Does it matter where you put a car jack on the pinch weld?
Vehicle pinch welds often look identical across their length, making it hard to tell why specific notched areas are designated as official jacking points. Placing a jack slightly off from these marks risks bending or damaging the metal because the frame may not be reinforced to handle the vehicle's weight in other spots.
What the numbers show
Counted from the threads quoted below. How we count
- This comes up 13.3× more often in r/AskMechanics than across the site as a whole.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
Found another way around this?
Share your steps and trade-offs so fellow engineers don't have to reinvent the wheel. No account required.
- 1guessing where to place the jackDid this help you?
- 2relying on factory manual notch markersDid this help you?
- 3Look up model-specific jacking points online and compare sourcesDid this help you?
- 4Buy car rampsDid this help you?
- 5Jack on the sides at designated pinch weld locationsDid this help you?
- 6Using the suspension bolt-up pointsDid this help you?
- 7Jacking directly on the subframeDid this help you?
- 8Jacking up one side near the pinch weld, placing the stand, and repeating on the other sideDid this help you?
- 9Searching for alternative frame locations or pinch welds to lift the vehicleDid this help you?
- 10Looking for a pinch weld puck or substitute padsDid this help you?
- 11Asking for advice on online forums by posting pictures of potential lift pointsDid this help you?
- 12Inspecting the frame for solid metal versus crushable areas or plasticDid this help you?
- 13Placing wood between the stand and the pinch weldDid this help you?
- 14Using alternative structural points like trailing arm connections or boxed unibody frame sectionsDid this help you?
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“Is this an ok spot on a 2011 camry? I have jack stands, just double checking if I'm good to crank it”source ↗
“I am starting to get a bit weary about continuing to use them… I am planning on getting another vehicle once this next winter season is over, but I have to have rear brakes done soon, so I need to see where else I can place jackstands aside from the rear pinch tabs.”source ↗
“I was going to change my oil but I’m having questions on where to put my jack and jack stands.”source ↗
“The first picture is where I think I’m supposed to jack it but it has been destroyed.”source ↗
“I think I see it but I also don’t have a puck. And I’m assuming not having a puck is the reason the rest of the rail is all bent. I wanted to get this done today but no stores near me have the puck. Is there anywhere else I could jack?”source ↗
“I was looking at it a little closer and could not differentiate between this area and elsewhere on the pinch weld: it doesn't look like there's extra material or different layers between those two notches, there's nothing on the back-side, etc.”source ↗
“If I placed the scissor jack 5" to the left or right on the pinch weld where it looks exactly the same, would anything really be different? Why is this the recommended spot?”source ↗
“Noob question, but can I use either one of these points that are highlighted to jack up my car.”source ↗
“I need to lift the front of the car to do some maintenance.”source ↗
“I’m not sure what the best method is if I want to place jack stands on those points.”source ↗
“Where should I position the floor jack so that I can lift the car and then place the jack stands safely?”source ↗
“Is there a safe central front jacking point on this model, or can I jack up one side near the pinch weld, place the stand, and then repeat on the other side?”source ↗
Where this came up
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