better Jack point..?
 

Okay, so i was looking under my car today, just lookin at it, getting familiar with it, know where everything is, what it looks like etc etc... anyways, i noticed the frame in the front of the car had good jacking points, (not where u put the stock jack) and i was like yeah, that can work... so i put two jack stands in the front, very very sturdy and safe... so i work my way back to the car and notice that the same frame rail or whatever it is, is blocked by this fiberglass looking thing(idk if it's actually fiberglass) held on by a couple of little bolts and clips..so i unbolt them and take it off, it revealed the rest of the frame rail and now is an awesome jack point... so what i did was, dremeled out a piece of the plastic/fiberglass thing enough to where there is enough to put the jacks.

i mean, i dont know what those pieces are there for, i'm thinking something to do with aerodynamics??? so i figured if they were there, they were there for a reason, and that's why i put them back on rather than kept them off.

let me know what you guys think, and if it's been done before i apologize, i just figured i'd share just incase anyone is having trouble thinking where to put jack stands

Front 2:
http://i742.photobucket.com/albums/x...s/IMG_0582.jpg

close up on the frame rail:
http://i742.photobucket.com/albums/x...s/IMG_0583.jpg

now going down the line, this is where that fiberglass piece starts:
http://i742.photobucket.com/albums/x...s/IMG_0584.jpg

The whole pice itself:
http://i742.photobucket.com/albums/x...s/IMG_0585.jpg

Ok, this is where the end of the rail and fiberglass piece ends, notice how there is not enough room for a jackstand there:
http://i742.photobucket.com/albums/x...s/IMG_0586.jpg

This is with it dremeled out, and now can fit a jackstand:
http://i742.photobucket.com/albums/x...s/IMG_0587.jpg

Now being supported:
http://i742.photobucket.com/albums/x...s/IMG_0588.jpg

Close up:
http://i742.photobucket.com/albums/x...s/IMG_0589.jpg

There we go, 4 nice and sturdy jack points :)
http://i742.photobucket.com/albums/x...s/IMG_0591.jpg

http://i742.photobucket.com/albums/x...s/IMG_0592.jpg



p.s. i didnt know where to put this thread, i thought it was pretty general, so i put it in the general thread :D

Interesting. What point did you use to jack the car up (frame rails, diff, front plate)?

I don't really understand why you are bothering with all that effort? Just use the stock points, they were designed for this.

i jacked the front of the car first, i googled jack points for the 370..its past the plastic under tray, on the hard silver metal (aluminum?) jack it up, put the jack stands there then done in front, then i go to the back, jack it up from the diff, that's where nissan says to do it, so that's where i do it lol

i would agree with you on that, EXCEPT..i had a not so comforting event happen(didn't notice till after i brought the car down, and this event is what made me do what i did)

in this picture, you can clearly see, the 370z is a fatty! haha, evidently this jack-point wasn't strong enough and started to bend..i don't wanna have my car up on jacks, and then all of a sudden this thing bends and I'm crushed to death lol.. so i figured the frame rails have to be sturdy as hell...so that's why i cut the rear fiberglass pieces so that i can fit the jack-stands on the rear as well

http://i742.photobucket.com/albums/x...0/IMG_0594.jpg

http://i742.photobucket.com/albums/x...0/IMG_0593.jpg

I used the frame rails for the front, have not try the back.

Close pics of the back jack stand points if anyone has some.

If you want to do the rails in the back, you're gonna have to cut the piece like i did, there's just no room with it there

I use hockey putts:tup: works like a charm.
They sell rubber guards for those jackstand in Harbor freight:tup:

just got a floor jack, from your pics front area is not a problem for stands but I'm not too crazy about the cutting of the fiberglass cover pieces for jack stands. For the the rear why not place rear wheels on some secure blocking/platform if wheels are not to be removed?

oooo nice, im gonna have to check them rubber guards out, thanks for the heads up :)

oh sorry if this is really dumb but..whats a hockey putt?

yeahhh, i guess this is true lol...but hey, what if the rear wheels are off :icon17:

I use a hockey puck with my jack. I just cut a groove down the middle deep enough for the pinch welds at the jacking points. Works great and no bends

that's actually an awesome idea^

Interesting. I agree with the OP. Jacking points are one thing, but jack stands are a must if one is to be underneath. Secure jackstand points on the chassis are likewise a must. I will cut the underfloor cover in a heartbeat if it is the only way to obtain secure jackstand locations at the rear. Haven't had mine up in the air yet, but will definitely keep this thread in mind when i do.

Having attended one funeral for a friend who was in too much of a hurry to set a jackstand, I urge anyone who does not use them to re-think this.

ooo mana, sorry to hear that :-/

but yeah, not having a lift makes me very very wary of making sure the car is secure, but yeah, only takes a couple minutes, hardest part is taking the pieces off ;) haha

My jack just won't reach that front plate even when I put the car up on 2x4s. Oh well. The hockey puck and frame rails seem to work good for the front. Then I use the diff to jack the back and stick jack stands under the rear side jack points. I have had the car up 3-4 times now with no issues.

ooo i think i know what you're saying, yeah i bought a secondary scissor jack( like the one that comes with the car, lift it up a little bit at a time on each one just until the normal jack can reach, then it's smooth sailing :)

The problem with the rear is there are no good jack stand points on the car. Those pinch welds are not meant for jack stands. Even with hockey pucks and rubber jack stand covers. You will damage the pinch welds or surrounding areas. It really does suck and I wish there was a better way. I have had to just jack it up onto race ramps but now with my FI exhaust it's got harder as I cannot use the diff anymore!

I roll up on 2 - 2x10s and have no problem getting the jack under the diff with my FI exhaust.

LMAO:bowrofl: OO0ps puck I meant. Me and m buddy use to call it that :tup:
Np:tiphat:

I've had my z on jack stands many times and this has never happened. I'm assuming you didn't slowly lower your z onto your jack stands. Because you need a lot of force to bend the scissor tabs. You can also buy rubber pads to fit on your jack stands. But I guess it's too late for that since you bent them. I think its safer to place the jack stands where they belong, closer to the outside of the z where the weight is more balanced than finding your own spots.

http://i742.photobucket.com/albums/x...0/IMG_0594.jpg

http://i742.photobucket.com/albums/x...0/IMG_0593.jpg[/QUOTE]

yea, it looks more like that was used as a jack point with a regular flat or dished style hydraulic jack.

I took a piece of 4x4, cut it to be 4x3 and I place that on top of the jack to sandwhich between the floor jack and the differential, seemed to work good when I used it. If the guy who installed my exhaust wasn't drunk, he probably would of been able to line up the pipes better and I could use a 4x4 instead.

Oh, and I built some ramps to drive up on, by using two 2x10's with 45 degree angles on them, screwed together. If I was going to do it again I might of used 2x12's instead.

[/QUOTE]


actualy, in all seriousness, i *always* lower it **very** slowly, i never want to mess anything up

Jacking it up on the pinch welds is correct but I was told and have always placed the jacks under the frame like some other members have as well with no issues.........

For added protection I just took a sheet of hard wood about 1/2" thick and cut it into 4 squares big enough that the jacks fully on the piece of wood as a base. This helps protect your drive way on a hot day if anyone has an aged driveway like mine! (the jacks will sinks in if its a hot summer day! I know i have the marks!) then I also had a 4x4 of hard wood and cut it down into 4x4 pucks about 1-2" thick and I put those on top of the jacks kind of like the hockey puck idea and in the end you can't even see one scratch on my from because there is no metal on metal contact to scratch it!