Why shouldn't I buy this jack at Pep Boys?

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I bought a floor jack from Pep Boys about 7 years ago (after I had a Craftsman fail on me!) and still works fine to this day.

It does not fit under the NSX and most jack will not. You can drive up onto small pieces of 2 x 4 then it will work.

Personally, creepers are useless to me. I have one and NEVER use it. With the standard jack stands, I can never seem to get a car up high enough to comfortable get the creeper under. They might work well if you get a jacked up 4x4!
 
Regarding the lift height, if your NSX is at stock ride height, the distance between the ground and the bottom of the jacking points is between 4.5 and 4.75 inches. Less, if it's been lowered. Most jacks tell on the packaging what the minimum lift height is. Some jacks have a metal cup that you can remove to gain 1/4 to 1/2 inch in range.

Quite aside from the lift height issue... It all depends on what you want it for - and this is no different from any other set of tools. If you use tools once in a great while and it's more for an emergency than anything else, you might be able to get away with something cheap. If you use them a lot, you will appreciate the better quality that you get at a greater cost.

If you really work on your car - so that you would use the creeper to slide under it - then you need a quality jack and quality jackstands. I don't think those are something that you would want to get cheap.

The difference in jacks is in a lot of areas. Better jacks often (but not always) have lower minimum lift heights, require fewer pumps, require less effort through the use of a longer handle for more leverage, are sturdier (often from greater length and width) and less likely to shift, are more reliable and less prone to breakdown, weigh less, etc.

I've been using a small, cheap, steel jack (like presumably comes as part of that set) for years, to bring to track events so that I can swap track tires and brake pads at the track, but nothing more extensive than that and nothing that requires me to get under the car. It has a small handle and requires a lot of pumps, and I have to lift the NSX fender to get it under the car, so it was not the all-around best solution. I recently decided to get a real floor jack and bought one of the $90 aluminum racing jacks (item 91039) from Harbor Freight. It fits my needs because it's efficient (~6 pumps) and easily fits under the car (3" minimum lift height), yet it's light (24 pounds) and compact enough to fit sideways on the passenger side floor with the seat all the way forward for transporting my set of track tires inside the car. Harbor Freight also sells other floor jacks for $130 and $200; their advantage is primarily that they are larger and even sturdier, which may or may not suit your needs better than the $90 jack.

I don't like to spend more than I have to, which is why I was using a cheap jack for so long. But I love my $90 jack. It was worth every penny.
 
nsxtasy said:
your quote

Good info, thanks. Did you happen to buy some good quality stands as well?
 
SoCalDude said:
Did you happen to buy some good quality stands as well?
No, I don't have jack stands. But I don't work under the car, and I don't really need them to switch tires or pads.
 
Buy it for the ancillary pieces, then buy a cheap lightweight aluminum jack from Northern tool or Harbor freight. I have a jack like the one in the ad, pretty useless except in the trunk of your four door sedan to make emergency tire changes less of a hassle than the screw type scissor OEM jacks. JMHO.
 
nsxtasy said:
I recently decided to get a real floor jack and bought one of the $90 aluminum racing jacks (item 91039) from Harbor Freight. It fits my needs because it's efficient (~6 pumps) and easily fits under the car (3" minimum lift height), yet it's light (24 pounds) and compact enough to fit sideways on the passenger side floor with the seat all the way forward for transporting my set of track tires inside the car. Harbor Freight also sells other floor jacks for $130 and $200; their advantage is primarily that they are larger and even sturdier, which may or may not suit your needs better than the $90 jack.

I don't like to spend more than I have to, which is why I was using a cheap jack for so long. But I love my $90 jack. It was worth every penny.
If you decide to get one at one of their stores, print out the web page showing their web price and bring it with you. I found that the price was marked higher in the store but they honored the web price when presented with the printout.
 
Jack

Check the Griot's catalog. They have a really nice low profile floor jack that will work in the NSX.


griotsgarage.com
 
Vegas Boy said:
Check the Griot's catalog. They have a really nice low profile floor jack that will work in the NSX.
Do you mean the one for $389, or the one for $450??? :eek:

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For that price, it should come with someone to pump it for you!
 
I meant the red one. Had a buddy in the last place I lived that had one, was great to borrow. Its high $$ but really nicely made.
Now, I run the car up on some 2x8 wood to get just enough clearance to get my floor jack under the car.

I also bought some low approach angle ABS car ramps at Pep Boys, those work pretty good as well if you need to get under the car.
 
Vegas Boy said:
I run the car up on some 2x8 wood to get just enough clearance to get my floor jack under the car.
I've seen folks do this, and while it is certainly feasible, it's a bit of a pain in the butt.

A friend of mine was doing this with his lowered E46 M3. I was pitted next to him at my last track event, and told him to use my $90 HF jack instead. With its 3 inch minimum lift height, it fit under his car with a half inch to spare, no need for wood. He told me he was going to buy a jack like mine as soon as he got home.

The right tools for the job make the job a lot easier...
 
I guess I have to spring for another jack, I have been
"shade treeing" it on the X as the floor jack I have now fits all my other cars fine and is a really nice one, raises the cars up with about 3 pumps, large saddle, very stable...hate to retire it

:rolleyes:
 
nsxtasy said:

I've been using a small, cheap, steel jack (like presumably comes as part of that set) for years, to bring to track events so that I can swap track tires and brake pads at the track, but nothing more extensive than that and nothing that requires me to get under the car.
Since I'm in he market for tools, when swapping tires, do you use a torque wrench (which one) or lug wrench? How important is it to tighten the lug nuts to a precise amount?
 
I use the jack that came with the car to start lifting so my trolley jack can get under. As it only need to lift about 1/2 an inch, there's no need to put the handle on, just a couple of turns by hand raises it enough.

One cool trolley jack I have seen, allows you to either use the handle, and has a pedal, which you can pump with your foot. Great if you are working without much room.
 
SoCalDude said:
Since I'm in he market for tools, when swapping tires, do you use a torque wrench (which one) or lug wrench? How important is it to tighten the lug nuts to a precise amount?
Yes, a torque wrench, and yes, I think it's very important (and I think most of those with mechanical background will agree).

The torque wrench I use is a click type torque wrench with a 1/2" drive, similar to the one the Tire Rack sells for $30. You'll also need a 19 mm socket to fit the 1/2" drive.

I don't have any affiliation with the Tire Rack but I think this torque wrench is a great product at a great price.
 
I'm laughing a bit as I read this because I too spent an extra 30min at each tire wheel change getting the car propped up on planks so my cheapo generic jack could then get under the car.I spent many track days as the ugly"can I borrow your nice expensive low profile jack" guy ,lol.Well I must say after getting a good low profile lightwgt jack I can't believe what I put up with!
 
D'Ecosse said:
6" extension nice to have too, so you're not scraping ypur knuckles off the tire.
True, except that the torque wrench from the Tire Rack comes with a 5" extension, so you don't have to buy it separately.

Most other torque wrenches don't come with an extension, in which case yes, it's then a good idea to buy one - to keep the end of the torque wrench away from not only the tires, but also the fenders.
 
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