Side steps versus Rock sliders

DCPU said:

I don't think the rock sliders are ideal for jacking with a hilift. They seem too flush with the bodywork. There's always a degree of wobble in the foot of a hilift where the baseplate meets the lifting beam and once a wheel is lifted it's easy for it to move a little off vertical and lean in. It looks too easy to damage a door, the margins just don't seem to be there.

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DCPU said:

So I thought I'd check this out for myself today.

I started with just using the first concave section of the jack lip, to give maximum standoff. Note: I'd never actually use just this portion of the toe in a real jacking situation.
View attachment 7811346

It's not a perfect match for the section of the rock slider tube, but it does work:
View attachment 7811349

But I was pleasantly surprised at the standoff this gave:
View attachment 7811350

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DCPU said:

So I thought I'd check this out for myself today.

I started with just using the first concave section of the jack lip, to give maximum standoff. Note: I'd never actually use just this portion of the toe in a real jacking situation.
View attachment 7811346

It's not a perfect match for the section of the rock slider tube, but it does work:
View attachment 7811349

But I was pleasantly surprised at the standoff this gave:
View attachment 7811350

There's certainly plenty of room to get more of the toe under the slider:
View attachment 7811354

I then moved to the second "step" in the toe and measured the standoff at the utility belt:
View attachment 7811355

Which then made me think that a packing piece of wood/plastic/rubber attached to the utility belt would be an ideal way to ensure any jack mishap would not cause a costly scratch/dent/hole in the door. The section could be kept separately and just attached in seconds at whatever corner needed lifting:
View attachment 7811356


As an aside, I can confirm that the anti tilt element of the alarm works well, setting the alarm off before all the travel in the suspension had been taken up.

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Tazzieman said:

I wonder if it's possible to design/weld in boxed jack receivers like on my 60s Benzes and Fiat?
Hi lift jacks always provide the opportunity for disfigurement of vehicle or operator.

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Tazzieman said:

Those older jacks are angled to account for the tilt when using them. That said , if the car is on dodgy ground it's a bit of a risk.
And 4x4s are often on very dodgy ground!

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grenadierboy said:

In the Porsche community original jacks are only for show - no one actually uses them. Everyone has a bottle jack buried in the front!

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Pete said:

Thatâs exactly what I needed to know. I spend much of my time in the highlands of Tasmania
fishing, getting fire wood and travelling on some fairly rough tracks. I fear the side steps will not last very long before
they are severely damaged.
fold down step would be a good option, like the ones you sometimes find on old defenders

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MileHigh said:

Seems like a perfect opportunity for a widget to fit into the utility belt itself and provide some protection

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grenadierboy said:

Did you try the second & third concave section.?

I agree that, depending on the cars' position, type of ground & how high you need to raise it, it could be quite dangerous to use the first position.

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grenadierboy said:

Did you try the second & third concave section.?

I agree that, depending on the cars' position, type of ground & how high you need to raise it, it could be quite dangerous to use the first position.

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emax said:

I have little confidence that the friction between the toes of the lift and the Rock Slider is sufficient. A locked handbrake will of course help. But a rubber flap around one of the parts or between them is advisable, I think.

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Cheshire cat said:

Looking on YouTube, it seems inflatable jacks have their place and are used by the off-roading community. I saw one guy lift his axles out of the mud with one. Got him out of trouble. In UK, some of the breakdown and mobile tyre replacement services also opt for inflatable devices.

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emax said:

I have little confidence that the friction between the toes of the lift and the Rock Slider is sufficient. A locked handbrake will of course help. But a rubber flap around one of the parts or between them is advisable, I think.

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Cheshire cat said:

Looking on YouTube, it seems inflatable jacks have their place and are used by the off-roading community. I saw one guy lift his axles out of the mud with one. Got him out of trouble. In UK, some of the breakdown and mobile tyre replacement services also opt for inflatable devices.

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DCPU said:

I looked carefully at inflatable jack's many years ago but decided against them. A little faffy to set up with exhaust clamps and bungs and then you have to be very careful that the bags don't expand into areas you don't want it to and catch brake lines, etc. Maybe they've switched over to air now.

I imagine the breakdown and tyre people are running them off a compressor.

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DCPU said:

I have some re-purposed ice hockey pucks

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