What size floor jack do I need?

Since 2 tons is more than the car weighs and you won’t be jacking up more than one end, 2 ton should have a good margin of error.

My first floor jack is 2 ton trolley jack I bought about 40 yrs ago and it always worked fine on cars and pick ups. I don't use it much anymore as I bought a 3 ton jack with a longer handle and higher reach. I still use the 2 ton jack occasionally.

I have a 2 ton Aluminum "racing " jack.

And it lifts my heavy SUV easily.

Get the 2 ton, and be happy.



ED

Besides capacity, don't forget the critical aspect of height in two ways: does the jack height allow it to slide under the jack points (i.e. sports car low ground clearance), and does it lift as high as I want it to (based on car's jack point clearance from ground, i.e. if you have to raise the jack half way up to meet the frame, can the jack go high enough to get the stands under the frame then)

The former is not a problem for a Kia Sorento; the latter might be, in which case a piece of 4" post would help.

Thanks to all for the input. I purchased the 2 ton jack and will use it with confidence :glasses:

Remember:

Never get under the car without putting some of the weight on a jack stand or jack stands. Leave both jack stands and jack with weight on them. You probably knew all that already, but I feel the need to tell you since a friend of mine died changing the muffler on his car the dangerous way. RIP Calvin Estes 1936-1962

surferdude2 said:

Remember:

Never get under the car without putting some of the weight on a jack stand or jack stands. Leave both jack stands and jack with weight on them. You probably knew all that already, but I feel the need to tell you since a friend of mine died changing the muffler on his car the dangerous way. RIP Calvin Estes 1936-1962

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I re-emphasize this warning.

In Dec. 1977, I too crawled under a car only supported by a jack.

It fell, and severely injured me.

I carry a blind eye, and deaf ear, plus a BIG dent in my skull from that.

And a drastically different life than I had planned on at the age of 23, now much older, and wiser.


ED

All of us young fools in the 50's worked on our cars with those infamous "Bumper Jacks" supporting them. Fortunately cars had greater ground clearance back then or else the death toll would have been much greater.

Ed, sometimes we have to pay dearly for our lessons. I lost the first joint on my index and ring fingers running a punch press at age 15... lied about my age to get the job. The trauma of that changed my life from that point on. I won't lie if you hold a gun to my head. lain:

PatFlemming said:

Same goes with Jack Stands. The price difference is quite substantial between the two and 3 ton

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Jack stands that are sold in pairs are rated for the pair. So if you get a set of 2 ton jack stands, it means that the PAIR will support 2 tons, NOT 2 tons each.

3600lbs is 1.8 tons.

KMO1977 said:

Jack stands that are sold in pairs are rated for the pair. So if you get a set of 2 ton jack stands, it means that the PAIR will support 2 tons, NOT 2 tons each.

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No, if a manufacturer is quoting a pair of stands for 3 tons, then each one will hold 3 tons, you don't halve it. You can buy them individually as well, the same model they pair up. Besides, right on the stand it should say the rating.

3onthetree said:

No, if a manufacturer is quoting a pair of stands for 3 tons, then each one will hold 3 tons, you don't halve it. You can buy them individually as well, the same model they pair up. Besides, right on the stand it should say the rating.

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The answer is, it depends.

https://agradetools.com/jack-stands-rating/

After ASME PASE-2014 became effective in 2015 all jack stands must be rated per pair and not per individual stand. Previously, some companies were advertising jack stands with individual ratings, but in 2019 you will always be seeing jack stands rated as a pair. Therefore, a 6-ton rated jack stand has only a 3-ton maximum load individually.

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huesmann said:

The answer is, it depends.

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I knew some companies still market ratings for each stand, so I checked their websites before writing that comment. Holy hel, its too confusing. So ASME also states that an individual stand must hold 200% of what the advertised rating is for the pair. So I guess that is why they can still put a sticker on an individual stand of "3ton" for a pair rated at 3tons. And then there is ANSI which has different requirements. Thanks for the clarification, I now know to be comparing the advertisement, labels, and methodology.

That's probably a design factor of safety. So if a pair of stands is marketed as 3-ton, and currently required to support 3 tons as a pair, they'll probably (but who knows) support up to 6 tons as a pair.

surferdude2 said:

Remember:

Never get under the car without putting some of the weight on a jack stand or jack stands. Leave both jack stands and jack with weight on them. You probably knew all that already, but I feel the need to tell you since a friend of mine died changing the muffler on his car the dangerous way. RIP Calvin Estes 1936-1962

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Wow. So young. Sorry.