A simple lift question...

[cglenn]

Alright, so I got the Bird on jackstands in the air, and took off everything that needs to be taken off to reduce weight in the front and allow for better clearance to the engine when I pull it. I was wondering... since I am taking out the subframe, I need to figure out how to keep the front end in the air while switching out frames, without damaging the car. I don't have a lift, and my friend says we could use the cherry picker and chain up the front end and hopefully that will keep the front of the car up. What do you think the best way would be to keep the front of the car up without damaging the car would be? Thanks.

[Insomnya3AM]

the cherry picker and chain up the front end and hopefully that will keep the front of the car up

Are you looking to kill yourself?
Once people understand how unsafe the seals within a jack are, they will never trust them for anything. A cherry picker is nothing but a jack with more hardware attached to it.

Where do you have the jackstands right now? There should be subframe mounting points that you could put extra jackstands BEFORE you pull the subframe. If anything else, put extra stands under anything that looks sturdy before you pull anything off. Also, put some under the back, the far back. Once you pull the weight out of the front of the car, the back will be MUCH heavier and most likely will fall off.

[1BADAIR]

this is from my engine install

[cglenn]

Right now I secured the jackstands in the back right next to the leafs on the back subframe, and the front is being held up with the wheels on ramps. I was going to tell him that we should just lift up the car using the semi jack he has by the crossmember in the middle of the car, and either secure it using jackstands or just leave it with the semi jack. I just don't want the car to bow or fall, and it sucks that the one piece I have to replace is the piece where the jackstands should be put.

[MrMojoRisin681]

You could post this questions over on www.transamcountry.com its a 2nd gen bird forum. I'm almost positive there's a bunch of people that have been in your shoes on that site.

[SS4Matt]

larry's car looks bad ass doin a poppa-wheely

i've done a few motor pull outta-roo's like larry showed. we popped a miata motor and trans out of my auto-body teachers spec miata race car like that.

and when my step-dad had his old shop, we used to use a fork lift truck to do the same thing with his GT-1 Racecar (the big scary camaro in my garage pics )

[Insomnya3AM]

The only thing holding that car up is a small oil seal within the hydraulic ram. It's a very stupid idea.

[WMCCjames]

That's a perfectly acceptable method as long as you do not exceed the rating of the hoist. However, the car should NEVER be left like that...use it only for lifting and lowering. Once you get it where you need it, support it by blocking it up. The reason not to leave it like that for extended periods of time is the fact that the ram will bleed off presure and start to drop.