAM. Put a big dent in it. Later had to hop up and down in the trunk to push it back out. But on the Healey with only the gas tank there... Be careful.
And second, remember that as the car is elevated, the cross member begins to slope. And very steeply as the car rises, making it want to slid off the lifting pad.
Now if you set the car on jack stands, as the car comes down to them, it may want to move away from you on account of the lifting arc, tilting the stands as it contacts them. At some point this could get away from you, making for a very bad day. So be certain the rear brakes are firmly on if lifting the front, or the front wheels are fully chocked if lifting the rear. This will help the car come as straight down as possible onto the jackstands.
So to help the front stay put when lifting the rear, I made four 8" long chock blocks from scrap 4" by 4" fence post material. Then from these four made two attached pairs by first setting them for and aft of each front tire to set the spacing and used a couple of long scraps of 1 x 3 to connect each for with each aft chock. Now I have a set of tire chocks that block both for and aft tire movement. These can easily be set under each tire, no adjustment needed and they hold in place.
The result is great! When lifting the car, especially really high like these new lifting jacks are capable of doing, the car stays put, the the jack is forced to roll, leaving the car where you put it. A good thing. The last thing you want is the car going where you don't want it to go. Especially when it is up high.
Also, when working under the car, I set the wheels down on ramps, instead of jacks, when possible. Just a lot safer. (unless of course you need to do wheel removal sort of things.) Even putting a couple of boards on top of the ramps for another inch or two of height is OK. I just don't trust jack stands forged and welded together by people making only $4 a day using questionable raw materials.
In 35 years I have had several cars come off of jacks. Fortunately I was not under the cars. But in each case the car was very high up. A convenient thing, but also a potentially dangerous thing.
For your safety. Not just "Safety Fast". But saftey while off the ground.
As someone used to say, "Gravity is a harsh mistress."
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