Safely Jacking and Supporting Your BRZ/FR-S

[SuperTom]

I bet handbrakes hate living there

[Moue]

Originally Posted by Overdrive

Just keep in mind that the sicssor jack the car comes with is intended for emergency use (meaning infrequently, unless you're just the most unlucky guy on the road), not to get the car lifted to accomplish regular maintenance on a regular basis.

Is there a reason it can't be used on a regular basis?

[SuperTom]

Originally Posted by Moue

Is there a reason it can't be used on a regular basis?

Those scizzor jacks are not very sturdy can tip over if not on a perfectly flat surface. Don't ask how I know

[jubella2]

In my opinion it can be used regularly as long as you are careful. I haven't built blocks yet so I use the scissor jack to lift the car up a bit until I can fit my regular jack under, but only in my level garage. The handle hole is starting to oval but other than that it seems fine.

[Overdrive]

Originally Posted by Moue

Is there a reason it can't be used on a regular basis?

By design, as it's an emergency item. The device isn't meant to be used other than for the emergency tire changes you may need to get done to get you back on the road. The engineers don't expect you to need to change a flat tire ten times a year. You're really only going to get so many safe uses from it, and after that it's going to be a dice roll until the assembly fails. Granted, you're not keeping the vehicle constantly supported by the jack while you're working on it, but to get the vehicle up on stands you're using it anywhere from 2 to 4 times to get the corners up to get stands under them. I'm pretty sure the owner's manual even warns against using it for regular maintenance.

[Overdrive]

Originally Posted by jubella2

In my opinion it can be used regularly as long as you are careful. I haven't built blocks yet so I use the scissor jack to lift the car up a bit until I can fit my regular jack under, but only in my level garage. The handle hole is starting to oval but other than that it seems fine.

Well, you're not really putting it to full blown use in that case since you're just using it to raise the car up a bit to fit your legit jack for the real work. The way I see it, you want that thing to be usable when you're in a bind on the side of the road, not worn out and sketchy.

[JeremyR]

Originally Posted by 86Toyobaru

Safety is top one priority when I work under car. Big brand name (better quality control) and good design jackstands is all I want. I use BAL for my main jackstands. Take a look its pin design. Its more secured when you lift up jackstands. And a rubber pad on the top is for pinch welds like our car but its sell separately. For ratchet handle type jackstands, I use them as backup one. So I always have 8 jackstands to support car when I go under it. Plus floor jack and OEM jack.

Thanks for sharing this! I was able to find the BAL jackstands and pads on amazon japan and purchased them

They work great, and the pinchweld rubber pad is a fantastic deisgn!

Search "Bal 920" for the stands, and "Bal 1350" for the pads.

[LudwigMiles]

I think only a few people in this entire thread addressed the pinch weld issue correctly.

Like one person said, the car should not be supported on the pinch weld at all.
Look at the factory jack, the pinch weld fully seats into the slot, and the weight of the car is on the SIDES of the pinch weld.

The cars are still new, but eventually, your pinch weld will rust, and bend, and collapse.

I see a lot of people have bought "adapters" or V-shaped jack stands, but they are not deep enough to clear the entire pinch weld.
Same goes with a slotted puck. If the pinch weld hits the bottom of the slot, it is not doing anything.
At that rate, it's no different than putting the pinch weld on a flat surface. The puck cut away needs to fully clear the weld so ZERO weight is on the weld seam.

Has anyone confirmed which slotted puck is deeper than the entire weld, so the weight rests on the body alongside the weld, and not the weld itself?
Does anyone place the jack stand elsewhere?

[ApexEight]

You'll be fine if you place the jackstand in the reinforced area of the pinch weld. Never place underneath the pinch weld of the front fender, that's an easy way to bend that section. If you look along the pinch weld toward the front, you'll see a section that is a little thicker. It has a circular thing above it. Center the slope of the jackstand there and raise it to where it's as close as possible and lower the car gently.

[LudwigMiles]

Originally Posted by ApexEight

You'll be fine if you place the jackstand in the reinforced area of the pinch weld. Never place underneath the pinch weld of the front fender, that's an easy way to bend that section. If you look along the pinch weld toward the front, you'll see a section that is a little thicker. It has a circular thing above it. Center the slope of the jackstand there and raise it to where it's as close as possible and lower the car gently.

I inspected the pinch weld that is behind the front wheel. I noticed the inside has a raised area, while the outside does not. The outside is about 3/4" deep, while the inside is about 1/2" deep. Is that what you're referring to?

If I got a puck with a slot, since the inner and outer depths are different, all the weight would rest on the inside part of the pinch seam. So, all I really need is a slot that is 1/2" deep, since the puck will not be touching the outer part of the seam.

Does that make sense?

[Lakitu]

Can four 2-ton jacks really give out under a 1.4 ton object on flat ground?

[strat61caster]

Originally Posted by Lakitu

Can four 2-ton jacks really give out under a 1.4 ton object on flat ground?

Jacks or jack stands?

Jack stands; only if they are worn out, poorly made, or if the jacks aren't sitting right (i.e. the car is cockeyed on some angle and the jack is not sitting on it's feet properly, certainly possible with how you jack it up), visual inspection for cracks or rust that compromises strength on a regular basis is a must and it's simple to give them a once over before you start using them.

Jacks are typically hydraulic or mechanically activated, those mechanisms can fail much more easily than a chunk of simple metal that is a jack stand. But I presume you just meant jack stands.

[chad1376]

I just thought I'd post this here. I threw this together with some scrap steel I had laying around, and an extra socket (sized to fit the jack). Yes, my welds are ugly, but this makes it a lot easier to line up the jack to the pinch welds.

[Andrew025]

Originally Posted by chad1376

I just thought I'd post this here. I threw this together with some scrap steel I had laying around, and an extra socket (sized to fit the jack). Yes, my welds are ugly, but this makes it a lot easier to line up the jack to the pinch welds.

This might be a silly question... but if the pinch weld is still making full contact with the jack, what's the purpose of this?