Does anyone have experience of getting a X350 on axle stands so that under body work and suspension work can be carried out?

If so, what method did you use to jack up the vehicle and the sequence of placing on the axle stands so as not to bend the frame.

I have 4 x 18 3/4" high axle stands and a 3 ton trolley jack. I do believe I have to get another trolley jack to lift the vehicle in 2 places at once?

Your advice please

 

Information on how to raise the vehicle and where to place the jack and supports is outlined in the JTIS Workshop Manual.

There is also information on where to place a jack in the vehicle Owner's Manual.

 

The manual does state that both sides of each end of the car must be raised simultaneously to prevent torquing the aluminum monocoque, so you'll either need two trolley jacks (safest) or an attachment like this:



See this jack crossbeam at Harbor Freight Tools:

Steel Floor Jack Cross Beam

Cheers,

Don

 

I use what Don has pictured. I use it with a low profile jack and it works from the side or front as it pivots. I usually leave it in place after lowering on to the jack stands. I also have another lift I keep in place.

I think I might have OCD in relation to this but I never feel safe under this car.

 

when I just changed my transmission fluid I drove the car up onto ramps so the front of the car was raised in one go. I then jacked the rear up one side at a time in increments about as much as you would when changing a tire. I used the jacking points outlined in the JTIS. When you change a tire you do not raise up more than one corner, usually.

 

I have Rhino ramps to do quick and simple stuff under the vehicle, but I may be going down the air suspension conversion and was wondering how easy it would be to just lift the whole car off the ground and do them all in one go without messing about.

The Rhino ramps are a good buy too, tbh.

 

+1 on the Rhino ramps. Unfortunately, I recently moved and my garage floor is so smooth that the ramps just slide away when trying to drive up. I wish they had some rubber or something on the bottom.

The floor is so smooth that when I jack up one corner to remove a tire, I can hear the rest of the tires slipping, as if the car is about to slide away from me. Sucks.

 

Both my Rhino ramps and my other set of plastic ramps have rubber inserts on the underside to help resist sliding, but even then they still slide occasionally. I have to move forward really slowly until the tires grab the ramp and push it downward instead of pushing it away.

 

same problem with metal ramps. I don't use them anymore but @ my last home, I drilled holes in the garage floor and put in anchors. I then just added bolts. I would turn them all the way down when not in use, then just unscrew them to raise them up, as a stop for the ramps. Worked like a charm.

 

Same with mine. It might take a couple of attempts but mine will grab if I go forward very slowly. I also use two aluminum mobile home corner supports that are adjustable. So when I had the front of the car up on the ramps I jacked the rear corners up in increments until I had both corners supported on these aluminum adjustable supports and did minor adjustments until the car was level. That included a slight jack uplift at the front right corner as well.

In a few days I will do the whole thing over again when I change the rear diff oil which is on order. I also feel a lot more comfortable under the car with one end up on ramps and with several supports in strategic locations at the other end not just two.

 

A simple trick to stop the ramps moving is to wrap old towels, sheets or curtains around the ramps and lay out on the floor. Drive onto the towels the ramps cannot move away from you as you drive up the ramps simples. Regards Keith

 

I've always just jacked at the recommended jack point, and inserted a stand with towel padding under the suspension inner pivot. I then do the other side the same. If the jack point was designed to lift for a tire change, it can't be putting any more stress on the body than a tire change does. I've always done tire rotations and underbody work like that...and I've twice put the car on frame machines to check for straightness. It's still straight after 10 years.

I've also had more than one frame shop tell me these bodies are the strongest they have dealt with. It is very hard to distort an aluminum XJ.

 

Hi cjd,

Your logic makes perfect sense, but according to Jaguar it depends on how high you raise the car.

For emergency tire changes the Owner's Manual states, "Carefully raise the vehicle by turning the jack handle and continue jacking until the tyre just clears the ground."

For servicing the vehicle, the Workshop Manual states, "If the vehicle is to be raised using floor jacks, two jacks must be used to raise either front or rear of the vehicle. If one jack only is used, excessive body twist may occur."

I haven't yet heard of an X350 monocoque breaking, but some members of BMW forums have reported bulkheads developing cracks, so I'm not going to take any unnecessary chances with my Jag. At least while jacking!

Cheers,

Don

 

Agreed! My independent mechanic reminded me that the X350/358 was designed to be something like 40% stringer and more rigiid than its predecessor the X308. He said one should have no worries lifting it conventionally, akin to changing a tire, with proper floor jack and stands, if the correct jacking and support points are used.

 

Well, I have to do a rear air strut change in a couple of days, So I will take some photo's of it on the stands and some intermediary photo's of how it was achieved.

It never just rains with a Jag, It freakin pours.....

 

If you've the room (*), how about some hefty lumbar. I've seen hardwood ex-railway (non-oil/tar-soaked) about a foot square cross-section (and many feet long). Build some ramps to drive up on to them.

You can jack the car up on them as well if you need it a bit higher or to get a wheel off

(*) as people over here in the UK tend not to have

 

I always prefer to lift cars from the center...but the XJ8 is just too low to get a jack under the front or back to a strong enough point. I have no choice but to use the tire jack points. When I am rotating tires I have often jacked from the front pad high enough to get front and read off the ground...so I have frequently blown the "till the tire just clears the ground" instruction! Again, my car has been on the frame machine twice, and is still spot on.

I have had old cars that crack windows if you jack them from a corner. I've had convertibles that, if you jack from the rear with the doors open, the doors can't close from the body flex...until you lower it back down. Our XJ8's exhibit none of these "weak" body indicators. I think, being the first attempt at production aluminum bodies, Jag took great efforts to make sure the body was not going to cause problems, so built it extra strong. I would even bet the jacking limitations are artifacts from previous cars they built.

 

I changed my rear air spring with jacking the xj8 just like I'm changing tires.. no big deal.

Nevertheless the jacking points in the front make me wonder. There are points for jcking in the middle of the car and points for axle stands on the "common lifting position".
I used the middle jacking point as mentioned in jtis, but no dealer seems to know about them, nor using them....

 

I checked the X308 Vehicle Care Guide and it does also state that when jacking to change a tire, to raise the vehicle until the tire just clears the ground. But the X308 Workshop Manual makes no reference to the requirement of lifting both front or rear wheels when raising the car for service, so that dictum appears to have been new with the X350.

Jaguar can't be concerned that you will "bend the frame" on an X350 since there is no frame. What they must be concerned about is the large number of seams in the monocoque construction, some of which are bonded with adhesive and rivets, and some of which are bonded with adhesive only. They may also be concerned about the fact that aluminum stresses and tears more easily than steel. In any event, the X350 service literature makes it abundantly clear that Jaguar is concerned about excessive torquing of the monocoque and cautions us to take measures to prevent it.

Cheers,

Don

 

It does appear to be new because I checked the same thing while reading this thread.

Backend needs to be off the ground this weekend to change camber shims