Best Trolley Jack for 996

Hi All, I'm fed up using a scissor jack to get my car up on axle stands and I'm looking to get a decent trolley jack for my 996 principally, but no doubt it will also get used for my Landcruiser Amazon (2.8 tonnes!) and the wife's 3-series. Anyone got any recommendations? I was looking at something like the many 1.5 tonne racing jacks available for about £100: https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-d&q=1.5+tonne+racing+jack or maybe the 2.5 tonne versions for about £130, which might be more suitable if I ever lift the Toyota. The alternative is a chap near me is selling a 3 tonne Snap-on Blue Point jack for £150 but I'm not sure I need something so large and that the size/weight (36kg) will be a hindrance in my single garage! Anyone got any good experience on this subject?

check out SGS Engineering they should have something that suits your needs and their kit is good quality stuff. So far I have two of their tool chests and 1 jack but i think much more might be on the cards in the future. www.sgs-engineering.com/

I use this one from SGS, they have some good deals on jack and axle stand sets too https://www.sgs-engineering.com/tja25-aluminium-trolley-jack

Never jacked a 996... but this one with it`s low level can be really handy. I have used mine for a number of years, a real boon on low slung sports cars.. lifts to a good height too.. https://www.machinemart.co.uk/p/clarke-ctj2qlp-2-tonne-quick-lift-low-profile/

Thanks for the recommendations, I will check SGS out. Does anyone know how low-entry the jack needs to be to clear GT3 geometry? My 996 is standard but I wouldn't rule out going to M030 or GT3 spec in the future.

Given that a 996/997 have a curb weight of under 1500kg, buying a 2.5 tonne jack is a bit overkill in my eyes, but if you want to spend £130 go for it! Personally I use a low profile cheapy from screwfix for £30 https://www.screwfix.com/p/hilka-pro-craft-2-tonne-low-profile-trolley-jack/8827r And jack pads to protect the jacking points: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/254332973266

Thanks Hertsdriver, that jack does look sensible! I think the main advantage of the 2.5 tonne racing jacks is that it lifts up to 450+mm, as opposed to 330-360mm of most of the others. I don't know how much of an issue this is with a 996 but 330mm would only just reach the jacking point of the Landcruiser and wouldn't lift the wheels off the ground. I understand there is a place on the rear engine casing where it is safe to lift the rear and get the axle stands under the jacking points, as opposed to lifting by the jacking points and putting the axle stands on the suspension mounting points. Is this correct?

I use two jacks 1) a cheapo for lifting the sides ie on the jacking points to get 1 wheel off and 2) a 3 tonne high lift sgs one where I can jack the whole front or back to get either my 3 or sgs 6 tonne axle stands under, but I need to run it onto my ramps first to give clearance to get the big one under. I can then get the Porsche up in the air how I want it dependent on the job but can use the big one on my range rover as well. If I were to lift a landcruiser I would be going as big as I can for a jack as it's a beast to lift quite similar to the range rover. All in all I spent circa £160 for the 2 jacks and car ramps. About £80 extra for both sets of axle stands, but they all get used across multiple vehicles. In regards to jacking the rear there is a point on the subframe that works perfect to jack the car and then under the toe arms with axle stands. On the front can't remember off hand but there are guides on here and I use axle stands with rubber pucks on at the reinforced point shown on the pelican parts 101 projects book and site.

This is a sound argument as long as you only ever use it on your 911. But if you have a 1.5 tonne jack and if you find yourself needing to lift something like... lets say... a 3 series cabriolet and wistfully just use the jack that you have... Yeah - I am going to be buying twice after that one... :wack:

I have a Clarke (machine mart) jack that was recommended by AutoExpress, it's reasonably low entry, cheap and fine. However when I was at CG, I met another owner, Ian, who recommended a Costco 'racing' jack' at about £100. I bought one and never use the old jack any more. It's rated at something like 3 tons and it weighs a lot itself so why do I like it? I has a long reach (goes well under to get to suspension points), it has a very low entry and raises very high with only a few strokes.

Is it the Arcan or the SIP one you have Mike? https://www.costco.co.uk/Tyres-Auto...on-Steel-Service-Jack-Model-XL2750EU/p/254971 https://www.costco.co.uk/Tyres-Auto...Low-Profile-Trolley-Jack-Model-03675/p/253398

If you do think about one of the cheap ones with the plastic hand to carry it watch out! I had one once and as i carried the jack over the car one day the handle broke in my hand and the falling jack left two rather nice large dents on my car where the wheels hit. lesson learned as the repair bill could have bought me several decent jacks to start with. :wack:

You need two jacks I have the lightweight arcan alloy one for the 911 and other cars. Easy to carry and much more usable than a heavy jack. And a big heavy steel 3 tonne jack for 4x4s - a bit redundant now as I don't have one, but I do use it when I need two jacks, e.g. take the weight of the engine when removing mounts etc. I wouldn't trust the light jack on a 4x4 and equally the heavy jack is not low entry and too heavy to be dragging around. Actually I have a third, an Aldi cheapy from years ago that I never use since getting the arcan.

Hi wasz, that's the sort of reply I wasn't looking for I have found an alternative workaround in the meantime using a combination of a scissor jack and the bottle jack that came with the Landcruiser to get the 996 to a good height for the axle stands without much fuss. Once I have recovered (financially!) from the present round of servicing expenditure I will look to get a nice alloy jack, probably 2.5T. Thanks all for the advice.

Costco sell a couple of good quality jacks that are low enough. https://www.costco.co.uk/Tyres-Auto...on-Steel-Service-Jack-Model-XL2750EU/p/254971 There is a 2 ton rated one available in warehouses and its very good. I have one of those and a lighter load ally one from machine mart which is similar money to the Arcan one but not close on quality. If you get the 3 ton one, be advised, it is very very heavy to move around! I had my new car up in the air this weekend and I was very surprised at how rigid the coupe is, especially when jacking at the back! The car was on the jack and only the diagonally opposite front wheel was in contact with the ground!! It was a good opportunity to use a second jack and get the car properly on axle stands and have a check over underneath.