2008 Roadster - bent wheel repair / jack up car

[sujitdmello]

The front-right on my roadster has a bent wheel as per a report from the last service I did with Tesla in Springfield, NJ. I have located a service that can take the wheel and straighten it but don't know how to jack up the front right so I can get the wheel off. I've read various posts about the special adapter required to jack up the car but would appreciate any insight into doing this without any special equipment (other than a standard car jack). Or is this as big a deal as I've read?

(I acquired the car last year so apologize for the newbie question)

Regards

Sujit

 

[strider]

Standard flat pad jack will work. On my car there is a circle sticker on the frame behind and inboard of the wheel. Put the jack there. It's the dull-looking circle in the middle of the picture below (click it for higher res). You can also tell by tapping on the bottom. Don't lift on the plastic body part, the frame is metal.

 

[JohnGarziglia]

The front jack point is difficult to get to with a standard floor jack. It is easy to miss positioning the jack accurately. I have found that using the jack point that is slightly forward of the spot where the door meets the body (i.e. just about directly under the door handle -- look for the jack point indicated with a circle sticker) will jack up the entire side of the car, both front and rear wheels on that side, without any issue.

 

[strider]

Good point. If your jack won't reach far enough to the front point (I have a low-profile Craftsman that will slide under), use the rear one as @JohnGarziglia said. It will raise both wheels on that side of the car.

 

[drewski]

if the circle sticker is missing, it's on the frame, right in front of the removable mid-underbody panel.

 

[drewski]

The right side of the picture is the front of the car.

Jack point #1 is the easier to get to without a low profile jack. It's the one mentioned that lifts both wheels on that side of the car.

 

[sujitdmello]

Wow thanks for the overwhelming support guys - really appreciate it! The rear jack point seems to be the way to go for my jack so will take a look at this over the weekend and post back here with any questions.

Stay safe!

Regards

Sujit

 

[Quamera]

Assuming it is an alloy wheel I would be very dubious about straightening it. Obviously if there is a business specialising in that sort of thing they would know what is safe and what isn't but IMO a new or used wheel would be preferable to straightening a bent one.

 

[hcsharp]

Assuming it is an alloy wheel I would be very dubious about straightening it. Obviously if there is a business specialising in that sort of thing they would know what is safe and what isn't but IMO a new or used wheel would be preferable to straightening a bent one.

I had a wheel straightened by a very experienced pro who got it back to near perfect. I have the forged wheels. He said they are generally easier to straighten than standard wheels and hold up better after the repair. I would have thought they'd be harder.

 

[drewski]

I had a wheel straightened by a very experienced pro who got it back to near perfect. I have the forged wheels. He said they are generally easier to straighten than standard wheels and hold up better after the repair. I would have thought they'd be harder.

Forged is stronger in general, so holding up better after repair seems right.

Easier to straighten . . . hard to wrap my head around.

 

[hcsharp]

Forged is stronger in general, so holding up better after repair seems right.

Easier to straighten . . . hard to wrap my head around.

He said the forged material wants to return to its original shape, even if it requires more force to get it there. I know, sounds a little counter intuitive. He's been repairing wheels for 40 years.

 

[sujitdmello]

I found the stickers under the car, they were exactly where folks here referenced, so I understand how to jack it - just have to get a low-profile jack now. Appreciate all the further responses.

 

[X.l.r.8]

2 2x6 bits of wood staggered behind the rear wheel, reverse up and use any old jack.