Jack Points

[632 Regal]

what more to say?

http://www.r3vlimited.com/Tech/Jackpoints.jpg

[1995 525i]

what more to say?

http://www.r3vlimited.com/Tech/Jackpoints.jpg

Thanks for the info...

Michael

[DanDombrowski]

Jeff, you just told us not to jack from the diff. WTF?

[billb]

Jeff, you just told us not to jack from the diff. WTF?
...just not where it meets the cover, in my opinion.

[632 Regal]

looking at the bracketry holding the unit in I wouldnt lift the car from there, it looks like it could easily bend the brackets.

[Lennyz525i]

So how would you recommend jacking up the front? From the crossmember at once and then placing the jackstands underneath the frame rails, or jack up each side seperately at the frame rails and placing the jack stands slightly behind the jacking point underneath the frame rails.

Does anyone have a picture of the bottom of an E34? That way we can make our own jack points image.

[Scott H]

2x8 to displace the load. If the front bumper is too low, drive the car up on boards to gain clearance.

jacking the car up side to side over time twists the car too much for my tastes


So how would you recommend jacking up the front? From the crossmember at once and then placing the jackstands underneath the frame rails, or jack up each side seperately at the frame rails and placing the jack stands slightly behind the jacking point underneath the frame rails.

Does anyone have a picture of the bottom of an E34? That way we can make our own jack points image.

[Jay 535i]

What's the difference between a floor jack and a factory jack, and why are some points good for one but not the other?

[DueyT]

Jeff, that was the pick I was looking for earlier! I would lift the rear from the frame crossmember immediately ahead of the differential case, but I would personally not lift by the diff casing.

On the front, I lift from the front crossmember, but only with a block of wood, as noted by the other guys. I think that is easier on the car than jacking from factory point to factory lift point.

I agree with Scott, twisting the frame too much is not good, in my way of thinking...must go compute Young's Modulus to determine torsional beam loads on frame rails within unibody structure now.... :)

Cheers,
Duey

[Blitzkrieg Bob]

a piece of carpet or something to pad the jack saddle when using the frame points on the floor pan.

This way you avoid knocking off the undercoating

[athflying79]

a piece of carpet or something to pad the jack saddle when using the frame points on the floor pan.

This way you avoid knocking off the undercoating

Mine is already a bit torn up. I got some Mar-Hyde spray on rubber undercoating. Going to clean her up on Sunday and see if I can't patch the spots up.

[genphreak]

What's the difference between a floor jack and a factory jack, and why are some points good for one but not the other?The direct answer is that factory jacks mate with a hook and guide on the body. Using any other jacks here damages it or at least chips the paint where the salt and road grime promote serious corrosion within a few years in a lot of locales.

Guys, surely if jacking the diff is bad, all sorts of cars would be damaged (at least diff/subframe mount problems) and we'd be noticing at this age as most of these cars have been jacked badly by some indy once they are 15 years old- and E24s, E30s, E28s and so on are much older than that... had anyone seen evidence of this kind of problem as opposed to plain old wear? :) Nick

[Dave M]

The direct answer is that factory jacks mate with a hook and guide on the body. Using any other jacks here damages it or at least chips the paint where the salt and road grime promote serious corrosion within a few years in a lot of locales.

Guys, surely if jacking the diff is bad, all sorts of cars would be damaged (at least diff/subframe mount problems) and we'd be noticing at this age as most of these cars have been jacked badly by some indy once they are 15 years old- and E24s, E30s, E28s and so on are much older than that... had anyone seen evidence of this kind of problem as opposed to plain old wear? :) Nick


I always use the diff and front crossmember. Can't count the number of times its been supported by the diff. I've inspected the mounts thoroughly and have experienced no ill-effects.

Lucky?

Dave M

[Jay 535i]

The direct answer is that factory jacks mate with a hook and guide on the body. Using any other jacks here damages it or at least chips the paint where the salt and road grime promote serious corrosion within a few years in a lot of locales.

Guys, surely if jacking the diff is bad, all sorts of cars would be damaged (at least diff/subframe mount problems) and we'd be noticing at this age as most of these cars have been jacked badly by some indy once they are 15 years old- and E24s, E30s, E28s and so on are much older than that... had anyone seen evidence of this kind of problem as opposed to plain old wear? :) Nick

I've watched Bruno jack my car up by the diff more than once. I trust he knows his stuff.

Thanks for 'splaining me, Nick :)

[genphreak]

I've watched Bruno jack my car up by the diff more than once. I trust he knows his stuff. Thanks for 'splaining me, Nick :)np dude, though with my query I don't mean to take away from Jeff's (and others) suggestion that it doesn't appear to be strong enough to jack there. The pics was awesome, nice contribution again Jeff... thanks :) Nick

[BigKriss]

All mechanics use the diff and the front crossmember when jacking up the car, unless it's going up on a hoist and so do I.

[billb]

I realize this was all part of the grand experiment, but the original portion of this post had been moved off the main board into Way OT. I went back through it and pulled out that picture of the E30 on its side and questioned why it was put into OT. I'm glad it has stirred up this discussion, but the "anonymous" moderators were the ones that moved it off the board in the first place. I wouldn't necessarily lay large amounts of praise on the fact that it reappeared here...