Basically for this topic I searched for any reasons not to leave a car on jack stands for an extended period of time. I read a lot of information online from various sources and came to a similar conclusion that most others had reached.
As long as the jack stands you use have enough weight capacity for your vehicle and are placed at proper support points. You can safely leave a car mounted for several days, months or years. The main things to consider are will the suspension be under any abnormal stress and can the stands scratch the frame. Leaving a car on jack stands overnight or for a couple days won’t cause any more damage than normal everyday driving does already.
There are steps to take to prevent potential suspension or frame problems, such as where you position the jack stands, removing the wheels and also using a jack stand pad.
If you want to learn more about using jack stands to store a vehicle I will go into more detail about how to safeguard against any issues. Along with information about using jack stands properly, storing cars long term and answering related questions.
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Quick Reminder about Jack Stands vs Jacks
Jack stands are not only better for leaving vehicles mounted for a longer time frame they are much safer for doing so. Jacks themselves are different than jack stands. As they are used to raise a vehicle but shouldn’t be trusted to hold up the car for very long. You don’t want to work underneath a vehicle that is held by a regular jack.
Jacks like the kind your vehicle’s spare tire comes with are not suitable for long term use. As the Hydraulic mechanism tends to release pressure slowly over time. Most cars come with scissor jacks used to change a tire.
Jack Stands on the other hand are much more sturdy and offer fixed support for vehicles.
How Long Can You Leave A Vehicle on Jack Stands?
You can leave a vehicle raised on jack stands indefinitely. Granted the surface the stands are on is solid enough to support the weight for long periods of time. Like concrete for example is strong enough that it wont crack over time. I wouldn’t recommend it if your going to be placing the jack stands on asphalt. Which can under the weight begin to crack or become dented.
It doesn’t hurt to place the jack stands on top of a sheet of wood or a rubber mat. Especially if you placing them on softer surfaces such as asphalt or dirt.
Also I would recommend getting jack stand pads for protecting the metal. Otherwise depending on the type of jack stands you will be doing metal on metal. Which overtime could scratch your frame. Jack stand pads would prevent this from occurring.
You can find great inexpensive Jack Stand Pads on Amazon
If you are worried about causing any damage to the steel frame don’t worry. Your car will suffer more wear and tear to the frame from everyday driving then it will being raised on jack stands. The biggest risk you have with leaving the car on stands is someone knocking it over, engine/mechanical problems from not running the engine frequently.
Should You Store a Car on Jack Stands?
One of the best reasons to store a car on jack stands is to avoid damaging your tires. When a car is parked in a single spot for long periods of time the tires can suffer flat spots. Its called flat spotting and it can be a temporary condition or permanent depending on the severity.
Jack stands will keep your tires off the ground and prevent flat spotting. But you may wonder if doing so causes damage to the suspension or shocks? Well that question isn’t as easy to answer. because while having the suspension unloaded (uncompressed) is actually good for the springs. It can damage the shocks.
Shocks are better to have loaded (compressed) just as if the car were sitting on the ground normally.
One workaround is to position the jack stands on the axle of your vehicle to keep the shocks from rebounding (unloaded). Although you should always check your owners manual to find the best jack positions for your vehicle.
Alternatively if you plan to store a car for a long period of time. They do make products called tire cradles or tire saver pads which help prevent flat spotting. Which is easier as opposed to having to raise and place your car on jack stands.
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Is it Bad to Leave Your Car on a Jack?
Leaving your car on a regular jack is not a good idea. As the they can leak down overtime and the car will simply drop, either quickly or slowly overtime. Also this could happen unevenly as each jack will leak down at different levels.
Jacks as opposed to jack stands are meant to lift the vehicle enough to either remove and change a tire or get it into position to place the jack stands. Jacks shouldn’t be used to hold up a vehicle for more than a few hours at the most. You certainly do not want to crawl under a vehicle that is mounted on a regular jack.
As mentioned earlier it’s important to note the difference between the two types of jacks.
Tips for Using Jack Stands
Make sure to raise vehicle enough to still perform proper mechanical work. Use wood blocks as extra protection in case jack stands fail.
- Use 4 Jack stands that are all equal height
- Always use jacks on a hard level surface
- Check your vehicles owner manual for recommended jack points
How To Put A Car on Jack Stands
The basic method for putting your car on jack stands is as follows.
- Make sure you are on solid level ground.
- Apply cars parking break.
- Place wheel chocks at the edge of your tires on the opposite side you are raising the car. So if your jacking the front first then place the chocks at the back of the rear wheels. This wheel prevent car from rolling.
- Locate your vehicles jack points. if you are unsure then the best spots are behind the front wheels and in front of the rear wheels near the outside. This is also called a pinch point or weld point.
- Now use you floor jack and lift the rear of the car using the rear jack point. Do this high enough so that you place the first jack stand at the front jack point of the car. Repeat this on the other side of the vehicle. Now the front of your vehicle is resting on two jack stands.
- For the rear jack stand placements, you need to jack the rear of the vehicle from the back. Using a center jack point near the rear axle.
- Once you jack the rear of the car up, set your jack stands into position and lower the vehicle slowly onto the jack stands.
- Make sure all jack stands are the same height so your vehicle in resting evenly.
This video demonstrates this method nicely.
Recommended Products
One of the best floor jacks you can buy online: Torin BIG RED Hydraulic Trolley Floor Jack (Amazon Link)
A pair of super strong jack stands: Torin BIG RED Steel Jack Stands (Amazon Link)
A set of extra grip wheel chocks: MaxxHaul 70072 – Rubber Wheel Chock (Amazon Link)