Car Lift

Anyone purchase a lift to work on their car? What did you get and why?

Anyone purchase a lift to work on their car? What did you get and why?

We bought this one for our Miata's. It's a 4 post but is great for clutch,rear end work as well as all our alignments and scaling. We set the locks on the 4 posts so that the lift is perfectly level in the locked position for scaling etc. We do our brake work etc on our Quick Jack floor lift. Most of the time it stores our parts car up and out of the way and back our truck under it. We bought it in Atlanta, picked it up on our car trailer and assembled it ourselves. We didn't mount have to mount it permanently and it comes with brackets and casters so you can actually move it by hand around the shop. 

 

Here's a link  https://www.gregsmit...rage-Pro-8-000 

Some day I really need to visit somebody with one of these perfectly level 4-post lifts that can be used for accurately scaling & corner-balancing cars. It must be quite an impressive bit of engineering. Not that I’m skeptical or anything. You did at least mention it being in a locked position which does imply a chance of repeatability. How did you fine-adjust it to achieve true level?

Yea I have been looking at the quick jack. Seems like a great start for my garage. I like that I can still get under the car to do work on it. Figured brakes and suspension would be easier too.

Have a 2 post in my shop.  Bought it used for $1000.  Honestly the best car investment we could've made.  Every job is easier on the lift.

Some day I really need to visit somebody with one of these perfectly level 4-post lifts that can be used for accurately scaling & corner-balancing cars. It must be quite an impressive bit of engineering. Not that I’m skeptical or anything. You did at least mention it being in a locked position which does imply a chance of repeatability. How did you fine-adjust it to achieve true level?

The lock plates have a long adjusting bolt on the top of each leg so it can be adjusted level in the locked position.   

The lock plates have a long adjusting bolt on the top of each leg so it can be adjusted level in the locked position.

Cool. People typically underestimate just how sensitive it is when playing with corner weights. For example, let’s say you show exactly 50% cross. Later you re-check level and learn that the RF and LR are exactly level to each other but actually 1/16” low compared to the other two. Your actual cross is about 50.7%. Absolute level of each scale is also necessary if you want to be spot on. If they are at least close that’s more important for a higher level of repeatability than absolute accuracy, but I’ve found it worth getting right. What if anything are you using for a slip surface to unload tire and bushing bind?

Have a 2 post in my shop. Bought it used for $1000. Honestly the best car investment we could've made. Every job is easier on the lift.

I’d love to get a 2 post. I have the height but I worry about having to walk around the posts in my 2 car garage. I have all my tools and tables around the perimeter of the garage and the car goes in the middle.

4 post is great for storing two cars if you have the ceiling height for it.  Only time I wish I had a two post when I need to do any work on a specific wheel.  It's not a problem to jack up that wheel while on the lift though. Great to have a lift and would hate to live without one since I've been spoiled now!

Cool. People typically underestimate just how sensitive it is when playing with corner weights. For example, let’s say you show exactly 50% cross. Later you re-check level and learn that the RF and LR are exactly level to each other but actually 1/16” low compared to the other two. Your actual cross is about 50.7%. Absolute level of each scale is also necessary if you want to be spot on. If they are at least close that’s more important for a higher level of repeatability than absolute accuracy, but I’ve found it worth getting right. What if anything are you using for a slip surface to unload tire and bushing bind?

I bounce the car, then roll it off the scale a couple of feet (I have flat ramps) back and forth 2-3 times. Repeatability is spot on as I've tested that with no changes. When checking front caster, 2 flat floor tiles (under all 4 wheels to keep car flat) with a sheet of wax paper sandwiched between allows me to turn the wheels friction free. 

I bounce the car, then roll it off the scale a couple of feet (I have flat ramps) back and forth 2-3 times. Repeatability is spot on as I've tested that with no changes. When checking front caster, 2 flat floor tiles (under all 4 wheels to keep car flat) with a sheet of wax paper sandwiched between allows me to turn the wheels friction free.

I haven’t tried the wax paper thing, typically the trash bag method in a pinch, which isn’t great. I’ll keep that in mind.

My two post lift (Bend Pak Assymetric, wide) is by far the best garage investment I've ever made. I think I got it for $1999 delivered and had two neighbors help me install it. My days of crawling around under a car on jack stands are long gone.

What size garage do you have? I just have a standard 2 car. Worried about space

Just moved but it was in a single by garage. Only problem was that I could not walk around the outside of the posts but you will not have that problem. Ceiling needs to be 12' for a clear floor model, of you can punch it into the attic which was what I did.

I have a Maxjax and it did what I needed it to at the time (portable, easy to move out of the way).  Drawbacks are it only lifts about 42 inches making certain things hard.

 

I bought a used lift ($500), an old ('70's), 2-post with the lower cable routing (I don't like that but overhead height I had was low.  Factor in another $385 for seals and another $100 for fluid and I'm around $1000, not too far off the price of a cheap new one. BUT - the older lifts were built heavy duty.  Even though it's 'only' a 7,000 lb lift the lift arms are 1" thick.  Even the newer 10k lifts aren't that beefy.

Some day I really need to visit somebody with one of these perfectly level 4-post lifts that can be used for accurately scaling & corner-balancing cars. It must be quite an impressive bit of engineering. Not that I’m skeptical or anything. You did at least mention it being in a locked position which does imply a chance of repeatability. How did you fine-adjust it to achieve true level?

Each corner has lock plates that are like giant slotted uprights. They hang from the top with a big threaded bolt. Once locked in it is very repeatable. Then put weight on the lift with the car and place a lazer rotating level just behind the front wheel and make sure all wheels corners match. If they do not adjust nut on the big threaded bolts for whatever corner needed to get level. Each time I did an alignment I would confirm again, but it was very repeatable

Each corner has lock plates that are like giant slotted uprights. They hang from the top with a big threaded bolt. Once locked in it is very repeatable. Then put weight on the lift with the car and place a lazer rotating level just behind the front wheel and make sure all wheels corners match. If they do not adjust nut on the big threaded bolts for whatever corner needed to get level. Each time I did an alignment I would confirm again, but it was very repeatable

OK, it sounds like it’s better than I visualized. I’m just very meticulous on this for corner weights and can’t begin to tell you how many times I’ve seen people setting scales in a way they assumed to be “good enough” without grasping how sensitive it really is.