Stands and ramps are less likely to fail, but the implementation is where danger lurks. Not using proper jack points and what not can cause vehicle to fall. Getting under the car and yanking or prying really hard on something, combined with poor jack stand placement, and you have an accident.

If lifts were that dangerous, I doubt the growing trend of DIY shops would grow like it has. Opening your bays and lifts to the public wouldnt be done if people or property were being hurt / damaged, and lawsuits negated any profit made.

I have heard of cars falling off lifts as well, but its always been due to improper use of the equipment. I myself have never seen them to fail.

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2011 Mercedes ML350

2002 Cadillac Deville

1976 Rolls Royce Silver Shadow

I did not say lifts are very dangerous. I said lifts have a higher failure rate statistically than ramps and jack stands with proper use. If I have the choice between a lift and ramps/ jack stands, I'd choose the lift any day. But I would exercise the same caution to inspect everything before getting under the car.

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85 300D turbo pristine w 157k when purchased 161K now
83 300 D turbo 297K runs great. SOLD!
83 240D 4 spd manual- parted out then junked

Living in earthquake country (Southern California) also brings additional risks in using a lift. I have a friend who was using his lift to work on a friends car and left the car on the lift overnight. Sure enough that evening we had a quake of 5.0 + quake and the car fell off the lift. No one hurt but lots of damage to the car.

Another thing. On occasions where I have my vehicle up on jacks/ramps/blocks/bricks (<-not bricks/blocks for a loong time!), especially when all 4 tires are off the ground, I give a seriously good push to see if I can tip it. A few times I almost did (stopped before it tipped) & reset/reconfiged method. Figured if I could tip it over it was NOT good enough, , ,

I had a Chevy PU (w 6.2 diesel-heavy) just slightly off center of ramp tipped upon getting out, just got both feet on the ground, I fhought it was gonna roll over on me, scared the **** outta me.

-c-

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"I applaud your elaborate system of denial"

At the Buick dealership the boss/owner dropped a car off the hoist. SO GLAD it wasn't me! Yes it can happen but I have yet to see a situation, including this one, where it wasn't operator error. This is why I shake the heck out of them before completing the lift and getting under the car. Any tool can be dangerous if you aren't paying attention.

Dan

Hilarious...I literally just learned about this place two days ago. Yes, it does seem like a good option. However, there is something to be said for beer and music in my own driveway on a nice day.

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14 E250 Bluetec 4Matic "Sinclair", Palladium Silver on Black, 154k miles
06 E320 CDI "Rutherford", Black on Tan, 172k mi, Stage 1 tune, tuned TCU
91 300D "Otis", Smoke Silver, 142k mi, wastegate conversion

19 Honda CR-V EX 61k mi
Fourteen other MB's owned and sold
1961 Very Tolerant Wife

I have always used a combination of ramps and jack stands when I need to have my cars in the air for an extended period of time. I will put the car on jack stands but have the ramps under the wheels in case there is a jack failure.

I don't trust ramps, jack stands, jacking points (I'm in Ohio) after some misadventures with each. I use hydraulic jacks to lift and big wooden beams under frame or subframe for support once lifted.

Our machines arrive on huge skids so I have a ready supply of these beams that I've cut in lengths from 8' to 1'. It can be a little difficult to work around them depending on what I'm doing but they aren't going anywhere and the weight is spread out more on the structure of the car compared to a jackstand. You have to pay attention to CG as you would with anything else but I feel perfectly safe working under a car this way, even when putting a pipe to a breaker bar.

I have a set very similar (identical?) to these. Very strong but light weight. I use small pieces of plywood as "cushions" between the rubber jacking pad on the car and the stands.

Since you can't use a jack under these pads and then put a stand in place, I often use the factory jack in the jack hole to lift the car, then insert a stand and lower the car onto it, but with the jack still in place as a backup. I have a spare jack so I can do both sides simultaneously.

With my new (Harbor Freight—sorry!) floor jack, I can lift one side of the (W124) car (both front and rear wheels on one side) by jacking under the front jack pad. That's really convenient for rotating tires and, since I'm never under the car in such a situation, not as dangerous as it could be. The HF jack is also long (deep?) enough to reach the differential and the front cross member for jacking the whole front or rear. I would install wheel chocks and stands before actually getting under the car, however.

Jeremy

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"Buster" in the '95

Our all-Diesel family
1996 E300D (W210) . .338,000 miles Wife's car
2005 E320 CDI . . 113,000 miles My car
Santa Rosa population 176,762 (2022)
Total. . . . . . . . . . . . 627,762
"Oh lord won't you buy me a Mercedes Benz."
-- Janis Joplin, October 1, 1970

Posted here for visual and technical reference, you can see what W123 areas are considered good jacking points, at least according to this article.

https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/Mercedes+W123+Jack+Technique/22770

That's a good reference (for the W123). My only comment is that at the rear, the trailing arm cup where the shocks attach is a rust prone area. I would use the second location.

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Graham
85 300D,72 350SL, 98 E320, Outback 2.5

I had our 2002 T&C minivan (~4500 lb) up last week to replace the cat conv & exhaust. I drove the rear up on ramps (as mentioned), then jacked the front under the lower control arms and stacked 2 layers of 4"x4" cut fence posts in a lattice under the front tires (as shown). When the wheels are still on, you are fairly safe since that will still leave ~1 ft clearance underneath in most vehicles, even if it fell.

It looks much scarier (and is) when you have the wheels off. If supported on the frame rails on jack stands, they look pretty thin when you start to crawl under. I prefer stacking a lattice of 4"x4" under the frame rails since that has a much wider footprint (can't tip over) and can carry tremendous weight. I store the wheels under the rocker panels, w/ wood to take up the slack. That limits how far the vehicle could drop.

I always wonder how safe the 1 post hydraulic lifts common at garages are. Perhaps there a mechanical lock in case they lose hydraulic pressure. More commonly, a vehicle tilts off the top, from either not being supported correctly or a component failing. I saw a youtube video of a large SUV falling off the side, as the mechanic was quick enough to get out of the way.

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1984 & 1985 CA 300D's
1964 & 65 Mopar's - Valiant, Dart, Newport
1996 & 2002 Chrysler minivans

I have seen a vehicle fall off a lift, the contact points on the lift arms were rubber padded, and covered with oil, they just slipped out. Scary!

I am a fan of smooth concrete floors and jack stands.

If working on major stuff, i additionally use 2" ratchet straps to lock the vehicle from moving forward or rear...

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John HAUL AWAY, OR CRUSHED CARS!!! HELP ME keep the cars out of the crusher! A/C Thread
"as I ride with my a/c on... I have fond memories of sweaty oily saturdays and spewing R12 into the air. THANKS for all you do!

My drivers:
1987 190D 2.5Turbo
1987 190D 2.5Turbo
1987 190D 2.5-5SPEED!!!

1987 300TD
1987 300TD
1994GMC 2500 6.5Turbo truck... I had to put the ladder somewhere!

Has anyone used these exhaust jacks/lifters, feedback welcome.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/d/Car-Tools-Equipment/Noryb-Tonne-Exhaust-Lifting-Offroad/B00VEV2IXQ

..or

Westfalia Inflatable car jack, 2000 kg max load

Please Google as URL too long

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David


1996 Mercedes S124 E300TD - 129k - rolling restoration project -

1998 Mercedes W210 300TD - 118k (assimilated into above vehicle)

It's interesting but I can't say it makes a whole lot of sense to me. Filling it up enough to lift the car is going to require pressure, not just volume. So then (assuming you can get a good fit over the tailpipe) you're introducing that pressure to your exhaust system, which it's not really designed to handle, not to mention back pressure on the engine. Just seems super prone to wear and leaks. Only place I could see that being a good solution would be if you do a lot of driving on soft ground (beach, mud etc) and a regular jack will sink or shift. Now, that bag with a regular tire inflator and Schrader valve, that might be a nice alternative to an exhaust pipe if they make it.

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TC
Current stable:
- 2004 Mazda RALLYWANKEL
- 2007 Saturn sky redline
- 2004 Explorer...under surgery.

Past: 135i, GTI, 300E, 300SD, 300SD, Stealth