MK7 Jack Pad Kit

[bigb]

Thinking of getting this kit to make servicing easier, anyone tried it?

 

[RIP TDI]

Yes, they work well.

 

[adjat84th]

I have these as well, they're great and they line up great with a lift or just a nicer place to use a jack.
You can use a ~2" hole saw bit to cut your current trim if you aren't worried about how the underneath of your car looks.

Sidenote: I like being able to watch videos right from the new forums without it taking you to the actual site.

 

[bigb]

Are you able to use a full size floor jack on the jack pads and still have room to fit a jack stand under the pinch weld both front and rear without the full size floor jack being in the way? (2015 GSW)

 

[adjat84th]

My car is lowered, but also have a low-profile jack. The rears are no problem, the fronts require swiveling the jack forward as you get clearance of the tire so that it's not in the way of placing a jack stand on the right spot of the pinch weld.

 

[RIP TDI]

Yes, no problem.

 

[Ovrhill]

Are you able to use a full size floor jack on the jack pads and still have room to fit a jack stand under the pinch weld both front and rear without the full size floor jack being in the way? (2015 GSW)

That has always been a problem for me on the MK4 cars. Have had my MK7 up on stands as of yet.

 

[Nuje]

I got around that problem with JackPoint jack stands. Plate on jack, lift, lower plate onto stand. Jack pads definitely less expensive; on the other hand, these work on any car that comes into the driveway.

 

[nathanso]

I put these on my Mk7 GSW (F+R) a while ago and was disappointed all around. More difficult to get fully seated than I had expected (you'll need two jacks, lube, and patience). The front plastic belly pans' clips were both damaged upon removal requiring that I buy new ones (not expensive at around $15 ea, iirc). They're still not installed because they'll require that I bore precisely-positioned 2" holes in them to line up with the new jack pads. But the biggest disappointment was that I'm unable to carry out my plan of lifting the car from the new jack pad with my 3T hydraulic floor jack (which came from Harbor Freight and is just waiting for a chance to crush me); positioning my jack stand at the car's normal side rail jacking point; and removing the floor jack to do the other side. Why? Because the new jacking pads are directly inboard of the side rail jacking points so there's no room to position the jack stand with the floor jack in the way holding up the car. If I remember, lifting the car by either the front or rear jack pad causes F+R wheels to quickly leave the ground, though my particular floor jack can't lift the opposite end quite far enough to allow a jack stand to slip under the rail even at its lowest setting. Grr.

 

[bigb]

I put these on my Mk7 GSW (F+R) a while ago and was disappointed all around. More difficult to get fully seated than I had expected (you'll need two jacks, lube, and patience). The front plastic belly pans' clips were both damaged upon removal requiring that I buy new ones (not expensive at around $15 ea, iirc). They're still not installed because they'll require that I bore precisely-positioned 2" holes in them to line up with the new jack pads. But the biggest disappointment was that I'm unable to carry out my plan of lifting the car from the new jack pad with my 3T hydraulic floor jack (which came from Harbor Freight and is just waiting for a chance to crush me); positioning my jack stand at the car's normal side rail jacking point; and removing the floor jack to do the other side. Why? Because the new jacking pads are directly inboard of the side rail jacking points so there's no room to position the jack stand with the floor jack in the way holding up the car. If I remember, lifting the car by either the front or rear jack pad causes F+R wheels to quickly leave the ground, though my particular floor jack can't lift the opposite end quite far enough to allow a jack stand to slip under the rail even at its lowest setting. Grr.

It seems some people have this issue and some don't. Has anyone tried coming in from the opposite side, or coming in from the front? With the HF low profile 3ton?

 

[bigb]

It seems some people have this issue and some don't. Has anyone tried coming in from the opposite side, or coming in from the front? With the HF low profile 3ton?

So I just answered my own question, there is no way even the HF low profile extended reach floor jack can get near the lift point from the front or from the opposite side, it's just a bit too tall at the pump end. I also tried my jack at the lift pad location and no matter how I position it, the 3 ton low pro HF jack is just too wide to allow a jack stand to be placed. Like adjat noted, it will require swinging the floor jack around under the front wheel once the car is lifted sufficiently. edit: watching the IDparts video that is exactly what you see him do on the fronts although you have to pay attention as he kind of shifts the jack forward briefly while it i partially hidden behind him.

 

[adjat84th]

I have a quickjack so don't have to use my floor jack hardly ever anymore. But those JackPoint stands look like a great solution if you want to keep costs lower. That's a great little solution!

 

[hskrdu]

I looked at the Jackpoint stands, which are really nice, but purchased stands from Safe Jack (the Renn Stand), mostly because I could adjust the height. Despite the positive reviews, I was skeptical, but they have worked well so far, and solved the problem in situations where I want to place the jack and stands in the same location. I avoided this for years with our MkIV's by using all the various techniques to do so, but the Renn Stands make it super easy just to do everything at the designated pinch weld. Not cheap, but at least I can use them across platforms and with other cars. The investment in the OEM style jack pad kit helps me only with that car (and once you add up 2 MKIVs and 2 Mk7s, it's not inexpensive). Not my pic (if it appears):

 

[RIP TDI]

I have a quickjack so don't have to use my floor jack hardly ever anymore.

Yeah, that's the direction I'm going, too.

 

[Nuje]

Who doesn't love their QuickJack?

 

[RIP TDI]

Who doesn't love their QuickJack?

Someone who lives next door to a MaxJax employee?

 

[nathanso]

So I just answered my own question, there is no way even the HF low profile extended reach floor jack can get near the lift point from the front or from the opposite side, it's just a bit too tall at the pump end. I also tried my jack at the lift pad location and no matter how I position it, the 3 ton low pro HF jack is just too wide to allow a jack stand to be placed. Like adjat noted, it will require swinging the floor jack around under the front wheel once the car is lifted sufficiently. edit: watching the IDparts video that is exactly what you see him do on the fronts although you have to pay attention as he kind of shifts the jack forward briefly while it i partially hidden behind him.

My carport's concrete pad is nowhere near smooth enough to support such jack swinging.

 

[bigb]

Well I am really glad I didn't rush into purchasing the jack pads, I really like the Renn Jack solution posted by
hskrdu. The fact that they can be used on other vehicles makes it a smart option. Plus I really only need 2 since the front is the problem end. The rear is easy to lift by the rear axle with a piece of lumber on the floor jack saddle.
One of the You Tube comments gave me an idea though. A heavy gauge length of square tubing say 2" with plates welded to the topside and pinch weld adapters or pinch weld pads fixed to the plates. Then jack one whole side up with the floor jack lifting the tubing and place regular jack stands or wood blocks under the piece of tubing, you'd even have room for 3 stands.

 

[Nuje]

Yeah - if there's one complaint I have with the JackPoint stands, it's that they're fixed height, and not all that high. They get the tires off the ground well enough, but there's not a lot of extra room under there.

I watched the Renn Jack video....if I was buying again, I'd jump on those. A bit more hassle to put together, but the fact that you have height adjustability would offset that for me.

 

[Nuje]

I looked at the Jackpoint stands, which are really nice, but purchased stands from Safe Jack (the Renn Stand), mostly because...[they]... make it super easy just to do everything at the designated pinch weld
View attachment 111540

Did you stick with the stock pinch-weld cradle (18M-P04), or did you purchase the one they suggest for VW (18M-P11) on their website?

 

[hskrdu]

I went with only the pinch-weld adapter (18M-P04) since every car I'm routinely lifting is a VW with pinch weld jack points, and I wanted the ability to lift other cars at the pinch weld- just throw the Renn Stands in the trunk and take them to where the car work is being done. Since they break down into the lifting arm and two supporting legs, they take up very little space in the trunk (or GSW spare tire well), and although they aren't light, they are easily carried and not unwieldy. I debated for a long time about the different systems and investments, but up until COVID it wasn't a concern since I usually use the auto self-serve bays at military bases ($4 and hour for a lift). Once those went to temporary (but ongoing) closure, I re-looked at all the options, including some knock-offs of Safe Jack and a system similar (but inferior) to JackPoint. I would have loved a system like QuickJack, but the (sizeable) investment only helps at the site where it's located, and although with some effort you can move it, it's not really a portable system like the Renn Jacks. I also chose the Renn Jacks because (as we all know) the emergency VW jack is terrible, and IME, although it usually doesn't have a problem lifting a tire off the ground, it's completely unreliable the entire time one corner is up in the air. One Renn Jack in (her) car and one in mine means much more stability in flat tire situations (and using something other than the VW jack helps, too, of course).

I have a few "hockey puck" pads, and have the homemade wooden blocks with pinch channel that many owners have, but each of these didn't provide a system that I could move from MkIV to Mk7 to other pinch weld cars (the wooden blocks are sometimes too wide, too narrow, too long, etc.). I also bought the Renn Jacks when they were on a special sale- seems like a few times a year- for $99+/-, so that helped with the decision. As I said, despite the positive reviews and videos, I was skeptical, but they have good so far. They are not a perfect solution for all situations, but they will allow me to do 90% of what I need them for.

 

[Nuje]

$67USD for shipping to Canada (and just across the border from WA) - ugh!
You 'mericans need to get your COVID act together so the border can open up - my support of your economy has taken a serious downturn in the last five months.