What is best lift for the home garage? - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

biopete · #1 01-11-2011, 02:45 AM

Anyone know of the best lifts for the home garage? I'm building the garage so i need to design it with the lift in mind. The plan is to have one bay with the lift and 12 to 14 ft ceiling at the lowest point , and the other will have second story storage. I see there are several types -- 4 post with drive on ramps, two post with the arms that swing out , scissor lift, and mini scissor lift .

And what about those really big car ramps that are about 3 feet tall and you drive the whole car on it? I saw them outside a transmission shop.

I only have experience with a two post lift with arms that swing out. It could barely lift the suburban. It only got the wagon about 5 feet up. It was a little worn out i think. Anyway, it was great to work under. Lots of room. You could get at everything. Those seem like the best for getting at the whole car.

What about those scissor lifts? Can you work under them?

Can anyone recommend a good lift for the home mechanic?

ForcedInduction · #2 01-11-2011, 03:11 AM

2-post is the best all-around. They occupy little space, are cheap, make underside work very comfortable and can be easily installed/transported. The only down side is stability if you're moving heavy things like transmissions or engines.

Ramps consume a lot of space and make underside work cramped.
Scissors take up less space but make underside work very difficult and they're primarily for oil change, alignment, brake and tire shops.

Bonus with 2-post and ramps is you can store a second vehicle under another.

Stretch · #3 01-11-2011, 03:40 AM

You lucky lucky lucky...

...I'm jealous - I agree with the 2 post lift recommendation in post #2.

I think they are ideal just raise the car slightly - rock it a bit to make sure it won't slip off - and raise it further. Perfect.

vstech · #4 01-11-2011, 07:52 AM

keep in mind, if you get a lift with RUBBER feet, they need Serious inspections, before lifting a car. I've seen many cars fall off due to worn rubber ends.

Beastie · #5 01-11-2011, 10:37 AM

I had a lift at a house I rented many years ago, it was a 2 post setup and here is the scoop. make sure ( I believe all of them do now) the stops lock in place
automatically* and when working have 2-4 adjustable jack screw supports. These help keep the car stable when working on it.
(* my brother had a VW Scirocco at dealer. Overnight they lost power and MX had not secured the locks. He had however left the jacks in place on one side of the car. In the a.m. the car was lying on it's side on the floor)

mytimeyet · #6 01-11-2011, 10:38 AM

Endless discussion on lifts here:
http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/index.php
See you in a week... ;-)

Renntag · #7 01-11-2011, 10:58 AM

2 post list is the best. Hands down the most versatile.

2 questions:
What is your intent? (Service or extra parking?)
What is your budget?

Intent: (service) 2 post for primary, and for those lucky enough a drive on 4 post for the second lift.
(parking). nothing is easier than the drive on. No arms to set. ( granted if the same car is going up in the air every time, placing marks on the floor for car placement, and marks on the arms to duplicate position, this can be made easier).

Budget: You get what you pay for. an $8000 Rotary or Nussbaum of 8-10000# capacity will put a smile on your face everytime. (And easily dead lift the suburban).
There are $2000 lifts that wont do the burb and are "Home owner" grade units. In that price range, I'd buy a used Rotary or Nussbaum any day. ( I have a used Nussbaum ).
Searching for lifts can make your head spin. Another route to go is find someone in your area that services/sells lifts and pick their brain. They may be who you call for service down the road, and if you pick something that is hard to get parts for, you might be disappointed.

This is VERY affordable: (Under 1500 before freight)
http://www.eagleequip.com/page/EE/PROD/LI-ETP/MTP-9A

whunter · #8 01-11-2011, 11:04 AM

http://detroit.craigslist.org/search/sss?query=hoist&srchType=A&minAsk=&maxAsk=&s=100

whunter · #9 01-11-2011, 11:09 AM

car tipping hoist

whunter · #10 01-11-2011, 11:10 AM

http://www.google.com/search?q=portable+car+hoist&rls=com.microsoft:en-us&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&startIndex=&startPage=1&rlz=

http://www.google.com/images?q=portable+car+hoist&rls=com.microsoft:en-us&oe=UTF-8&startIndex=&startPage=1&rlz=&um=1&ie=UTF-8&source=og&sa=N&hl=en&tab=wi&biw=1260&bih=888

babymog · #11 01-11-2011, 01:42 PM

For versitility and ease of work, the 2-post is best.

For extra parking and quick lift / walk-under, fluid changes etc., the drive on ramp is convenient (but you must still use jacks on it to change tires/brakes/etc.).

Cr from Texas · #12 01-11-2011, 01:45 PM

I made this choice about 10 years ago and went with a low priced Eagle 4 post parking lift for less than $2,000. No problems. It does what I need for service (almost 6' under car for working). I can leave a car parked for an extended period of time without the suspension hanging (No data - but I decided that would not be good for the suspension). I can also slip on the caster set and roll the lift and parked car to another spot in the garage.

I'd agree a two post is better for a shop but as a homeowner and DIY'er, I've been pleased with the low cost 4 post. I can even slide in floor pieces and use it for overhead and easy access storage (two harleys are currently on the lift for winter - but easy to move when I need to do car work). Daily driver is parked under the harleys at night. BTW, I built the back garage with 12' ceilings to accomodate all this.

My good friend went with a two poster and has his project car stored on the lift. His wife parks under the project car -- or did until she bumped one of the posts several months ago and merged the project with her new car.

Carefully think about all the possible issues.

Stretch · #13 01-11-2011, 03:50 PM

I've seen four post lifts with a kind of two post lift attachment on them so you can get the wheels off whilst the car is on the lift. Does that combination work out cheaper than a two post lift?

smitherz · #14 01-11-2011, 08:08 PM

After following some of the links here I stumbled across this video. Yeah, it seems to be a bit of an ad but worrisome none the less. They don't say whose lift it is but looks very similar to one of the links I followed.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XLUjq6ijvVc

ForcedInduction · #15 01-11-2011, 09:50 PM

If you really want the best solution, look into mobile post lifts like Sefac. They adapt to any vehicle, give completely unobstructed underside access, can be used on any level surface and can be moved out of the way when not in use (very handy for floor cleaning). They can also lift 16,000lbs each.

Its pretty nice for a 6'4" like me to be able to walk upright under a bus.

Those are overkill for cars but I'm sure somebody makes a smaller variant.