Been trying to think of some way to get Superblue up enough that I can get under her to r/r the pair of oil pressure sensors that I bought some time back (and get back safely to my feet ). I know the tire jack on that (left/driverās) side is not going to be enough, and my infamous tech bud (if you recall his "adventures " I have posted about on here before ) apparently took off with my low profile floor jack sometime before departing my premises, @ a cost of like $130 or so.
Anyway, Iām thinking the simplest (and probably cheapest) way to āget 'er doneā would be to buy a pair of drive-on ramps. Wondering what yaālls experience has been with those and facelift XJSes. First of all, how high can one go with those things (safely)? Will it be sufficient for this job? One thing Iām worried about is I have heard horror stories where the tech was driving a bit too fast and drove over the end of the ramps, hanging the car up (and probably damaging something as well under there). I have seen some newer ramps thought that have a piece of steel welded vertically on the end, which I assume is to prevent that unhappy event from happening.
While on the subject, I wonder if I could back Superblue up on such ramps, to finally be able to get to the rear differential check plug to find out the lube oil level in there (although it may not be very accurate with the back end at an angle like that ).
I have a set of really old ramps that I occasionally use when doing an oil change, that strip of welded steel upright would probably stop the car at 2 mph but other than that they would be cosmetic at best.
With mine I have to place a small concrete block 300mmx400mmx30mm
In front of the ramp to stop the air dam grounding out.
They raise the car <> 350 - 400mm
If youāre a dab hand with a welder (or know someone who is) you could make your own to your own design, clearance and end stop requirements. For many years I used such a pair made form steel chequer plate and 8 x 4 steel beam sections.
Iāve changed both the pressure sender and the switch over the years owning my 4.0 coupe. Did both from above without any trouble. Just remove the air filter box and and the oil filter to provide access. Unless your US model has extra plumbing/equipment it shouldnāt be necessary to go in from below.
Around 1980 I thought it would be a good idea to make myself a pair of ramps to use in the new garage I had just built. The floor in the garage was nice new smooth concrete. This was long before owning any kind of low-profile car. The first time I tried to drive my ānormalā car up on the ramps, I found that the ramps would slide forward on the smooth concrete and I would get nowhere.
The ācureā was to anchor the ramps somehow so they would stay put. I used rubber sheeting which helped some, but the whole idea was really a failure, and I wound up giving the ramps away.
The Jaguars we drive have low ground clearance to begin with, and you may find that the chin spoiler and undertray hit your new ramps long before the tires even get close.
If I were you, I would buy myself another long-reach low profile jack, and a decent pair of stands, and go on with life.
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Timeisrelative
(Jason Miller 1993 XJS 4.0 convertible, 1997 XK8 coupe )
6
Believe it or not, I bought a set of the heavier duty rhino ramps and have found that I can use them for both my xjs and my xk8! I was really surprised!
I have used ramps as far back as I can remember. Years ago I cured the skidding ramps issue by boring a hole two inches deep in the garage floor in front of the ramps location. A bolt dropped in the hole prevented the ramps from moving as I drove the car up them.
In my current garage the floor is much too pretty to put holes in. I use two pieces of 2x4 ( cut to preferred length) resting against the front garage wall and the front of each ramp to prevent ramp skidding. Once the car is on the ramps the 2x4 can be removed. I must admit that lately I just take the cars to the dealers. Getting old is a bitch (smile)
I have a pair of Rhino ramps that I sometimes use for my XJ-S. I also found they slide too much on my concrete garage floor, so I bought some rubber mats to put underneath them which gives enough grip.
Yes, you have to be VERY careful inching forward on them. On one of my Volvos, I did end up going too far and it cracked the body side skirt (strip under doors, behind wheel)
I have had no luck driving onto them for rear wheels.
For the XJ-S, because of the low profile, half the time Iāll simply jack up the car and put the ramps underneath the tires. Only so that I donāt have to mess with jack stands. Then itās easy to drive off of them when Iām done. Lazy.
I have used plastic ramps for years without any sliding issues. Two points of differentiation/
The ramp has a rubber insert on the underside that makes all the difference. Without them, itās basically a skateboard.
I donāt have a garage so the ramps are laid down on my asphalt driveway. That is probably gripper than the concrete slabs found in garages.
The ramps I have really do not lift the car enough to do any serious undercar work, especially the deeper in you get, but theyāll get the job done for most smaller tasks. Doing any steering rack work was a challenge, to say the least.
For something so important for safety, I would make sure itās a good make. Who is Vevor?
For example, trying to save a buck, I bought heavy duty jack stands from Harbor Freight over a year ago. I noticed as soon as I put the car weight on them, one of the jack stand arms would ratchet down. I returned them right away. A month later, there was a recall on them. Shoddy engineering from Chinese manufacturer.
I ended up buying name brand jack stands for more $$$, and feel much safer when Iām underneath my car.
I bought a set of these Tru Cut URB9000 ramps around 2011 and they have worked great for me. They are still sold today. They have two versions, this one rated at 9000 lbs per axle and another rated at 6500/axle. Napa auto parts used to sell them for about $70/pair but not sure if they still do. The same company also sold 2 piece ramp extensions, model UR2000, specifically made for these that allowed driving up on them without any slipping. They worked when I had my XJS without any issues with clearance. But it seems the extensions are impossible to find anymore as I was going to gift a set and could no longer find them. Iāve used them without the extensions but not sure that would work on an XJS without clearance issues.
Anyway, I trust these ramps although I usually also place a set of jack stands and the floor jack or a spare wheel as 2nd and 3rd back up safety precautions. And wheel chocks behind the wheels on the ground.
Race Rampsā¦are widely usedā¦low enuf for new corvettesā¦to prevent over driving the ramp endā¦pull up to the ramp startā¦stopā¦measure the distance to have the wheels up onto the rampā¦measure that same distance out ahead of the rear wheels and place a block.
Nick
I have watched a friend drive a FWD car up my dadās ramps. He crept forward until suddenly the ramp lost grip and shot rearward. There is a big dent in the ramp where the car landed on it. The sill looked a lot worseā¦
I am contemplating making something similar. My driveway has a slope down to the garage and I could make ramps that would allow me to drive from the top of the driveway onto the ramps without actually driving upwards. It should be very easy to get onto the ramps, but storing the ramps might be the challenge.
I have used my stamped steel ramps for a very long time. One did splay out No harm to anything but the ramp; I hammered it back to shape and welded the 1 inch split. Belt and braces. I bolted in a reinforcing strap. A rod welded in from front to rear would be a great improvement. When I had my swapped in one starter after another, they served me well
Then the time I forgot to chock the wheels Not good. but, that was on me not the rampsā¦
I prefer them to jack stands. Although I have a wide selection of the latter.
Not aware of any chin spoiler problem as my XJ has none
Using āRace Rampsā for many years. No problem for the XJS to drive on. After the car is on the ramp, I use two low profile floor jacks to get the car off the ground. The Race Ramps come in two pieces: The ārampā part can be removed so there is better access for working underneath.
Hope that helps
For what its worth i bought the quickjack 5000slx hydraulic lift $1200.00 u.s. has two locking positions one at about 10" the other 19" . You could leave the car up indefinitely, positive locking arms at both heights. I know it costs but Iām worth it.
I regret purchasing the quickjack. It doesnāt get it very far off the ground. A mid rise lift is not much more money. I also have a four post lift, which is imperative for rusty cars, but makes any sort of wheel/suspension service difficult. I thought the quickjack would be a good solution but it simply wasnāt far enough off of the ground.
). I know the tire jack on that (left/driverās) side is not going to be enough, and my infamous tech bud (if you recall his "adventures " I have posted about on here before 
) apparently took off with my low profile floor jack sometime before departing my premises, @ a cost of like $130 or so. 
).
