How to Lift a C8 Corvette with a QuickJack or Floor Jacks

C8 Corvette is best lifted with a QuickJack, but the right traditional jacks and jack stands can work.

Lifting a C8 Chevrolet Corvette off of the ground isn’t as easy as lifting your average car. The C8 is very low to the ground and with the various underbody panels in place to improve aerodynamics. There are only certain points where you can safely set a jack or jack stand. This leaves some owners wondering what type of jack is best for do-it-yourself projects and “GetOutOJail” is one of them.

He recently asked the community for input on what kind of jack to use with his brand new C8 Corvette. He wants to make sure that he has the right jack for the job. The lifting instructions have him unsure of what to buy. To get the best input possible, he turned to the CorvetteForum community to see what types of lift systems other owners have used.

How to Lift a C8 Corvette

When the OP first shared his question with the community, he provided the following information.

“Hey guys, got my garage Reno done for the C8 with a new MotoFloor (cheap Racedeck from Costco) and a tire rack for my summer wheels/tires. I plan to switch those out myself instead of paying the dealership to do it. I don’t want to get a full garage lift but would like a really nice rolling jack, preferably one that I could use inside the garage but if not, one to use on the concrete pad. I’ve seen from videos that the c8 has what looks to be jacking holes rather than jacking plates/bars like I’m used to from when I worked on cars in my teens and 20s. Do I need a special jack for the C8 and those jacking holes?? And what suggestions can you give me for brand/style/model of jack? Thanks guys!!!!!!”

QuickJack is the Popular Option

The first person to reply was “Dominic Sorresso”, who suggested the QuickJack system.

Have u thought of Quickjacks? Great compromise between jackstands and a full lift. And they fit under the car.

“Tool Hoarder” also suggested QuickJacks.

Get a quick jack… there’s no good place to jack from the front and rear anymore to put the car on jackstands easily.

As did forum moderator “Bill Curlee”.

Get the quick Jack and don’t look back Yes they have a very good locking system. Go to their web site and they have lots of vids on how they work The C8 has a serious weight distribution difference than ALL the other C1-C7 cars. You need to set the car further back on the LIFT than you would for the other C Cars. There have been several cars that have fallen off the lift cause the heavily weighted rear.

For those who aren’t familiar with the QuickJack system, it is essentially a small, mobile system that works similar to a shop lift. You place it under each side of the car and the two pieces work in conjunction to lift the Corvette off of the floor evenly. These have become a popular choice for many gearheads, but they are considerably more expensive than your average floor jack and jack stands.

Traditional Floor Jack Information

Many others provided details on their preferred floor jacks. Along with explaining which jacks they use, these members discussed how they safely lifted their cars with the floor jack and where they located the jack stands. Others explained how to modify the car to make lifting easier and safer, but “JerryU” provided the most thorough explanation.

Not only did he show off what he uses to lift his Corvette, but he also provided some graphics showing the downsides to certain floor jacks. In fact, with the exception of the QuickJack picture and the stock GM photo of the C8 at the top of this piece, all of the images shown here are from his post. While his information doesn’t pertain strictly to the C8, it still applies to the newest Stingray.

I think Harbor Freight jacks are fine. I have 4! My first is large and bought it when I built my street rod ~20 years ago. Have the other 3 because one has too short a Lift Arm. Regardless of which brand you buy don’t buy one with a short arm because it has to move into the car quite a bit or the saddle will slip off the jack pad!

These pics will help explain.

Note: found the issue with my long reach jack was it weighted 95lbs and wasn’t also not moving in! I welded a steel band onto the very flat saddle!

Frankly I’d buy two jacks with ~15 inch Lift Arms.

I always use jack stands. With the C8 where the cross members are not accessible because they are covered by bottom aero panels I’d keep the jack under tension and put a jack stand under the suspension “A” arm.

I use stanchions on one end if I need to have the car level, like when changing oil (not needed on the C8 as only one drain plug on the front.) I made these wood ones for ~$10 and they are light. Have fiberglass ones that are 12 inches high I used when building my street rod. But have to use a two step jack approach to get the car that high. Was fine when spending several months under my street rod BUT not for working on the Vette! I’d never use jack stands on both ends of the car.

If you have input on the best floor jack to use to lift a car as low as a C8 Corvette, or if you have questions for those with experience in lifting low-slung sports cars, click here to participate in the thread.

C8 Corvette Images Courtesy of GM Media
QuickJack Images Courtesy of the Company Website
Lifting Graphics Courtesy of JerryU

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