Best way to get under a Xantia.

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andycarter
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Best way to get under a Xantia.

Post by andycarter »

I'm looking for some advice as to the best way of getting under my Xantia for inspection & maintenance.
I have the jack, two axle stands and a pair of ramps.
So far I have tried just setting the suspension on maximum and putting ramps sideways under the sills to prevent an untimely death. however all I can manage to do is crawl under the car with my nose pressed up against the sump! ...more height is needed.
A search of this forum reveals that some people drive onto ramps with the suspension on maximum, is this easier - or is it to prevent damaging the spoiler? I bet it feels a bit like a 4x4 driving up in the air like that.
Once its up on the ramps then what? Do I lower the suspension so it can't drop on me, I don't think the stands will reach anything once its that high.
Any pointers / suggestions gratefully received.
Thanks,
Andy
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AndersDK
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Post by AndersDK »

Andy -
Try this thread - good discussion of general problems on jacking up a car :
http://www.andyspares.com/discussionfor ... ms=jacking
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Post by andycarter »

Sorry, did not mention that my drive is nice & flat and has a small bit of kerbing at the end to stop the ramps sliding [8D]
My old Jetta used to go up on the ramps a treat, but I hear modern cars are susceptable to smashing the bumpers etc when venturing onto ramps.
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Post by Dave Burns »

If you must drive up ramps do it with the suspension at normal height and place the ramp on a length of old carpet and such that the wheel traps the carpet before it touches the ramp, that will prevent the ramp from sliding away, if it doesn't, weld some nodules under the ramp so they dig in to it
When I use ramps I have the suspension on high and get my big trolley jack with a piece of wood on it, position it in the centre of subframe below steering rack and lift the front and lower it onto the 10 inch ramps, much safer than driving up but you need a big jack.
Idealy you want two pairs of axle stands for a xantia, I got two pairs from screwfix at about a tenner a pair, they are the ratchet type and have a good range, I have the wheels about eight inches off the ground with the stands placed right between the front subframe mounting bolts with a sliver of 3/4 plywood on top of them, at the rear the stands are placed under the subframe roughly in line with the arm pivots.
Then I have some huge ramps that I made about twenty years ago from angle and dexion walkway, they are 24 inches high and 6 foot long, I can sit under the front of the car when its on them, great for doing exhausts and undersealing.
Dave
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Post by andycarter »

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"> I have some huge ramps that I made about twenty years ago from angle and dexion walkway, they are 24 inches high and 6 foot long, I can sit under the front of the car when its on them, great for doing exhausts and undersealing. <hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote"></font id="quote">
You must have a huuuuge shed!
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Post by AndersDK »

Andy -
I use exactly the method of DaveBurns -
I have a cheap (UK£ 13) small 2ton hydraulic trolley jack - and a piece of timber 3"x4" exactly the lenght to fit under the safe lifting points on subframe where the lower control arms are fitted.
The ramps are the common 10" found all over in shops - some UK£ 22 a pair.
Apply handbrake - set the car to highest - place safety blocks at rearwheels - lift using the jack & timber - locate ramps and lower the wheels onto ramps - adjust rearwheel safety blocks. Most safe method - and car easily/safely rolls off the ramps when job is finished.
Works well on both my BX & CX.
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Post by andycarter »

Anders / Dave,
From your replies I understand that you jack the car up in the centre rather than one side at a time, and you leave the suspension on highest while the car is on the ramps.
And finally you roll off the ramps with it still on high?
Thanks
Andy
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Post by alan s »

Can't speak for the Xantia but this should apply anyway. My BX 16V has to be on high when I go on the ramps otherwise I'd tear the front air dam off. I use the old seat belt tied to the ramp & under the wheels trick instead of carpet & don't usually have any problems.
Using axle stands in conjunction with ramps on any hydra Cit is frought with danger as it's easy to end up with the weight of the car sitting on the axle stand which may not have been installed with as much care as it should have or be extended to its highest setting & hence wih a ramp capable of being shifted to an instable position accidentally. This of course is offset by dropping the height adjustment once the car is up on there, however, if I'm just doing an oil change, I just reset to around normal height (for convenience sake) do the job & reset to high to drive it off.
When I have a car on axle stands, I usually place pieces of wood under the tyres of the wheels left on the car as a precaution to give it extra height should it come down.
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Post by AndersDK »

Andy -
In my opinion - setting the car to highest - is only an issue to ease the lifting/jacking work.
It will only be strictly necessary to set car in high - if the front won't clear the ramps rolling off.
That's in fact what I need to do with the CX - but usually I simply lift it off the ramps again - and remove ramps - just in case [;)]
Doing the service work under the car is easier with car set to highest - gives more space.
Your concerns are about the suspension will suddenly sink - but it will sink slowly over lengthy time - if suspension/height setting is left untouched.
It will never abruptly bang down your head - unless you do something foolish - like touching the height corrector linkage - or mess around with the pressurised hydraulic piping.
But to go safe - it's allways recommanded to place jacks under the sill lifting points - using a wooden piece insert. No need to have the car resting on these jacks. Just locate them and adjust position for safe stand & body contact.
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