Jack Stands

[jettle]

What is the best location up front to place jack stands???

Any Pictures????

[jettle]

Oops....Also, IS there a spot that is intended for use when jacking up the whole front of the car?

Thanks!

[martyo]

Look under the rocker panels. There are arrows correspond to the placement on the frame rails (you are not jacking from the rocker panels). When you look at the frame you will see that the frame is pretty beefy at the jacking points.

When jacking the front you can jack from the cross member that runs transverse on the car.

Remember, noi climbing in, on or under a car that is up only on a jack, unless it has jack stands and chocks under the tires. It can be very difficult to stand up again if a car falls on top of you.

[jgc61sr2002]

I would only jack on the frame. :)

[RF Overlord]

It can be very difficult to stand up again if a car falls on top of you.

And Marty should know; when I first met him he was 6'4"...since he's started working on his own car, he's now 4'6"....

:lol: :lol: :lol:

[martyo]

And Marty should know; when I first met him he was 6'4"...since he's started working on his own car, he's now 4'6"...

I am just short for my wieght....

[Paul T. Casey]

As Martyo said, jack at the crossmember, place stands under frame at jacking points. I do this often as I rotate (side to side only) my tires. Also remember if you jack the back, turn off the toggle switch for the air adjust in the trunk. As for Marty's weight to height ratio, he's not hefty, he just suffers from redundant flesh syndrome.

[CRUZTAKER]

I posted pics when I had the car up for 3 days doing calipers....but for the life of me I can't find the thread.

It was called 'jacking points' or something...I remember it well cause it derailed quickly. I have the pics, but I'm on the road this week and they are at home on the other computer. Sorry.

[jettle]

Barry,

If you are willing can you send the pics to me when you get home? I was not planning on doing my springs till this weekend or next...probably next.

Thanks!
Jeff

[CRUZTAKER]

You got it man...cause I have searched and searched and can't figure what thread I posted those in.

I'll be home friday nite...now the trick is not to forget my promise :P

[03SILVERSTREAK]

I am just short for my weight....

But if you stand on your wallet, you would be 12 feet tall... :lol:

[Thomas C Potter]

Book says DO NOT jack-up with crossmember!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Cast alum is not as strong as steel.

[jettle]

Thanks Barry! If you forget its not a problem. I will shoot you a PM.

Jeff

[RCSignals]

Also, do not jack from, or place jack stands on, the rear axle

[Dr Caleb]

Also, do not jack from, or place jack stands on, the rear axle

And do not jack by lifting by the rear differential. Very bad.

To get mine in the air, I use ramps, then bottle jacks on the frame, then jackstands to hold it.

Frame only is your safest and only bet.

Springs? Replacing the front springs yourself is very difficult and dangerous. Have you done it before? It requires a spring compressor.

[jettle]

Hey guys,

Since the springs only get replaced up front I am only concerned about getting the front all the way off the ground.

The spring compressor is going to arrive today along side the springs. It’s not that hard to do. I have done a set before. It’s not going to be as easy as my Mustang was but it should not be too tough if I can get her up in the air.

Jeff

[jgc61sr2002]

Jeff - Are you sure you want to install the springs yourself? A tough job on the ground. Good luck. :up: Don't forget to have the frontend aligned.

[jettle]

Okay, why is everyone trying to freak me out??? :)

Is there something special about the front end of our cars? It a standard mcpherson style setup isnt it? Or, am I missing something???


Thanks,
Jeff

[FordNut]

Okay, why is everyone trying to freak me out??? :)

Is there something special about the front end of our cars? It a standard mcpherson style setup isnt it? Or, am I missing something???


Thanks,
Jeff

No, it's not a McPherson strut front suspension. It's more of the older style with upper & lower control arms with a separate shock. You'll possibly have to separate the ball joints from the spindle in order to get the springs out. And they have a lot of pre-load pressure on them.

[jettle]

do you think I will ahve to seperate teh ball joint if the sring is compressed?

[jettle]

No, it's not a McPherson strut front suspension. It's more of the older style with upper & lower control arms with a separate shock. You'll possibly have to separate the ball joints from the spindle in order to get the springs out. And they have a lot of pre-load pressure on them.


What you are describing sounds more like my 2000 mustang setup. Although that would be even easier than the MP style setup...The pictures posted of our cars did not look to be that way to me. I have to admit I am only going by the picture I saw that was posted. I have not even looked under the car yet.

[TAF]

jettle,


All I know is I had 2 of the top Ford Techs around do mine...and they said it was a :censor: to do...not as easy as doing Mustangs. The particulars...I can't give you...but in a dealership...with a lift and a hydrolic spring-press...they had a tough time. And yes...an alignment is mandatory after it.

[martyo]

Okay, why is everyone trying to freak me out??? :)

Is there something special about the front end of our cars? It a standard mcpherson style setup isnt it? Or, am I missing something???


Thanks,
Jeff
Man oh man, if you are able to do this in your hoime garage I will be very impressed. I used a very experienced suspension guy and the task wasn't easy. Some shops in my parts didn't even want to tackle this.

And, I am not trying to freak you out. I am just trying to protect you from yourself.

[jettle]

Man oh man, if you are able to do this in your hoime garage I will be very impressed. I used a very experienced suspension guy and the task wasn't easy. Some shops in my parts didn't even want to tackle this.

And, I am not trying to freak you out. I am just trying to protect you from yourself.

I have done spring swaps before at home without problems. But, from what you guys are saying...this could be a totally diff situation. I am going to look this over with a close eye before starting the job now.

Also, I have always had my cars aligned after the work is done. It’s mandatory in my book.

Thanks Guys

[TripleTransAm]

What you are describing sounds more like my 2000 mustang setup. Although that would be even easier than the MP style setup...The pictures posted of our cars did not look to be that way to me. I have to admit I am only going by the picture I saw that was posted. I have not even looked under the car yet.

I don't recall what the 2000 Mustang front suspension looks like, but I suspect it isn't very different than what they had since the 80s. I don't believe this is what we have in the Marauder.

The McPherson strut is a replacement for an upper control arm, in cars that lack sufficient width up front to be able to fit an upper control arm. What you get is the regular lower control arm (and ball joint, etc.), but instead of having the upper control arm to complete the job of properly locating the wheel, it's replaced by what is essentially a super-beefed-up shock absorber. This "strut" performs the shock/spring damping as well as keeping the front geometry (in conjunction with the lower control arm). Again for space reasons, the spring is usually compressed between the upper strut mount and some sort of bracket on the lower part of the strut itself. As the strut compresses, the spring is compressed, etc.

Then there's the "modified" McPherson strut setup. This also uses a strut to replace the upper control arm in locating the wheel, but the spring is not located on the strut itself. Instead, it's located between some part of the frame and the lower control arm. So, in this setup, the shock/spring damping is done by the strut as with the pure McPherson setup, but the spring is still located separately. This is what the 3rd gen F-bodies had (1982-1992)... I can change my front struts on my GTA without a spring compressor, thankfully.

And then there's the traditional double A-arm setup... a lower control arm AND an upper control arm, each with ball joints, and the spring between the lower control arm and some portion of the frame. The shock/spring damping is performed by a shock absorber, between one of the arms (usually lower) and the frame. Nice solution, but it requires ample working room up front.

[jgc61sr2002]

do you think I will ahve to seperate teh ball joint if the sring is compressed?
YES - I have changed front springs several times and is is not only difficult but also dangerous.

[jettle]

John,

Are you talking about in the Marauder itself or cars in general?

I agree it can be very dangerous. I had a guy in my autoshop class remove an upper strut bolt withuot compressing the springfirst while the car was on a jack. It sounded like the lower control arm went though the floor. I was about 5 feet away from the guy scared the crap out of me. I am SUPER careful when working on anthing car or motorcycle related.

[jgc61sr2002]

Jettle - I was talking about cars in general. I don't think I would attempt to change the springs on my Marauder.

[merc406]

I must be missing something here, if it's not M/Strut, then all I ever used was 2 jacks, one under the lower control arm and one under the frame rail. Loosen and take off the lower balljoint nut, sway bar bolts, shock nuts, slowly raise the frame jack, give the spindle a rap to free it up, then work both jacks to extend the spring, never had to use a compressor.

[TripleTransAm]

I agree, Merc406, I'll have to have a look at the service manual to see what specific details make front end work trickier on a Marauder. I'm NOT saying that it should be easy, I'm just saying I'm curious to find out what specifically makes it a tough job.

[jettle]

I agree, Merc406, I'll have to have a look at the service manual to see what specific details make front end work trickier on a Marauder. I'm NOT saying that it should be easy, I'm just saying I'm curious to find out what specifically makes it a tough job.


Steve,

I would greatly appreciate that! Whatever you can report back would be most helpful. I have been on the same wavelength you two have been this whole time about the removal.

[TripleTransAm]

I'll have a look tonight... but I do have to say that I DO agree with what everyone's been saying regarding spring removal...

Whether it's McPherson Strut or double A-arm, there's always an element of risk of injury. Even with a proper spring compressor, there's a risk. I know a few folks that have come close to receiving a blow to the head from a flying spring compressor (faulty tool to begin with). Even a bench-mounted spring compressor (like the type I'd need to remove the springs off my '98 WS6 - it has a funky coil-over shock setup, even though it uses 2 A-arms) can malfunction.

I'm thinking of doing this to my '78 this coming summer, and I can promise you that it will involve well placed jacks, spring compressors AND copious amounts of chain!

[jettle]

Thanks Steve,

I agree....I have seen some funky compressors that do not look safe at all. There are some people selling 5.00 compressors on eBay. I would never use one of those! I purchased a good one and I do not even a good tool when its doing a job like this. Much caution is needed

[RCSignals]

I must be missing something here, if it's not M/Strut, then all I ever used was 2 jacks, one under the lower control arm and one under the frame rail. Loosen and take off the lower balljoint nut, sway bar bolts, shock nuts, slowly raise the frame jack, give the spindle a rap to free it up, then work both jacks to extend the spring, never had to use a compressor.


That should work. Standard way of doing it, except I'd just loosen that lower ball joint nut at first.

[CRUZTAKER]

You got it man...cause I have searched and searched and can't figure what thread I posted those in.

I'll be home friday nite...now the trick is not to forget my promise :P



This is a shot of the rear jack stand location.
http://www.mercurygallery.net/mmnet/watermark.php?file=503/627Jack_rear.jpg

[CRUZTAKER]

This is a shot of the front jack stand location.

Bigger pics in the gallery

http://www.mercurygallery.net/mmnet/watermark.php?file=503/627Jack_front.jpg

[jettle]

This is a shot of the front jack stand location.

Bigger pics in the gallery

http://www.mercurygallery.net/mmnet/watermark.php?file=503/627Jack_front.jpg

Great job Barry...Thank You!