Rotate the tires with one jack?

[LionXng]

My frunk is still not fully loaded, for now I have Duct Tape, Rope, mask, blindfold and gloves.

You obviously forgot jumper cables!

 

[KenC]

Wow, look at how small the footprint is of that jack! It looks like it would actually be small enough to fit inside the small lower compartment of the trunk. Is that the case?

Oh man, I gotta get one of those...Any chance I could get the model number of the jack from ya?

My frunk is already packed with: emergency road side kit, tire plug kit, various pliers, flashlight, rubber cement (to lube a tire plug), various pliers, first aid kit, roadside reflectors, rubber gloves, AED, ventilator and a sponge. So yeah, it needs to be small enough to fit the lower compartment in the trunk.

No specific model. It's a 97 to 2004 Porsche 911/996/Boxster emergency jack tool kit.

I bought it on eBay from a person who's sold numerous Porsche jacks to TMC forum members, specializedgerman, in the $100 range. If you like, get the ones with the foam wheel cutouts. If you ever get a compact spare, it'll fit inside the donut. They seem to have gone up in price a little since they got popular amongst Tesla owners. They're small, light and strong.

Items for sale by specializedgerman | eBay
I forgot to add, the centering nubbin on top of the jack is oval shaped. You can use a file to round it, so that it fits the Tesla. And, since the footprint is so small, I use a piece of scrap IPE, to provide a larger base.

 

[Dolemite]

Maintaining rotation was true when radial tires were first introduced due to ply separation issues. It is no longer an issue except on racing tires and directional tires.

Rotating directional tires 'backwards' can increase the risk of hydroplaning, increase noise, and accelerate wear.

Right - which is why I'm unclear re what we're talking about here.

I learned it in automotive school before getting ASE certified and working at one of our family dealerships. In the past x pattern rotation wasn’t recommended due to early radial tire construction limitations (shortly after bias ply tire phaseout). Today the main reason to only rotate on the same side is if a tire has irregular wear (not normal wear) patterns reversing the tire it can cause exaggerated wear. Tire rotation isn’t a correction for improper alignment wear problems and those tire wear issues can only be corrected by alignment. If tracking a car and the wear is simply from extreme loading then cross rotation may be a good solution if the tire design and sizing allows.

I am confuse. Are you saying that it's "bad" to do an X-pattern rotation on modern, non-directional tires? It's what I'm glad I can *finally* do after owning cars w/ staggered setups. Service manual recommends a rearward cross if possible:

I use a regular ‘ol jack and some regular ‘ol jack stands. Not a big deal.

Can’t use a QuickJack - I do this stuff outdoors in the driveway.

I get anxiety if I can't get the entire car off the ground - so I invested in a QuickJack. Wish I'd bought one sooner. They also have a version that hooks up to a 12V battery, FWIW.

Simple. Like this: (my car)

View attachment 626754

OMG don't do this! You'll turn your car into a corkscrew!

Y’all are conflating the travel distance of the suspension with the stiffness of the frame.

Thank you. If modern car chassis(eez?) were floppy enough to where you could lift an entire wheel off the ground with basically everything else remaining constant, people would be totaling cars left and right because they'd be impossible to keep on the road.

Also, lifting one side of the car from one jack point is perfectly acceptable. Did it for 10+ years on my E46 and by the time I sold that car at 150K+ miles it was still rock solid - zero squeaks & rattles. Tesla's entire fleet of mobile techs wouldn't be doing this if it created problems.

 

[MarsOrBust]

Look like Tesla Road service is turning car into corkscrews. That is how they have been doing it but from the rear.

 

[dmurphy]

I get anxiety if I can't get the entire car off the ground - so I invested in a QuickJack. Wish I'd bought one sooner. They also have a version that hooks up to a 12V battery, FWIW.

Believe me, if I could get the car into the garage, this is exactly what I'd do. The prior owner added a sun porch to the house so it's now shorter than the Model 3. The things you learn AFTER you sign the deed ............

 

[ChrML]

OMG don't do this! You'll turn your car into a corkscrew!

Nah, this is no problem. The chassis is stiff and can handle it.

 

[SigNC]

I'm not reading the whole thread so excuse me if this has already been said, but tesla mobile service rotates tires with one low profile jack.

 

[Huskyfan]

Yeah, that's why Sandy Munro criticized Tesla for designing the M3 so strong (& heavy) without relying on the battery pack for structural strength.
I guess Tesla has fixed that via the structural battery pack announced on Battery day.

Don’t think it is entirely due to the strength of the body, floor pan or chassis that allows one jack to lift the car. The CG (center of gravity, the balance point in more simplistic terms), is probably a foot further to the rear of the front jack point. IOW, right about where the driver seat is located pretty much. Jack it up in that location and both tires would equally lift at the same rate (IOW not the front initially than the rear). I’m not recommending it, cuz it could hurt the battery pack. Just pointing out that the strong frame helps, but really its a matter of balance or CG.

 

[Huskyfan]

I would recommend just rotating front and rear on the same side,

because if you already have some curb rash on the right side,

if you rotate the wheels in a X pattern then you will get a 4 wheel curb rash instead of a 2 wheel rash curb !!!

Honestly for any possible advantage of doing a X pattern rotation, I prefer keeping 2 wheels without any rash.

But Check the alignment, this is the most important.

Any tire with a directional tread pattern should only be rotated front to rear, versus X pattern. Not sure if our tires are directional, but most likely they are.

 

[Gasaraki]

Nah, this is no problem. The chassis is stiff and can handle it.

I rotated my 08 Legacy GT tires using one jack lifting up both tires on one side. All newer cars are strong enough to do this.

 

[PianoAl]

Before getting a second jack or jack stands, consider buying a spare tire (Spare on front, front to back, back to front, repeat for other side. Two extra jackings).

 

[Wattsisname]

I rotate tires using one jack pad and a floor jack on the rear to raise one side off the ground moving front to rear and rear to front then I repeat on the other side. I have an impact wrench so the process is really quick for me. I also chock the wheels on the opposite side being jacked. Hope this helps.

Do you put the car in Jack Mode or Park please?

 

[mspohr]

Do you put the car in Jack Mode or Park please?

I do the same.
My 2015 Model S had a jack mode but my 2022 S doesn't have the mode.

 

[beachsideev]

I don't think m3 or my have jack mode.

 

[Ritz]

I use the jack under the front lower control arm to lift up that side of the car. When it's high enough, I put a jack stand under the pad nearest the jack. Then I move to the rear on the same side and jack the rear. Rotate tires. Do the same on the other side.

Best,

 

[SigNC]

I use the jack under the front lower control arm to lift up that side of the car. When it's high enough, I put a jack stand under the pad nearest the jack. Then I move to the rear on the same side and jack the rear. Rotate tires. Do the same on the other side.

Best,

tesla mobile jacks the whole car up by one of the two jack points. If there is one thing a tesla control arm doesn't need is any additional stress.

 

[Ritz]

tesla mobile jacks the whole car up by one of the two jack points. If there is one thing a tesla control arm doesn't need is any additional stress.

Heh. Yes, I believe you're right. I put the jack+pad near the beefiest section of the control arm, not where the "ball joints" are. I have read about issues here, but don't see any evidence of excessive play/wear on mine.

Best,

 

[PianoAl]

Before getting a second jack or jack stands, consider buying a spare tire (Spare on front, front to back, back to front, repeat for other side. Two extra jackings).

PS With an X pattern rotation, there's only one extra jacking. I did this many times with other cars before Les Schwab offered free rotation.