bent rail behind front wheel

[mpg_junkie]

Hi all,

I have just discovered the rail that runs under the car (along where you jacking up at the front and back) has got bent just behind the front wheel. I got new front tyres last week and I suspect the technician jacked it up too far forward and flattened the rail/fin on the left hand side and warped the plastic shield (no point in complaining to the garage, I will get a "that wasn't us mate").

My question is what is the chance of water ingress? My last car had water ingress (wet carpets) as did the previous car. I have owned my Yaris for 4 years and no wet carpets to date but this damage has me nervous. Anyone with technical knowledge know if this area is likely to cause me issue?

[Colourd]

Jesus, unbelievable

 Name and shame

[mpg_junkie]

Family run business in Coleraine, generally very nice to deal with but the guy I got had an attitude problem when taking the keys and asking for the lock nut, but was all nice when giving back the keys (now I know why).

[catnash]

Just get it repaired to maintain the rustproofing.  I had a wheel refurb guy that did similar on my Auris... couldn't prove it though.  My local mechanic who does car restoration fixed it for £20.  And only a few weeks ago a small chip was caused. A Toyota Dealer in Cardiff.  Does annoy me that mechanics can be hit and miss with jacking cars.

[m456an]

Maybe you should have painted the jacking points with a big x. I used tyresonthedrive with my focus I was impressed they did all 4 tyres on the pavement. Maybe sill jacking points are more stable.

[Mooly]

AA mobile fitters used air cushions to do the lifting on my Auris. Very impressed all round with the service.

[craggle]

It's the use of trolley jacks that does it.

Trolley jacks are designed to go under a car and lift on the axle or chassis, not just under the sill of a car. Trolley jacks have a round pad and not the proper slotted seat that interfaces with the car sill so when you use one, they always get bent. 

I use a trolley jack on my cars but jack on the head of the bolt holding the subframe on, circled red in the attached image. Very strong point on the car and no chances of bending that.  At the rear I jack under the coil spring seat on the axle so you only have to lift the car a couple of inches and the wheel is off the ground.

When this happened on my partners Yaris hybrid I just straightened it out myself with pliers. The metal is really quite soft and comes back to shape very easily. If the paint does get damaged touch it in with a spray of black paint and it will be fine. Don't go spending hundreds getting it repaired as the next time you get tyres, you'll be doing it again.

Craig.

 

[mpg_junkie]

I am gravitating towards a home repair (plyers and some sort of touch-up spray) as I hope to keep the car for another few years and the next garage might do the same.

I guess the remaining issue is whether there is any chance of water ingress from this area - I don't have a good enough appreciation of how Toyota manufacture their chassis to know what a compromised seam in this area would do long term in UK climates.

[hubrad]

I use the normal jacking points, visible in the pic where the two notches are in the seam. On my Corolla there's a little triangle on the sill to point you at them.

To get round the op problem, I made a wooden pad with a notch deeper than the seam, so the support is either side of the seam. Used it successfully for ages. Once lifted, I always use axle stands for safety.

[Mick F]

In all my years of DIY fixing and maintaining cars, I've never used the bodywork to jack the car up.  Always use a chassis member or a suspension strut or similar.  Where the subframes mount on the underbody are generally good places. There's usually a big solid nut to locate the trolley jack onto.

Not looked under our Yaris yet, but I have tried the Toyota jack at the correct jacking points to see how it worked.  The car is still under warranty, so I ain't touching nowt.  It's due for a service and MOT next month, so Mr Toyota can sort it. 

Mick.

 

[monkeydave]

the jacking points on the yaris are pathetic and so dissapointing especially when using a trolly jack, my honda jazz had thick pieces of metal welded in for jack points and they didnt rust either

if you want to spray over it and you dont want to use paint use Hammerite underbody seal it is amazing stuff i have used before

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Hammerite-HAM6711408-600ml-Underbody-Aerosol/dp/B002HMXTSY