Proper way of jacking up the car
 

1991 325i coupe.


I'm confused as to where in front of the vehicle I can use to lift the car.

There is a location that seems like a good spot, but it's part of the fender and they're already misshapened due to prior lifts.

Doc,
These spots should be marked. I any case, I do not think that it is at the end of the fenders - it should be closer to the front seats of the car.
I typically do not use the factory jack - I go with a hydraulic one, underneath the sub-frame.

On a related note, the jack points on my car have vertical holes that look like they are made for a special jack adapter. I've seen jack adapters for sale for newer BMWs that have horizontal holes, but not for the E30s. Anyone know anything about this?

The jack adapter that is being mentioned here is for those hydraulic jacks that have a large circular pad but, I believe the question is: "Where can you jack up the car from the front?" I've heard that it's Ok to jack up a 3 series in the area just beyond the oil pan but, I don't know if that is a safe place.
My 328IS is lowered and a jack of any type will no go in straight from the front. I end up having to jack it up at the BMW assigned plug that uses the adapter. Once the car is up in the air, I slde in a jack stand and lower the car. I then go to the other side and do the same. It's a pain to do it this way but, I don't want to risk os crushing something in the front middle of my car just beyond the oil pan.

Pop out the plastic tab on the side skirt. The tow hook in your trunk tool kit should fit in this hole.

There is a hole on the frame about a foot from the fender well. That is where I place my hydraulic jack. Do not place near the fender well. The metal between the Jack point and fender will break, the car will fall, and the jack will fold your fender.