hey all, i'm gonna start work on the rear TABs and springs and shocks tuesday i think, and i'd like to have this done in one day (ok we'll see about that), here's what i want to know because i'm a very amateur mechanic:

should I jack the car up from the rear end only and have the front wheels stay on the ground, and just have 'em properly blocked, or should the whole car be up in the air?

the thing is that there's a serious deficit in jack stands in my community so I need to know this in advance. as it is i have only one jack stand and about three useable hunks of large wooden block which should do the trick (for jacking; i can block the front wheels with cinderblocks and other heavier stuff), i want the jackstand for the rear axle. all of this will proudly be done with my stock scissor jack. does anyone here think i'm crazy? i just want to be safe, first and foremost. i'd rather drive with the saggy rear end then have my face be reduced in volume by a large heavy greasy muddy rusty factor. just let me know if i should go out and score some jack stands. thanks!

You need to get Jackstands under the Jack points on the car so the rear axle can 'dangle'. The front can stay on the ground.
With a floor jack, I jack up the rear of the car from the center of the differential, put jackstands under the Jack Points located on the side of the car. then let the axle down until it almost hangs. Then I disconnect one Trailing Arm, do the TAB and reassemble, then move onto the other side.
A floor Jack is absolutely your friend

See the very last picture
http://home.lyse.net/brox/TrailingArmBushings.html

Use as many backups as possible. Eg. Also slide your wheels (with some boards on top to fill in the gap) under the rockers just in case.

The tabs require a lot of torque to be removed. So you may be pushing the limits of safety if the rear is only on jack stands.

Also have a ratcheting tie down strap available, you may need it pulling things in place.
--
1980 245 Canadian B21A with SU carb but electronic ignition and M46 trans in Brampton, Ont.

Do not even think about climbing under a car that is held up by a scissor jack and cinder blocks! Scissor jacks have zero lateral stability and cinder blocks are too brittle. Yes, I too dropped a car on myself 20 years ago while doing exhaust work with a similar setup, three broken ribs from the rear axle crushing my chest, minor lung perforation, and two hours stuck trapped under the car until a passer-by heard my meek cries for help! That car didn't weigh HALF of what a 240 does.

You need at a bare minimum chock blocks for the front wheels two jack stands and a professional rolling floor jack to do this job safely.

jorrell
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92 245 250K miles, IPD'd to the hilt, 06 XC70, 00 Eclipse custom Turbo setup...currently taking names and kicking reputations!

loud and clear team. thanks for the advice.

to clarify for jorrell though (to clear my name actually) let me just say that i meant to BLOCK the front wheels with cinderblocks, and use the wood as jack stands, not vice versa or worsa. the scissor jack sucks but i've used it in the past in conjunction with four jack stands in order to replace my brake junction box. it just takes a while.

thanks again.

Wood is far better than a cinder block, glad to hear you were aware of that issue!

jorrell

ps. Be safe!
--
92 245 250K miles, IPD'd to the hilt, 06 XC70, 00 Eclipse custom Turbo setup...currently taking names and kicking reputations!

I have two 2 1/2 Ton jacks and two sets of jack stands and also have the heavy duty rubber chocks for the wheels.

I have had my car up on the "Red Neck Rack" before but decided to hold off putting the front of the car on jack stands for the rear bushing change out. Started out by getting the front tires firmly chocked and then raised the entire rear by jacking up on the pumpkin. Put jack stands under the rear jack points and that car was not going anywhere once all that was done.

Depending just how far in you have to go, you may just need the other set of jack stands under the rear axle. I had the axle of my 86 held in the air by the other set of jack stands when the poly bushings were being pressed in.

This is one of those jobs that air tools make so much faster if you have access to them.

Good Luck,

Paul

Yes you can leave the front tires on the ground.
Yes you are crazy to use a scissors jack for anything other than to change a tire in an emergency.

Get the proper tools - jackstands and a floor jack. Throw the wood blocks under there too as a back-up after it is properly supported on stands.

I had a unproperly supported 745 come down on me. I had a cut from the rocker panel pinch weld on my chest. I'll never try a shortcut under a car again.

Don't bonk on safety... Go get two pairs of jack stands from Harbor Freight and put them at the stand points behind the front wheel and in front of the rear wheel. Getting the car on them can be a pain if you don't have a low profile Floor Jack.
Relying on the "wedge principle of physics" while you forcefully wrangle parts and subsequently shake the car in the process isn't a guarantee of ANY safety.
I've actually dropped a Volvo 850 while jacking the front up. Combined with a wet under carriage, the E-brake not being pulled sufficiently and the rear tires perched at the edge of the Expansion Joint for the house foundation and the driveway... Yeah, not fun. Actually Scary as S l-l i T.

PS... Tell your significant other to get a Life Insurance Policy on you if you EVEN THINK of Cinder Blocks as good jack stands.
--
'92 244 NOW w/ M47 (Hydra, turbo bars, bilstein, urethane bushings)

Never use the scissor jack to do more than change a tire. Ask Santa for a 2 1/2 ton jack and jack stand kit for Christmas.

positioning the sway bar bolts/holes to the trailing arm. I had to use my jack to inch it up into place. I did each sides on different days. Make sure you have something to keep the two thin pieces of metal that the TAB slide into from bending together. That piece of pipe cut to be inserted there. If you don't have one for some reason I've used the little round metal tube that helps to hold the lower shock bolt in place. It should slide right in between the two and make for removal and replacement much easier.