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Lifting a Solstice without crushing the fenders - what to tell the garage?

16K views 60 replies 30 participants last post by  wmf246 
#1 ·
Was wondering if someone could tell me the technical terms for what needs to happen to properly lift a Solstice. If I drop the car off at Bubba's Garage for instance, what do I tell him so he understands what to do and not do?
 
#2 ·
I would tell them to use the same lift they use for a corvette, to be safe however I would at a minimum have 4 hockey pucks to protect all 4 quadrants.. I would also show them the panels AND that they are intact and NOT damaged..
 
#5 ·
LOL, I know. But I need to get a state inspection.

Thanks for all the info guys!
 
#6 ·
I think it's a total cr@p shoot. I've had mine damaged three or four times now, I'm losing track. :cryin:

I have a local Chevy dealer that has never damaged the panels, and I feel like I can trust them to do decent work... thank goodness. But I had a real bad experience with another dealership up north who said they knew how to lift it and that they had experience lifting Corvettes, they were horrible. They crushed both sides and claimed it was already that way when I brought it in. BS! :brentil:

Another time I went into a tire retail chain, warned them to be careful, provided the page from the manual with the lift points and they still managed to damage the car saying that it slipped off the lift. At least the tire place paid for the damage, which is more than I can say for that Chevy dealer. The pictures and manual reference above, along with bringing your own lift pucks is the most you can do. Good luck.
 
#7 ·
. The pictures and manual reference above, along with bringing your own lift pucks is the most you can do. Good luck.

I think the MOST you can do is show the tech that there is no damage, have him sign a piece of paper stating no damage, and then video them lifting the car. Of course if you insist on this, most will say take your car elsewhere. The honest ones should have no problem complying with the request though.
 
#8 ·
Pick the right mechanic and he should know where to lift, but watch him and give him directions if it looks like he is not aware. Had mine lifted many times at the GMC/Buick dealer which was the Pontiac dealer where I purchased mine and never had any damage. Just had my tires replaced at a Goodyear dealer and the technician set the lift as per the service manual w/o any problem and no damage. He actually was on his back on the floor to check locations before lifting.

Just need the right shop.
 
#9 ·
Well, I chickened out. :-/

Took it to a local service station to get my VA state inspection done. Waited in line for over an hour. I was next in line and saw the tech just shoving a generic floor jack under the car in front of me and decided to split. Maybe it would have been fine but I didn't want to chance it.

There's a GMC dealer near me that used to be a Pontiac dealer. That's where I've been taking the car so far and never had ANY problems with them. But they're in Maryland, and can't do a VA inspection. I found a GMC dealer in VA but they are closed on the weekend. I'll call them Monday and see if they can handle the inspection.

I guess I should buy a set of those lift pads and keep them in the trunk in case I get a flat tire or something in the future? Can someone point me to a place I can get a set online? Or do I just get them from the dealer?

Hopefully Monday I can get this thing inspected!
 
#10 ·
Good luck.

I found a GMC dealer in VA but they are closed on the weekend. I'll call them Monday and see if they can handle the inspection.
There's absolutely no guarantee that a random GM dealership will be any better than "Joe's Garage" in this respect. Living in a non-socialist state, am baffled by why the bureaucrats in Virginia feel the need to jackup the car for an annual "inspection"?
 
#11 ·
#12 ·
If you were a dealer and lifting a bunch of kappas and/or vettes daily, those would be a dandy investment, but you can get to the same place with some hockey pucks and some eye bolts for a lot less hard-earned bucks.

I'll see if I can find some examples and post a picture later, I'm on my tablet right now.

.
 
#14 ·
Thanks for the link! So, if I understand, you need these under the car any time you lift it? Or only if you're putting it on a lift? The hockey pucks link says they slip if you're using a floor jack. The inspection station I went to today was using a floor jack. What would have happened if he'd floor jacked the car without one of those pad adapters? I don't think it would have hit the fenders looking at the lift points but I'm a noob.
 
#15 · (Edited)
#19 ·
#22 ·
I take my solstice to the same local shop that does all my work and they do a great job. He pull my solstice in one of their center post bays and leaves the lift horns flat and puts blocks of wood on top of them to lift it . I've had two solstices (solsti? Idk) and I had the first one for 160k miles and he did all the work with no damage and my current one for almost 20k miles and no damage. If someone knows what they are doing, you have nothing to worry about.
 
#29 ·
ANT1CS,

If you ever have concerns about your GM dealership, please do not hesitate to reach out. We can certainly locate a dealership in your area that is fully trained to assist you with your Solstice.

Erica Tiffany
GM Customer Care
 
#34 ·
Buy and use the little hockey puck inserts too when you drop your car off. Also there are some "other" lift areas under the car that I have used that are part of the cars frame and not so close to the fenders that are good for lifting. They are the silver bracket like pieces that stick down and are shown in the diagram PDF document. They kinda look like metal egg cartons. They are good for lifting points instead of the regular spots with he holes for the pucks.
 
#39 ·
if they were using a floor Jack I doubt they'd even get it under the car in the first place. I have to drive up into 2x4s to get a jack under it...I wouldn't bet on a state dmv employee being smart enough to figure that out. I also wouldn't trust them with a Toyota Camry, let alone a discontinued roadster that's extremely finicky.

Sent from AutoGuide.com Free App
 
#42 · (Edited by Moderator)
My car is lowered too so I have this problem but solved it with the purchase of 2 race ramps. They work great and can be stored in the trunk. Helps get the car up high enough for any jack or lift.
 
#41 ·
Presumably hoping that you haven't found a masochistic mechanic.....:devil:
 
#43 ·
LOL.

Yeah I wondered if the floor jack would have even fit, but it was enough to scare me off.

I ended up taking it to that GMC dealer. I said "I have to tell you the car is tricky to lift" and showed him the printouts from earlier in this thread and he was kind of indignant and said "We ONLY work on these EVERY DAY. We ARE the dealer". I still made sure he knew I didn't want them to screw it up, and I checked it for damage when they brought the car around. Fortunately no problems. Hopefully I'll have those pads installed soon so I can worry ~less~ about it.
 
#47 ·
My early experience was very bad. I took the car to my local tire shop, told them to be careful and they shoved a floor jack under the car. When they lowered the car, they allowed the car to bounce and when it bottomed out, the fenders were crushed on the bottom edge.

I subsequently had a similar experience at a dealer. They said they would repair them. When I got the car back, the "repair" consisted of hammering out the curved sight line edge but the bottom of the fender was still deformed severly. I ended up getting it repaired correctly when the car was repainted.

I always use pucks to lift and for jack stands. The car is low enough that I am not comfortable leaving the pucks permanently installed. I keep them on the shelf unless I am going to need them and then carry mine along.

My car is ONLY lifted by my Chevy / Pontiac technician who is well versed in proper lifting techniques and has never caused an issue, by me for maintenance or my Jeff at his shop.

My car now shares with the Sky "plastic" fenders that will break rather than deform. As a result, like all Sky owners should be I am totally paranoid about lifting the car.:willy::willy::willy::willy:

Another reason that I do not leave the pucks installed in the tie down slots is that I frequently use the tie down slots to tie down the car. :thumbs::thumbs:

The biggest issue I have with my car is the "hard points" where the jack stands mate with the structure are far from hard. They are deformed almost 2 inches as a result of frequent and extended time on the stands. Something else to keep an eye on.:grouphug:
 
#48 ·
The biggest issue I have with my car is the "hard points" where the jack stands mate with the structure are far from hard. They are deformed almost 2 inches as a result of frequent and extended time on the stands. Something else to keep an eye on.:grouphug:
This. I think only 1 of mine is severely deformed, but I worry putting it up on stands now since it's not even.
 
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