×
BigJimnyMeet (North) 2024 (12 Jan 2024)


BigJimnyMeet 2024

14th July 2024
Parkwood Nr. Leeds

Booking now open - EARLY BIRD DISCOUNTED PRICE

Click HERE for details

× A place for more technical discussions. Please make sure you post in the correct section on the site, this way it keeps the site tidy AND ensures you get a more relevant answer.

Request for advice: Lifting a Jimny Body

More
02 Oct 2021 18:20 #239086 by JAGtheman
After 2 days with a needle gun and the Jimny on a lift, the underside looks great and is ready for rustproofing.... with only 1 small hiccup. The needle gun punched holes in 4 perfectly good looking body mounts much to my horror.

I have found a vehicle repair man willing to fix this in his workshop by lifting the body off the chassis by around 2-3cm and the rebuilding/strengthening the body mounts. He has done this before and seems happy to do this.. I have searched for information on how to do this but all I find are articles on body lift kits that gloss over the body seperation and lifting part.

So I turn to the forum with a request for any advice on this task you can offer?

I have some questions too:
  • After releasing the bolts that hold the body to the chassis (!) how do I lift the body?
  • I assume the holding bolts will be destroyed in the process, but will I be able to use the rubber mounts, washers and metal sleeve?.... (to say these parts are expensive is the understatement of the year)
  • Is there any other component likely to be destroyed during the seperation process?
Any advice would be appreciated. I will get the Jimny his clear MoT, but for the first time in this adventure, this boy is worried...

Thanks as always

Julian

 

Julian
2008 Gen 3 Manual
Being completely revitalised

Please Log in or Create an account to join the conversation.

  • Lambert
  • Lambert's Avatar
  • Offline
  • Moderator
  • Moderator
    Registered
  • The quickest Jimny in Harrogate...(that I own)
More
02 Oct 2021 20:11 #239091 by Lambert
If it's a garage with a 2 post lift then just undo the nuts on the body mounts and it should just edge up with the lift pads underneath the actual sills. The body bolts are captive in the body and should not be damaged by lifting the body up. Just don't forget to go round before you lift and check thoroughly that everything that bridges between the chassis and body is either undone or has enough free length to not be damaged, so wires, brake pipes, cooling hoses, vacuum lines, gearbox linkages, steering shaft etc etc.

Temeraire (2018 quasar grey automatic)
One of the last 200ish of the gen3s, probably.
ADOS Attention Deficit Ooooh Shiny!

Please Log in or Create an account to join the conversation.

More
03 Oct 2021 01:02 #239097 by JAGtheman
So does this mean the vehicle remains with wheels on ground and you lift the body with the 4 arms of the 2 post lift? (his lift has 2 vertical posts each with 2 arms on which the vehicle rests - so 4 points of contact) I did not think you could raise or lower a lift so precisely.

After removing around 2kg of rust scale I expect the simple task of undoing the nuts on the body mounts bolts to be a not so simple task. I will first wire brush then apply copious amounts of WD40 (which I have learnt is the UKs wonder fluid!) during the week preceeding this (booked in 13 October) and hopefully they come loose!

Thanks for the information!

Julian
2008 Gen 3 Manual
Being completely revitalised

Please Log in or Create an account to join the conversation.

  • Lambert
  • Lambert's Avatar
  • Offline
  • Moderator
  • Moderator
    Registered
  • The quickest Jimny in Harrogate...(that I own)
More
03 Oct 2021 13:15 #239105 by Lambert
Yes the chassis remains on the ground on its wheels. 2 post lifts are actually capable of fairly delicate operation if the operator is familiar enough with the machine.

Temeraire (2018 quasar grey automatic)
One of the last 200ish of the gen3s, probably.
ADOS Attention Deficit Ooooh Shiny!

Please Log in or Create an account to join the conversation.

More
13 Oct 2021 19:52 - 13 Oct 2021 20:05 #239386 by JAGtheman
Day in the workshop complete and successful.

This is the process I have followed and it worked for me:
About 4 days ago I wirebrushed the body mounts. Heavily rusted. Then I covered the bolts with Hammerite rust dissolving gel for 4 days. Night before trip to workshop, I sprayed all bolts that I thought I would need to remove with WD40. Took her to the workshop and removed front, back bumpers, side panel below door, both headlights and both taillights. The headlights were the surprise, more rust... Same with rear door, lower hinge. Loosened brake line attached to body. Did not loosen anything else.

Lifted vehicle to eye level using the chassis as support, removed wheels, and was able to loosen (not undo) the body mount bolts surprisingly easy. No issues at all, the prep work well worth it. Same with bumpers etc, no problems with seized bolts. Inspected underside to check that nothing else should be loosened or released. Carefully lowered the vehicle onto 4 axle stands supporting the vehicle on the axles.  Now undid the body mount bolts. 

Very carefully placed the 4 lifting pads under the body sill and gently lifted the body about 2cm at a time. With gentle prising using a small crowbar, the mounts all seperated from the body and we could lift the body up around 4 cm. Checked everywhere and everything was OK including steering column.

The whole process, using 1 experienced operater and me as helper, took 2 hours from start to finish.

The body mount bolts are in good shape, and will look like new after a derusting excercise. The rubber body mounts are in excellent condition. After cleaning and wiping with a rubber rejuvinator they look 100%. Same with the dish shaped washers and the metal sleeves. But the washers recessed into the rubber body mounts are another story entirely. Completely destroyed by rust. Totally. Here I must either get new washers or fabricate some as one set of washers seem to be approx 3mm thick? This needs investigating as I have none of these washers in any form that I can work out what they look like.

Whilst the body man did his thing, I attacked the exposed rear with the needle gun and generated a few large holes, so in the end the list of repairs got longer. By end of the day the first steel body mount had been remanufactured using thicker steel than the originl and with drain holes near the chassis, and the parts cut, bent and prepared for the body section under the front left headlight. The rest of the mounts and repairs will follow.

By then it was time to call it quits and I leave the vehicle in his capable hands for 2 weeks whilst I go home to Munich.

Point is, with the right person this exercise is doable, The key elements I take from my excercise:
Prepare the nuts and bolts with derusting agent and penetrating oil well in advance
Only use a lift that can be very finely controlled
A needle gun is IMO essential to exposing the rustspots and clearing the rust scale
The repair man must be experienced in body repairs, metal work and welding.

(I post this as I was unable to find this information before I did this. I am sure many newbies face this problem too, and like me just want to kill the rust at the body mounts and the body, and are not wanting to do body lifts. I hope this proves useful to someone.... I will add anything of relevance as I proceed, as the task is a long way from being finished..)

Julian
2008 Gen 3 Manual
Being completely revitalised
Last edit: 13 Oct 2021 20:05 by JAGtheman.
The following user(s) said Thank You: Lambert, lookonimages

Please Log in or Create an account to join the conversation.

More
05 Nov 2021 20:37 #239891 by JAGtheman
Quick update: I had the vehicle delivered to me after returning from my home in Munich (quarantine, which after coming from Germany I think was to protect me from what is outside not the other way around). All rust gone, body mounts either rebuilt or strengthened, underside of vehicle painted with Rustoleum 123 then Rustoleum epoxy paint. Chassis cavities filled with some sort of rust preventative sealant that the guy sprayed inside. The finish is great and I actually paid the young man more than he asked. He runs his own one man show body shop and is an enthusiastic body metal worker. I would be happy to recommend him to anyone wanting to fix a rusting Jimny. Money very well spent.

Looking back the biggest surprise by far was behind the headlights. The extent of rust damage was only visible on removing the headlights. Second big surprise was how easy it was to seperate body from chassis. Pilots mantra.. proper preperation prevents poor performance..

Now to deal with the engine management light. Oi...

Julian
2008 Gen 3 Manual
Being completely revitalised
The following user(s) said Thank You: lookonimages

Please Log in or Create an account to join the conversation.

  • Major Malfunction
  • Visitor
  • Visitor
    Public
20 Dec 2021 13:51 #240721 by Major Malfunction
Replied by Major Malfunction on topic Request for advice: Lifting a Jimny Body
Thanks for detailing this Julian. I’m in a similar situation (except without the luxury of a 2-post lift!). I need to raise the body slightly to access some awkward rust patches.

So far I’ve removed all 8 body mount nuts, removed the fuel tank, dropped the transfer case (needed taking out anyway), and I’m about to loosen the brake pipes.

Is there anything else you’d recommend? I.e. coolant pipes or steering columns? I’m paranoid I’ve forgotten something!

Please Log in or Create an account to join the conversation.

More
23 Dec 2021 17:21 #240760 by JAGtheman
Glad to share, but even though I am a grey haired engineer, I was lead by my young body shop mechanic who was brilliant. He did the fiddly bits but a few pointers. Steering column yes we loosened it and greased any part that looked like it could slide. We did not loosen any pipes or hoses... BUT... we were mega mega cautious when lifting the body. Literally a few cm at a time and we both went all over the vehicle looking for anything we had forgotten.

Before we started this we had stripped off the front and rear bumpers, the side chassis strips under the doors, and all the wheel arch plastic inserts.

I believe the use of the 2 post lift was a very important element in our success. We could evenly distribute forces to the vehicle body and gently (!) apply some serious lifting force.

I have spent 6 months of weekends bringing the Jimny up to like new and would gladly share anything I have learnt!!!

Julian
2008 Gen 3 Manual
Being completely revitalised

Please Log in or Create an account to join the conversation.

More
23 Dec 2021 20:08 #240761 by JAGtheman
Just a follow up on my earlier post - Maybe my young mechanic loosened pipes or hoses without me seeing, I just dont recall him doing it, but the lift we used was such we could raise the body in steps of 1 -2 cm at a time. I was honestly paranoid something would break, but it was so well done that all worked fine.

I have seen quite a few places in the UK where you can hire a lift at reasonable prices - the key being a lift that can move in small increments and does not move up before lowering as that will seriously break something. I am working on a budget with this renovation, but I have never regretted the money spent on being able to lift the vehicle in a controlled fashion. Maybe I just dont know how to use jacks, stands and wheel ramps properly!

Julian
2008 Gen 3 Manual
Being completely revitalised

Please Log in or Create an account to join the conversation.

  • Major Malfunction
  • Visitor
  • Visitor
    Public
04 Jan 2022 13:56 #240899 by Major Malfunction
Replied by Major Malfunction on topic Request for advice: Lifting a Jimny Body
Thanks again for the advice! I’ve managed to remove all 8 body mount nuts, a quick test with the jack revealed movement!

Sorry for more questions…Did you do anything with the handbrake cables? Also how high do you jack the body from the chassis in the end?

Please Log in or Create an account to join the conversation.

More
07 Jan 2022 21:02 #240965 by JAGtheman
Apologies for the late reply, I have only just seen your question. re the handbrake to be honest I dont recall us touching that at all. As for amount of lift it was around 4cm.

Please add your comments and experiences to this post ..... the more information we can put in here the better!

I return to the UK in a few days and face my first MOT... should be fun!!

Julian
2008 Gen 3 Manual
Being completely revitalised

Please Log in or Create an account to join the conversation.

More
10 Feb 2022 22:36 #241780 by Me and my Jimny
Hi major, I don't remember having to do anything with the handbrake when I did mine. I think everything has been mentioned in here already.

If you have to do it with Jack's I would recommend getting a few and trying to lift it quite level. Doing front then back for my body lift I found it got misaligned much easier than it was for me to realign it

Please Log in or Create an account to join the conversation.

Time to create page: 0.161 seconds
Powered by Kunena Forum

I hope you enjoy using this forum. Please consider making a donation towards the upkeep of this forum website.

We use cookies to give you the best online experience. Please let us know if you agree to all of these cookies. Accepting the Cookies also accepts the Disclaimers for the website.