Anyone have a 2-post lift in their garage?

N

nobrakese28

Well-Known Member
Messages
207
Reaction score
12
Hey guys,

I will be adding a lift to my garage in the next few months and curious if anyone has a lift in their garage.

I think the biggest limiting factor is ceiling height. I am limited to a little over 9ft.

But I did some research and there are some pretty cool options out there.

I am leaning towards the Triumph NT9, at about $1600:
http://www.nationalautotools.com/nt9-9000-lb-two-post-floor-plate-lift-free-shipping

-Marco
 
FWIW I bought the Danmar Maxjack and am quite happy with it. Installing the concrete anchors was a chore though. I also have limited ceiling height; most often I raise the car high enough so that I sit on the ground underneath the car to work on it.
 
I'd head over to the garagejournal.com forums and have a look at some folks' lift installations. I wanted to put a two-post in my garage, but with ceilings a bit under 9', it just wasn't going to happen. You would also end up turning a two-car garage into a 1-car garage and that wasn't a trade-off I was willing to make.

I decided I had to have a US-made lift as well as I just wasn't comfortable with everything being made in China.

I had a pad poured behind my garage and am in the process of rehabbing an old Mohawk two-poster to install back there. The MaxJax is a good compromise but make sure you don't use the supplied anchors as many people have had issues with them on the first use, let alone on the subsequent uses. Right now, Costco has the MaxJax with shipping included online and it's pretty reasonable, but as with anything you put in the garage with a low ceiling, not being able to stand under the car might get old after a while. Sure, why stand when you can sit, but I prefer laying down to sitting myself, but it's not something I want to do under the car. :)

Something that would really be neat in the garage are a couple of scissor lifts installed flush with the floor. There are a few examples of that on Garage Journal too.

cb6d1f2d5cedc7d0c25c6669bfd64c89.jpg
 
+1 for the MaxJax. I have one in my garage that I have been using for about 4 years. It works well and has plenty of capacity. I did cut out a portion of the slab to add reinforcing and thicker concrete. Most residential slabs are only 3-1/2" with no reinforcing, and if there is reinforcing, it is usually only 6x6 wire mesh. The anchor bolts require either a minimum of 3-1/2 or 4" thick slab.
 
Lift

I have a two post lift, no issues with height, lucky, and yes it is an import, $1750 delivered three years ago and no issues what so ever. A true life saver and makes working on the cars so much easier. Debated on the import issue but found many service shops utilizing them and made my decision pretty easy.
 
I'm not worried about reinforcement....My dad built the garage like a fort. The actual "T" shaped foundations goes 36" down, the slab portion is 6" thick on 24" rebar squares. I prefer to have the lift bolted to the floor since I am in earthquake country.

I like the idea of gaining a parking space under the lift.

After doing some research I am leaning towards a lift made in the USA. During (still in) my home build, I opted to go American (North American :wink:) wherever I could.


I am liking the Superlift brand, they are manufactured in Texas..

http://www.radliftsbygemini.com/product-gp9.php
 
The Mohawk lift seems to be the most superior. But I think its in the $6,000 dollar range.
 
Update. I finally made my decision, after doing a lot of research I settled on a Mohawk lift. The main factors that influenced my decision were country of origin, height of columns, and safety. The Mohawk hit all three. 100% American made, columns stand at 7.9 feet, and a very well over designed system. I think in this current time it's important to spend the money if you can afford to and buy American. The Mohawk can lift as high as 6 feet, but with arms it will put the car 6ft 4in. As you notice my ceiling currently can't handle full height, so I will be opening up to the attic in the next few weeks.

View attachment 12006


ImageUploadedByTapatalk1414676090.256150.jpg

View attachment 12007
 
Last edited:
Mohawk- great choice! for those on a tighter budget used lifts are usually available as well. I bought a Challenger lift for about 1400.00 It needed some cleaning up and such but it is not used everyday. After a couple of years I did put in new cylinders which set me back about 900.00 but that was more of a piece of mind decision. Whatever way you go a good lift makes working on cars a true pleasure. Warning, your popularity in the neighborhood will increase dramatically!
 
Bendpak XPR-9

I have - and park a Coupe under - a Bendpak XPR-9. I too, have a 9 foot ceiling height, and cut holes between the ceiling joist to fit the extra few inches of post height. Professional installer was ~$500 and (to me) worth every penny. Not a trivial installation.

12+ months of use, very happy with the lift.
 
Group buy...

With all of this talk about lifts, its got me interested enough to see if a group buy is possible. I know one happened recently on GarageJournal but I missed the deadline by a few days. If anyone is interested, let me know your thoughts below and I'll run point on it. Seems it will take 16 lifts before any deals are possible.

Interested parties please advise:

- 2 post / 4 post / mid-rise scissor
- standard / wide / tall / long
- standard duty (7K-9K lbs) / heavy duty (10K lbs +)
- accessories: trolley jack / casters / jack plate / drip pans
- other related products of interest?

No commitment at this stage needed, just gauging interest to get pricing for us all to make decisions on the deal.

Thanks...
 
Last edited:
To kick this idea off...

I'm interested in a 4 post lift, standard footprint with a 9K capacity, a trolley jack, and one drip pan. No need for casters in my case.

Thanks,
 
Vbigdog said:
I have - and park a Coupe under - a Bendpak XPR-9. I too, have a 9 foot ceiling height, and cut holes between the ceiling joist to fit the extra few inches of post height. Professional installer was ~$500 and (to me) worth every penny. Not a trivial installation.

12+ months of use, very happy with the lift.
Click to expand...

Who was the installer?
You can email directly to me Tom.
Thanks
 
Lift options

I considered a drip pan but ended up cutting two marine grade plywood panels about 3ft long which span the ramps (2x4 ribs optional). I prefer this because I can walk on these boards when using the lift in a raised position. Plus, I can put tools etc in them when working under the car. Typical drip pans would be too weak to hold me or something heavy like a pair of brake rotors or wheel/tire, and as they get dirty up you might not want to use them as tool trays. I use a cheap mud/water boot tray to catch drips. I usually put a piece of left over cardboard in the boot tray so I don't have to clean that either. When I use the trolley jack (sliding in my case, no wheels), I occasionally have to take one board down and lean it against the wall.

When you measure your garage make sure you know where the motor/reservoir and release handle is as many if the four poster lifts cannot go flush against one side wall (usually the left side looking into the garage. Stan, don't laugh but this kind on lift with the trolly jack can even double as an engine hoist in a pinch.
 
Compressor Size

Having now only owned a four post lift for about a year, I'm still not quite sure whether I'm glad I went with the narrow one or not. The coupe and Willys fit just fine (in fact the willys is barely wide enough) but it's a little tight getting the M3 onto the lift since I have to make a hard turn getting into the garage.

That being said, a few recommendations:

Spring for the lighter ramps. The steel ones get very heavy.
Have a professional install it unless you know what you are doing.
Don't buy the casters (see point above about professional installation)
Buy as large an air compressor as you can fit in the garage.

With the coupe gone for a while getting it's engine transplant, I've been taking the jeep apart and there is nothing more frustrating than running out of air for simple tasks, and I haven't even started sanding, painting, polishing etc.

I do own the plastic drip trays which are nice and easy to move, but they are a nightmare to clean. However, they do lock in nicely and so far have prevented any major drips.

Oh, and one last recommendation. While you're removing everything from the garage to have the lift installed, hire a painter (or do it yourself if you like to paint) and apply an epoxy finish to the garage floor. It makes cleanup a breeze and I don't walk into the house with grease or gas on my feet anymore.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top