Car Ramps

[maverick54]

As someone who has never used a pair of car amps in my life I've decided to buy a pair to make life less of a struggle.

 

Been looking at the cheap 2 ton cougar branded ones for around £23. Are these up to the job for an Octavia or d I need the heavier duty 2.5 ton ones?

 

Also the scariest part for a beginner s the fear of driving over the top. I'm sure it all comes with practice. What's the best technique. Do I jam them under the front tyres and edge up slowly or do you need to give it a bit of welly to get it up the ramps.

 

Advice much welcomed thanks.

[Liger1956]

2 Ton should be enough as you are only supporting about half the cars weight. Long ramps are better as the slope is less and with short ones they can catch on the front skirt of the car. I have had some ramps slide across the drive when attempting to run up them. Some people attach a short length of carpet to the bottom rungs to stop this. I usually run up them at a medium pace whilst looking out of the driver's window to see where I am on the ramp. Hope this helps.

[rum4mo]

I think if you push them up against the front of the tyres, then with the steering wheel still straight ease back a bit then drive up them. Most ramps have a handle/lip/stop at the end so you will feel the car reaching that, or worst case, if you drive too far the the rear of the ramps will rise up and hit the underside of the car.  Also, if you have some planks of wood, place them before the ramps to shorten the rise, having the ramps move away can be a pain, I'm lucky as I have avoided all that by fabricating 4-off long slow ramps from slabs of wood.

One issue you could have with a TSI engine is total lack of torque at low revs, my old 2.8V6 Passat used to romp up them at tick over as does my S4, I have yet to use ramps on wife's TSI Polo. 

 

Actually my old steel ramps have not been used for years so anything I've written applies only to slow slope ramps.

 

Edit:-  Laser do a set of plastic slow rise wide ramps, but maybe they are too low, 13cm lift only "lithium batteries required"? I think Amazon got that listing wrong!

 

It really depends on how you are planning to use them, or for doing what.  Having high lift ramps can be handy if you need the height, I think that my wooden ramps only give 20cm lift which is adequate for what I've used them for, ie oil changes, anything more and I'll use axle stands.

Edited 2 October, 2016 by rum4mo

[brad1.8T]

Ramps are fairly useless.

 

Jack & jackstands much more versatile.  Also easier to use

[Guest]

You'd be better off digging a pit to work in!

Ramps are next to useless on modern cars due to their low ground clearance and overhanging bodywork.

Then there's the skidding out from underneath aspect.

I've seen idiots use them without an assistant where they slip on the ground when attempting to run up and end up with damaged bodywork/ driveshaft/suspension components... not to mention running off them on a driveway and have them shoot across the driveway into main road traffic.

I'd leave them to the Morris driving flat cap wearing types.

[andsoutham]

I would also say invest in a trolly jack and axle stands. Also means if you have to take the wheels off for any work you can still do it

[jellybeard999]

I've used some old 2 tonne Halfords ramps on my car and reversed up them fine. I stuck axle stands under too to be sure before doing any work. I've not had reason to go up them forwards and would want to check clearances before I did. This was my first time using them, and I just took it slowly and all was well I'd recommend getting someone to lend a hand to keep an eye on things.

 

Standard VRS ride height, so you should be fine with a "standard" model I imagine.

 

http://www.halfords.com/workshop-tools/garage-workshop/axle-stands

 

The ramps on sale (£30 from £60) look similar to mine, but mine are blue and have an old halfords logo on - probably 20 year old or so I imagine! I'd grab some axle stands too; I'd go ratchet for the flexibility, but £10 for the 2 tonne pin type is hard to argue with.

 

The halfords lifting kit is often on sale - http://www.halfords.com/workshop-tools/garage-workshop/trolley-jacks/halfords-5-piece-lifting-kit - but I've seen it cheaper.

Edited 2 October, 2016 by jellybeard999

[Gizmo]

I have ramps, axle stands and a 2.5T ally high lift jack. 

 

They are all as useful as each other... depending on the job you are doing, for example ramps are ideal for doing an exhaust (reversed up them) or indeed any job that requires pushing or pulling a fair bit as all the wheels are supported, the car is more stable.

 

Obviously they have their limitations which is where the jack and axle stands come in, if the car is really low then you will struggle to get them on ramps (without lead up ramps) but I managed getting a TT on them no problem.

 

As for using them I alway try and get someone to ‘foot them’ to stop them moving (although I like the sound of carpet on the bottoms so will try this) always go up them slowly and use the handbrake as much as possible so you do not roll back or burn the clutch out.

[SuperbTWM]

These are better in many ways than a normal ramp, no catching on low bumpers, greater height, easier to drive onto....only problem is they are a lot more expensive.

 

http://www.cjautos.eu/product_p/cr012.htm

 

Had mine for about 4 or 5 years now and I've used them a lot.

[maverick54]

Thanks for the replies guys. I have a 2 ton trolly jack and an old pair of pin type axle stands which I use for taking wheels off. About to do an oil change and jacking up one side trying to find a decent spot for the axle stand then doing the other side is becoming a bit of a pain as I'm getting older.

 

Sounds easier,  just driving up a couple of ramps and getting under to do the job safely with probably a bit more room than my jack and axle stands will give me. Have to do it on the road also (quiet cul-de-sac) so hopefully wont have probs with the ramps slipping.

[Muzza80]

Go ahead and get ramps, they're great for a lot of jobs that don't require the wheels off.

 

My 11 plate standard VRS is too low at the front, simple solution is these:

 

http://www.drapertools.com/product/23306/Extensions-for-Car-Ramps-(Pair)-for-23216-and-23302

 

Work a treat, push the ramps and extensions right up to the wheels before getting in the car then just carefully drive up them taking care not to go too far, couldn't be simpler and I've never had any issues in many years of use.

Edited 3 October, 2016 by Muzza80

[brad1.8T]

Just as some information, if you have the room for it, a proper 2 poist hoist is incredibly cheap these days.  Well, down here in AUS they are - about GBP1000 for a 3 tonne unit that meets government standards.

 

You can even get units that you can pack away when not needed.

 

I've already factored in an AUD10,000 budget for a hoist and any ancillary work (foundations, power, etc) when I buy my next house.  It sounds a lot but a decent house in the greater urban area here starts at AUD1.3m with about AUD100k in taxes and legals, so $10k isn't much to spend for a bit of comfort and convenience.

[Liger1956]

Whilst I have ramps I do not use them very often. I am also getting old so I now use a vacuum pump (Pella 600) to suck the old oil out when doing a service. It seems to extract all of the old oil, can also be used to clean out the oil filter housing, and means that I do not have to get down on my back under the car and get my hand covered in oil.

[Octy0GG]

Dug out my old ramps - hadn't used them in years. Found that even with wheels perfectly centered on ramp there was loads of tyre hanging over sides, with the angle iron digging into the tyre in a way that can't be good for the tyre.

 

Measured the ramp platform width: 175mm between the angle iron sides. 

Tyres are skinny (By modern standards) 205 s

Investigated Machine Mart's wider ramps: 195 mm, so still a bit on the narrow side particularly as next car will probably have wider tyres

 

Looks like ramp manufacturers are slightly out of touch with modern tyre widths.

 

Anyone know of a supplier of wider ramps?

Edited 21 October, 2016 by Octy0GG

[Octy0GG]

Update:

 

Halfords Car Ramps - Pair are suitable for tyre sizes 135 x 10" to 185 x 14" and have a safe working load of 1000kg per stand. 

 

Hilka Two Tonne Car Ramps. (Argos) Product code:395/5217 The Hilka Two Tonne Car Ramps are capable of raising wheels up to 205mm and have a track width of 215mm. 

___________________________________________________________________

 

Well, Halfords have got to be having a laugh - 135 x 10" to 185 x 14, must be made for the 1970s

Think I'll give the Hilka ones a go then 

[Volf]

Built my own ramps for next to no cost.

Best thing I ever did.

 

[brad1.8T]

Dug out my old ramps - hadn't used them in years. Found that even with wheels perfectly centered on ramp there was loads of tyre hanging over sides, with the angle iron digging into the tyre in a way that can't be good for the tyre.

 

Measured the ramp platform width: 175mm between the angle iron sides. 

Tyres are skinny (By modern standards) 205 s

Investigated Machine Mart's wider ramps: 195 mm, so still a bit on the narrow side particularly as next car will probably have wider tyres

 

Looks like ramp manufacturers are slightly out of touch with modern tyre widths.

 

Anyone know of a supplier of wider ramps?

think of the dynamic impact forces on the tyre when driving along...  the static load of the ramp angle iron won't be an issue.

 

Those DIY ramps look good..  They wouldn't blow away in the breeze either

Edited 23 October, 2016 by brad1.8T

[rum4mo]

Built my own ramps for next to no cost.

Best thing I ever did.

 

 

Very much like my ones, the ones that I tend to use on the rear have a slower slope, but a shorter top piece,whereas the ones I use on the front have a faster slope and a longer top piece, trouble is for me, that these stops/handles on the rear ones are too high for my S4 - if I am using all four ramps I need the rears to fit in under the sills!  But I also got a set of four Jackpoint Jackstands if the wheels need to come off!

 

Edit:- and the screws fixing the stops/handles on are just a bit "oversized" and they do not want to unscrew after being fitted in for about 20 years!

Edited 24 October, 2016 by rum4mo

[Breezy_Pete]

Inspired by Volf's post above, I took my home made ones a step higher today.  They used to be just two levels, which was sometimes a bit of a struggle.

 

[Breezy_Pete]

My partner just pointed out that it looks a bit like I nailed a book onto the end!

[mrcrow]

On 10/28/2016 at 18:33, Wino said:

Inspired by Volf's post above, I took my home made ones a step higher today.  They used to be just two levels, which was sometimes a bit of a struggle.

 

 

you da man!!!

i have the best info i could have got here....will get some timbers sorted out

its going to be an adventure now

cheers

geof

 

ps..that book...a man for all seasons

 

many thanks again...will post this on my thread...

 

[tonyblue]

Once you go pink...

 

 

[mrcrow]

22 minutes ago, Baileydog said:

Once you go pink...

 

 

Very nice...sort of bazooka bubble gum pink

how do they work 

[tonyblue]

10 minutes ago, mrcrow said:

Very nice...sort of bazooka bubble gum pink

how do they work 

 

I use them to raise the car so I can get my jack and stands under it, a nightmare before with the car being 20mm lowered.

[mrcrow]

27 minutes ago, Baileydog said:

 

I use them to raise the car so I can get my jack and stands under it, a nightmare before with the car being 20mm lowered.

 

ACE....that explains it...I thought you were rubberman..

Pity there wasn't something like that so one could drive on safely and then pump up..?

i used to have access to a crouch pit...two low walls and scramble in one end.

it was built on waste land and was queued up at the weekends...one needed to wear wellies because of the oil on the ground...or bring a board....1964 near a coal pit in Scotland...must be gone now.

 

you chaps seem to have jacks and axles...you must do quite a bit of underside work??

 

cheers

geof

Edited 24 July, 2017 by mrcrow