Car Lifts - Recommendations

[Cyberprog]

Hi All,

Does anyone have any recommendations for car lifts? I'm looking at re-building my double garage next year, and it's time to start planning things before going for planning permission. The main thing that will define how the structure is designed will be the choice of car lift, so I need to start looking at those.

I'm interested in a 4-post lift (as I'm into land rovers) so any manufacturers to look at - and stay away from! Would be appreciated.

Cheers!

[Auntieroll]

I can personally reccomend the older Bradbury 4 posters, they have a heavy duty wheel free system which is ideal for servicing, they were built to last and pulleys,ropes etc; ,if needed should be available, the safety device in the hopefully unlikely event of a rope failure engages after a very short drop (5/16" was the figure quoted to me by one of the plant inspectors ).
The only drawback is the size, they are rather large, being intended for garage workshops and the like.
The load capacity is IIRC 2 1/2 tons so a landy would pose no problem.
HTH..

[RichD1]

I bought a mid rise scissor lift from these guys and found it a very solid well made piece of kit. They are all available with 240v.

http://www.automotechservices.co.uk/product-catego...

Richard

[t400ble]

RichD1 said:

I bought a mid rise scissor lift from these guys and found it a very solid well made piece of kit. They are all available with 240v.

http://www.automotechservices.co.uk/product-catego...

Richard

Another vote for them as well

[MDMA .]

Rotary 4 poster. Other imitators are available. Got our workshop one from here :
http://www.dmfwakefield.co.uk/

Edited by MDMA . on Friday 15th January 18:40

[voicey]

t400ble said:

RichD1 said:

I bought a mid rise scissor lift from these guys and found it a very solid well made piece of kit. They are all available with 240v.

http://www.automotechservices.co.uk/product-catego...

Richard

Another vote for them as well

I'm about to order one on Monday as well. A couple of friends have them and they are ace.

[Cyberprog]

RichD1 said:

I bought a mid rise scissor lift from these guys and found it a very solid well made piece of kit. They are all available with 240v.

http://www.automotechservices.co.uk/product-catego...

Richard

Cheers, will take a look at their 4-posters. Mid-Rise isn't an option though, due to the size of the vehicle

[Steve H]

I've got a two poster from them, very good value.

[Cyberprog]

Indeed, seems that way. I may splash the extra cash on an alignment lift given it's only a couple of hundred more quid.

[jetbox]

Can anyone post a pic of a mid rise scissor lift in action with a car on. I am interested in one of these.

What are they like from an ease of use perspective? Does it lift the wheel or the chassis?

Thanks

[Cyberprog]

jetbox said:

Can anyone post a pic of a mid rise scissor lift in action with a car on. I am interested in one of these.

What are they like from an ease of use perspective? Does it lift the wheel or the chassis?

Thanks

If you look on the link above you can see it - they tend to lift the chassis between the wheels. I don't like them myself, I think they make it too hard to get at the underside.
A 2-post lift provides maximum access, while a 4-post can block somewhat, but tend to have a trolley jack that runs between the ramps to allow the wheels to be lifted off also.

[voicey]

My Automotech 7530 scissor lift arrived today. A big concern for me was if I was going to be able to re-route the hydraulic and air hoses to the other side - I wanted them on the other corner of the ramp due to where I wanted to site the control box. When I spoke to Automotech they told me it wasn't possible but I didn't believe them - my back up was to extend the hoses so I went ahead and ordered anyway.

First step was to connect it all up and fill with oil. I lifted the ramp up a little so I could get to the hydraulic rams.



I then disconnected the air and hydraulic hoses from the ramp and let the oil drain into a container. At this point the ramp is held in place with the manual safety locks.



I disconnected the hoses at the rams.



And them pulled them all through.



The hoses were then fed through from the other side starting with the air lines. I fished them through the holes using a pick. They were then connected up to the ramp.



Then I was able to reconnect the control unit



And all working well. Just need to get it off the pallets and into position!

[Hereward]

This is my lift. You can't really tell from the pic but access is pretty good. You need to be on your knees so I replaced the picnic rug with foam tiles from Halfords - much warmer and more comfortable. Of course you could always lower it and lie flat on your back.

Note the rubber blocks on the jacking points. Car is an E39 BMW. Access to the sills is restricted by this type of lift but suspension/brake/engine/exhaust access is excellent all round.

At some point I will slide it all over to the other bay of my garage so the hydraulic hose is out of harm's way.




Edit: I should also add that although the unit has pneumatic safety catches, it's always worth using axle stands or blocks of wood to prevent a fatality if the whole thing fails with a person underneath.

Edited by Hereward on Saturday 23 January 09:06

Edited by Hereward on Saturday 23 January 09:08

[DKL]

I'd go with a 4 poster, there are plenty on ebay for sensible money but a single phase one helps!
The only issue with the Bradbury ones is that it has a post that rises with the ramp so ends up being 12' tall which usually means through your roof!

[Cyberprog]

DKL said:

I'd go with a 4 poster, there are plenty on ebay for sensible money but a single phase one helps!
The only issue with the Bradbury ones is that it has a post that rises with the ramp so ends up being 12' tall which usually means through your roof!

Well mine needs totally re-building to get the required height anyway!

[Chlorothalonil]

Out of interest, how did they offload it and get it in your garages?

[Auntieroll]

DKL said:

I'd go with a 4 poster, there are plenty on ebay for sensible money but a single phase one helps!
The only issue with the Bradbury ones is that it has a post that rises with the ramp so ends up being 12' tall which usually means through your roof!

Oops! Sorry, I forgot all about that particular feature, in my defence I sold my last Bradbury in 1986.

[voicey]

Chlorothalonil said:

Out of interest, how did they offload it and get it in your garages?

My scissor lift was delivered on a pallet. The lorry had a tail lift and pallet truck so it was pretty simple - I just had to make sure the driver rolled it in the correct way around.

To get it off the pallet I fitted the wheels, jacked it up and supported it on four corners with axles stands. I then put some weight on one corner and slipped the stand out of the opposite corner. This allowed me to slide the pallets out.

Then I lowered the lift down using trolley jacks until it was supported on the edge of two small blocks. The I kicked it off the blocks and onto the floor. The final positioning was done using the wheels and the control trolley

[t400ble]

Hereward said:

Edit: I should also add that although the unit has pneumatic safety catches, it's always worth using axle stands or blocks of wood to prevent a fatality if the whole thing fails with a person underneath.

Honestly cannot see that happening ever!

Even so, the lift would not drop fast, there are parachute valves fitted the the hydraulic lines

[Stegel]

t400ble said:

Hereward said:

Edit: I should also add that although the unit has pneumatic safety catches, it's always worth using axle stands or blocks of wood to prevent a fatality if the whole thing fails with a person underneath.

Honestly cannot see that happening ever!

Even so, the lift would not drop fast, there are parachute valves fitted the the hydraulic lines

It's pretty slow coming down unladen, but with 2 tonne of Mercedes on it, it comes down faster than I could get out from under!

I've had my Automech scissor lift for two weeks now and am very impressed by it - in reality, I think it has enough safety built in, but like another poster, I still put axle stands at each corner of it as a precaution. Like another poster, it was wheeled into the garage on a pallet truck and I used trolley jacks, blocks of wood and some scaffold poles to get it down to the floor. The rubber blocks it came with are too tall for any of our cars, so I may cut them down, but at present have just used hockey pucks.

ETA - I'm now wondering if there's something wrong with my lift as it comes down pretty sharpish when it has a car on it - how quickly / slowly do other Automech lifts descend?

ETA II - spoke with Automech and determined it was coming down too quickly. They sent a replacement valve for the unit which took 3 minutes to fit, it now descends probably at a slower rate than it rises. Pleased with the lift and with Automech who are very user-friendly.

Edited by Stegel on Wednesday 27th January 12:06

Edited by Stegel on Tuesday 9th February 11:42