Pinch weld jack point protector
 

Has anyone used this pinch weld protector? I'm thinking about getting four for my new car, and am trying to figure out what the downsides are. I'd love to hear from anyone with first-hand experience with this product, or something like it.
I'm not looking for alternative solutions. I just want to know if someone has used something like this and what their experience has been like.

Interesting product. In my Focus ST days I had bolt on jacking rails which are designed to meet a similar need but solve it somewhat differently.

For these to work well they would need to rest fully on the frame past the pinch weld rail (i.e. the cutout in the middle would need to be tall enough to clear the pinch weld rail). Their 16.5mm seems too short for that (eyeballing the rail it looks closer to 20mm, and the cutout in the emergency jack is about 20mm as well). I have rubber pads for my jack stands that have a 17mm cutout and the rail crushes into the rubber a little.

I'm also a little skeptical of the two set screws holding it as there are a bunch of irregularities, bolt heads and undercoating crud that would interfere with holding these things onto the rail. Finally, this would make using the emergency jack quite hazardous, so I would keep an Allen key in the trunk to loosen the set screws and remove it for that.

Great insight, OE. Thank you.
My new car is supposed to show up in about a month, so I don't have one available to measure. Is someone out there willing to measure the pinch weld height on a ZN8/ZD8 and report back? It would be nice to have some concrete numbers.
I had also considered the pinch weld irregularities. I believe it comes with 3M VHB tape which, in conjunction with the set screws, I think would be safe. I would also put some Loctite on the set screws. But that is a major concern, especially on track.
I hadn't considered the emergency jack. Good thinking. I don't think I've ever needed to use an emergency jack, so I'm not too worried about it. I won't be carrying a spare, anyway.

I use some short ones that I picked up off Amazon. I wouldn't get the long ones you posted as it'll get in the way of aftermarket skirts.


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I would like something to take the pressure off the vertical pinch weld. I don't think those do that, as they don't look tall enough to transfer the force from the jack to the horizontal portion of the body on either side of the pinch weld.
I have no interest in putting side skirts on my car, so that's not really a concern for me.

I saw this kind recently and was wondering if they were worth picking up. Most of the ones for domestic cars seem to get bolted onto the car.

I'm personally not a big fan of how small of an area those are distributing load. Probably not a huge concern but that is my brain.

One thing I'd be cautious of is salt/moisture, etc building up behind or around it and causing rust. I'd say to definitely use something like Fluid Film on the pinch weld before installing. And even on the product.

This would apply even if you're not driving the car in winter or don't see salt. You don't want stuff getting stuck in and around that thing and trapping in dirt.

I actually didn't even know these existed in over 10 years of playing with cars. I might get some for my BRZ autox car. I use the front pinch weld points to jack up both the front and rear on one side to move the tires around a decent amount. I normally use wood and put it behind the pinch weld so I'm not making actual contact with it.

The ones you posted in the OP would be too short.

I use one similar to this with my car and used it on my previous car as well. It works well, just need to make sure it is sitting in the center of the jack pad so that you’re not jacking the car up with half the adapter hanging off the jack pad. No clearance issues so far, although I see how it could happen with large side skirts.

I have something very similar that I've bought for a Camaro at the time. They have magnets and are meant to be used during jacking only, and are meant to be removed afterwards. Anyway, I'll try them as well next time. One of my pinch welds is already slightly damaged from jacking at the track..

What i have is similar to this:
https://zl1addons.com/collections/ca...ch-weld-magpad

These still suffer from the same problem of putting the load on the pinch weld rail instead of on the chassis (due to a too short cutout), but the overall concept is good.

For track day wheel swaps I made a wooden puck with a deep enough cutout to rest on the chassis. A commercial rubber puck would also work. Obviously a little more hassle to use and not as sexy as a slick aluminum product (especially one anodized red), but I prefer correct loading of the car.

I used something similar to this on the Miata's. I'd be weary of something installed on the car for the reasons already mentioned.

I've never once had an issue arise from unprotected jacking on pinchwelds.