rear floor jack point

[njl]

I did an oil change and tire rotation over the weekend, and since I was doing both at the same time, I put the RAV up on 4 jack stands. I started by lifting the front end with the front/center floor jack point. I thought I'd give the flimsy looking rear jack point a try, but found that my Hidden Hitch obstructs it to the point that I can't get my floor jack under the jack point.

I wasn't crazy about the idea, but I'd read of others using the hitch as a jack point...so I gave that a try. It seemed to work. I just worry about the thin steel at each end of the hitch buckling under the weight of the RAV. I know the hitch is designed to pull a few thousand pounds, but it probably wasn't intended to be used to lift/support a few thousand.

I'm curious...others who have an aftermarket hitch and use a floor jack...what are you doing for the rear...or do you jack up the RAV one side at a time and ignore the recommended floor jack points entirely if you're planning to put it up on 4 stands?

I found this old thread
Using floor jack with Toyota trailer hitch

I didn't take any pictures...but I guess I'm the volunteer.

[avs]

Did you try to jacking up the rear of the car using the rear differential?

[njl]

Originally Posted by avs

Did you try to jacking up the rear of the car using the rear differential?

Mine's front-wheel drive...so there isn't one. I considered the point where the rear suspension is hinged to the body, but reaching that was kind of a stretch and I wouldn't have been able to use much of the normal arc of motion of the floor jack's handle.

[vanib]

Originally Posted by avs

Did you try to jacking up the rear of the car using the rear differential?

Really? Would you not damage the rear diff in this manner?

That's like those dumb shops who lift the front of the car using the oil pan!!! I stopped them right on their tracks!

[ravenuer]

Originally Posted by vanib

Really? Would you not damage the rear diff in this manner?

That's like those dumb shops who lift the front of the car using the oil pan!!! I stopped them right on their tracks!

I would think the rear diff should be stout enough, no?

[djb383]

The metal thickness of the hitch looks way thicker than the metal in the rear jacking point, no?

[olds362]

How would you damage the rear differential by putting a jack under it? It is quite common to use the rear differential as a jack point on vehicles with a rear differential. I always used it on all my rear drive cars, and my old 4 wheel drive GMC.

[Dr. Dyno]

Originally Posted by olds362

How would you damage the rear differential by putting a jack under it? It is quite common to use the rear differential as a jack point on vehicles with a rear differential. I always used it on all my rear drive cars, and my old 4 wheel drive GMC.

I'd NEVER recommend jacking any vehicle with independent rear suspension by the differential. Unlike a solid rear axle where that's common and safe because the whole rear suspension is supported by the axle housing, the differential on an IRS vehicle doesn't support any weight. It's usually rubber mounted and fairly lightly attached.

[Dr. Dyno]

Originally Posted by njl

I'm curious...others who have an aftermarket hitch and use a floor jack.

For me that's one of the side benefits of having a hitch receiver. It makes a perfect floor jacking point for the center rear. If you could damage a vehicle by lifting there you'd easily rip the receiver off while towing any substantial trailer.

[MrPulldown]

Many manufacture list the rear diff as the rear jacking point. On one of my cars I was jacking by the rear diff cross/support member, but was correct and shown the reference in the manual that showed to lift directly on the diff.