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Wrong Jack Point issue - ‘17 Mazda 6

3K views 29 replies 8 participants last post by  Archerfish 
#1 ·
Was recently changing my oil and as I was finishing up jacking up the car to take out the Jack stands, the side frame (?) seemed to bend some. I jacked up what I thought was the pinch point and have worked on the car several times with no issues. I took it for a quick drive and I think it seems normal, but I can’t give it an honest assessment. Anyone know the exact risk of something like this? Last picture is the other non-bent side for reference.
 

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#2 ·

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#9 · (Edited)
Archerfish, yes, conventional wisdom says NOT to jack on those "pinch-weld" seams, as they constitute a "knife-edge", and they could easily be bent away from plumb. That's what your rubber blocks seek to prevent. And I, too, have a set of rubber-faced wooden blocks with a sawn slot in each block to "miss" the pinch-weld seam...

However, I can't use them on my Mazda6. Mazda6's have what Mazda calls a "sill moulding, i.e. essentially a plastic moulding that is affixed to the rocker panel, and which theoretically serves to protect the rockers from rock chips... If I use my blocks, then the car's weight is taken NOT by the pinch-weld seam (on-edge) but by a combination of a squished, compressed, cracked sill moulding, and a squished, compressed, cracked under-car aero panel.

Neither alternative is acceptable to me. Instead I do the following:

The pinch-weld seam comprises three (3) thicknesses of sheet metal, and one of the three gauges of sheet metal is ultra thick. Also, a portion of this pinch-weld seam has the most-outboard sheet metal folded over top of the seam, i.e. folded inboard. I judge these parts of the pinch-weld seam as being very strong and NOT susceptible to damage due to lifting the car. They are near-to or part of the cars' jacking points. Accordingly, I have fir blocks (Douglas Fir, wood) blocks, and I support the car at those folded over locations with these wooden blocks and my jackstands. I could improve the safety by taking the barest skiff of a saw cut down the centre of each block, maybe the width of two saw blade kerfs. The wood "gives" a little, and does not break the paint.

That's my solution. I lift on the pinch-weld seams at those locations.

Oh one more thing... If you are using deep V's or slots on your rubber jack pads, and if said jackpads contact the actual rockerpanel (ultra-thin) sheet metal... I'd bet you'd bend or crease said sheet metal easily. It's really, really thin-gauge. Stay away from it!

Others: YMMV...
 
#8 ·
This is why i always jack up the front from the back of the LCA... and you can get the whole side off the ground easily then.

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#12 ·
I just want to verify if someone has used the front part to jack up the car.





When I lifted the car, I used two scissor jacks. Then after putting the jack stands, I removed the jacks and transferred it to lift the rear.

I'm about to buy and try this low profile jack I saw.
 
#20 ·
I just want to verify if someone has used the front part to jack up the car.
That's all I do these days. I have a 3 ton floor jack that I bought at Harbor Freight and it fits perfectly front and rear. In my 2G the lift points are easily accessible and are both centrally located. The rear point is a bit further under the car than the front, however.

This car is definitely annoying to jack up. Like Talon I have used the LCA mount to jack up the car with a floor jack before.

Now is a great time for me to brag about the QuickJack I bought last year.
I want one of those things. I'm not sure that I was looking at the same brand as that, but I'm sure whatever the brand, they will have similar short-comings. They won't work for me because I don't have a garage and lugging these things around cannot be fun. My HOA already bitches about my 3-ton when used, so I'll let this pass for now. Sigh. These people must not realize that this is the Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave.
 
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#13 ·
You cant access the front CM without taking the cover off first. And the rear clearly has the exhaust in the way.
 
#14 ·
Seems to me that the car has to be on at least shallow-height ramps first, or as Archerfish says - two scissor jacks... to be able to reach the frt cross member point. Same re the rear... but note that the rear central jacking point has an error in the dwg. The rear central jacking point is not at the centreline of the car, but rather is slightly to the left of centre... See attached...
 

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#16 ·
Now is a great time for me to brag about the QuickJack I bought last year.
I was trying to figure out how to get one when they were on sale for $300 off :(
 
#19 ·
I will say that they are a bit of a hassle to get set up. They are very heavy and difficult to maneuver to the correct location under the car. Then you have to lift it up slowly, double-check the rubber pads to make sure that they are on the right spots, and run around and crouch on both sides of the car. The quick-connect hydraulic fittings are also leaky by nature. So it still takes me about 10 minutes to get the car in the air.

But after that it's just super easy. The whole car is way up high where it's easy to use a creeper with plenty of room to work, and the jacks lock so it is super stable and impossible to move. You can disconnect the hoses and leave it in the air and it's completely stable, even if you have kids running around in your garage like I do. If you need to drop it back down to loosen lug nuts, you just press the button. It also lifts my 4,600lb BMW Stupid Useless Vehicle, which needs to be worked on a lot more than my reliable Japanese car. So I am pretty happy with the purchase.
 
#25 ·
Lol, my brother did the same thing, went a little too far forward and pushed the right front fender. I was pissed to say the least. Still haven't completely repaired it because the bottom two bolts just snapped off when I tried taking them off, pushed it far enough back that it doesn't rub the door and ruin the paint anymore.
 
#29 ·
Archerfish, I see why you access the frt jacking point from the wheel well (i.e. from the side of the car)... but do note that due to the arc of the lifting arm it will draw the car laterally if the jack wheels "hitch" on your tile garage floor. Not a problem if the parking brake is off and the rear wheels are only loosely chocked (with wedges / chocks). When it comes to the rear (once you have the frt on jack stands) maybe it'd be best to have the jack positioned in line with the car and maybe it'd be best to have the jack on top of a piece of 1/2" MDF (medium density particle board) if the floor tile is a prb. Or, to guard against the frt of the car being drawn-off the frt jackstands due to the arc of the jack arm / jack wheel stiction (at the back of the car), somehow use timber pieces instead of jack stands) at the frt (for supporting the car), that will be more stable? Just be careful with these matters!
 
#30 ·
but do note that due to the arc of the lifting arm it will draw the car laterally if the jack wheels "hitch" on your tile garage floor. Not a problem if the parking brake is off and the rear wheels are only loosely chocked (with wedges / chocks).
Thank you very much for the reminder! It's truly appreciated.

I intend to clean the brakes while waiting for the oil to drain so the parking brake is off. I'll be using wood blocks on the rear tires.

I never thought of the "movement of the arm". Now that you mentioned it, I am hoping that the jack will move itself to align it to the jacking point by sliding. However, the floor jack is a bit heavy compared to what I've used before.

The best way will be to position the jack from the front but I don't have much space when I tried fitting the floor jack. I'll move the car backwards tomorrow and see how much space I can get.

When it comes to the rear (once you have the frt on jack stands) maybe it'd be best to have the jack positioned in line with the car and maybe it'd be best to have the jack on top of a piece of 1/2" MDF (medium density particle board) if the floor tile is a prb.
Yes, I have much space at the rear and that is how I will do it.

I have thought of using something similar to the jack stands last time because I was worried with the tiles. However, nothing happened then. I'll look for a piece of board tomorrow and put it under the jack stands.
 
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