If you have enough jack stands.....what's wrong with the existing jack points that are denoted by the arrows located on the sill molding?

May be a tiny bit more cumbersome than lifting the entire front end/rear end but I've done it numerous times to rotate my tires without issue.

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I only have 2 jack stands.

 

Are you wanting to lift both ends at the same time (four wheels off the ground)?

Its much safer to use four floor jacks under the body lift points. Otherwise this Jeep is heavy and independently sprung. You will need a heavy duty and stable floor jack with a long reach to center the rear, the front is even heavier. Then any false move and there is a chance of rolling off the jacks..... :frown2:

I rotate using two jacks, lift one wheel via a jack under the control arm just enough to pull the tire, go to the next wheel and with a second jack, jack it up just enough to remove the wheel (via jack under lower control arm). Install the first wheel, lower, go to next wheel repeat. If you only have one jack, use a jack stand for the first wheel, or install the spare.

Or go to a shop and pay them $25-$50 to do it. On purchased tires, the shop usually rotates for free.

FYI, the OEM full size spare is full size only with respect to diameter and width. Its a narrower tire and steel wheel. Then there is no TPMS sensor in it.

 

FYI, the OEM full size spare is full size only with respect to diameter and width. Its a narrower tire and steel wheel. Then there is no TPMS sensor in it.

That's a very good point. I should have clarified that I was referring to a full size spare like I have. Which is simply an identical wheel/tire combo that I run on the Jeep normally.

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If you have a rear tow hitch you can Jack the rear using this, I am not sure if's an approved method but it's what I do many vehicles for rear brake jobs. The front is more complicated, the best option, unless you have a four-point lift, is to jack each side using the jacking points and sliding in an axle stand and doing the same on the other side. Unless you have a proper 4 point lift like professional shops I would not recommend trying to lift all four wheels off the ground with multiple jacks and axle stands. It's far safer to use your spare, it's going to take longer but it's by far the safer option.

I would also question if you really need to rotate your tires, usually, on a WK2 the front to rear wear is very even. The only time I do this is on vehicles with more extreme AT tires that can get noisy if you don't rotate them every 5-10k.

Where did you buy your tires? If you get them from Costco or places like Wheel Works they will perform tire rotations for free. With a four-point lift and air wrenches, they can do it 10 minutes compared to half a day trying to do it yourself on your driveway.

 

I would also question if you really need to rotate your tires, usually, on a WK2 the front to rear wear is very even. The only time I do this is on vehicles with more extreme AT tires that can get noisy if you don't rotate them every 5-10k.
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That would probably be true for most WK2 as they have the base QTI. But QTII is rear biased and rear tires tend to wear much faster than the fronts.

Shops that have lifts tend to use them for tire changes. But my tire specialty shop has used four HD jacks for decades to do tire work. Never had a problem. Its actually quicker and safer if they are set up for it. Similar to a race track pit stop. They don't have to drive the Jeep onto a rack, adjust it and then have it fall off (seen that happen). :smile2:

 

That is very true, I have multiple floor jacks, axle stands, and a level workshop but I doubt many forum members would have these facilities so they need to be careful. Even if you don't get hurt it's a PIA to lift a vehicle that drops off a jack once the wheel has been removed.

Unless you are a serious off-roader QT1 is all you need, it works well and requires no driver intervention....... and you don't need to rotate tires!

 

Unless you are a serious off-roader QT1 is all you need, it works well and requires no driver intervention....... and you don't need to rotate tires!

Off roaders and those of us that drive in snow/ice/mud and have to get to work under any conditions. Highly skilled drivers don't need AWD let alone any of this extra help. But its easier for us with low to average skill to get to where we need to go with less stress and drama. :smile2: Good for go but there is also that stoping thing :smile2:

You can't get QT1 in a Limited or above, no choice.

 

Whatever you do, do not jack the front end up by the crossmember brackets. When you look underneath for a spot to place a floor jack or to support the front end with jack stands, those two brackets look like a perfect spot fur such things. However, they will bend and cause a creaking sound as you drive. They are not too difficult or expensive to replace but the best thing is to not bend them in the first place.

I do a 4-tire rotation every 5,000 miles, whenever I do an oil change, and I learned the hard way early on about bending those brackets. The rim of my spare tire does not match the others so it does not get rotated in. I use the rearward cross pattern below on my GC. I do a 5-tire rotation on my Wrangler, which uses a slightly different pattern.

 

hmmm

 

Decent tires with plenty of tread depth is the way to go for these sort of conditions. I don't want to incur the wrath of Jeep owners but I have to say, Subarus are awesome for all-weather on-road driving, they are lighter than most offroad orientated SUVs so stop quicker. I just don't like the CVT drivetrain and not many US models offer the 6-speed stick shift option.

I like the predictability of the WK2 when conditions get bad, as long as you control your speed they will get you to your destination. They are also really strong, so even if you lose it, there is a high probability you are going to be able to walk away from most accidents.

 

Good snow tires are a given in any case, and entry requirement. The Subaru is light duty for this area, I've pulled the neighbor's out of snow banks several times over the years, and they had great tires and know how to drive, its just that the car's limits are easily reached here. They traded off when they found that head gasket replacements at 100,000 miles were considered routine maintenance... something like the V6's rocker arms :smile2: But that was four years ago, there have been model changes since.

 

sorry im a bit foggy on this...my 2017 gc trailhawk lists both quadra- drive ll and quadra- trac ll on it's original sticker...should I rotate tires or not??

 

if your tires are wearing unevenly between the front and rears you should rotate, if everything looks even I wouldn't bother unless you have aggressive AT tires such as KO2s, these get loud if you don't rotate them. Having significantly different front and rear or side to side tread depths is not good on any 4WD vehicle because the delta in the wheel diameters places extra load on the diffs and transfer case.

 

Jeep recommends rotating tires at every oil change or first sign of irregular wear whichever occurs first. Summer tires usually wear faster than others, so its important to rotate them too. Its a must for aggressive tires, basically to avoid cupping. Once a tire starts cupping, nothing you can do will stop the progression short of shaving the tread.

More importantly, the QT-II transfer case clutches are always working and uneven tire wear is hard on them. Some shops now think uneven tire wear is the prime reason that these cases fail earlier than expected. So its important to keep the tire wear even by rotating them.

As Bilko mentions, QT-I is an open diff transfer case and tire differences, within reason, have no affect on their life.

A Quadra Drive Jeep will also have a QT-II transfer case. Rotate the tires.

 

You need 2 approved lift points for each wheel. The first lift point for the Jack, and the second to slide in the jack stand to support the weight. So where are all 8 spots under the JGC?

Pinch weld versus lower control arm vs a location on a “frame rail”?

If you jack up at the approved spot, where do you slide in a jack stand if the jack is still holding up the vehicle and is already in the way?

Does a control arm forgive you for crushing up on it? Does it damage the bushing or bracket through which the control arm is bolted?

 

You can place the front axles stands where the suspension mounts to the subframe/frame rail but if you are using the regualy scissor jack that's in the spare wheel well you won't have enough lift to do this. At the rear you can axle stands on the tow hitch mounts, you do need higher than average axle stands for this to work. You can also place regular-sized axle stands under the lower suspension mounts below the rear hubs. this works fine as long as your a 100% sure the vehicle will not move whilst lifted.

As per my previous post, unless you are working on a level and solid floor and know what you are doing, and have the correct tools, a full 4 wheel lift is not a very safe option.

That said if I do quick tire rotation I use four floor jacks on the regular jacking points and don't bother with Axles stands but most home mechanics are not likely to have four floor jacks.

If you don't have this equipment just go to your local tire shop and pay the $50 to get it done.

 

Discount Tire/American Tire will rotate your tires for free, even if you didn't buy the tires from the. I've been going there for years plus I'm getting to old/lazy to do myself. Cheers!

 

I just found this out myself last week when I was feeling too lazy to tackle it myself, and my local tire shop was too busy. They even have a nifty text-when-ready system sorta like a pizza delivery tracker.

The location I was at was also within walking distance to a breakfast place, so I was able to pop in and grab a coffee while I waited. It took them maybe 20 minutes from start to finish.

In fact, the process was so convenient, it makes me want to at least consider them for getting my tires there in the future. But I guess that's exactly why they offer the service in the first place.

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Only a coffee? I would have gone all-in with the money I had saved on the rotation:grin2:

 

Service manual includes this:

When properly positioned, a floor jack can be used to lift the vehicle and support the raised vehicle with jack stands .

A floor jack or any lifting device, must never be used on any part of the underbody other then the described areas.

CAUTION:
Do not attempt to lift a vehicle with a floor jack positioned under:

•Aluminum differential.
•A body side sill.
•A steering linkage component.
•A drive shaft.
•The engine or transmission oil pan.
•The fuel tank.

 

This is not an approved method but many offroaders use Hi-Lift jacks on the front factory recovery hooks mainly because they don't have enough reach to work with the recommended jacking points. Even if you can get them aligned on the lift points there is a high probability you are going to dink your doors with the jack. Hi-Lifts are also good for jacking up the rear using the 2" receiver. Hi-Lifts may be old but they are still the go-to jack for off-roaders because they work in virtually any conditions and you can also rig them up as winch. If you get one buy the original, there are many knock-off options but it's questionable if you can count on them when you really need them.

https://www.harborfreight.com/steel-floor-jack-cross-beam-64051.html?_br_psugg_q=jack+beam

These also work well if you want to jack up so you can get both front or rear wheels of the ground. They are only safe if you jack up the front or rear where the opposite end of the vehicle has both wheels on the ground. if you use two to try and perform a four-wheel lift your vehicle is going to fall off the jacks.

People also use these to lift one side of the vehicle by using rock rails, do not attempt this unless you have strong rock rails.

 

Using a high lift jack on a rear centered receiver is not safe as it is highly likely that the back end will shift and the back end will crash down to one side or the other. However, I have seen that technique used successfully to free a rear diff hung up on a rock. Helpers stabilize the vehicle as it is being jacked up then push the back of the vehicle to the desired side to clear the offending rock. (Whether trying this with help, or alone, keep in mind that one heavy hunk of steel jack and handle is going to be spitting out in an orbit unknown!)

 

This is one of those jobs that is not worth performing yourself unless you have a well equipped home workshop. Just pay a few dollars and get it done at a tire shop.

Also check where you bought the tires from, if it was somewhere like Costco or Wheelworks they will do it for free. They just want to get you in their stores for upsell opportunities and to ensure you buy your next set of tires from them

 

2.5 year old thread, guys.

 

Hee hee. I just read through it and saw the post from the guy insisting we really need to know 8 jacking points; 2 for each corner, where one is for jacking up and the other for the resting back down on the jack stand.

Brilliant post I thought and then realized it was me from 2 years ago.
😁

 

In spite of the notice on the bottom of the page, posting something relevant in an old technical thread instead of creating a new one is encouraged here. The forum owners are more social focussed and the page bottom notice is part of their template and we can't change it.... so we ignore it.

Sometimes old technical threads need updates or corrections based on better current data. After finding a relevant thread, on a technical forum it is better to avoid creating new thread clutter by adding onto an existing thread. This provides some context and background info that could be useful, and one spot for most info is easier to find. There are many other benefits for consolidating posts/threads, reduces the clutter. But then I'm speaking from an engineering background.

There are always threads that should stay dead, however.