Best choice for lifting
 

I'm just curious what you all use/recommend for lifting and working under the car? Standard jack and stands? Quickjack lifts?

I have ramps I use for some jobs plus I have a low profile high lift jack, 4 jack stands and 2 scissor jacks that are used on occasion. All depends on what I need to do underneath the car.

So much is done from underneath on these cars. The higher you can get them in the air the better. I have a four post lift and love it

Pidj as said below, there are several ways to lift your car, it is a matter of personal preference.

Whenever I need to get the four wheels off the ground (and level), usually I drive onto the ramps, then lift the opposite side with a floor jack, get the stands on and afterwards lift the end from the ramps and get it on the stands as well.

It may seems that you are duplicating your work but I find this a safe way to do it.

However, once the car is supported with the four stands, I give it a firm shake from side to side (both ends), to ensure that the vehicle is properly seated on the floor stands.

I already got a very close call, and you cannot take a chance because if the car falls while you are underneath, most likely you will not be able to get out of the way.... and will be very messy :-(

Please ensure that the car is 100% stable before you get under it...!

I've never used ramps, but that makes sense for getting one end up, straight. I do have 4 jack stands, and always test before getting under:)

It depends on how much money you are willing to spend. If you get jack stands and hydraulic lift ensure it meets weight specs for your Porche. I've done research on Ramps and they are not all alike; seem some pics where cheap ones will crumble. 4-post lifts are great but go in the several thousands.

I don't have the room or $ for a 4 post lift. If I go the ramp route, I'll research and not go cheap there. The quickjack looks cool but, again, that's $ that needs to be used for maintenance etc. I have some 2 ton axle stands that should be okay.

Working on anything under the car, I use jackstands.
Here's a Pelican article with tips on jack points for jackstands.

I've had good experience with this jack. Small and light enough to take to track events.

I have Quickjack 7000
 

I have a Quickjack 7000 that I really like. Have not lifted the 986 yet but I did use it to change to summers on the s5 and Explo. Several threads on lifting. Here's a good one:

http://986forum.com/forums/general-discussions/65723-thinking-investing-quickjack.html

According to specs, the QJ 3500 or 5000 should both be ok for lifting a Boxster. I needed the 7000 for lifting the Explo safely. Both are much less $$$ than the 7000.

Here's a couple of pics at 'half lift'. YMMV but very stable for me.

http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1495210798.jpg

http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1495210833.jpg

Liftbars
 

I purchased a set of liftbars late last year. Simple and quick to raise the car onto four jack stands without having to raise up each corner separately.

Liftbars

Those liftbars look sweet!! Good find. You may have just cost me $300 today alynch.

I've been using this for a couple years now. It's simple and safe and easy to adjust height safely.
Liftbars

For regular oil change I use ramps. My driveway has a slight slope and when the car is on the ramp it's almost level.

This will save you some $$ +use a 20% coupon It is adjustable for length and height
https://www.harborfreight.com/steel-floor-jack-cross-beam-60762.html
Item 60762
or
https://www.amazon.com/Dragway-Tools-Cross-Adapter-Floor/dp/B002LGLXM0

The Liftbars look like a great, cost effective solution if you only need to lift the Boxster.

Yes Boxster only. I am interested in getting the quickjack. I just haven't found the excuse to buy one yet.

I bought the Quick Jack 3500 for my Boxster and my two other vehicles. Great piece of equipment for me and it meets all the needs for my level of wrench turning. Changing tires, brake jobs and oil changes plus the ever popular waxing and polishing. :cheers:

I have a Sequoia and a Mazda 5 that have two seasonal tire changes each .... by me. Wow would that make it easier ;) Hmmmm.

The Quick jack will put it up high enough to use a creeper, and still do stuff?

Sorry about that ;) I literally went from 20 minutes to raise all four corners to 5 mins for the whole vehicle. And I don't have to rummage around looking for the jack pads so that tops of the jack stands don't damage the jacking points. The ends of the liftbars slot directly into the jacking points. I couldn't be happier except maybe having a garage with a two-post lift. :p

per QJ docs the maximum lifting height is 17", 18" & 18.5" for the 3500, 5000 & 7000 respectively with the small rubber blocks (all you can use with the 986 I believe). For my Explo & QJ 7000 I can get approx 21" of lift with the SUV stands. Best to check the QJ website for detailed info on the lifting block and SUV stand options.

Just a suggestion, don't buy the 7000 unless you really need it. The 7000 lifts are wider and significantly heavier than the 5000 and 3500.

I used my creeper to change the oil. I'm 6 foot and 220 lbs so I'm not so small.

I have a pair of Liftbars, and am quite pleased with them. There are a few minor problems with them though. Even though I use 'low profile' floor jacks, it is difficult to get the jack under the bar, perhaps because the car is so low; I have 18" Boxster S wheels with the standard size tires on my '97 Boxsters so it shouldn't be an issue of excessively-low ride height. A small second issue: the bars have a white band marked at the center of the bars, but if the jack is placed there the front lifts more than the rear. The jack should be centered about 6" aft of the whit mark.
The Liftbar product seems to me a dandy product! I wish they made a bar for other cars, such as Mercedes W203 (C240, C320, etc) like my wife drives, and probably a host of BMW chassis. This product cries out for expanded marketing.

Place a 2x4 in front of the rear wheels and drive over it. This should give enough clearance to place the liftbars under the car.

lf the lift bars slot in to the jacking points, where do you put your jack stands?

You can see the video here.
Liftbars

So the stands go right under each end of the lift bar, right?

Correct; the bars are built with a spot designed for the jack stands.

Seems like a pretty nice system.

I have, however, read somewhere or other that it's not advisable to work under a vehicle that's supported strictly by 4 jack stands. The lift bar web page referenced earlier shows a number of P-cars supported that way. Do most people feel comfortable working under a car supported that way?

I guess the answer in part depends on how much one trusts their jack stands. I have a bunch of medium-short pieces of 4x4 lumber laying around the garage. I have a tendency to stack them strategically in such situations to serve as back-up support, (+/- stacked wheels). My inclination would be that I'm comfortable with that set-up.

If you use decent quality jack stands, why wouldn't you work under the car? We have stands ranging from 2 ton up to 8 ton each, so even if you used four 2 ton stands, that's capable of safely supporting a vehicle weighing in at anything less than 8 tons, or 16,000 pounds. Porsche hasn't made anything that heavy since they made panzer tanks in the second world war..............

Even the lifts in the shop only top out at 12,000 pounds, and I am as comfortable working under a car on them as I am with a Porsche sitting on four 2 ton jack stands. The only caveat is the quality of the equipment; buy good stands and you will own and use them for the rest of your life, which will not be shortened by a car falling on your head. And if makes you feel any better, I recently helped out a buddy by doing a dual row IMS Solution retrofit on his car in his shop while it was standing on those lift bars and four 6 ton jack stands (bottoms of the tires were 24 inches off the floor); the car was steady as a rock during the entire procedure, it never moved once or gave me any reason for concern.

...confirmation of my what I already suspected. In some cases I've bought HF stuff, but avoided that temptation with jack stands. (Justifiably?? IDK...) I also got the 3-ton rather than 2-ton ones. So...24,000 lb capacity for a 2800 lb car? Should suffice :D

I always remember back to the first time I worked under a car on stands. It was my son's girlfriend's car, a big ol' Mercury Grand Marquis. The fuel pump had died and we were underneath working on removing the fuel tank. I remember being terrified under there...jack stands just didn't look very substantial. I've gotten a LOT more at ease and trusting of them--unfortunately I'm getting to the age where I'd REALLY like a lift. Being able to walk under a car just looks like a whole lot more fun than squirming under one on jack stands. Especially when you get under there and you realize you've got the wrong sized socket :mad:

I have a simple rule on HF stuff: Absolutely nothing that holds weight above my head.

Words to live by.. :cheers:

Flyin Miata has the previous generation "QuickJack" for a couple hundred less than the new one. It is popular with the Miata crowd because the new version is too wide to fit between the wheels.

https://www.flyinmiata.com/quickjack.html

A used scissor lift on CL or other for sale site. I have seen them for as low as $350.00. I should have bought but it was a 5 hour drive to get it :-(

I've had a 4 post lift for a number of years now. I don't think I would still be working on cars if I didn't have it. Before having the lift I always left a floor jack or secondary safety device under the car when using jack stands. Block the wheels to prevent rolling. People have been killed working under cars.

I use a long/low HF floor jack which I really like, not everything from HF is garage.

I also have 4 Esco 10498 stands, and I would highly recommend them if you want something a little more versatile than model specific lift bars. They are very stable, and I really like the tripod base because I can slip a few 2x4 scraps or bricks under the jack stand post as a backup. I never understood how anyone could trust those dinky aluminum tube stands with a 6" circular base from pepboys. I would never get under a car without good stands. If I have the wheels off I will lay them under the rotors as another backup.

I have never used ramps, I don't think they are the best option for the Boxster. It is too low to the ground, so you would need really long ramps. Plus, if you only lift the front or back the car won't be level, so you won't be able to drain all of the oil, or other fluids.

+1 for Liftbars. I used mine for the first time today, and I have to say that the time, hassle and fiddling you don't have to deal with, they are worth it. :cheers:

Hey those liftbars look very good -- although specific to each vehicle. I recently purchased a quickjack and have used it on other vehicles in my fleet. It works great and can easily get a creeper underneath. Will be using it on my 986 Boxster for the first time this Spring.

Love my Quckjack 3500. I built a "liftbar" that sits on the QJ so I can reach the jack points on all my cars. Makes life a lot easier in those situations where you have to drop the car temporarily... like when I forgot to loosen the rear axle bolts before lifting. Perhaps the best purchase I have made to permit me to continue to do my own maintenance as I get older... now in my early '70s and the next project on my Boxster is to drop the tranny and inspect the clutch and IMS, working alone of course.