MASTER THREAD: Jack Points — location, use, damage, pads, etc.

[JRP3]

I assume a bed liner is thicker, but I could be mistaken. Also I was thinking of a 2 part mix bed liner not a single spray can type. Probably have to buy much more than you need with the 2 part stuff. Might be able to get a spray can of two part epoxy that self mixes, Eastwood has them, maybe other places.

 

[pdx_m3s]

Proper mud flaps should keep debris from touching anything downstream of the front tires.

 

[03DSG]

What’s the difference between bed liner and gravel guard?

Have a look at the ‘North’ for great protection or the ‘Mid-West’ a better look comprise. Personally I use the ‘California’s on the rear and Mid-West on the front but I don’t winter drive it. These are really great quality and well thought out plus they don’t wrap around onto the painted fender where they will trap salt water and sand:

Produits

 

[Jimi_hendrick]

Have a look at the ‘North’ for great protection or the ‘Mid-West’ a better look comprise. Personally I use the ‘California’s on the rear and Mid-West on the front but I don’t winter drive it. These are really great quality and well thought out plus they don’t wrap around onto the painted fender where they will trap salt water and sand:

Produits

I have the North installed already. They are really effective, although there seems to be a residual effect with the remaining sandblasting effect having moved to the back and under only (not the rocker panels anymore).

I did put some gravel guard that I had handy today and noticed that along the “bracket” that holds the battery pack, along the plastic trim on the inside side, there are about 10 places where the metal seems reinforced and protrudes slightly towards the trim; each of those, side facing forward, also lost the black coating and showing metal. Only about 1 sq. cm so very minor in comparison to the jack point issue, but still. I regret not having taken pictures to share, it’s now black again from gravel guard.

All of that more pronounced on driver’s side.

My thought was that the narrow gap between trim and metal is somehow funnelling the draft and debris with it.

I’ll go to a body shop once winter is over and have the trim removed and the whole length properly gravel-guarded or bed-linered.

I was also thinking lengthening the mudguards with a more flexible part that would extend them almost to the ground - kind of like those at the rear of RVs? Wonder if that would have any effect. Would be kind of ugly too. But whatever it takes to prevent the body from falling apart. It’s less than 60k km, 16 mo., and already had the rocker panels repainted after first winter, they were sandblasted to the metal behind the front wheels, and severely chipped in front of rear wheels. So I’m kinda paranoid now, and am frequently looking at what’s going on under the car.

 

[G4Z808]

Has anyone tried using the Quickjack 5000SLX with the frame extensions on a performance ? I'm not sure if there will be enough clearance to fit the rails with the extensions under a performance.

The extended rails add 1" to the minimum height of the rails, for a total minimum height of 4.5"

Alternatively, can anyone with a performance gauge if a 4.5" tall lifting rail will fit under the model 3

 

[dfwatt]

Bought a pair myself from Teslarati. They work great.

But from my estimation they will not work on a lowered car. I can barely get a Harbor Freight Jack with a hockey puck onto the lift point on my lowered model 3. If I take up another inch or so of space with that Contraption I don't see how I could lift the car.

 

[stratocat]

To get an extra couple of inches for clearance on a lowered car just cut a 2x10 into 2 ft lengths and drive up onto them. Then slide the quick jack between the wheels. I got the 6000XLT and it works great but I know of several people using the 5000. The length is close but it evidently works on the model 3.

 

[boyguan]

To get an extra couple of inches for clearance on a lowered car just cut a 2x10 into 2 ft lengths and drive up onto them. Then slide the quick jack between the wheels. I got the 6000XLT and it works great but I know of several people using the 5000. The length is close but it evidently works on the model 3.

old trick. i have 4 inch ramps that clear just the height of the front of the car before i lift with a jack

 

[pdx_m3s]

To get an extra couple of inches for clearance on a lowered car just cut a 2x10 into 2 ft lengths and drive up onto them.

This is exactly what I do. I added non-slip rubber to the bottom to keep them from being pushed by the car.

 

[Eddie11986]

Went to arbitration hearing on the jack point damage and new battery not fully charging and Telsa alleged that I tore all 4 jack points myself and they replaced the pack as a gesture of goodwill, even though they believe I caused the damage myself, lol. I have pictures of the damage within 48 hours of taking delivery, so they are saying I took the new car home, tore all 4 jack points within 48 hrs, then asked them to fix the damage and they graciously replaced a $15k part... What is up with these guys. I provided them with other cases of this same damage occurring on other customer's newly delivered cars and they had no comment.

I would inspect your jack points for damage if I was you...

And if you do have damage... if you could PM me or post the pictures/invoice/etc. here that would be helpful so others don't continue to get accused of causing damage that happened pre-delivery...

Car delivered the 14th with paint chips and scratches all over. Front right tire is leaking air. Look underneath and find damage. I didn't even know what those holes were until I found it on the forums.

 

[super20g]

Car delivered the 14th with paint chips and scratches all over. Front right tire is leaking air. Look underneath and find damage. I didn't even know what those holes were until I found it on the forums.

View attachment 523264

I am assuming the same service center sold me a car with the same damage, but to all 4 jack points. I took the car to another service center 2 hrs away because that one is shady and sloppy if you care about quality. Turns out the other one I took it to was ran by the same manager that floats between them. It is no better than the other one. They had the car for 8 weeks, yes, 8 weeks because they didn't pre-order the battery. They gave me an invoice saying the car was there for 4 days. Also on the invoice it said they believe I damaged the jack points myself! They did that to make it a goodwill repair and not a warranty repair. There are news stories of them doing the same thing to many others because of how it hits their books. I have pictures of the damage within the first 48 hrs of ownership, when, like you, I found all sorts of mostly minor but mounting issues... Yet they boldy state I took a brand new car home and damaged all 4 jack points beyond repair. F*ck those guys. They are an embarrassment to the company, but I am starting to think this is how they are taught or at least allowed to operate to help the bottom line. I am sure most trivial service goes just fine at these locations. But when its an expensive fix or you point out multiple issues, for whatever reason this service center is less than accepting of the issues if it is going to cost them a lot out of pocket... on a car they didn't even inspect before delivering it to you. I am interested to see how this turns out, Eddie. If you are within the return period, just do yourself a favor and return it. Guaranteed they will pass it onto another customer just like this until they find someone that doesn't look under the car.

 

[tylerthehuman]

i recently had my tires rotated by mobile service. i watched the cameras (before my alarm went off) out of curiosity. the tech just used the jack without any attachments. skilled and knows what he’s doing or should he have used a puck/pad?

 

[mspohr]

i recently had my tires rotated by mobile service. i watched the cameras (before my alarm went off) out of curiosity. the tech just used the jack without any attachments. skilled and knows what he’s doing or should he have used a puck/pad?

His jack probably has a lifting point which is shaped to fit the pad on Teslas. I use a rectangular 1" thick piece of wood between my large round jack lift point and the Tesla jack pad. My jack lift point is too large for the Tesla jack pad.

 

[kbecks13]

i recently had my tires rotated by mobile service. i watched the cameras (before my alarm went off) out of curiosity. the tech just used the jack without any attachments. skilled and knows what he’s doing or should he have used a puck/pad?

You do not need pads, just a flat lifting surface. Many jacks already have a flat lifting surface (like the harbor freight racing jack) and you don't need anything on top of that.

The lifting point sits proud of the battery pack, so as long as your lifting plate is flat and you don't grossly miss on positioning you are totally fine.

 

[Feathermerchan]

And so long as the car does not slide on the jack.

 

[jrweiss98020]

I just rotated my tires. Loosen lug nuts slightly, jack via rear lift point using a puck, swap tires, snug lug nuts, lower jack, torque lug nuts.

If you have a low jack stand or wood blocks, you could place them under the front lift point if desired, and slightly lower the jack to relieve the chassis twist if you want. Probably overkill for the 10 minutes it takes, though...

 

[Dolemite]

I really don't understand the "chassis twist" paranoia I've seen pop up on these forums... It's not a Trabant.

 

[jrweiss98020]

No paranoia here; just my observations...

 

[Dolemite]

No paranoia here; just my observations...

not sayin u, I've just seen a select few bring it up and don't get it.

 

[TonyJag]

Hi, new M3P owner here in New England. I just read through this whole thread, which went in many different directions, but seems to have gotten back on-subject. I was surprised to learn that the jack points are aluminum and are part of the battery. That raises the question as to how, during the battery replacement, do they hold up the rest of the car?

I was impressed with the many different techniques discussed for jacking up the car. I have made adapters out of hockey pucks and rubber bumpers, which can be seen in the picture below. At left is my old 3.5 ton non-low-profile jack, which goes down to 5" high. If you first plug the adaptor into the lift point, it just clears the highest point of the jack cup as you slide it underneath.

A recurring concern, with just one jack point per corner, is safety while using floor jacks. While solutions exist, I am trying to work out a low-cost alternative using 2 standard or low profile hydraulic floor jacks on one side of the car at a time, e.g. for rotating front<-->rear. It will also work with one jack on one corner at a time. I agree with those who have concluded that there should be no problem with tweaking the battery, which is repeatedly tolerated during normal driving. The key idea is to leave the jacks in place and achieve safety by inserting something within the floor jack so it cannot collapse, even if hydraulic pressure is released for whatever reason. Most jack stands are too big for most jacks, but I found some 2-ton steel ones at Walmart for only $10 each that measure 5-5/8"x 6-1/4" at the base and extend from 10" to 15" in steps of ~3/4" (see photo). These stands fit within the side rails of the old 3.5 ton jack and, in one orientation, in a new 2.5 ton Aluminum low-profile jack. To use them, jack up the car perhaps a bit higher than desired, then insert the small jack stand within the jack, then extending it as necessary to provide a back-up. Alternatively, a block of strong wood could be cut to fit the space under the jack.

I haven't actually used them yet and a few details, like how the top of the jack stands mate with the undersides of the jack without bending anything, need to be worked out. I just wanted to see if anyone is interested or has done this and how it worked out. I will post again after beta test. There is plenty of time now with COVID-19 lock down.