Want to buy a floor jack for your SUV, and don’t know what size would fit it? If so, let’s walk you through a step-by-step process of choosing the best floor jack for the SUV.
You will need to look for a floor jack with enough load capacity that can lift an SUV and that has a versatile lift range that easily gets under the jack point. The saddle diameter and hydraulic pump also play their role when lifting a vehicle.
Let’s dive deeper and further explore each feature of the jack so you find the right size.
What Size Floor Jack for SUV?
Load Capacity
Floor jacks have limits when it comes to raising the load. They should not be overloaded. Their lifting capacity is in tons. They would either be 2 tons, 3 tons, or 4 tons, and so on. If a floor jack has a 3-ton capacity, it is its safe load potential. Or in other words, it is the maximum mass the jack can raise.
Now the question pops up: what load capacity floor jack should you choose for your SUV? The answer is simple when you know how much does your SUV weigh? Simply put, if your car weighs, say 2 tons, you need a jack with a 2 tons capacity or more.
You must be thinking that you are not lifting the whole SUV at a time, then why look for an equal capacity jack if one wheel can be raised with a lower capacity jack?
You are right. Just to add to your question, you don’t even have a single central jack point where you can lift the SUV off the ground.
If you have a higher bearing capacity jack, that’s great. If you have an equal capacity jack, that’s great too. However, when it comes to a floor jack with less bearing capacity than the SUV’s weight, you need to be a little careful.
If your SUV weighs more than the jack’s capacity, the extra should not be more than 25% of the jack’s capacity.
Say, you have a floor jack with 2 tons or 4000 lb capacity, and the car weighs 5000 lb, you are good to go. Because the extra load is ¼ the jack capacity. You can lift one wheel of the car with the jack. If you want to buy a new floor jack, prefer equal capacity. SUVs weigh 4000 to 5000 lb. For lifting them, you can choose between 2.5 – 3 tons floor jack.
The following article has gathered the best car jacks for SUVs. Take a look at it.
The next thing that needs attention is the lift range of a jack. It has a minimum and a maximum height. The lowest height lets you slide the jack under a jack point. For this reason, the collapsed height should be less than the ground clearance of your SUV.
Luckily, most floor jacks have less than 6 inches minimum height which can be easily installed under the car. Just ensure that if the jack includes an extender, it should also be less than the clearance. Such products are used for lifting lifted vehicles, not SUVs.
The extended height allows you to raise the SUV off the ground. Floor jacks have 18 plus inches max height, which is more than enough for the car. The max height needs to be more than the jack stands height. Jack stands are used to hold the load after the jack lifts it. Read more on how to jack up an SUV from the given article.
When choosing an SUV floor jack, a hydraulic pump pops up in the mind. It is the only part in a jack that lifts the load, no matter what size it is.
The pump can either be a single piston or a dual piston. The first one costs less than the second one. However, double pumps lift load way quicker than one pump. If you have the budget, opt for a dual-piston pump.
Material
Hydraulic jacks are made out of steel or aluminum. Both deliver sturdiness and stability. The only difference is with the weight. Aluminum jacks are lighter than steel jacks. You can easily carry and position them under a jack point.
This also adds more bucks to the budget. Keep in mind that even if a jack is an aluminum, it might still be heavy for you. Because aluminum jacks weigh around 50 lb, while steel jacks weigh from 90 – 100 lb.
Floor jacks are weighty and are not easy to pick them up and carry. You will not even need to carry them. Because they have wheels that roll over the floor. Just grab and pull the handle to your workplace. Additionally, some floor jacks have side mount handles that are handy when positioning them under your SUV jack points.
Last Words
This is what size floor jack for SUVs. Cross-check the load capacity and the lift range with your car. And if you have the budget, opt for a dual-piston aluminum floor jack.
Find some of the best floor jacks in the article below.