Good Samaritan correcting my stupidity (no jackstands)

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Jul 7, 2014
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Winnipeg MB CA
Last Friday I was doing an emergency repair for an elderly (84) friend (the dad of the friend I'd done alternator repair for on the Versa the previous day).

His Mazda5 (2007?) was making a horrible clunking/banging noise from the R rear.

I had previously replaced both rear shock mounts a few years before, and one of the replacements had failed. (There could be a couple of causes here - first of all, our roads are badly potholed, and secondly the aluminum shock mounts are underbuilt for the vehicle - I believe the same part is used for the Mazda3 and Ford Focus, both much lighter vehicles.)

I lifted the R rear of the vehicle with my hydraulic jack under the spring seat, which works well.

Unfortunately, it's really hard to find a good place for a jackstand. I tried to put the wheel under the side, but didn't have enough clearance. (In retrospect I should have used the factory scissors jack.)

But anyway, I figured I would duck under with my electric impact and zip the bottom shock bolt out in seconds. No luck - I hammered away on it in bursts of about 10 seconds for several minutes. I was using an impact extension and a short impact socket.

Then this car stopped across the street, and a man came over and said apologetically, "Hey, I'm really sorry to intrude, but I see you're working under the car without jackstands - you could get crushed if your jack fails!"

I thanked him, said he was quite right, explained the difficulty in trying to provide a backup, and then piled up a bunch of short lengths of 2x6s under the side of the vehicle.

Good fellow, with no motive other than my well-being.

Approached the bolt from the other side (so I didn't have to be under the vehicle), and used a deep impact socket and no extension, and zipped the bolt out fairly quickly.

The rest of the job went well (and safely). When I used my drill and a fibre brush to clean up the shock-mount perch, I wore safety glasses.

Lesson learned.

Here's the old upper shock mount:
20231118_113038~2.webp
 
I applaud your humility and admission. It’s easy to say, “ah, I’ll only be under there for a minute, I don’t need anything more than the jack” and, in fact, some folks have posted that exact sentiment on BITOG, but the passerby was right:

Don’t take the chance.
 
One of my patients could have been crushed when he pulled the drive shaft off his truck. It rolled back onto him but there was just enough clearance to result in only a few scrapes and a good scare. Shows the need to keep a vehicle you're working on from rolling too. This is one place you do need a belt and suspenders.
At least I had the front wheels chocked, front and back, and the parking brake set. I could easily imagine someone not thinking through what happens when you remove the driveshaft.
 
I use a Jack stand on each side of the car, and a backup Jack stand on each side adjacent, but set a tiny bit lower to pickup the load incase of a Jack stand failure. Finally, I have the Jack set up on the side I’ll be working on set to just under the frame rail, but not holding any load - again, just a backup to the backup.
 
One of my patients could have been crushed when he pulled the drive shaft off his truck. It rolled back onto him but there was just enough clearance to result in only a few scrapes and a good scare. Shows the need to keep a vehicle you're working on from rolling too. This is one place you do need a belt and suspenders.

I knew a couple of guys who were killed by that scenario. Both should have known better, but for some reason had ultimately fatal lapses in judgement.

One of those incidents made the news: https://www.foxnews.com/story/florida-man-crushed-to-death-by-his-welding-truck

RIP, Chris
 
jack stands and gloves were 2 things I always didn't want to use. But now, I at least place jack stands under the vehicles. Meaning if the jack failed, the vehicle ends up on the stands. I figure even if it damaged something, I'd be ok. To clarify, the weight is still on the jack, but the stand is in place and maybe just touching.
 
We've had a 2009 Mazda5 in the family since 2013. My wife and I enjoyed it a lot, but outgrew it as grandchildren arrived. We passed it on to our younger son, and I still service it.

I installed a hitch shortly after we bought the vehicle, which provides a good location for a jackstand.
 
I use a Jack stand on each side of the car, and a backup Jack stand on each side adjacent, but set a tiny bit lower to pickup the load incase of a Jack stand failure. Finally, I have the Jack set up on the side I’ll be working on set to just under the frame rail, but not holding any load - again, just a backup to the backup.
Someone once called that "belt and suspenders" to me. If your belt failed, your suspenders would still hold up your pants.

I find it tricky in the rear right of my wife's GM SUV, because the rear AC lines are there....when her car was towed, the chain also gently grazed one line.....
 
Someone once called that "belt and suspenders" to me. If your belt failed, your suspenders would still hold up your pants.

I find it tricky in the rear right of my wife's GM SUV, because the rear AC lines are there....when her car was towed, the chain also gently grazed one line.....
Yup, I (usually) err on the side of safety. That was a stupid bit of laziness on my part.
 
If you lift a car by its one good spot with the jack, and don't know where to put the stands, because it "looks weak" and you "might hurt the car" so you go in naked, you're admitting that your life is worth less than some ten-year old beater.

The mind and its justifications are weird sometimes. Good to step back and figure out what you were thinking.

Also, see something, say something.
 
If you lift a car by its one good spot with the jack, and don't know where to put the stands, because it "looks weak" and you "might hurt the car" so you go in naked, you're admitting that your life is worth less than some ten-year old beater.

The mind and its justifications are weird sometimes. Good to step back and figure out what you were thinking.

Also, see something, say something.
You're absolutely right. And if I'd thought it out better, I would have used at least the factory scissors jack as a back-up, as well as stacking wood under the rear axle.

Lesson learned.
 
Food for thought, if anything were to happen, would anyone nearby be able to do anything? It has crossed my mind that a family member may not even know what to do at all, whether it’s too late or not…
 
Food for thought, if anything were to happen, would anyone nearby be able to do anything? It has crossed my mind that a family member may not even know what to do at all, whether it’s too late or not…
My wife was in the house, and is excellent at responding to a crisis quickly and effectively, so I would have had the best available care ASAP, but that might not have been enough if the vehicle had landed on me.
 
Someone once called that "belt and suspenders" to me. If your belt failed, your suspenders would still hold up your pants.

I find it tricky in the rear right of my wife's GM SUV, because the rear AC lines are there....when her car was towed, the chain also gently grazed one line.....
A further thought on that ... my company went through a big quality theory (Edwards Deming) push about 25 years ago. I learned a lot, and much of it has stuck with me. One analogy was the one of the stacked slices of Swiss cheese. The holes comprise, for this example, 10% of a typical slice. You don't want anything to get through a hole in the cheese, but with only one slice, something has a 10% chance of passing through. Acceptable? If not, add another piece on top. Now you've cut the odds to 1/10 of 10% - or 1%. Still unacceptable? Add another layer. Is 0.1% (1 in 1000) acceptable? No? Add another layer - and so on.

Chance of a year-old hydraulic jack, way overrated for the weight of the vehicle, failing suddenly while I'm under? Let's say 1 in 200. I don't like those odds. Let's add a layer - a jackstand. Now if the hydraulic jack fails, I should be OK. What if the ratcheting jackstand fails. One in 500? Now the total odds are down to 1 in 200 times 1 in 500 = 1 in 10,000. Let's add some wood, or a 2nd jackstand anyway. Now the odds are greater of getting hit by lightning or something crazy like that. Belt and two sets of suspenders, if you will.

But other things that made my actions even more stupid (in retrospect) - the old Mazda5 is very rusty. Should I have actually trusted that rear suspension to not break suddenly while supporting the weight of that corner of the vehicle? Glad it's done, and I will be more careful in future!
 
One of my patients could have been crushed when he pulled the drive shaft off his truck. It rolled back onto him but there was just enough clearance to result in only a few scrapes and a good scare. Shows the need to keep a vehicle you're working on from rolling too. This is one place you do need a belt and suspenders.
Friend of mine almost did that with his AWD yukon a few years ago. Put it in park and never thought that the viscous coupler wouldn't be enough to hold it with the front driveshaft alone. As soon as he popped the rear shaft out, the truck started moving backwards. Rolled 40 feet or so into the street.
 
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