Good day all,

I hope this doesn't come across as too much of a newbie question but the time has come for me to do some serious front end work on my 66' Toronado and I'm just not confident enough to support the front without asking a few questions first. I'm used to working on much smaller, more conventional cars and am not fully used to something this front heavy. I've got an excellent 5 ton jack and 6 ton jackstands, it's just the placement of them I've got questions about. See my attached picture for reference.

The shop manual shows you exactly where and how to lift the car when you're using a 2 post lift but, in my opinion anyway, it's a little vague when it comes to lifting with a floor jack. It just says that the car "should be supported at the suspension points or frame contact lift points". Just looking for a little clarification on that.

I've got to get the whole front end up and on the jackstands so is it safe or proper to lift the whole car in the center where I have the yellow arrow? Or maybe this would be too much weight suspended in the middle and might be to tippy side to side? Or should I jack one side up, put the jackstand in, lower then go to the other side and do the same?

Thanks for helping me out with this.......I guess I just want to make sure I don't wreck something (or myself)!


Note that this picture isn't my own car but it is a 1966 Toronado. I found the image online.

 

I think a little reality check is in order here. The Toronado, because of the front wheel drive, is a little heavier in the front than a rear-drive car, but it's not that much heavier, and it's certainly not heavier enough that you have to be extra concerned or take extra precautions when jacking it up. Just use the lift points the service manual shows.

I have two Toronados myself, a '77 and a '78. Like yours, they both have front-wheel drive. I've lifted them many times with a floor jack and jack stands, and I never done anything special. I put the jack stands under the frame at the exact points shown in the service manual. I put the floor jack contact point just to one side or the other of this, lift the car, slide the jack stand into place, and lower the car onto it. No muss, no fuss.

Over this past summer I purchased a quickjack to lift my old cars. Again, no issues lifting either of my Toros. Just place the jack's lift points as close as possible to the frame lift points.

Much quicker to get all four wheels off the ground.

 

I'll let others chime in as well... But I have jacked my '67 up via your 'yellow' and 'red' arrows in doing front end work...
The 'gray' jack stand would be in the 'red' arrow area of your diagram...

 

That's really good info thanks for this. I know, I know.....I'm just being paranoid I guess.

Do you usually lift it in the center with the jack to get both wheels off the ground or do you find it works better to do one side and then the other?

 

Thanks for the reality check! I know, I tend to overthink things a bit but it's ok......maybe it will help someone like me in the future. All help is greatly appreciated.

I really want to get one of those quick jacks.....it definitely looks to be the way to go. Especially getting all 4 wheels off the ground!

 

You are NOT being paranoid. You are being smart & asking smart questions - always create the safest work environment possible.

 

Thanks Norm!

 

On any vehicle I've worked on I have a 6 ton floor jack to raise either the entire front or the entire rear from a center point on the vehicle then slide the jack stands under the safest points, lower the front (or rear) then move to the rear (or front) & perform same operation. You're only raising the front or rear long enough to accommodate the jack stands. Speaking of jack stands versus a floor quick/scissor lift:

I've looked at them, I can't speak to their quality. However, if you plan to be under the car (which is obviously the purpose of raising the car): (1) Consider you've lost at least 50% of your access area - probably more because you've effectively closed off entrance to the undercarriage from the sides; and, (2) I like tossing my shop light, tool box(es), wrenches, etc. under the car from the sides; (3) plan to make entry to the undercarriage (often awkwardly) from the front or rear. If you plan to use a floor crawler, you'll be navigating a fair amount of time.

 

Good advice Norm! That brings up an interesting point, however. Let's say I followed the advice here and I have the front of the car suspended safely and then I want to also lift the rear up and on jack stands so I can have the whole car up in the air (4x jackstand). The 1st gen Toronados don't seem to have a safe spot to lift the entire rear end at once. I've read on here multiple times that you can't lift the rear of the Toronado by the rear axle (yellow arrow) as it's not beefy enough. So how would you go about putting the rear up on jacks as well? Anyone have any thoughts on that?


Again, not my car - online image

 

Exactly what I was going to say. No such thing as a dumb question. Especially when it comes to safety. 👍

 

Yes... and as Vintage Chief pointed out. I also have a larger floor jack for that... I wasn't using the little 'red' one in my pic to do that....

 

I don't know. I've never lifted a 1966 Toronado. I've lifted lots of vehicles in peculiar not specified manners which I'd consider to be safe i.e. long enough to slide jack stands underneath in their correct locations. It's a bear lifting my 2003 F250 diesel (6,310 lbs curb weight) on the front end I can assure you. If I were to quickly brainstorm lifting the back of your car, I'd most likely lift the RH rear corner then the LH rear corner. Again, I don't know. Others will provide some knowledge, I'm sure.

 

Maybe to be on the safe side, I could use my two floor jacks under the rear lift points. Lift one side a bit, then lift the other side......just to keep it even and then put the two jackstands under the suspension mount points.

 

Yes. Get a quickjack. In spite of all the poo-pooing of them on here about side access, that's never been a problem for me.

There are several advantages of the quickjack. First, the car is lifted slowly and smoothly from all four corners at the same time. No twisting of the frame or body, even slightly. Second, it's FAST. Slide the jacks under each side, and the car is up in 10 seconds. Yes, I have to position the jacks on each side, but I have room to leave them there and drive the car into the space between them like you would drive it into a service bay. I then slide the jacks sideways about a foot to get them under the car, and that's it. They are heavy, but once positioned on my floor, I have to move them very little. Third, it takes no physical effort to push a button. I'm getting up there in years, and lugging a heavy floor jack around the garage floor and having to pump on it each time gets old very quickly.

All of these people who criticize the quickjack have never used one. I've used one. All summer. It's been great for servicing all three of my big old Oldsmobiles. I would be very surprised if you bought one and ended up regretting it.

 

Yeah that's all well and good but I've got enough to do with this car that requires lots of money. As much as I'd love a quickjack, it's just not in the cards right now.

Plus, according to this recent thread, the QJ doesn't work well on a 1st gen Toro anyway.....perhaps it's user error, but who knows? https://classicoldsmobile.com/forums...ronado-171781/

 

With a front-heavy car like the '66 Toronado, you want to be extra careful with weight distribution. The yellow arrow spot (center of the front subframe) can work to lift the whole front end, but only if it's a reinforced crossmember designed to handle the load. Otherwise, it may flex or cause instability.
The safer method is to jack one side at a time, using the control arm mount area or designated frame points (like your red or blue arrow), then place the jack stand before moving to the other side. This ensures stability and prevents any tipping risk. If you had access to a scissor lift, that would be ideal for even weight distribution, but a floor jack and sturdy stands will do just fine. Just make sure they’re positioned on solid, level ground.

 

Not a Toro owner, but I jack up my ‘66 conventional big cars a couple times a year each. Similar weights, but distributed differently owing to the front wheel drive components.

Usually I do one side, then the other with jackstands from the vehicle frame side lift points as designated by the Chassis Service Manual.

Sometimes after the car is up, depending on what I’m doing underneath, I’ll leave the hydraulic jack under the front cross member in the locked in the up up position, but not bearing weight just so there are 3 points of protection for me instead of 2.

It’s a little “belt & suspenders” for safety and it can’t be good to have the car weight resting on the front cross member, but I’d rather sacrifice those items than my life.

When I’m under, I try to plan what tools I’ll need and put them under the car, or near the wheels before the job begins. It’s nice to have tools in arm’s reach when you’re underneath. Lots of light, or a headlamp, Plus paper towels and maybe some Berryman’s B12 Chemtool if I want to clean things up a bit.

The older I get, the more I like doing these jobs when I know I can take my time - like a solid 2-4 hour stretch in the garage uninterrupted.

Cheers
Chris