<VV> jacking points

[tony.underwood at cox.net]

---- Bryan Blackwell <bryan at skiblack.com> wrote: 
> Comments inline:
> 
> On Apr 20, 2008, at 5:45 AM, Chris & Bill Strickland wrote:
> > So how come it is verboten to do it with a floor jack, but okay  
> > with the
> > leaf spring, which is there *all* the time, not just when the car is
> > jacked up?
> 
> That's a really good point, I don't think anyone has ever mentioned  
> that.


The leaf on the '64 doesn't support enough load to keep the engine off its mounts.    Most of the weight on the rear wheels is the driveline and that leaf doesn't have enough umph going for it to keep the driveline off its mounts.   

Either way, it's still a BAD idea to lift the car by the driveline, particularly the differential unless you're only raising it an inch or so, such as unloading the rear suspension etc...  NOT lifting the car off the ground.   The load on the belhousing/engine joint is pretty fierce when this is done, driveline mounts notwithstanding.     

I've not heard of anybody breaking a belhousing doing this, but then again I don't intend to be the first.     ...only way I'd do this is on a junkyard parts car or the like...  did it a few times Back When in my (more) ignorant days on 'Vairs I cared about but after taking a look at scrubbed mounts and then remembering the less than muscular joint between the crankcase and the belhousing I rethought all that.     

I *Will* jack up my '60 by the rear skid plate, but then again that car's rear motor mount is a different story, suffers no ill by jacking at that spot.    I've checked closely just to be sure...  nothing ever happens to the mount during or after jacking the car at the skidplate.   Don't do it on anything later than a '60 though if you know what's good for you.  


tony..