For the left front you can jack it up under the pumpkin on the right front just jack it up as far out on the axle tube as you can.

If you put jack stands under it they will be on the axle tubes, you won't hurt anything.

 

Yea, all solid axle vehicles Ive owned Ive jacked by the axle tube. Wont hurt anything, I just put a thick towel over the jack so you dont nick the surface.

 

I would jack under the axle tubes and place them on jack stands. I would NOT use the pumpkin as a jack point

 

Thanks for the replies!



So you're saying that jacking up the rear by the pumpkin is a bad idea for these trucks? I've always jacked up my solid rear cars and my old Ford Ranger by the pumpkin with no problem. Was just easier to do that and slip two jackstands under the axle tubes real quick to get the whole rear end in the air rather than do each corner independently. Not saying it is right, just would like to know why it would be an issue.

 

With my large floor jack, i have a teflon pad that i put onto the lifting point

If you look closely at the rear axle, you will see where the assembly plant rested the complete frame & suspension for its travel during assembly

look closely at 2 minutes 20 seconds into this video, you can see the rear differential is held up by 2 stands under the rear axle tubes
my axle has the paint rubbed off where they were

www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Qe7eCPwoHs

 

I just go to Discount Tire for my rotations

I don't trust the dealerships because they don't even know how to work the Hunter Road Force Balance Machine
They are clumsy & tear off the glued on weights & then say, it was like that when you brought it in

 

Here is the best answer I can find about jacking up a vehicle by the pumpkin and it correctly states that owners manuals are thinking about the vehicle jack not a proper floor jack when lifting the vehicle.

Pretty much it is OK to lift the vehicle by the pumpkin.

https://www.abqjournal.com/389856/rear-diff-fine-to-use-for-jacking-up-pickup.html

DEAR TOM AND RAY: My Ford F-150 owner’s manual points out that there are certain “jack points” for the front and rear axles. I had a puncture in the sidewall of a rear tire, so the tire needed to be replaced. The local tire dealer jacked up the rear of the truck by the pumpkin – the rear differential. I pointed out that the owner’s manual says not to jack the vehicle by the rear differential. The dealer said they “do it all the time, and it does not make any difference.” Please clarify for me. I would think that Ford’s recommendation is more valid, but what is the reason? Thanks. – Mike

TOM: My guess is that Ford’s advice is geared toward you, Mike, the owner of the vehicle. And it assumes you’ll be using the jack that came with the truck to change a tire.


RAY: That jack is small, and really is for emergency use only. It’s designed to lift up only one corner of the vehicle, because that’s all it needs to do to allow you to swap out a tire.


TOM: So Ford, and every other manufacturer, creates jack points near each of the wheels. Those are reinforced spots that can handle the full weight of that corner of the car when you raise it up in the air.


RAY: They don’t want you to jack up the car using some other point that’s not reinforced, because if your improvised jack point fails and the top of the jack punctures the vehicle, the truck could come down on top of you. And that’s no fun.


TOM: But if you have a hydraulic floor jack that’s capable of lifting the whole truck, then there are other points you can use, if you know what you’re doing.


RAY: This dealer did know what he was doing. The “pumpkin” (the rear differential that looks kind of like a pumpkin, that sits in the middle of the rear axle) is designed to carry the full weight of the truck when the truck is on the ground. If it couldn’t, the axle tube would break. So we know it can carry the weight of the truck when it’s in the air, too.


TOM: And, in fact, that pumpkin and axle are designed to carry much more than just the weight of the truck. Since you have a pickup, chances are you’re also going to be doing what? Picking stuff up with it!


RAY: So with a proper jack, the pumpkin is a perfectly acceptable jack point. We do it all the time, too.

 

Just to clarify this is for a solid axle vehicle not an independent suspension vehicle that has its rear axles connected to the pumpkin via universal joints and CV joints.

You do not want to jack up an independent suspension vehicle via its axles as you will likely damage them. Nor would I jack up an independent suspension vehicle by the pumpkin, your jack stand points will be somewhere on the vehicle frame of an independent suspension vehicle.

We have solid axles so we are fine.

 

Frame or control arm (under the knuckle) for IFS

 

Correct. There is nothing wrong with using the pumpkin as a jacking point, just be careful you dont get the lip of the cover. Having a rubber jack pad really helps on solid axles for jacking.