Tire jack mounted on hood?!

[Mccorm67]

Full disclosure this could totally be a thing, but today someone was describing their son’s 2 door wrangler and said the tire jack was mounted on the hood, up towards the windshield. Is this a mod, or were some models not equipped to allow the jack to be stored away in the back? Just curious

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[Dyolfknip74]

Full disclosure this could totally be a thing, but today someone was describing their son’s 2 door wrangler and said the tire jack was mounted on the hood, up towards the windshield. Is this a mod, or were some models not equipped to allow the jack to be stored away in the back? Just curious

It's a Hi Lift jack or farm jack. It's a mod. Jeeps come with a scissor jack.

 

[Mccorm67]

Ahh clearly I don’t know jack about jacks what’s the benefit of a hi-jack vs scissor? Am I making myself sound more stupid?!

 

[DaltonGang]

Most people you see doing that, do it for show. I understand if you are a serious "Offroad Enthusiast" , but I see the majority of Hi-Lift Jacks, Extra Gas Cans, Flood Lights, Large Tires, and Winches, on Mall Crawlers.

 

[roaniecowpony]

Hi-Lift Hood Mount for 07-22 Jeep Wrangler JL, JK & Gladiator JT | Quadratec

I saw one yesterday up close. It's not for me.

 

[AcesandEights]

They (Hi-Lift) have little utility for most people and the scissor jack is much more usable. It's for show in most cases. If you've used one more than once or twice you're in a very small minority. If you're like me and have used one more than once or twice, you probably realize there are almost always better options for changing a tire.

 

[Dyolfknip74]

Ahh clearly I don’t know jack about jacks what’s the benefit of a hi-jack vs scissor? Am I making myself sound more stupid?!

A hi lift can be the best and worst decision of a person's life. Lol. They're great. They lift. They spread. You can winch with them. They can also kill you when weight is applied.
Most jeep guys just like to watch theirs rust mounted externally.

 

[roaniecowpony]

When I do 2 tracks in my truck, I bring an aluminum floor jack.

 

[cbh]

They (Hi-Lift) have little utility for most people and the scissor jack is much more usable. It's for show in most cases. If you've used one more than once or twice you're in a very small minority. If you're like me and have used one more than once or twice, you probably realize there are almost always better options for changing a tire.

A hi lift can be the best and worst decision of a person's life. Lol. They're great. They lift. They spread. You can winch with them. They can also kill you when weight is applied.
Most jeep guys just like to watch theirs rust mounted externally.

Whenever I see a Hi-Lift Jack mounted on the hood of a Jeep I always wonder, “will it stay secured in a collision or a rollover?” I can’t help it -- too many years working in Safety. I even added a safety strap to my role bar-mounted fire extinguisher when I “imagined" it going airborne in a collision.

 

[Retrograde]

Ahh clearly I don’t know jack about jacks what’s the benefit of a hi-jack vs scissor? Am I making myself sound more stupid?!

No one packs a jack as monstrously heavy as this on a Jeep to simply change tires. It's purpose is to serve as a winch in the absence of a bumper mounted electric winch. Back in the day, when electric winches were expensive AF, it was common to see a Hi-Lift jack deployed in this manner.

Nowadays, with the prevalence of cheap Chinese electric winches, to see a Hi-Lift actually used as a winch is pretty rare. So when you see a shiny new Hi-Lift bolted to someone's Jeep in a conspicuous manner, it serves as a pretty reliable indicator that you're dealing with a back country poseur.

For a historical perspective, How to winch with a Hi Lift:

 

[Whiskey 13]

Have my Hi-Lift Mounted inside on my roll cage along with shovel and axe plus a fire extinguisher and first aid kit. Still a very useful tool for many applications, changing tires not so much.

 

[The Last Cowboy]

Useless with plastic bumpers. Most people who have them have no idea how to use it. They are great for barbed wire fence work. Hood mount is just silly looking.

 

[NewJLU2019]

I have not had to use yet but I know these stands with the Factory scissor jack works. I use it at home some.

 

[Reinen]

Ahh clearly I don’t know jack about jacks what’s the benefit of a hi-jack vs scissor? Am I making myself sound more stupid?!

Hi-Lift jacks are much more versatile and as their name implies, can lift much higher than a scissor jack. They can lift, separate, and pull. Their downside is that they require a lot of attention while being used as they are very unforgiving when used incorrectly. You would not use a Hi-Lift jack if nearly any other type of jack can be used. But out in the wilderness, often it's only a Hi-Lift jack that will get the job done. They're not just for changing tires.

I carry a Hi-Lift jack for the versatility. I'm often in self-recovery only areas. Nobody around, no cell service, no roadside assistance. Only expensive specialty towing, often with several days wait. It could easily be an indispensable tool for getting you out of trouble.

 

[AcesandEights]

I agree they can be used for self-recovery, but I don't know anyone that actually carries the rest of the required equipment to do so. They can winch a very short distance before needing to be reset (meaning the chain/cable slack taken up). I say chain because most people carry recovery straps that have some stretch, which again makes the Hi-Lift almost worthless in a self-recovery situation. They can be used for self-recovery, but only if you run cable or chain, or a recovery strap that has little or no stretch...and all of those in lengths that will allow you to reach a recovery point (tree/rock). They also have a max (meaning it's even lower at the upper portion of the jack) rated load/winching load capacity of 4660/5,000 lbs. (respectively), which is too low to be used safely with most of our Jeeps.

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