Which floor jack fits UNDER the prius?

Hi Matt,

FYI - I use a regular hydraulic floor jack with a piece of 2x4 on the saddle and lift the car on the side rail, adjacent to the notched jack points on the sides of the car. Then I place jackstands at the notched jack points.

If you are determined to use the centrally-located jack point, I suppose you'll have to find a low-profile jack. Perhaps something like this?
http://www.northerntool.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_6970_200329613_200329613

 

Most of the smaller capacity cheap trolley jacks fit under the front of the Prius - barely. There are low profile commercial trolley jacks, but they are pricey

 

I haven't found one yet. I use one of those fairly cheap Harbor Freight aluminum jacks. If I need to jack up the front of the car I will drive it up on a few two by fours to give me clearance to get the jack under the car.

 

I never use the motor cradle jack point anyway. I use a regular HD trolley jack, a 2x4 in the cup, to jack the Prius at the mid body jack points. When I rotate tires, I use two trolley jacks, which allows me to very quicly jack up one side of the car.

 

I haven't attempted to use my floor jack under my Prius since the Prius is so low. I can't even fit my oil catch pan under there without lifting it. I use a set of plastic ramps that I bought sometime over the last several years either from the local auto parts store or Walmart. They're absolutely perfect for changing the oil in most vehicles, including the Prius.

Mike

 

Mike

I had the same problem. The Prius holds 4 qts max, so you don't need a big pan. I found a cheap metal pan at Princess Auto (Macy's for Men) and cut it down to easily fit under the Prius. I carefully ground down the cut metal so it's smooth and safe to the touch. I have almost 1.5 inches to the brim when done draining

Another solution - if you don't do metalworking - is to check out the kitchen wares aisle at Wally World or KMart. I've seen Rubbermaid and similar brands that are just the right shape and capacity.

Make sure you wipe down the plastic container before putting the roast beef into it

jay

 

I've seen a few floorjacks with an "SUV" extension. The ones I've seen would allow you to slide the jack underneath then put the extension on.

 

Yeah, I actually cut down a plastic container last time I changed my oil and overfilled it a bit and had to drain some out. The ramps aren't too much of a hassle for me as I have them handy in my garage. I do most of my own work including fabrication on other vehicles so reaching for some ramps is easy.

 

Why use a jack? Try an engine hoist attached to the passenger side mirror (not really!!!)



I use this one on my '02 Prius and it is low enough and reaches far enough.




Here it is in action under my Prius:





However, I prefer to just park my car at the edge of my driveway, put a pair of ramps infront of it and drive on them. They are below the car level initially as my driveway goes downhill) and this way I can get the car to be level or tilted back a little or however I feel the most oil would come out. And the front does not scrape the ramps as it does if I put them on a flat surface. Sorry, no photo...

And the installed Fram SureDrain plug/valve makes it a no tools required to drain operation (need a wrench for the filter of course). Some photos here:

 

i must be too wirey, i dont jack or lift, i change my oil just by sticking my hands and filter wrench onto filter. oil pan i have is low enough to fit under drain plug. when rotating tires i use supplied prius scissor jack, put jack stand in place next to jacking point, lower scissor jack, move to front or rear depending on where you started, lift, insert jack stand, rotate tires and reverse procedure to lower

 

Try that if you're built like an ape. I can barely change the oil with all four wheels resting on the ground.

 

I have a standard rolling floor jack and it fits under the front of the car no problem on my 07. Rolling it in from the front it barely makes it but rolls under there without hitting. I then use the front jack points that I notice your older car does not have . These are the hard points in front of the front wheels poking out through all the plastic pans. One on each side. I just jack up the pass. side about 3 inches using those hardpoints. No piece of wood needed. I then put a small jack stand under there for safety and go to town on the oil filter. Takes about 30 seconds to jack it up and get under there. I can reach the oil pan bolt without jacking it up but the filter is really hard without jacking it up. Its so easy to jack up the front.

 

I have a related issue I’d like to get some feedback on:
Front left tire blew out on highway! Can’t get provided jack under side of car! Too low to ground!

What kind of jack should I have for this situation? Would be nice if I could remove the blown tire & wheel so I could mount the provided spare!!!

 

You might be able to use a trolley jack on the rear jack point to lift the car up enough the get the tire off, then put a jack stand on the front control arm, if high enough, then use the regular jack on the front jack point. It will all depend on if you can get the gear to your location.

 

Seriously? The scissor jack? It's collapsed height is about 2" at most.

Is the "ground" loose earth, or pavement. If the former, just excavate a bit, and slip a scrap of plywood in the pit to give stable bearing?

 

Tire was blown out, I can imagine that if there was zero air left in the tire, rim against the ground, clearance would be pretty low to the ground.

SM-G781V ?