by "If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent" (essextee)
Published 09/12/2017 at 10:36
by "If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent" (essextee)
Published 09/12/2017 at 10:36
No Tags
STARS: 2
(Don’t worry, I didn’t actually use it on this surface.)
"Tripper" (tripe46)
09/12/2017 at 10:41, STARS: 1
Whoa, am I seeing all of that jack?
"If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent" (essextee)
09/12/2017 at 10:44, STARS: 2
Yes, it’s like half a scissor jack. The geometry always keeps the pad directly above the foot. Logic says it’s stable but I still don’t trust it.
"crowmolly" (crowmolly)
09/12/2017 at 10:45, STARS: 4
I’m sure it was designed to not be *that* sketchy but it sure looks odd.
Ain’t no sketch like old school sketch
"Straightsix9904" (Straightsix9904)
09/12/2017 at 10:45, STARS: 1
My VW came with that style. It scares the crap out of me when I have to use it. I always keep the tire under the car and switch them out as quick as I can
"Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)" (rduncan5678)
09/12/2017 at 10:46, STARS: 0
I mean the only purpose of a scissor jack is emergency roadside tire swapping. So it being sketchy is kind of not that big of a deal. As long as they weighted this one properly it should work fine for that task.
I just carry a harbor freight floor jack at all times. While its still kind of cheap junk, I definitely trust it wayyyy more for simple tasks. And then just always use jack stands for anything involving going under the car.
"Alfalfa" (alfalfa-romeo)
09/12/2017 at 10:49, STARS: 0
Yeah this is apparently normal in Europe. I’ve used them many times and they’ve always worked, despite looking like a death trap.
"If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent" (essextee)
09/12/2017 at 10:50, STARS: 0
I’ve got a 3 ton floor jack available whenever I need it, which is what I used to swap the wheel this morning.
"Tripper" (tripe46)
09/12/2017 at 10:56, STARS: 2
That’s what I was thinking looking at it, like “Ok I get why it works, but it looks wrong”
"RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht" (ramblininexile)
09/12/2017 at 10:57, STARS: 1
This one comes apart into pieces to retain the spare, you operate it with the lug wrench, and it hooks onto the bumper.
"If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent" (essextee)
09/12/2017 at 10:59, STARS: 0
It’s not the 40's anymore.
"themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles" (themanwithsauce)
09/12/2017 at 11:00, STARS: 4
That jack is known in VW circles as “The widowmaker”. Granted, when I dropped my jetta on my head, I had a jack stand that decided it didn’t want to stand for it anymore.
"AkursedX" (akursedx)
09/12/2017 at 11:02, STARS: 1
I had that jack in a couple VW’s. As far as scissor jacks go, I loved it! The simple reason is that I could get it up (hehe) faster than any scissor jack I ever used before. But yeah, I would not be going underneath a car with it, EVER.
"If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent" (essextee)
09/12/2017 at 11:07, STARS: 2
It’s like super compact though, which I guess is why it’s used.
"ttyymmnn" (ttyymmnn)
09/12/2017 at 11:11, STARS: 2
A lot of people have chimed in that the VW uses a similar jack. Can confirm. I took a photo of mine once but I can’t find it now. It looks like complete crackpipe but it works just fine.
"Sir Halffast" (Sir_Halffast)
09/12/2017 at 11:13, STARS: 0
Stick your head under there.
"kanadanmajava1" (kanadanmajava1)
09/12/2017 at 11:17, STARS: 0
I think my father’s Vectra A came with one of that time. It looked flimsy but it was surprisingly sturdy. We used it for years when the summer/winter tires were swapped under the car.
"CobraJoe" (cobrajoe)
09/12/2017 at 11:18, STARS: 1
Bumper jacks are the best.
no kneeling on the side of the road, no fighting gummy threads on a screw jack, no trying to crank with a tiny bent rod for leverage. Just be careful not to bump the car when it’s up in the air, but you have to do that with every jack.
"vicali" (vicali)
09/12/2017 at 11:19, STARS: 0
Yep, standard mk2 and mk3 issued widowmakers. When I had three Jettas I used to use two jacks on a side to do tire changes. They have a pretty good slot on the pinchweld when you get them in the right spot.
Still dodgy - and I wouldn’t put more than an arm under the car with it up on those.
"ttyymmnn" (ttyymmnn)
09/12/2017 at 11:23, STARS: 0
Oh, I would never have crawled under the car if it were up on one of those. It was perfectly fine for changing a tire, but that’s it. After all, it was only designed for that.
"MasterMario - Keeper of the V8s" (mastermario)
09/12/2017 at 11:24, STARS: 0
Is that like a mini hi-lift jack? If so, I’d much rather use that than any scissor jack.
"unclevanos (Ovaltine Jenkins)" (unclevanos)
09/12/2017 at 11:31, STARS: 0
W I D O W M A K E R
"shop-teacher" (shop-teacher)
09/12/2017 at 11:31, STARS: 0
Yikes! Yeah, that would make me wildly uncomfortable.
"RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht" (ramblininexile)
09/12/2017 at 11:33, STARS: 1
Kind of like a mini-Hi-lift, but the detents that hold the jack are... not forged or machined. They’re stamped teeth in sheet metal. Kind of sketchy.
"Scary__goongala!" (corymagee)
09/12/2017 at 11:33, STARS: 1
I know VW fans refer to a jack like this as the widowmaker. The jack for my W123 300D had a rod that stuck into a hole in a location basically above where the jack in the picture is.
"RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht" (ramblininexile)
09/12/2017 at 11:34, STARS: 0
*’60s.
"MasterMario - Keeper of the V8s" (mastermario)
09/12/2017 at 11:48, STARS: 0
Yea...sounds bit sketchy
"ateamfan42" (ateamfan42)
09/12/2017 at 15:23, STARS: 0
Some Audi cars used the same style.
It amazingly worked on my heavy S4. But I only used it in a nice level garage. There were some nice gouges under the rocker panels where it had clearly slipped on a former owner in the past.
"ateamfan42" (ateamfan42)
09/12/2017 at 15:26, STARS: 0
Is that like a mini hi-lift jack? If so, I’d much rather use that than any scissor jack.
No you wouldn’t. These bumper jacks were common equipment back when cars had actual structural bumpers. My friend’s late 80s Crown Vic had one and we tried it out once when swapping tires in the shop just to see how sketchy it was.
You have to remember it lifts the entire end of the car. So you have two wheels in the front on the ground, and the entire ass end of this big iron beast just hanging out on a little steel post. It was REALLY sketchy on a level concrete floor. On the side of a sloped road, in the sand and dark, it must have been a death sentence.
"MINIGTI" (76tr6)
09/12/2017 at 17:56, STARS: 0
MINIs use the same jack. It works fine.
"If only EssExTee could be so grossly incandescent" (essextee)
09/12/2017 at 18:39, STARS: 0
Minis don’t weigh 3500 lbs like my car does...
OH WAIT THEY DO
"itranthelasttimeiparkedit" (itranthelasttimeiparkedit)
09/15/2017 at 23:05, STARS: 0
bmw widowmaker