Hoist Jacking Points

[garvice]

Stop being a cheap bastard and buy a hoist. You will not regret it.
Mine was $1400 second hand (had barely been used) and I will have it for life (yes it will move with me).

[NZeder]

true

However all second hand unit here in NZ are $2000+ and 3 phase

[garvice]

Yeah my 3phase probably cost more money then the hoist and that was with cheap materials and no labour. Then again I see that more as an investment (now I have an excuse to buy bigger and better toys) and a reason not to leave this house. (Plus I had to upgrade my power supply anyway, so three phase was only a bit more in materials).

[NZeder]

I would have to get a 3phase generator as I am in the sticks and 3phase connection has to come from 4 polls away = 30K would be best guess 

[garvice]

So when are you buying the house for poles down. Ha. Sounds like you are in a pickle. The biggest problem I can see with your idea is that the jacks may not all lift at same speed, creating a potential safety hazard. You could fix this the same way house movers do. Watch the pressures on the hydraulics of each jack (assuming they are hydraulic) and trim them as required.

[garvice]

Actually my hoist is two mechanical screws. It keeps itself aligned with a throttle cable and a limit switch on a spring. You could do the same with four me mechanical jacks.

[NZeder]

So when are you buying the house for poles down.

sounds like a plan but there is one major issue with that - I already own that The poles are already on the block we have, the neighbour has 3 phase it is just getting a cable from the transformer down there up to my shed. I could have had the shed build down there but then the zed would never get out as the steep goat track of a road would be too rough for a normal car let alone a sports car

You see it would be cheaper to build a new shed with the correct stud height for a full hoist than install 3 phase.....so just might have to do that one day....but that would be 5-10 year plan. 2 month plan get the zed higher where it is now. Just get a better trolley jack is the simple answer. I don't like simple I like to change things and do things different

check this out - I like the bit of video when he show how much flex the car gets on the 2 post hoist
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BWCIRxlKd2E

[garvice]

Ha, if that sort of body flex was happening from my car I would be more worried about the structural integrity of the car rather then the issues of lifting it with a hoist. The dollies seem interesting but you also then need to take the wheels off. I have seen something similar that uses the pinch welds to have the car high and mobile, I think it was in the repco trade catalogue, will try and find again.

[Six_Shooter]

When I use a hoist under my S30, which I have done plenty lately, I place the front pads under the TC mounts, and the rear pads under the bulge in the floor, just inside the pinch weld and in front of the rear tire.

As far as lifting just 500 to 800 mm, there's a ramp system, that a few guys on Hybrid Z have bought, where you drive up on it, then using a jack, lift the platform up and set to level. I've seen one in person and it's a neat set-up. There are optional pieces that span the middle that you can use for botle jacks and jack stands to remove the wheels.
I'll see if I can find a link/more information.

*edit*

Kwiklift: http://www.kwiklift.com/features-all.htm

Also there is this: http://www.restorationramps.co.uk/phdi/p1.nsf/supppages/ramps?opendocument&part=3

[aussie240z]

I needed ramps/hoist and watched evilbay for the car yard style ramps and bought a matching pair from a mechanics yard that was closing down.  I can move/adjust to suit any vehicle and apart from the fact that you are still on the wheels when you are on the ramp, the scope to work around/under/over is pretty good. I have a flat cross member I use across the ramps if I need to raise the zed on axle stands while on the ramp and remove/work on wheels/brakes etc. The attached pic is a set closed out recently on ebay at $641. I was lucky, mine were less than $300. They don't come up that often but when they do,  worth a look as an alternative.
Cheers
Ian