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How to use a floor jack & stands with a Tesla

PanozPanoz
edited November -1 in Model S
I've looked through the owner's manual and YouTube to see how to put a Model S on jack stands, and I don't see how it's done. I would like to know if you can lift a Model S with a floor jack, then rest it on jack stands to rotate the tires. The manual says you can ONLY lift the car from 4 points, so unless there's a frame rail to put a lift under, you can't use jack stands, correct?
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Comments

  • jordanrichard_629778jordanrichard_629778
    edited November -1
    I wouldn't try jacking up the car.

    Though it has always been a dilemma when it comes to jacking a car. The place where a manual tells you to lift the car by is also where you are supposed to put the floor jacks.....

    Many times I would place the jack stand on the subframe mount. However, the underside of the MS is sealed up. If you are too far from a Tesla service center, any tire shop can do it, just be absolutely sure they use the jack pads that are in place.

    With a car weighing 1500 lbs more than the average car, I would not want to mess with it.
  • brewsterbrewster
    edited November -1
    Jackpoint Jackstands would probably do the job.

  • cephellowcephellow
    edited November -1
    Its been posted before. Special jack stands are available that allow you to do this, fits around floor jack with a customized top puck. Pricey.
    I CNC'd some interlock plates that work with my floorjacks to eliminate the need for these.
  • PanozPanoz
    edited November -1
    Well, JordanRichard, that bites. I wanted to rotate my own Tesla tires. And I am quite a ways from the local SC, darn it. I am not an owner, I'm trying to figure out all this stuff before I buy one.

    Darn it.
  • cephellowcephellow
    edited November -1
    yep - Brewster found them....
  • GaryREM.va.usGaryREM.va.us
    edited November -1
    "The manual says you can ONLY lift the car from 4 points,..."

    I don't see that in my manual.

    I've jacked my car up to get a tire repaired. No issues.

    Recommendations have been made for http://www.jackpointjackstands.com which look great!
  • GaryREM.va.usGaryREM.va.us
    edited November -1
    Jeez you guys are fast with answers...
  • PanozPanoz
    edited November -1
    Page 132 of the manual online shows 4 and only four jack points. What am I missing?
  • jordanrichard_629778jordanrichard_629778
    edited November -1
    Somebody should design a floor jack that ratchets as it goes up. This way the floor jack can be a jack stand too.

    Panoz, also keep in mind that despite the manual saying to rotate the tires every 5K, your tires may not need it that often. My service center measures the tread depth first, to see if a rotation is needed.

    Again, you can take it to any garage to get the tires rotated, when needed.
  • bishbish
    edited November -1
    @Panoz,

    I use 2 floor jacks to rotate my tires, No need for Jack stands, I rotate 1 side at a time. Just make sure that you never put yourself under the car. You can put a block of wood under a suspension point for extra safety.
    I have rotated my tires on all of my cars for 30 years. I would not recommend doing it for the first time on a Tesla.

    But those jackpoint stands look pretty cool.
  • PanozPanoz
    edited November -1
    After having damage to both of my "exotic" cars by local mechanics, I was really hoping to rotate the tires myself. Having a Tesla would SURELY invite mechanic test drives!

    Dang it.

    And I like the locking floor jack idea.
  • jordanrichard_629778jordanrichard_629778
    edited November -1
    They would have no justification to drive the car, just for a tire rotation. Put the car in valet mode as added insurance.
  • cephellowcephellow
    edited November -1
    @jordanrichard- Somebody should design a floor jack that ratchets as it goes up
    -that is what my modified floor jacks do....
    I will not share the design however, since I want no liability but my own....
  • PanozPanoz
    edited November -1
    @bish - you live life on the edge. The floor jack I bought came with an audio recording of a dozen lawyers screaming "don't leave the car on the jack!". Didn't yours?
  • PanozPanoz
    edited November -1
    Having a Tesla out of your sight will always invite test drives, I would imagine.
  • PanozPanoz
    edited November -1
    So what did you guys do before Valet mode? Sit and watch your car at a mechanic?
  • jordanrichard_629778jordanrichard_629778
    edited November -1
    My Tesla has always been serviced by Tesla, except once and that was for a tire repair. Had a slow air leak which turned out to be a nail. Tesla does not allow the service centers to repair tires, so I took it to the shop I use for my other cars. The drove it around back, plugged the tire and drove back up front.
  • HaggyHaggy
    edited November -1
    I've rotated my tires on other cars until I got the Tesla, but considering what Tesla charges, I can't see why I wouldn't want them to do it for me. It might be different if I lived farther away.

    I don't think it's beyond the means of owners to go to a tire shop and have them use their lift, but for those who do their own work it comes down to the idea of not doing something that you should be able to do easily.
  • FlatSix911FlatSix911
    edited November -1
    Yes, I hang out at the tire shop ...
  • Pungoteague_DavePungoteague_Dave
    edited November -1
    My lift system has a jack system for further lifting the wheels off the ramps. Works great on the MS - there are four points to put it under. This system is around $5k IIRC:

    <img src=https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-R1Jg0TcSPic/VawMThXOePI/AAAAAAAAEnQ/6Fy_vg9-48Y/s640-Ic42/IMG_0674.JPG width=600>
  • Pungoteague_DavePungoteague_Dave
    edited November -1
    a couple closer shots of supporting the car:

    <img src=https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-0Xv3_pwGZCo/VawNlXNB7PI/AAAAAAAAEng/_21uT8Ifz6s/s1152-Ic42/Hitch%252028.jpg width=600>


    <img src=https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-QACtABHgnKo/VawNenLyNCI/AAAAAAAAEnY/1Tqcwfq5pZc/s1152-Ic42/Hitch%252025.jpg width=600>
  • PanozPanoz
    edited November -1
    Dave! I'll be right over for a tire rotation and oil change.
  • KutuKutu
    edited November -1
    I live over 150 miles from the nearest SC. I use the Jackpoint jackstand to rotate my own tires. Additionally, doing it myself gives me the chance to easily clean the inside of the wheels and wheel wells.
  • PanozPanoz
    edited November -1
    i wouldn't think the jackpoint stands lifted the car high enough to rotate the tires.
  • jbunn_25716jbunn_25716
    edited November -1
    I've typically rotated tires by placing the floor jack under the lower control arm right behind the tire. The jack is only lifted enough to clear the tire from the ground by 1/4 inch.

    Saves a ton of jacking, does not lift or tilt the car, and the lower control arm is designed to take that stress all day, every day.
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