When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
Dude. get the safe jack with all the extensions…It’s amazing. Trust me. I wouldn’t worry about it being made by someone else. It’s still an American made Jack.
I have it. One of my friends has it. I’ve used it. It’s really good. I got the one in the bag with all the extensions and the extra base.
I don't know how the bottle jack works. As mentioned above it can lift to a total of 16 inches. But my car needs around 10 inches of actual lift, not total height. So my 10 or 20 ton (I forget which) torin big red bottle jack won't do it.
I had to use it in an emergency and by dropping the air suspension all the way down so if hit the jack, then opening a door so it didn't change height, I could just get it high enough if I totally deflated the tire
If others can make it work that's that's great but it definitely will not on my 2024 X with air suspension.
Dude. get the safe jack with all the extensions…It’s amazing. Trust me. I wouldn’t worry about it being made by someone else. It’s still an American made Jack.
I have it. One of my friends has it. I’ve used it. It’s really good. I got the one in the bag with all the extensions and the extra base.
Safe Jack looks great, but I don't see how it would work for us:
Their documents show the stroke to be 13.62" - 8.2" = 5.42". I just tried jacking up my Defender with a floor jack, it required a minimum lift of 7" for the front wheel to clear the ground. This safe jack cannot manage that.
Reading the reviews of the Big Red jacks is really scary and they don't have the stroke that they claim either, making their usefulness marginal.
So, still looking for a quality bottle jack which will work when I need it and can perform a lift of 8" or so.
I posted a detailed breakdown at this post a while back - it may be helpful with respect to the lifting heights. 20~26"+/- is possible with a SafeJack and the extensions available.
My take here is that perhaps you’re asking the wrong question. It’s not going to be solved with a “bottle jack”. Bottle jack is IMO the right packaging, size, weight, and compromise for most use cases.
I’ve now changed 3 tires on 2 different Defenders with a Safejack on different surfaces (sand, driveway, trail) and have made it work every single time, once I had to use the bottle jack AND the jack that came with the defender to reposition and a shovel and a bunch of wood; but just FYI, the other option I’ve read about that is a tall enough bottle jack is the Mercedes original equipment sprinter van bottle jack. I don’t have any specs or technical info - but multiple people have recommended this jack to me as well with a hi-lift base. Maybe it’s good? https://www.ebay.com/itm/264087871416 See this blog post for the hi-lift base https://vancompass.com/blogs/news/sa...ENbQ1otfS1GD3m
I do know that changing a tire on a trail is as simple as “jacking up the truck removing the wheel and putting the new wheel on” I think is a mistake. It’s usually a bit more McGuyver than that. Jack travel is only one of the problems you face. Two jacks. Jackstands. Etc. The compromise would be to carry a huge floor jack. I’d rather deal with a lack of jack stroke and figure it out. So you’re not wrong,
My take here is that perhaps you’re asking the wrong question. It’s not going to be solved with a “bottle jack”. Bottle jack is IMO the right packaging, size, weight, and compromise for most use cases.
I’ve now changed 3 tires on 2 different Defenders with a Safejack on different surfaces (sand, driveway, trail) and have made it work every single time, once I had to use the bottle jack AND the jack that came with the defender to reposition and a shovel and a bunch of wood; but just FYI, the other option I’ve read about that is a tall enough bottle jack is the Mercedes original equipment sprinter van bottle jack. I don’t have any specs or technical info - but multiple people have recommended this jack to me as well with a hi-lift base. Maybe it’s good? https://www.ebay.com/itm/264087871416 See this blog post for the hi-lift base https://vancompass.com/blogs/news/sa...ENbQ1otfS1GD3m
I do know that changing a tire on a trail is as simple as “jacking up the truck removing the wheel and putting the new wheel on” I think is a mistake. It’s usually a bit more McGuyver than that. Jack travel is only one of the problems you face. Two jacks. Jackstands. Etc. The compromise would be to carry a huge floor jack. I’d rather deal with a lack of jack stroke and figure it out. So you’re not wrong,
Off-topic question, but is it the law to have an orange flag attached when driving on sand? I've seen it so many times on cars, trucks, dune buggies etc. and always wondered about it.
Off-topic question, but is it the law to have an orange flag attached when driving on sand? I've seen it so many times on cars, trucks, dune buggies etc. and always wondered about it.
Most sand/dune places require a flag to be flown and at least 9 feet tall.
FWIW
For anybody that might be interested there is an EBay seller, Dick’s Auto Parts, selling genuine Weber Hydraulque two stage bottle jacks for $86.00 including free domestic shipping. They are brand new take-offs from MB Sprinters being converted for motor home use. Note that it has a saddle at the top of the ram which might be problematic for some. I have machine tools to fab up base plates to work with my sliders.
They extend from 11 inches to 24 inches long.
Hope someone finds this helpful.
