My Pontiac Vibe has jack points along the frame for jacking it up. The problem is there is not room for both the jack and the jack stand if I want to rotate the tires. Where else can I jack it up so I can put the jackstand under the actual jack point? Would the front axle be ok to use?
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David
The chief cause of failure in this life is giving up what you want most for what you want at the moment. -
The actual jacking point should be on a line of a frame member that will support the weight. If there is a short distance from that point to mount the stand, it should hold OK. If you have a floor type jack, you could use a main frame member closest to the jack point, and use the stand at the jack point.
A THING OF BEAUTY IS A JOY FOREVER - John Keats -
Don't rotate the tires, replace them with snow tires!
Not familiar with that car, but generally you can use the axle.Ric
Plan for the worst, hope for the best!Comment
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you can use the lower A frame member, It holds the weight of the car anyway.
Don't use the axle members. They don't support alot of weight on a real basis.Mike
Lakota's Dad
If at first you don't succeed, deny you were trying in the first place.Comment
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With many small cars, you can raise the car high enough with one jack point -- the front, let's say -- to get a jack stand under the other (rear, say) jack point. Then let the jack back down as required to level that side of the car. With both wheels on the opposite side chocked, there'll be little or no chance for drama.LarryComment
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I have spent a fair amount of time under various cars- but I don't know what the jack points on the Vibe are. Please keep in mind that the jack points you would use for your scissor lift to change a tire are not suitable for jacking in any other way, but you can probably use them for the jack stands.
Finding the jack points can be difficult if you do not know what is under the car. I found a couple of pictures of the underside of the front of the Vibe and it looks like there is a solid steel crossbar- I would try jacking on that, carefully. Also- just my opinion, but I own 6 jack stands. I always use at least 4 if I am getting under the car. I tend to jack on the crossbar (I own a bonneville), and the put two stands under the rails where you would use a tire jack. I lower it onto those two jacks, and then put two more under the most solid piece of metal, as tightly as possible, but just slightly lower than the other jacks. I have read that the side rails have failed and I just figure it's better to have a second set to catch the car if something went wrong. If I jack up both ends, I put the safety set under the end I will be working on. I also leave the jack in a raised position under the car. I know that these measures MAY not work, but if the main stands fail I'll take every chance I can get....
For rotating tires though you should be fine if you aren't crawling under. That front crossbar would be my bet, and in the back you probably have either a similar bar, or sometimes people use the rear differential or some hunk of the transmission- although I never liked doing this. Sometimes it's the way it's done for the car though. Keep in mind these are not the axles- they are actually part of the frame.
Good luck and be safe...F#$@ no good piece of S#$% piece of #$@#% #@$#% #$@#$ wood! Dang. - Me woodworkingComment
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I just bought a Vibe after quite a bit of reading about it, and trying out other smaller cars that I didn't like as much. Anyway, I only have about 1000 miles on it, so I'm not ready for anything like rotating the tires. But, in my reasearch, I found a forum genvibe.com. I've read some stuff there, and I'm sure that you could find an answer there, or ask if it's not up there. They seem to be a pretty friendly bunch (not as good as here, of course).
So, how much wood have you been able to get in the Vibe? I figure the folding front seat will help a lot next time I have to hit the lumber yard.
JimComment
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Jim,
Checked out that forum and found exactly what I needed. Thanks.
Do you like the car so far? Which one do you have? Base, GT or AWD? Mine is the base package with the trim upgrade. I haven't put any wood inside yet. I have strapped a couple pieces of 8' trim to the roof rack. I also carried 4 10' pieces of 2" PVC inside. Had to bungee the lift gate glass down for that one though.David
The chief cause of failure in this life is giving up what you want most for what you want at the moment.Comment
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2007 base. They discontinued the AWD and the GT. I have some of the trim upgrades (monotone and power packages). I've had it about 2 -3 weeks, and really like it so far. The good thing is that it's finally a car that my wife and I both like to drive. She never liked the feel of my Maxima, and I think that her Camry (which has about the same HP rating as the Vibe) feels underpowered and a bit sluggish to accelerate. The dealer finally has the tags done, so I get to get rid of the temp tag in the back window as soon as I get it there!
JimComment
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