MK4 with severely damaged jack point - How to raise car?

mrrhtuner

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 29, 2011
Location
London Ont Canada
TDI
2003 Jetta Wagon TDI, 2015 Passat TDI, 2015 Touareg TDI
Hey guys,

My 03 Wagon's passenger jack point is severely damaged (needs rocker replacement also) so I cannot jack the car up from that rail. I need to get the car in the air so that I can find why my power steering is leaking but I'm not sure how to safely jack up the car (without the jack point being used) and also to put the car onto jack stands.

I've seen conflicting information of raising the car on the frame rail and resting the car on the rear subframe bolts.

Any suggestions on how to go around this? Worst case, I will need to remove the subframe and that will limit even further the amount of lifting area I have.


Thanks!
 

Nero Morg

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Oct 19, 2017
Location
OR
TDI
2014 A6 TDI, 2001 Jetta TDI, 2014 Passat TDI
I jack it up sometimes by the K member, where it bolts near the frame. That's if you can get a jack under there.
 

Tdijarhead

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Nov 10, 2013
Location
Lawrenceville PA
TDI
2003 TDI Jetta Daughters Car, 2001 TDI Beetle, Wife’s car, 2005 Golf TDI Mine, all 5 spds
I never use those jack points, I've seen the rockers colaspe to many times. I use the subframe usually where that big 21mm bolt is and then put the jack stand under the frame rail. Even the frame rail will bend but the subframe never will.
 
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gforce1108

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Aug 2, 2006
Location
Newburgh, NY
TDI
04 Jetta GLS BEW, 14 Audi A7 V6 TDI, 13 Porsche Cayenne V6 TDI
The only time I lift from those points with with rubber pads on my 2 post lift. Floor jack on lower control arm bolt or rear beam. Factory jack doesn't come out unless it's an emergency.
 

Tdijarhead

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Nov 10, 2013
Location
Lawrenceville PA
TDI
2003 TDI Jetta Daughters Car, 2001 TDI Beetle, Wife’s car, 2005 Golf TDI Mine, all 5 spds
Yeah just to be clear, I always use a floor jack. I think I’ve used the vw jack maybe twice, both times in a emergency. I made the assumption that everyone has a floor jack. Not true.
 

Fahrvegnugen

Veteran Member
Joined
Jan 21, 2017
Location
Burlington Vt
TDI
01 golf 1.9 alh gls silver
I too jack up on big subframe bolts and rear beam and have jack stands with rubber pads under reinforced pinch weld areas. The pinch welds are collapsed except for the factory reinforced areas designated as jacking points. The subframe will crumple if you go far outside the cupped area where the big bolts are.
 

U4ick

Veteran Member
Joined
Nov 16, 2014
Location
texas
TDI
2003 jetta tdi
I know from experience repairing front face damage that it doesn't take much of a hit at all to bend up the front rail end cap horns that the metal bumper attaches to. I understand the need to have these rails made from a relatively soft metal and not too thick so they will crumple up and roll the motor and transmission underneath the car in the event of a front end collision.

I don't know, but I assume, that these same rails are used past the firewall and all the way to the rear of the vehicle, in which case, it worries me to use any part of them as a jacking point other than the specified jacking points that I assume again, are reinforced by the manufacturer.
 

BeetleDragon737

Well-known member
Joined
Jun 9, 2014
Location
Bend, OR
TDI
'99.0 New Beetle
Is just putting a floor jack on a bent-over pinch weld that bad of an idea? Will the frame itself start to bend? Does the pinch weld provide that much rigidity?
 

Nero Morg

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Oct 19, 2017
Location
OR
TDI
2014 A6 TDI, 2001 Jetta TDI, 2014 Passat TDI
Yes it will bend in, and no it doesn't provide much rigidity.
 

Tdijarhead

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Nov 10, 2013
Location
Lawrenceville PA
TDI
2003 TDI Jetta Daughters Car, 2001 TDI Beetle, Wife’s car, 2005 Golf TDI Mine, all 5 spds
Putting a floor jack on an already bent pinch weld will cause rocker panel damage. I see so many vw’s with crushed rocker panels.
 

BeetleDragon737

Well-known member
Joined
Jun 9, 2014
Location
Bend, OR
TDI
'99.0 New Beetle
Yes it will bend in, and no it doesn't provide much rigidity.
I'm talking about the actual chassis of the vehicle. I know the pinch weld will bend in. I've experienced that before trying to figure out how to get all 4 corners of the vehicle off the ground at the same time. What danger is there from bending the chassis if you place a jack under a bent-over pinch weld?

Putting a floor jack on an already bent pinch weld will cause rocker panel damage. I see so many vw’s with crushed rocker panels.
I bought mine with a bunch of crushed spots in the rocker panels. My guess for why this happens is because the diagrams in the owner's manual for where a jack is supposed to go makes it seem like they want you to put it under the rocker panel. When that happens, the rocker panel gets crushed. The owner's manual says not to place a jack under the "vertical reinforcement of the floor pan", which I'm assuming to be talking about the pinch weld. I know from experience that jacking from under a bent pinch weld doesn't damage the rocker panel. Is there some other reason they say to not use the pinch weld location? Just cause it will bend over, or because once it bends over it will actually damage the chassis?
 
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