adallak Posted June 24, 2005 Report Share Posted June 24, 2005 A friend of mine gave me these ramps. Are they safe for our pretty heavy cars? The saddest thing in life is wasted talent Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ranger Posted June 24, 2005 Report Share Posted June 24, 2005 I'd weld a brace or two on each side. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
navion Posted June 24, 2005 Report Share Posted June 24, 2005 Adallak, I doubt that you can get a Caddy up on those ramps without damaging the front end. They work on light pickups & such. I have always found that ramps get in the way when trying to work underneath. I would get a pair of good jack stands and a good floor jack & give those ramps to someone who owns a pick-up. Britt Britt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adallak Posted June 24, 2005 Author Report Share Posted June 24, 2005 Adallak, I doubt that you can get a Caddy up on those ramps without damaging the front end. They work on light pickups & such. I have always found that ramps get in the way when trying to work underneath. I would get a pair of good jack stands and a good floor jack & give those ramps to someone who owns a pick-up. Britt Britt, I actually thought to lift the front of the car with a hydraulic lifter and put the ramps under the wheels, not driving to the ramps. The saddest thing in life is wasted talent Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
navion Posted June 24, 2005 Report Share Posted June 24, 2005 Adallak, I doubt that you can get a Caddy up on those ramps without damaging the front end. They work on light pickups & such. I have always found that ramps get in the way when trying to work underneath. I would get a pair of good jack stands and a good floor jack & give those ramps to someone who owns a pick-up. Britt Britt, I actually thought to lift the front of the car with a hydraulic lifter and put the ramps under the wheels, not driving to the ramps. Adallak, They would probably work OK for that. Just use them on something solid like concrete. They will sink into asphalt under the right (wrong) conditions. If you do use them, I would suggest that you chock the wheels in addition to setting the parking brake. We don't want to hear that you got tire marks all over your shirt! Britt Britt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adallak Posted June 24, 2005 Author Report Share Posted June 24, 2005 Adallak, I doubt that you can get a Caddy up on those ramps without damaging the front end. They work on light pickups & such. I have always found that ramps get in the way when trying to work underneath. I would get a pair of good jack stands and a good floor jack & give those ramps to someone who owns a pick-up. Britt Britt, I actually thought to lift the front of the car with a hydraulic lifter and put the ramps under the wheels, not driving to the ramps. Adallak, They would probably work OK for that. Just use them on something solid like concrete. They will sink into asphalt under the right (wrong) conditions. If you do use them, I would suggest that you chock the wheels in addition to setting the parking brake. We don't want to hear that you got tire marks all over your shirt! Britt Good point Britt! People THINK they have parking brake applied, but I have recently found I can turn easily with hand one of rear wheels while the parking brake is applied, and it takes a little bit more efforts to turn the other... I would put two pieces of some "two by four" under each ramp and sure chock the wheels. The saddest thing in life is wasted talent Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
navion Posted June 24, 2005 Report Share Posted June 24, 2005 Adallak, Just another couple of suggestions. Use them on flat ground. Some driveways have a slope. I would avoid using the ramps if there is ANY slope! If you use a hydraulic jack, & need to get under the car behind the front wheels, you can always turn the ramps 90 degrees and let them stick out beside the car. But the by word here is BE CAREFUL! Britt Britt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adallak Posted June 24, 2005 Author Report Share Posted June 24, 2005 Adallak, Just another couple of suggestions. Use them on flat ground. Some driveways have a slope. I would avoid using the ramps if there is ANY slope! If you use a hydraulic jack, & need to get under the car behind the front wheels, you can always turn the ramps 90 degrees and let them stick out beside the car. But the by word here is BE CAREFUL! Britt I believe you meant 180 degrees. That's exactly what i am going to do. No slops, it will be a garage of a friend of mine. Thanks, Britt. The saddest thing in life is wasted talent Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JasonA Posted June 24, 2005 Report Share Posted June 24, 2005 I wouldn't use any metal ramps unless, as Ranger stated, they at least were braced. I use the plastic composite ramps for maintenance on both of my current vehicles. The packaging said they were good for 10k pounds (probably 5k each), and they've got HEAVY internal ribbing. I don't think you could crush them with a semi truck. They also have anti-skid rubber pads under them so they won't slide when you drive up on 'em. All that plastic ribbing also means there is a LOT of surface area on the ground, so they wouldn't slide unless you were using them on a roof or something. No need to crawl around with a jack and stands...just drive up and go. The best part is they were only 20 or 30 bucks. I wouldn't trust my personal safety to just anything. Get something you're comfortable with. In my opinion, if you're unsure enough to ask, don't use it. Jason(2001 STS, White Diamond) "When you turn your car on...does it return the favor?" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adallak Posted June 25, 2005 Author Report Share Posted June 25, 2005 jadcock, That's the reason I am asking...If something has any chance to say, collaps while I (or God forbead one of my friends) under the car, I woud stay clear of it. On the other hand the ramps are nearly mint and did not the manufacturer test them under some serious conditions? Actually anything can brake down, take say, jacks... Welding is not option for me, mayby some metal angles bolted as braces... The saddest thing in life is wasted talent Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scotty Posted June 25, 2005 Report Share Posted June 25, 2005 I had these ramps and could not drive my 91 up on them the air dam was too low. Now I have a pair that have a more gradual pitch... I would try to find a similar ramp on-line or in a store and see what their capacity is... Have you looked them over for an etched capacity? I do think they will be fine unless they are badly rusted assuming you can get your 91 up on them... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adallak Posted June 25, 2005 Author Report Share Posted June 25, 2005 I had these ramps and could not drive my 91 up on them the air dam was too low. Now I have a pair that have a more gradual pitch... I would try to find a similar ramp on-line or in a store and see what their capacity is... Have you looked them over for an etched capacity? I do think they will be fine unless they are badly rusted assuming you can get your 91 up on them... There is no indication of capacity. I would not drive up as I mentioned and would use them only as a support. There is not rust. They are in good shape, perhaps never been used. The saddest thing in life is wasted talent Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scotty Posted June 25, 2005 Report Share Posted June 25, 2005 Take a close look at these they are similar and have a 4000 pound capacity per axle, Mike http://www.napaonline.com/cgi-bin/ncommerc...6&usrcommgrpid= Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adallak Posted June 25, 2005 Author Report Share Posted June 25, 2005 Take a close look at these they are similar and have a 4000 pound capacity per axle, Mike http://www.napaonline.com/cgi-bin/ncommerc...6&usrcommgrpid= Thanks, Mike. Yes they are the same size and can hold two Sevilles. The saddest thing in life is wasted talent Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scotty Posted June 25, 2005 Report Share Posted June 25, 2005 and maybe even a Deville! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cdictas Posted June 25, 2005 Report Share Posted June 25, 2005 Adallak, I believe I have the same ramps as you have. I have driven my 96 and 99 STS's up on the ramps with no issues. For those of you who are wondering - what about the front bumper hitting the ramp, well I have an easy work around for you. What I do is place a piece of 2 X 10 X 1' long in front of each ramp. I drive the car up on the 2 X 10's and then up on the ramps. The 2 X 10's provide enough height so that the bumper doesn't hit the ramps. I also add a couple of jack stands under the vehicle just to be extra safe. Chuck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adallak Posted June 25, 2005 Author Report Share Posted June 25, 2005 Thanks, Chuck. I think extra jacks make one not only more safe but also more confident. The saddest thing in life is wasted talent Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KHE Posted June 25, 2005 Report Share Posted June 25, 2005 I use steel ramps but they have a horizontal brace at the bottom end. I jack up the car under the engine cradle and slide the ramps under the tires. I like ramps for changing oil, trans fluid, etc. as the leave the center, underside of the car open. They work well when you need to do work on the top side of the engine so you don;t need to strain your back bending over the engine compartment... Kevin '93 Fleetwood Brougham '05 Deville '04 Deville 2013 Silverado Z71 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JasonA Posted June 25, 2005 Report Share Posted June 25, 2005 I use ramps for everything except for work where I need to remove the tires. It's so much more convienent and safer (IMHO) to drive up on a ramp vs. jack up and insert jackstands. The car was designed to permanently sit on the wheels and tires...I agree that using jackstands are safe and proven, but why not let it sit on the wheels and tires...it'll be MUCH more stable that way. Jason(2001 STS, White Diamond) "When you turn your car on...does it return the favor?" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adallak Posted June 25, 2005 Author Report Share Posted June 25, 2005 I use steel ramps but they have a horizontal brace at the bottom end. I jack up the car under the engine cradle and slide the ramps under the tires. I like ramps for changing oil, trans fluid, etc. as the leave the center, underside of the car open. They work well when you need to do work on the top side of the engine so you don;t need to strain your back bending over the engine compartment... I have found jacking ONE side of the car for oil change purposes more convenient since you get more oil out of the pan that way. The saddest thing in life is wasted talent Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vantasticdude Posted June 25, 2005 Report Share Posted June 25, 2005 A friend of mine gave me these ramps. Are they safe for our pretty heavy cars? walmart has the new version ... 12000 lb capacity plastic ones that are more gradual ...probably could drive up , for $30 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Posted June 25, 2005 Report Share Posted June 25, 2005 I did not even read page two. I say, NO- do not use them at all. I never liked those kind and never used them on any car. Our cars are very heavy. My rule is" if you dought it then don't do it". Why take a chance, it's your neck under there. If I have to work on the ground and depending on the job, I use a hydraulic jack on one side at a time and put super heavy duty blocks of wood under the tires. The blocks are super thick and very safe. Every one should own good strong jack stands too. I been crawling around under construction equipment for 23 years now at work and am still scared about going under anything. Fear is good. I know guys, over kill right. But I think he gets the idea.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jschunke Posted June 25, 2005 Report Share Posted June 25, 2005 How do you guys lift your cars high enough to fit ramps under the tires? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KHE Posted June 25, 2005 Report Share Posted June 25, 2005 How do you guys lift your cars high enough to fit ramps under the tires? I chock the rear wheels first. Then use a floor jack under the engine cradle frame member and jack up the car as far as possible. I then slide the ramps as far under the tires as possible, lower the jack and then place a piece of 4x4 on top of the jack. Slide the jack under the cradle member and jack up the car again - this time, the tires will be high enough to slide the ramps fully under the tire. Kevin '93 Fleetwood Brougham '05 Deville '04 Deville 2013 Silverado Z71 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JasonA Posted June 25, 2005 Report Share Posted June 25, 2005 I chock the rear wheels first. Then use a floor jack under the engine cradle frame member and jack up the car as far as possible. I then slide the ramps as far under the tires as possible, lower the jack and then place a piece of 4x4 on top of the jack. Slide the jack under the cradle member and jack up the car again - this time, the tires will be high enough to slide the ramps fully under the tire. With all that rigamaroll, I still don't understand why you guys don't just DRIVE up on the ramps. Why screw around with blocking wheels, jacking it up half way, adding a spacer block to the jack, etc etc etc. For 30 bucks, safe yourself the hassle and get the plastic ramps that will last forever and be safer to boot. Jason(2001 STS, White Diamond) "When you turn your car on...does it return the favor?" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.