Cons: May not work as well on surfaces that are not firm and solid.
The Bottom Line: This is great for basic car maintenance. If you have to do more than that, investing in a set of jacks would probably be more cost effective.
bloodline23's Full Review: Blitz 11903 Rhino Ramp 8000
I decided to do some car repairs to an old clunker I have in the garage (an old 93 BMW 325). The problem though was that the clearance for that car is about 6 inches, and unless I could get my hands on a shrink ray, I would need something to let me get under the car. I didn't feel comfortable jacking the front end up, so I decided to buy a set of ramps.
I went down to my local auto store and spoke with a sales person there while I was looking at these rhino ramps. They actually had two sizes, 8000 and 12000. The number represents the amount of total weight the ramps can hold, so the 8000 series can hold 4000 lbs on each ramp, and the 12000 can hold 6000 lbs on each ramp. My little BMW might weigh 4000 lbs total, so the rhino 8000 was more than sufficient. The salesperson said he used the same ramps with his car, a 90's crown victoria, which is a heavy car to say the least. The 12000 then is probably more for a truck or larger SUV. The ramps don't look like they can support that much weight, since they are plastic/ rubber, but after using them all weekend, I found no trouble using them with my car.
Using the ramps was pretty simple. There are rubber pieces at the front on each ramp that compress as the tire first hits the ramp. The result is that the ramps "stick" to the ground while you drive up. That works well if you are on a firm surface (driveway, street, etc.), but if you were in grass or gravel, I could see the ramps slipping. There is a lip at the end of the ramp to prevent you from going too far and running off the back of the ramp, but I could see going over that if you aren't paying attention. As with any automotive product, you should pay attention while using the ramps. To get up the ramp, I placed them about a foot past the tires and got a little of a rolling start to get up the ramps, then put the parking brake on once the wheels were set and placed some chock blocks behind the back tires. Alternatively, if your driveway has a lip on it (ours has a one inch or so drop right after the garage door), you can place the ramp after the lip and you won't need much space to get up the ramp. This works well if you need to get under the back of the car and don't need to close the garage.
Since the ramps are plastic, they are pretty light and easy to store. They may weigh 15 pounds or so each, and I just stand them up on the side wall of my garage when I don't need them. The footprint of the ramps when stored, if you store them upright, is about 2 square feet, and the ramps are probably three feet tall or so.
When using the ramps, you get an extra 8 inches or so of clearance. That was perfect for me, since with the car up on the ramps, I could see completely underneath the engine compartment and even slide down to about the middle of the car before things got a little tight. So for anyone planning on doing some basic maintenance on a small or mid-sized vehicle, this is a good, cheap addition to consider.
Although I didn't use my standard breakdown and verdict system, I would rate this product an A; it does exactly what it is supposed to do without trouble as long as you are in the right environment.
Features non-skid feet for safety 17-degree incline 8,000 pound capacity Great for low vehicles Features a stop barrier to keep tires from rolling off...More at Amazon
Features non-skid feet for safety 17-degree incline 8,000 pound capacity Great for low vehicles Features a stop barrier to keep tires from rolling off...More at Amazon Marketplace
Epinions.com periodically updates pricing and product information from third-party sources, so some information may be slightly out-of-date. You should confirm all information before relying on it.
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.