Correct lift points for a 2 post car lift

[Jimbo8v92]

Theres no diagram on the exact point to lift from other than lifting from the most solid part of the vehicle. So dont base it on what someone lifts there truck at. You need to establish what point to place the arms on the vehicle you lifting depending on where the center of gravity. That can vary even on the same vehicle depending if you add a winch, bumpers, bed acc., hitch, even how full the gas tank is.

Sponsored

 

[Hootbro]

Theres no diagram on the exact point to lift from other than lifting from the most solid part of the vehicle.

I posted the OEM service data lift diagram.

https://www.jeepgladiatorforum.com/...ints-for-a-2-post-car-lift.44508/#post-718782

 

[Lost1wing]

I was looking at this the other day because I wanted to look underneath my JT. I thought about just bringing it to a scale with a full tank. I have a few add-ons so knowing is a good idea. My friend with experience lifting many vehicles says to get close and that a properly installed lift can handle a little offset. Out JT's are not anywhere close to being heavy for a 9k lift, even if not center perfectly. I trust his 40 year old concrete but my 4 year old concrete has me worried. I will weigh it next week, I curious to know the center.

 

[Andy29847]

To find the center of gravity, first weigh your vehicle.

MY truck (gas, Rubicon, Decked System in the back, winch and full width bumper in the front) has a small weight bias towards the front (2780/5360 = 51.9%). The wheelbase on a Gladiator is 137". Measured center would be 68.5" from the center of the front or rear or rear hub. The COG should be 137x.481=65.9" (from the front wheel). In the real world, 3" is not a big deal. Center the vehicle and push the pads out a far as you can as long as they are equal distance from the post.

 

[taintedsaint]

When I used to have to compute front to rear CG for vehicles being loaded into aircraft, we used a simple formula. Since another poster already gave you vehicle total weight and weight on each axle, its pretty straightforward math. This will give a start point to then place arms. This is an example from textbook, not for the JT.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

I'm surprised there's so much deep
thought going into this - I've put trucks and cars of all kinds on single post lifts, two post lifts, and twin lifts where there's a lift under each "axle".

My friend with experience lifting many vehicles says to get close and that a properly installed lift can handle a little offset.

Seriously. That's how simple it is, or should be. You can look and see where the bulk of the weight will be. No need to center it perfectly "pound-wise".
It's not a lot different from loading a car on a car hauler - you need to know where the car is heavy, where it's light, to prevent having too much weight behind the trailer axles.
These, like any front wheel drive or 4 wheel drive, will be front-heavy, so don't center it physically.

Maybe I'm missing something, but decades of using hoists and lifts of all sorts, and even lifting with jacks and jack stands, it's almost second nature.
I've learned that if I want to lift the front of my 82 with a jack, then support it with stands under the frame rails, I need to put the jack stands as far forward as possible under the frame rails - otherwise when I let the jack down, the front drops and the rear of the car goes up.

 

[jeepers29]

I have a similar lift . I spread the pads apart as far as possible, then lift the wheels off the ground a few inches and check for stability.

 

[Lost1wing]

I'm surprised there's so much deep
thought going into this - I've put trucks and cars of all kinds on single post lifts, two post lifts, and twin lifts where there's a lift under each "axle".


Seriously. That's how simple it is, or should be. You can look and see where the bulk of the weight will be. No need to center it perfectly "pound-wise".
It's not a lot different from loading a car on a car hauler - you need to know where the car is heavy, where it's light, to prevent having too much weight behind the trailer axles.
These, like any front wheel drive or 4 wheel drive, will be front-heavy, so don't center it physically.

Maybe I'm missing something, but decades of using hoists and lifts of all sorts, and even lifting with jacks and jack stands, it's almost second nature.
I've learned that if I want to lift the front of my 82 with a jack, then support it with stands under the frame rails, I need to put the jack stands as far forward as possible under the frame rails - otherwise when I let the jack down, the front drops and the rear of the car goes up.

Agreed, but with the smart cap and a freezer mounted in the bed, I thought finding my center weight would be playing it safe. I was not at home when my concrete was poured for my shop. But I have seen another slab fail just by parking a car on it. Owner said that he thought the concrete company added too much water to make it easier to work with. I suspect my concrete company took such a short cut.

Starting out balanced is one less thing to worry about.

Sponsored