From the Potentially Stupid Question department
 

I have an '03 Boxster recently acquired and it is easily the nicest car I have ever owned so I am trying to be extra careful and diligent with it.. I set out to perform my first oil change after having briefed myself on jacking technique from the 1010 Projects book.

I was seeking the center rail near the front of the car to raise it in order to insert the jack stands. It seems that rail is covered by a plastic pan making it quite difficult to discern the proper location of the rail.

So the potentially stupid question is-am I missing something obvious here?

The book and a couple of youTube videos on the subject do not show this panel so I am posting here for some guidance.

Thank you

You must have a different book from the rest of us because Wayne published 101 projects :). You do not want to follow his instructions in diagram 1 with the yellow arrow to jack up your car. This will bend that area for sure. That's why other books and youtube videos do not show it. If you're doing an oil change you can jack up the rear suspension mounting point shown in his diagram 2 and place jacks on the rear. You don't need to have the vehicle jack up in all four points for this. A briefing on how to safely jack up your vehicle isn't enough. Make sure you practice safety precautions and have several supports while underneath the car. Don't rely on just jack stands or a jack to support your vehicle.

I bought a set of Lift Bars a couple of years ago and haven't looked back since. They are pricey, but rock solid. Liftbars

You can jack one side of the car up with the rear jack mount point. Then place your stands under the car. The regular Y yoke stands do not naturally fit under the OEM points. Some people spring for the flat top stands. The car sits nicely on top of those. Again, they are not cheap. https://www.pelicanparts.com/catalog/ShopCart/TOOL/POR_TOOL_ESCOjs-detail.htm

However you do it, always have something extra as a backup, i.e. wheels, jack, wood blocks. Safe travels and wrenching.

Thank you for the pointers. I am somewhat relieved that apparently I am not crazy or hallucinating about the chassis representations!

In the "more good news" area- I got a Call from Harbor Freight this morning informing me that the jack stands I purchased have been recalled!:ah:

It's better to find out now about the safety issue than when it fails on you. You will want a low profile jack as a standard jack won't clear it without you having to roll over something like a wooden plank. Low profile jacks tend to cost more.

There is an entire thread on here about those recalled hf stands. Being a carpenter I always go with the solid wood blocking methods that 4 Post lift is looking better all the time I could store my boat under the car all winter. Please don't use cement blocks they can fail unexpectedly. Always have a back up

Potentially?

I’ve had some minor disagreements with recommendations made in the 101 Projects book (based, necessarily, on research I’ve done on the matter in question—I’ve not been wrenching on cars since I was a kid like some of the folks on this board), but I’m not sure I agree with your assessment regarding the front jacking point Wayne uses. The one with the yellow arrow.

This guy seems to like it, and it’s pretty clear he’s done lots of work on his Boxster (up to and including IMS bearing replacement), much of it requiring jacking:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fDA-qI5HsIU

I would definitely go along with his suggestion that a hockey puck (or similar) be utilized if that spot is used for jacking. Aside from that, it seems he’s used that location repeatedly without problems.

Frodo, John makes great videos on how to maintain his wife's Boxster. My favorite is his coolant flush done the old school way. I can see why you're not sure you agree with me. Let me explain.

I think there's been some confusion on what I said about the yellow arrow so let me clarify. I am not saying do not use the right reinforce steel part of the frame in the front.

What I am saying is do not use the point where the yellow arrow is pointed (line indentation) at in the 101 Book if that makes sense? That part is not strong and it will bend. For those that haven't watched John's video, he clearly states the front of the reinforce steel part. Brian Minson recently video also shows you about this as well. AsXDoesStuff is the first video I watched on how to jack up my Boxster as he shows you how to use the scissor jacks with a low profile jack.


But in general, watch Neil's way of jacking up the car. I like to use the rear jack stand points to jack up my front than the reinforce bar in the front because I don't have enough clearance room because of my bulky jack.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=La6i3TwMB8k

For oil changes, just get yourself a pair of Rhino ramps (or similar) and back it up on the ramps. Piece of cake. They only rise about 6" or so, so you will get the oil out. I just did my oil and filter (and trans-axle at a different time) on my ramps and got over 9 quarts out. Plenty of room and safe.

Gotcha. Makes sense.
We just interpreted how to 'read the arrow' differently. I read it as indicating that whole rectangular area in front of the indentation you refer to.
And yeah, I think I've watched most if not all the How to Jack Up Your Boxster vids. :D

Yup, for oil changes that's what I do. I have the advantage of having part of my driveway sloped a bit. I start with the front of the car uphill and back onto my ramps. When I do it right, the car ends up perfectly level. And? I've done it a bunch of times over 14 years...I always 'do it right' anymore. :D

You can't get all the old oil out unless the car is level.

Quickjacks are much better than ramps and jack stands. They are also super fast to deeply. I have not looked back since I got mine.

I went with the Quickjack units also. The factory occasionally has refurbed sets available and they are about 25% cheaper.

Yup, I love my quickJacks (don't buy from Northern to though..... they suck a$$.

Sent from my SM-G970U using Tapatalk

I do the same thing. I guess great minds think alike :cheers:

That's what they say.
And I'm not inclined to argue with them. :rolleyes:

I used to do oil changes on a sloped driveway. Drive the back of the car up the ramps and the car was level. And the extra height made sliding in under the car extra easy.

Very punny :cheers: