UPDATED: How To Jack Up Your S2000
[EDIT: Seeing the informative responses received on this post, I thought it best to update the article with reader comments. Please see them below in bolded text and tip of the hat to rob.ok and Legal Bill.]
rob.ok says
” Use the official jack points dictated by the service manual, not the frame rails / sub frame. Secondly, you guys have missed the most important part of the entire process. It is standard procedure to check the jack stands for stability by aggressively shaking the car. If you hear any squeaks, cracks, pops, or other strange noises, readjust the jack stands before crawling under the car. If the car is going to fall……..well I think you get the point…you don’t want to be under it, so test it first.”
Legal Bill says
“I will only place the jack stands at the point on the frame rails where two sections of frame overlap. This point occurs on either side of the car at both the front end, just behind the front wheels and at the back end, just ahead of the rear wheels. If you look closely at the floor frame rails, you will see that there is a six inch section where the floor frame rails overlaps the front end and rear end frame sections. This double thick area is clearly the strongest section of the frame and offers a nice, flat surface to place the saddle of your jack stands. It also offers a point where you left and right side jack stand will contact the respective sides of the frame at the same height and location, resulting in a rock solid, level placement of the jacked vehicle.”
The fact that we lost our member Smirfs2K05 (Paul Flores) last week, got me thinking. If an unfortunate accident could befall an experienced tech like Paul, then it may be a good time for all of us to review jack points on the S2000 as a safety precursor.
S2KI is a great resource containing several DIY guidelines that spell out in detail how one can work on her/his car. There is no doubt that several (if not most) of our members are experts at working on the car, but seeing how we are getting newer and younger members everyday, it may be helpful for all of us to review jack points on an S2000.
The Honda Owners manual tells us that there are four jack points on the car. There are two points behind the front wheels under the doors and two points in front of the rear wheels that can be used to jack the car and get a jack stand under.
The Factory Service Manual (NOT TO BE CONFUSED WITH THE OWNERS MANUAL) also has some additional information on front and rear mounting points. Should any of you be seriously considering working on the car then investing in a Factory Service Manual may be a good idea. As you can see in the image below the Factory Service Manual is very detailed and is a great resource for the aspiring DIYer.
Now that you’ve reviewed the images, here is my summation of a “best procedure to jack up your S2000“thread I reviewed on our S2000 talk forum, and I suggest you review this as well.
1. Invest in four 2X10″ wood planks.
2. Drive your car onto the wood planks (one under each tire). This will give you enough clearance to use a floor jack to raise your car.
3. ENSURE that you leave your car in gear, and pull the e brake firmly to prevent the car from moving.
4. Chock the wheels resting on the ground. Place chocks in front of the front wheels if raising the rear and behind the rear wheels if you are raising the front of the car.
5. If you need to get the whole car onto jack stands, MAKE SURE YOU RAISE THE FRONT FIRST. Raising the back will angle the nose of the car lower to the ground and getting your floor jack under may damage paint.
6. Now that you have raised your car, set the jack stands at the recommended points (the four corners adjacent to the wheels) as described in your owners manual.
Use the above information and any and all information in the threads mentioned as a guideline to safely raise and lower your car. Remember there is no one perfect way to raising and lowering your car. It could differ based on the equipment and skill level you possess. Consult any manuals you may have or seek the counsel of someone that is experienced with working on an S2000. More importantly when working on your car, please ensure that someone knows your whereabouts and that they keep an eye on you. If you are doing this the first-time do it under the watchful eye of an experienced member and let her/him show you the ropes.
As much as we are a community that loves and enjoys driving the S2000, please remember that your safety is paramount.
Images courtesy of Jason B, ruexp67 and moparacker.
NOTE: S2KI welcomes the opinions of its members on the S2000 and on all topics related to the S. Should you feel the creative urge to pen a few words then by all means do so and PM Energetic, Aashish2 or Onehots2k OR send us links to what you would like us to write about and we will feature you (or your community) on the S2KI Home Page.