Quick Jack Users?

[legbuh]

Anyone here use Quick Jack? https://www.quickjack.com/

The reason I ask is I'm curious about how you used it to jack up a beetle (or super).

The Quick Jack folks say that they two lifters should be parallel, but the lift points for the beetle really don't allow that from what I can see.

I do have a message out to another member here who is the only one ever to mention Quick Jack here, but I'm also curious about others who may use a Quick Jack with their Beetle.

Thanks!!!

[TDCTDI]

Looks more like a self set & activated death trap. It appears that the "lifts" are two separate units and that would definitely be a compromise in stability. If the load isn't square in the center of each lift side, one would topple & cause the other to follow suit.

Also, lifts with multiple hydraulic cylinders should have a balance cable between the to sides to ensure that the sides lift evenly. Without this cable, one side can raise or lower at a different rate causing the car to topple, or if one side of the vehicle is heavier than the other, or experiences a shift in weight, the fluid will flow to the side with less pressure, causing an imbalance & potential for the vehicle to topple.

I like how they place the "Snap On" vacuum to get some sort of name recognition.
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[heimlich]

That's expensive. Get a hydraulic one.
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[KTPhil]

Never seen it with a Beetle. I watched a demo at a recent local Cars & Coffee event. It looked slick, and locks mechanically once at the height you want. I wasn't sure if it wasn't too long to fit the short wheelbase of a VW, and just how it would fit to the rails/heater channels/jack points. So I'd be interested in anyone with experience, too. It's cheaper than back therapy for those of us boomers.

[legbuh]

[legbuh]

[Zundfolge1432]

Going all the way back we started with in ground center hydraulic four arm lifts, but EPA didn't like. Next came above ground drive on four post, then two post. They work but take up shop space. Scissor lifts hydraulic above ground look like an accident waiting to happen, this reminds me of that. Look at the pic of the guy working underneath he doesn't have much room to work does he? With choices today I'd have to choose two post as being safe and user friendly. Just my 2 cents.

[legbuh]

Ok, lets not turn this into an opinion thread on lifts.... I got enough of that while researching which lift to purchase. Just search the and you can join in on those threads on every other car site.

I asked a pretty specific question. Let's stick to that.

Thanks.

[heimlich]

It's all about safety. No one wants to hear about another fella getting a car dropped on them especially by a piece of machinery.
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Classic Brands. Classic Quality.
Not all parts are made the same. NOS OE/OEM parts made mainly in West Germany, Early Germany, and Early Brazil are where VW produced the best quality parts and best fitting products.
5% Off your order with coupon code: 5%OFF
Restored Distributors Available (<--Click here)

[Erik G]

[TDCTDI]

Reading or watching information from the company that produces & sells a product isn't the most objective way to get information on a product.

They would absolutely HAVE to be parallel to each other, if they were not, they would be exerting side loads against each other until they slipped on the floor or car or failed.

Watch the video closely, the load is very deliberately centered, yet as it is being lowered, you can see that the corners aren't touching down at the same time. This would get drastically worse if the load was heavier to one side or if something hindered the lowering of one side.

Also in the video, the cradle used to distribute the weight (and the blocks it's resting on) allows the lift to raise higher to overcome the mechanical (dis)advantage that it would experience if it were to start having to bear the weight if it were to start lifting at the height where modern cars were. This however, shouldn't be an issue on a beetle.
_________________
Everybody born before 1975 has a story, good, bad, or indifferent, about a VW.


GOFUNDYOURSELF, quit asking everyone to do it for you!


An air cooled VW will make you a hoarder.


Do something, anything, to your project every day, and you will eventually complete it.

[Zundfolge1432]

I'm thinking maybe this isn't a question at all it's an advertisement.

[Erik G]

Well - They sell these at Pelican. I would ask on the pelican forums, but it's not going to get you the same info as a bug in regards to jack points, etc

It's made by BendPak - arguable one of the best in the business. Maybe it's fine and you should be the guinea pig? I would like some more lift...

I'll ask around - I think I have a friend that bought a lift for his Porsche. I didn't ask what type
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[legbuh]

[Zundfolge1432]

[legbuh]

[KTPhil]

I am posting my experience here since it is for a Type 3, but most of the current discussions are in a Type 1 thread:
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=697791

So I sprung for the 5K lb unit, and have just started using it. This is overkill for a late Type 3 fastback, but large enough for my small Audi SUV as well. I hesitated so I paid $1200 through Costco; they had it for about $1100 a few months ago. I figured the Costco reputation for service was a bonus, plus this was about $200 cheaper than elsewhere.

It arrived missing two fittings in the packaging, but within 48 hours the company had mailed me the missing fittings and had followed up with email, so they get points for responsiveness.

I took a while to figure out the safest and most stable way to lift, and here is what I figured out.

First, only use this in a level surface. You will have best results if the car is out of gear with the e-brake off, and wheels blocked, tightly at the rear, but loosely at the front with a few inches of gap. The car needs to be able to roll forward a couple of inches.

This is counterintuitive, but it's needed to prevent the rear blocks from slipping off the torsion tube. This is because the car must travel forward as it rises, due to the parallelogram rising action. If the car cannot roll (which it won't want to with the tires on the ground and brake on), it will want to slide the blocks rearward, and probably out from under the torsion tube. I did it this with the brake on the first time and I didn't like the way the blocks moved/tilted on the torsion tube mount, so I tried it again w/o brakes and out of gear. Presto!

The main weight is of course at the jacking point, since that is about the balance point front to rear. I set mine with the tall block plus a cheap Amazon pinch weld block at the rear, near the outer end of the torsion tube.

For the front, I didn't use the pinch block because even then it would have probably crushed the evap line located there. I used a 4 foot 2x4 on top of the medium block laterally, so the load was on the pan but mainly at the two reinforcement rails.

This gives me about 20 inches or so of clearance (I didn't measure it but will next time). It's enough that for most work I can fit a low profile creeper underneath, saving my neck and back.

I will make a few mods. Up front I'd like to use solid wood blocks sized to the "block trays" and connect a 2x6 (instead of the 2x4) to both blocks with lag bolts, which will also ensure they are spaced apart correctly. For the rear the branded pinch weld blocks (pricey at $80 a set) may fit better.

When not in use I plan to leave the trays shoved to the car centerline and drive above them, so they don't take up any more room in the garage. I can then slide them apart, fit my front wood piece, than align each rear. Then lay my chock blocks, let out the brake, take it out of gear, then plug in the quick-connect hoses, and raise away! You don't drive over these things, and I will disconnect the hoses (they come with drip-free quick disconnects) so I don't drive over them, either.

Time will tell how well they work, but they seem very stable, easy to set up, and give me the quick lift that will save my aging/aching back.

It's possible the next smaller size might work better for ACVWs since they are shorter, and pose less of an issue with coming close to hitting the tires as they initially lift. My scheme with blocks and letting it roll a bit on its own seems to make the 5K size work well enough, though.

[60ragtop]

Give me my floor jack and jack stands over that for $1200. and they don't take up as much room Those floor brackets look to be a PITA to maneuver a creeper around.
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Rick
Certified Mechanic by the State of Michigan in 1977
ASA certified in 1987
Certified Hunter Wheel Alignment Master Technician 1986

[KTPhil]

There is another advantage here, and it's peculiar but meaningful for me. In the past, I used a floor jack and jack stands in the driveway. The driveway tilts a little, but no so much anything would topple. It's worked for me for years. And for a quick front end check (one floor jack in the middle of the beam), or a single tire check, I'll probably still do that.

But our HOA is not happy with car work being done in a driveway. I did stealthily manage to drop the engine in the driveway in one day a few years ago, lower the car and put a cover on it, so it didn't look like I had worked on it at all. But there are prying eyes in the neighborhood and I don't need the fines and aggravation.

This way I can lift it while in the garage, something I don't have enough side clearance to do with the conventional floor jack approach. On the VW, I rarely have to get in from the side, and there is very little to be worked on in the car's center pan area, so it's mainly access from the front or rear, and I have easy access from either end this way.

There's not enough height (with a roll up door) in a conventional suburban garage to use a 2-post lift, either.

I'll post as I use it, pros and cons, over the next few months. But I hadn't seen much real-word experience posted here, and no photos, so hopefully this may help others decide.

[kenj06]