THE STOCK SPARE TIRE JACK SUCKS!

I ran over a nail somehow (just my luck, huh?) int he 4Runner. Managed to get home, and started swapping hte spare in. I was afraid of it falling, so I got a bunch of cinder blocks and kept them ready to shove under the frame. Well, once I barely got it up enough to see daylight under the flat, the jack frikken slips! Reposition, and try again. This time, I managed to slip in a block, but while trying to put the second one in, it slipped again. I thought this was gonna take an half hour tops, but it ended up being around an hour and a half...

 

I bet it was done by that bird that dropped heat and eggs on your ride, then keyed, or perhaps I should say "beaked" it.

 

i have only had good luck with toyota jacks i think that they are the best factory jacks. you just have to make sure you have it in the right place when you use it. there are jack points on cars usaly says in the manual.

 

u sure u were on level ground? ive always liked the factory bottle jack, although i wouldnt mind a floor jack.

 

Haven't had a problem with the bottle jack in my '90.

 

Seems a black cloud has been following you around the past few days. Ya might wanna try a cup of coffee.

Ed

 

My wife bought me this for christmas, best jack I've ever owned.
http://www.sears.com/sr/javasr/produ...ft%20Equipment

 

I use my bottle jack all the time, at least a few times a month and it still works great.

 

That's a pretty sweet jack. I hate this site because I always end up needing to buy more tools after a post like this!

 

You know its funny you mentioned this, because I tried to use my stock jack the other day (I just bought my 87 4runner) and with the thing fully extended would not even reach the jack point. And I don't think the truck is raised at all (stock supension). Is there something Im missing?

 

Jack points are at the rear axle for the rear, front hub, lower ball joint for the front. I hope you didn't try to jack up the frame.

 

ive never had a problem with it. we've got 3 or 4 laying around the house. granted they dont go up high enough, but its sufficent for what it was designed for. I do hate the spare tire carrier thing tho, which is why i just keep the tire in the back most of the time. My spare rim is shinier than the other 4. Im prolly gonna go to a 5 tire rotation cycle next set.

 

With my 37" tires I can still jack mine up.

 

I was on Level Ground. I thought it'd make sense to use the frame, but it wouldnt even reach.

I went to the rear axle housing, and thats what was causing it to slip. The flat top ont he jack, with its small surface, ant the Axle housing being round, and no indentations.

I even chocked teh front tires, in front of them, and behind them with the some landscape blocks. (I had to tear up half of my dad's flower bed...oops..)

 

My stock bottle jack isn't good for anything more than pushing the upper control arm down during lift installations, or pushing the lower arm up during the same.

They are really only for emergency situations -- if you're at home in the garage, it'd be best to have a floor jack like the one pictured above. Way safer.

That said, I've never had my bottle jack slip (except off of the a-arm), I've just had it bend.

 

As time usually tells, it's "user error" that proves to be the culprit here.