Hi-lift jack

casperfromholland

Forum Member
Joined
Sep 5, 2011
Messages
267
Location
Amsterdam Holland
Car Year
1999
Car Model
forester sf
Transmission
manual 5speed 4.44 end h/l 1.59
Hi! I was wondering, if I go serious off road with my buggy I have a Hi-lift jack with me. A lot friends in there 4x4's also have such a jack with them. I don't take this jack with me when I go off roading in my forester.

Of course a forester doesn't have steel bumpers but there is an adapter for sale so that you can use this jack to lift a wheel up. Is such a hi-lift with an adapter useable with a forester?
 
I personally hate those jacks with a passion, I find them highly unstable, I would much rather use a shovel and exhaust jack or a winch/snatch strap to get me unstuck.
also I prefer to carry a small trolley jack and a block of timber to sit it on for use when changing a flat tyre.

But that's just me, I see no reason the wheel adapter wouldn't work.
 
^^^^ Exactly what he said.
I hauled around a rattling hilift for many miles on the hood of my jeep and when I needed it, it was scary unstable. The exhaust jack looks to be the ticket now.
 
A high light jack is pretty versatile for a 4WD, because you can lift it from the rock sliders, front and rear bars, off the wheel hubs etc. You can't do any of that with a Suby, maybe front and rear bars if you are lucky.

An exhaust jack on the other hand is lighter, more stable = safer, and much more versatile for a unibody car.
 
The "lift-mate" wheel attachment does work (I have one). I don't usually carry the hi-lift with the Foz though as I rarely use it. When used, I usually open a door and jack from the side sill with a block of wood between the jack and the sill. I agree that they are not very safe and should be used very carefully.
 
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You can use a highlift on a outback and any other car or truck that has no lifting points... you can use this, Its called a lift mate.. It attaches to your wheel and you can lift up. I seen it work many times for sand recovery. Not good if you need to get that tire off the car from a flat!

https://www.hi-lift.com/accessories/lift-mate.html

liftmate_l.jpg


IMG00121-20100323-1902.jpg


If you do get one you will want to have this off road base
https://www.hi-lift.com/accessories/off-road-base.html

to help with it from sinking into soft ground.


But yes they are really unstable at extreme heights.. I would recommend not getting near them when they are holding up part of your car.. I have had them put a dent in my jeep from the vehicle shifting and it leaning into my fender.
 
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Thats exactly what i worry about when i see them. I'd never get under the car but they seem useful for getting out of bogs and ruts where they jack up the car then push it off the jack out of the rut etc.. but i always worry my luck the jack would smash against the body of the car as it falls.
 
Well it's not designed to be pushed off of to get out of ruts.. usually you jack it up and stack rocks or what you can under the tires lol
 
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I am in complete agreement with the sentiments expressed in this thread.
These jacks are extremely dangerous.

In my youth they were called "wallaby jacks" because of the way the mechanism moves. If it fails to engage properly, chances are you or someone else will lose a whole lot of fingers, or a hand.

Every station (USA = very large ranch; a 30,000+ acre grazing property) has at least one of these. They are used for when the Jackeroo (or Jilleroo) drives the bloody station ute or truck or tractor over the side of the ramps, or the end ..., and such like tasks. Everyone using them on these properties realises how dangerous they are. I wonder how many in the 4WD community do? Precious few??

I also agree about exhaust/compressor jacks being far safer and more flexible in usage. These are also recommended by the WA Police in their "Aids to Survival" guide.
 
Go on youtube and type in hi lift jack fail. You'll see plenty of examples of them failing.
 
Not just the instability, also what ratbag was talking about. them failing and randomly unjacking themselves.
 
But they are very versatile - winch, clamp, spring compressor I've used it for all sorts of jobs.
 
Fence strainer; post lifter; bead breaker......:iconwink:
 
You're obviously a fan Kevin. Maybe they are more useful as a tool than a jack?
 
Ratbag said:
I am in complete agreement with the sentiments expressed in this thread.
These jacks are extremely dangerous.
Click to expand...

The consensus is overwhelming!

I purchased a Hi-Lift jack for use with our Land Cruiser when we lived in West Africa. What really got me hooked was the flashy red color. :lol:

However, because of exactly the concerns that everybody voiced above, I never actually used the Hi-Lift. It is now collecting dust in my basement. Complete waste of $100. :redface:
 
I totaly agree that they are unstable. But such a jack didhis work twice for getting my buggy out of trouble. Because of the steel bumpers you can't damage anything when used with the buggy.

Big difference with the foz ofcourse. I think i gonna buy the lift mate and thake the jack with me if i go serious offroad. Because, when you have it with you, big change that you will never have to use it. :cool:
 
Yes I have heard many a story about how dangerous they are. But in saying that, there are many, many different things that they can be useful for, as some of you have mentioned here.

Regards
Mr Turbo
 
Equipment can be dangerous or safe depending upon how it is used. A Subaru WRX is an extremely quick and powerful vehicle which can kill in a few seconds if misused. Hi Lift Jacks can be unstable, and they can smack you about if you don;t operate them properly. Letting go of the handle when its down is one such mistake. I've got one, and have used it on a few occasions. It is a very versatile piece of equipment. It can break a tyre bead, it can pull as well as lift. I've used mine to extract a post from the ground. But I treat it with a lot of respect and I think carefully about what I am doing if I use it. They can be dangerous, but they don't have to be...

C00P
 
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