Help me choose a lift.

[kaffine]

Help me choose a lift. I want a 2 post or inground lift. I still have to test the concrete if it is good enough for a lift I will go with a 2 post above ground lift. If I have to break the slab up anyways I would prefer inground.

I know Mohawk and Stertil-Koni both make 2 post lifts that only have lines that run between the 2 posts no overhead beam or across the floor. Does anyone else make a similar 2 post lift?

I have looked at Rotary's in ground lift it looks good. Are there any others I should consider if I go in ground?

Requirments
Must be certified.
no overhead beam
9,000 pound or higher capacity

Prefences
Clear floor
Fit under an 11 foot ceiling
Costs under $6k

Thank you.

 

[brownbagg]

bend pak has one for under 3k, I have one mine is a 9xl

 

[skeeballhead]

Well, I looked around for two months before deciding on a Bendpak XPR-10CX. My friend bought one as well. Paid $2610 through MetroLifts on ebay. All went smooth as silk. They are priced as such through the end of December w/ free shipping. It is certified, and built extremely well. Looked at Rotary and Challenger, but the Bendpak seemed better built and roughly a thousand bucks cheaper. The Mohawk would have been nice, but it was $5800 delivered and installed. I just couldn't justify the additional cost for the amount of usage that it would be used. You won't be disappointed w/ a Bendpak, and Jeff, their marketing VP was extremely helpful. Just my two cents, but I was asking the same questions before I purchased a lift. Email me if you have any ?'s.

 

[skeeballhead]

Should have read your post a little better. If you have an 11' requirement, the XPR-10CX probably won't work. Bendpak makes some others, but I don't think they are clear floor. Just go to their website. If that is the case, better make it a Mohawk.

 

[kaffine]

Was that Mohwak for $5800 the A-7 or the System 1? I'm waiting to find out who the local dealer is here so I can get a price from them.

Thanks for the replies.

So far the Mohawk seems to be the best match. I found out the Stertil-Koni lift is 13 feet tall so it is out. I haven't found any other lifts that only require hydraulic line between the 2 posts.

 

[skeeballhead]

It was for the System I, included delivery from Iowa(around Des Moines), installation, and the Mohawk weight guage that you install on the lift to tell you roughly how heavy a given vehicle is. The dealer was super nice, just a great guy. I was just trying to justify the additional $3100.00 price difference. He was very understanding of that, as I am sure everyone asks themselves when contemplating a Mohawk. They are truely a cream of the crop lift, and I do recommend them if you can afford it, which from your requirements is in your price range. Just like everyone else told me, just get a lift and enjoy. Think about, you won't have to work on your back anymore. No more looking for that wrench just to find out it is laying under your *** or up on the toolbox that you have to crawl back from under the car to get and then crawl back.

 

[ScaldedDog]

I've got a Rotary SL210-RA in-ground and like it.

Mark

 

[revlover]

BendPak's XPR-9F series would take care of your requirements. Only thing is that it's not a clearfloor...

http://www.bendpak.com/bendpak-products/two-post-lifts/XPR-9F.aspx

 

[krooser]

Buy a Mohawk... you'll never be sorry you bought the best.

I have an old Weaver built about the same as a Mohawk... 1/2" and 3/4' steel... leaf chain lifting system not cheap cables, big 3" hydraulic cylinders... it will be lifting when I'm worm food and beyond.

Right now I have my '84 Dodge on the lift for suspension work...there are two engines and transmissions in the box... total weight somewhere north of 7k and it's as stable as can be and didn't even grunt with the load.

I'll never understand why car guys will spend $10K on a paint job, $20K on an engine, buy a Ferrari for $200K but buy a $1500.00 Chi-Com lift... maybe it's wise to spend the $$ on a lift THEN spend what's left on the cars...

End of rant... for now!

 

[ron in sc]

My first choice was a Rotary inground smartlift. I had to settle with a Rotary two post lift because the installation of the inground lift was not recommend because of complications related to the depth at which groundwater was encounted. Our local Lexus dealer has them and they are really nice.

 

[PCMusicGuy]

I still wish someone other than ever eternal (china company) made a flush-with-the-floor in ground lift without any cross beam connection, above or below, getting in the way. If anyone designed and sold a certified lift of this style i think you would have your answer.

 

[revlover]

I saw a thread a couple weeks ago about a guy that had just bought a Mohawk (can't find it now ), but they posted some pictures of a truck on the lift. The columns looked to be built out of railroad tracks, but the arms were sagging like 2-3"!

Maybe they should put a little less steal in the columns and more in the arms!

 

[kaffine]

I saw a thread a couple weeks ago about a guy that had just bought a Mohawk (can't find it now ), but they posted some pictures of a truck on the lift. The columns looked to be built out of railroad tracks, but the arms were sagging like 2-3"!

Maybe they should put a little less steal in the columns and more in the arms!

Is this the picture you are talking about? KVOM's lift

From this thread

http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?p=581616#post581616

 

[revlover]

@kaffine, yeah that's exactly it... thanks for posting it.

@ebfabman... I don't know much about lifts or the engineering, but to me, just looks like a pretty good bend. I'm sure it doesn't affect the lift's performance, but I was just thinking about how much steal they put in the columns, spare a little in the arms? Not saying it's inferior in anyway. Mohawks are great, if you want to spend the money for them.

Cheers.

 

[wendell]

First post, got to start some were;
Three years ago I bought a 10K#, clear floor, ChiCom lift for a little less than $3K and I couldn't be happier. Dealing with your 11' height restraint it easy. During assembly, the columns are telescopic. Just push them up to with in an inch from the ceiling, drill some holes and bolt them together. Then shim the equalizing cables with pipe and you're good to go.
Any one talking about the added safety of more expensive lifts doesn't get how a lift works. The failure mode just isn't there went you're standing under it with the locks in place. If you're thinking that you're going to stand under it as your buddy lifts up a car, you've been selected against long ago. Take it for what it's worth.

 

[Shadowdog500]

The arms on that lift don't look like they are bending or sagging from the weight. It appears that the extensions don't fit tight enough in the arms which let them **** down.

Im also looking for a good lift, I really want a Mohawk but I have to admit that I can't afford one. I don't know about the price, but this in ground lift from challanger may fit the bill. I kind of like the in ground lift with the clear floor design.

[UPDATE] pacific lift store sells it for $6057.00 so you would only be a little over budget.

Chris

 

[flesburg]

I have a "new" less than a year old, 10,000 pound two post asymetrical rotary. I have some Porsche cars, and a Suburban that I put up on it, and it works great. I can take the Suburban all the way to the top and easily walk around under the truck.

 

[ScaldedDog]

I still wish someone other than ever eternal (china company) made a flush-with-the-floor in ground lift without any cross beam connection, above or below, getting in the way. If anyone designed and sold a certified lift of this style i think you would have your answer.

I'm not sure what you mean by "cross beam", but the lift top plate on the Rotary can be flush to the floor:

I mounted mine about 3/4" high, then had the concrete sloped away to keep water out of it, but the top plate isn't in the way, at all. The arms, on the other hand, can be, but I keep them folded under the 4Runner 99% of the time.

Mark

 

[Shadowdog500]

How do you like that in ground lift? How hard was it to install?

I really like that style of lift, and am thinking of getting one.

Thanks,

Chris

 

[brownbagg]

everybody agrees that the mohawk and rotary are the best in the land, no argument there. Everybody wants a snap on toolbox too. There are just some people that cant afford the best no matter what. Now lets talk about faliure, yes you here one or two and it usually human error, but have you ever really heard of one failing.

Bendpak dude, do your lifts fail? I have never heard of the cheapy, yes you could overload one, or load one wrong. I worry about the psi of the concrete more than I do the lift itself.

Mines been outside in four hurricanes no cover, and it still works great.

 

[ScaldedDog]

How do you like that in ground lift? How hard was it to install?

I really like that style of lift, and am thinking of getting one.

Thanks,

Chris

I love it. I didn't care about parking under it, which you obviously can't do, but it's a great service lift.

Installation is straightforward, as it looks underground just like the Challenger in the post above mine. You need a deep hole - 11', IIRC - and some 2" PVC conduit running to the top of the lift just under the concrete. That conduit contains the hydraulic and air lines that actuate all the moving parts. The control unit, pump and reservoir mount on a wall, so there's not much in the in-ground cassette to break.

Mark


Mark

 

[OldCarGuy]

Is this the picture you are talking about? KVOM's lift

From this thread

http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?p=581616#post581616

Either that lift arm is an optical illusion or something is erratically wrong with it. Here's pictures of my Mohawk System I lifting my 3/4 ton Avalanche and a 1925 Rolls Royce Silver Ghost Piccadilly Roadster. Surely one wouldn't trust just any lift to pick up a Rolls Royce that's worth more then most homes. Let alone wagering one's life for the sake of a few dollars.

 

[revlover]

Beautiful...

 

[OldCarGuy]

A little more about this 1925 Rolls Royce Silver Ghost. Most antique car enthusiasts (pre World War Two) felt that Henry Royce did not start out to make the best car in the world when he designed the Silver Ghost. Rather he just wanted to improve on his older six cylinder to be smoother running and more reliable. He succeeded to produce the most desirable antique car ever produced. Along with being the longest running model car next to the Ford model T.

The 7.4-liter side valve six-cylinder engine is rated at 80 BHP. The seven bearing crankshaft is totally pressure lubricated,, a rarity of its’ time. Along with two head castings with three cylinders each. Each cylinder has two spark plugs. Powered by two distributors. And a precision, quality of a Swiss watch, carburetor that is as reliable as it is beautiful!

Here’s a video of this 85 year old engine idling at 250 RPM’s.





.

 

[kaffine]

Wow that is a nice car.

Question on the Mohawk lifts do you have to release the safties on each arm seprately? Thanks.

 

[OldCarGuy]

Wow that is a nice car.

Question on the Mohawk lifts do you have to release the safties on each arm seprately? Thanks.

There's a separate safety release at each carriage. And you'll need to walk around the lift to disengage the far side. Takes a little more effort and time. But it does gives an added safety measure of making sure everything is cleared under the vehicle before its' lowered.

 

[Dave Heacock]

Help me choose a lift. I want a 2 post or inground lift. I still have to test the concrete if it is good enough for a lift I will go with a 2 post above ground lift. If I have to break the slab up anyways I would prefer inground.

I know Mohawk and Stertil-Koni both make 2 post lifts that only have lines that run between the 2 posts no overhead beam or across the floor. Does anyone else make a similar 2 post lift?

I have looked at Rotary's in ground lift it looks good. Are there any others I should consider if I go in ground?

Requirments
Must be certified.
no overhead beam
9,000 pound or higher capacity

Prefences
Clear floor
Fit under an 11 foot ceiling
Costs under $6k

Thank you.

Kaffine,

Many lift models can be installed in a low ceiling or custom setting depending on your ceiling configuration. Do you have a flat ceiling at 11' or do you have beams or joists that extend down to 11'. The reason I ask is that although the overhead beam can be lowered and cables and hoses shortened, the hydraulic cylinders still need to extend to full height to avoid losing rise height.

I have been selling lifts for 23 years now and I am familar with all the types and styles available. I can give you some recommendations and advice with more detailed information on your particulars. I work for Pacific Lift and Equipment. We had been building a lot of car dealerships until the recent economy dump. We are now turning towards the hobbists and independant markets to help fill the void.

If you exclude the municipality lift sectors, the two big US manufacturers are Rotary Lift and Challenger Lifts. These two manufacturers are the only OEM approved lifts sold through the dealer equipment programs to the automotive franchises. Each of these two companies has recently developed a imported aboveground lift product line (from China) to compete with companies such as Benpak who assemble their lift here from imported parts and companies who directly import crappy Chinese models of lifts. Rotary's imported line is the Revolution Series and Challenger's imported line is the Quality Lift. If someone was considering buying an imported aboveground lift to save money (I personally wouldn't), you might want to consider on of these two brands as they have a solid parent company backing the product and replacement parts will be available in the future.

Inground lifts have become popular again now that they are contained and no longer a danger for soil contamination. We have sold and installed a few thousand of the cassette style inground lifts over the years. The only achilles heel that the inground lift has is water and condensation getting into the tub. Note that the cover plates are not waterproof and therefore the operator has to use caution when cleaning the floor around the hoist or servicing a vehicle with ice or water on it. A moisture removal device can be installed on the lift to remove a small amount of water from the tub every time the lift air lock is operated. This device helps a little when water is introduced but keeping the water off the lift is the best safeguard to avoid damage. The differences between Challenger and Rotary inground lifts are much like the Ford vs Chevrolet debate. Both work well, small differences do exist betweent he two.

If you guys have any questions just ask and I will try to answer any equipment related questions.

Dave Heacock
PS. I can also give you guys a little better pricing than I have on the website.

 

[Piper]

well I can tell you that I installed my brand new Mohawk system 1 on Boxing day. The post, minus the arms, weigh 900lbs each. The lift arms are 250lbs each. I have the weight gauge on my lift and when you lift nothing it registers just under 1000 lbs. The lift arms get torqued to 1000 ft-lbs -- yes this is correct. The footprint of the base of each post is 17" x 29" and uses 8 wejit anchors to hold it to the floor.

I don't have any pictures but what is on the mohawk website is exactly what it looks like. Mine is installed on top of 6" of poured concrete, the ceiling height is 11'3". I wanted more but by the time we insulated, drywalled etc it was 9" closer to the floor than I wanted. I'm in Canada but bought the lift for just under CAN$6000.00 plus tax, I picked up and installed it. Customer service was great. I bugged them lots and they never stopped telling me to call back if I have any other question or thought. Nice in this day and age!

fwiw, my 2 cents.

Piper

 

[Cobra4B]

.

Dave who makes Mohawk? I'm a noob when it comes to lifts. I do have to say that picture makes my OCD side very very happy... so clean and neat ! What type of dealer is that?

 

[Dave Heacock]

Mohawk is based out of New York and they have been effective in capturing a good portion of the municipal heavy duty lift business. However they have not been too successful in capturing the marketshare of the automotive lift market. I believe this is due to their limited product line (only a few models) and the fact that their lift is overdesigned. Let face it, the column and base plate of an aboveground lift is an obstruction to the operator/mechanic. If these items are kept as small as functionally possible it is a benefit as well as a cost savings with no downside. I do like that their products are USA made and I have no doubt that their hoists are safe unlike some of the cheap Chinese imports. Having never personally sold their products, I can not give you a first hand observation on the quality as I can with the other brands that I have sold (Bendpak, Benwil, Weaver, Rotary, Challenger, Globe, etc). I do believe they are more popular on the east coast than the west coast where I am located.

The shop in the picture is Lexus of Newport Beach. It is more like a Las Vegas casino than a car dealership. We just finished Escondido Lexus down towards San Diego and it is even bigger and more lavish than the Lexus store in Newport. The architect said he was able to talk the owner out of one of the three planned decorative towers on the facility so it only has two towers.
I guess if you have the money, you can spend it.

 

[Cobra4B]

Guess people are still buying new cars somewhere!

 

[PCMusicGuy]

I'm not sure what you mean by "cross beam", but the lift top plate on the Rotary can be flush to the floor

I mounted mine about 3/4" high, then had the concrete sloped away to keep water out of it, but the top plate isn't in the way, at all. The arms, on the other hand, can be, but I keep them folded under the 4Runner 99% of the time.

Mark

I mean that some of the mid-rise style lifts (ones you can park over) that are close to the ground have some kind of stabilization bar between the lifting pads/arms. That Bendpak XC something or another is an example. The bar in between would get in the way of dropping the torque tube or driveshaft on some vehicles.

I am not sure what you mean that you can mount the top plate of the Rotary flush to the floor. The pictures of all the inground lifts a few posts above show what I typically see; the arms are a few inches higher than the surface of the floor. I would want the top of those arms flush with the floor which I haven't seen before outside of recessed concrete or a contained arm rest area, which you would always have to have the arms in the correct spot when you lower the lift completely.

If you have a lowered car with only an inch or so of ground clearance this is a problem if you want to regularly park over the lift. I understand this might not be a normal case, but that Chinese lift is the only one I've ever seen that can fill the need I would have. Just wish a reputable company made something similar and certified.

 

[mikeceli]

So the dealers selling IMPORT JUNK CARS, can afford American Made lifts. And the American car dealers, are folding.

WHEN, will congress wake up and LEVEL the trade playing field?!

 

[ScaldedDog]

I mean that some of the mid-rise style lifts (ones you can park over) that are close to the ground have some kind of stabilization bar between the lifting pads/arms. That Bendpak XC something or another is an example. The bar in between would get in the way of dropping the torque tube or driveshaft on some vehicles.

I am not sure what you mean that you can mount the top plate of the Rotary flush to the floor. The pictures of all the inground lifts a few posts above show what I typically see; the arms are a few inches higher than the surface of the floor. I would want the top of those arms flush with the floor which I haven't seen before outside of recessed concrete or a contained arm rest area, which you would always have to have the arms in the correct spot when you lower the lift completely.

If you have a lowered car with only an inch or so of ground clearance this is a problem if you want to regularly park over the lift. I understand this might not be a normal case, but that Chinese lift is the only one I've ever seen that can fill the need I would have. Just wish a reputable company made something similar and certified.

Ahh, I see. Yes, even on the Rotary in-ground lift the pads stick up some. It's not a problem for me, since the vehicle I park over the lift is on 39" tires. I'd think wooden ramps, or even metal ones, would solve the problem on even the lowest of cars, though.

Mark

 

[Dave Heacock]

Yes the newer inground lifts have drive over superstructures with the piston spacing at 57 1/2" center to center. All the but the lowest cars will make it over the superstructures without problems but the car must approach the lift straight and at a reasonable speed. Many dealers were experiencing problems with these lifts with regards to popping tires when they first came out. Since then the superstructure clearance has been widened a bit and the sharper edges remove at the factory. While this helped, user error can still lead to a popped tire every now and then if caution is not used in racking the vehicle.

 

[amarcello]

I'm also in the market for ain ground lift. I cannot decide between the Rotary Smartlift SL210 or the Callenger EV1020. They are both 10K lifts, but its hard to choose between them. Can you help me with the pros and cons? What about price. Looking to get one around $6300-6500 picked up or delivered. Feasible? Thanks