Datsun Roadster Forum-311s.org

I've been advised to swap the stock jack in the trunk to something else. Should I go with a 2-ton bottle or scissor? It seems like the scissor would be more stable. Bottle would save space ... thoughts?

The main point is to NEVER, EVER, EVER attempt to use the stock jack. At best you'll damage your paint, at worst you'll kill somebody.
How these things ever got to market (along with Bumper Jacks!) is beyond me. Get whatever you are comfortable with to use to change a tire in an emergency, and never to get under the car. I like a scissor jack for weight and space. I wrapped it in an inner tube and stick it in the fender well. I leave the factory jack in place for looks, but nothing else.
Off soapbox.

Can we even get a bottle jack under the frame rails with a flat tire?
At any rate, notoptoy is correct; anything but the ‘farm jack’!

Personally, I have a scissor jack tucked away in a cradle and secured with a wing nut to prevent it from adding to the rattles of the car. Whatever works best for you.

Thanks for the feedback.

Just so I'm clear NoTopToy ... NEVER, EVER, NEVER..EVER? EVER?

Scissor jack it is...and I'll be leaving the factory one at home...'cause looks don't matter much to me at this point

RP

notoptoy wrote: Fri Oct 01, 2021 12:12 pm The main point is to NEVER, EVER, EVER attempt to use the stock jack. At best you'll damage your paint, at worst you'll kill somebody.
How these things ever got to market (along with Bumper Jacks!) is beyond me. Get whatever you are comfortable with to use to change a tire in an emergency, and never to get under the car. I like a scissor jack for weight and space. I wrapped it in an inner tube and stick it in the fender well. I leave the factory jack in place for looks, but nothing else.
Off soapbox.

DOT was more concerned with deadly blinding interior chrome.

Has anyone adapted any other jack to use the stock lift tubes under the door sills or is that ill advised also? I have no idea how that would work but maybe some crazy person has done it.

I have a scissor jack hose clamped to the jack mount in my trunk. And my jackholes (heh heh he said "jackholes") are welded shut in my rockers. That was one uncharacteristicly bad piece of engineering on these cars.

Ralph wrote: Fri Oct 01, 2021 12:50 pm Thanks for the feedback.

Just so I'm clear NoTopToy ... NEVER, EVER, NEVER..EVER? EVER?

Scissor jack it is...and I'll be leaving the factory one at home...'cause looks don't matter much to me at this point

RP

By Jiminy, I think he's got it!

These jack pads are available for early Porsche’s. You can put a floor or bottle jack under them. A bottle jack might be a little iffy unless you had a way to keep it from slipping, which could easily be accomplished. They work very well with a floor jack, and with a different shank they could work for the Roadsters as well.
Bumper jacks were the norm in the 60’s and there is no way a Roadster bumper is strong enough to work with a bumper jack, so maybe Datsun thought it was better to dent the door instead of killing the owner
https://www.pelicanparts.com/More_Info/ ... w0QAvD_BwE

That look s interesting to me, we need to find out more about the shank size dimensions. Maybe a call is in order, to ask them about it. Maybe just the corners of the square shank needs to be rounded out a little with a grinder.

The shank is 7/8 X 7/8 by 4 1/4 long. It is solid bar stock, so it could easily be ground down to fit. A 1/2” deep ring ( piece of pipe) a little bigger diameter than the top of your bottle jack could be welded to the bottom to keep the jack from slipping on the pad. Works fine as is with a floor jack due to the way they lift.

You're right, I just measured the jack hole and it looks like the 7/8" x 7/8" shank would only need a minimum amount of grinding work to make it fit....interesting...

The link looks to be the better price on the Porsche Jack Pad. Pelican is in Canada? Also there is a listing on eBay $25, but nearly $19 shipping.

http://www.autoatlanta.com/Porsche-Renn ... -RT01.html

Still, even with that accessory, I would not use this hole myself, nor on up 90% of the roadsters out there. There is just no telling how much rust might be there or the structural integrity of the assembly. I stick with the advice to avoid using the holes and just use a scissor jack on the frame for road emergencies, and a floor and pin jacks for all other work of a less emergent nature (or a lift!).

The early VW Beetle had similar lift tubes under the running boards, among the first areas where rust and rot appeared. The tell of a lift tube failure was the running board rising, denting the bottom of the door, as the car stayed put.