How deep is enough for 2 cars deep

[aventino68]

I'm in early early stages and am pondering a 4 bay plan, 49' x 36' deep inside wall measurement. Trying to keep costs relatively in check. I can squeeze in two 4 post hoists and put 4 cars in storage in one end bay with the garage 36' deep. Question is, is this deep enough or am I a bit too tight. Hoists with ramps are 200" long so 16" spare on each and i have nothing in these bays apart from the storage hoists. Don't have any cars over 200" long going in the garage on these hoists. I think it'll be fine but....

Who else has a two car deep garage and how many feet is it?

 

[matt_i]

I would goto 55' that way you can walk around it and put a workbench or toolbox there.

 

[aventino68]

Ok I'll look at the 49' wide too but what about the 36' deep?

 

[matt_i]

I was talking about the depth lol. I have trucks and SUVs in my head and not MGs

 

[Darryl2]

I would want a bit more wiggle room than 16” to ‘spare’.

I would go 48’ deep minimum. You never know what vehicles you will want to stack in the future (or a potential buyer if you ever sell). 48’ will barely get 2 trucks in and that’s pushing it, depending on the trucks.

 

[metaleltr]

Used to work I a body shop where my bay was 50’ deep. 2 vehicles other than pickups is fine. Two truck not happening. One car one truck- ok, minivan and a truck- tight but doable. 65’ would be a sweet spot for 2 trucks deep.

 

[rburke65]

Ok if you have 2 - 18’ cars.

 

[Stuart in MN]

It depends on whether you drive double cab extended bed pickups or Minis. Measure your cars, add those two numbers together, then include a few feet in front, in back, and in between.

 

[teamextreme]

It depends on whether you drive double cab extended bed pickups or Minis. Measure your cars, add those two numbers together, then include a few feet in front, in back, and in between.

This. All depends on what you want to stuff in there. My MR2 is just under 13 ft. so you could put 2 of them end to end in a 29 ft deep with one foot gaps. My Ram is 20 ft long, so you'd need 43 ft to fit 2 of them. Big difference. My shop is 35 ft long and I can fit the Ram and MR2 end to end, but it's a squeeze with less than a foot gaps so you can only walk past on one end. Less than ideal, but that's the best I could do with my lot.

 

[SGKent]

Really think it thru. Having worked in shops where there was constant shuffling of cars it is no fun. And, things get dented that way too. Better to go wider so you don't need to stack, or have it open at both ends so one can pull forward to get out, and one can back out.

 

[Mikeske]

I would stake out your proposed size and then put your vehicles inside the stake out area. It would then give you a idea if you are to small. Everybody has the thing of telling you to go larger but until you stake it out in your driveway and then try to fit everything including staking out the 4 post lifts you won't know.

 

[SALIV8]

Dumb it down is what I did...

I used graph paper and drew to spec and was able to see what fit, what didn't, change layouts, etc.

Grab a pencil and graph paper and some beer.

 

[CombatNinja]

Classic Garage Journal. This guy wants to know if 36' deep is good enough for some reasonably sized cars and within the first 5 posts somebody tells him to build it 60' deep so he can pull two full-size pickups with trailer hitches in with plenty of room to walk around them. LoL

That said, I know you are only looking to store, not work, so room to move all around is not a priority. Be wary of that 36', especially if that is an exterior measure. By the time you frame the walls and put up drywall or sheathing inside, you are going to be tiiiiiiight with a couple of 200" cars. I would go to 38' minimum in that scenario unless setbacks or zoning prohibits.

 

[brownbagg]

also base your number on 4 foot increments so your material will work 36,40,44,48 etc

 

[Rc_Guy]

My attached garage in my avatar is 40’ wide by 48’ deep, we can keep our 20’ + 4’ hitch Bbq vending trailer with 2500HD crew cab hitched up in garage and still walk in front of truck.

 

[346ci]

I can get a single cab and 4 door 1500 sized trucks in my 40', its tight though. 50' would be nice for room to walk between the fronts and rears. If you can afford longer, do it.

 

[sberry]

This guy wants to know if 36' deep is good enough for some reasonably sized cars and within the first 5 posts somebody tells him to build it 60' deep so he can pull two full-size pickups with trailer hitches in with plenty of room to walk around them. LoL

I don't think he needs 60 but,,, 4 cars, 2 hoists, some more cars in front and debating 4 ft more of cost?
My neighbor was debating pressure washers, trying to come up with something and 5 grand seems like a lot but,,,,,,,,,,,,,, I was making the point that we live on these brutal roads and the depreciation to a 70K new truck, another one costs 40, a new travel trailer,,, I aint got a clue maybe another 50 large kind of puts the washer in perspective. That's just the cars, the new garage, the pole barns etc.

 

[aventino68]

also base your number on 4 foot increments so your material will work 36,40,44,48 etc

Ok is that internal 36' so if I was going bigger I'd sensibly jump to 40'?
Did the graph paper and it's ok but doable. I won't store any trucks there apart from my '56 pickup and its only 15' long. Wife's cars are only 14' so even smaller. Other problem is I'm limited height wise so I'm already dropping garage floor to lowest grade and can't mess too much with pitch of roof. Deeper garage means lower back wall.
With storage 4 post hoists against the wall, I have 40 ft width for three remaining bays so over 13 ft wide per bay which when I also draw out on graph paper should be plenty. Bay at the other end has a two post hoist planned where stuff gets worked on.

 

[rjacobs]

What lifts?

What cars?

need more info, but my gut says 36' would be tight.

Ive been researching getting a pro-park 8s and with ramps its 207". Two of those puts you at like 34.5' just jamming them in, which wont really work IMO.

If your question was "can I get 1 lift plus 1 car on the concrete" i.e. 3 cars total, I think the answer would be yes. But my gut, without more info says 36' would be tighter than I would like.

 

[sberry]

Its pretty rare we see someone come back here and say they wish they would have built it smaller.

 

[Lonnies Performance]

The longer you think on the building size, the bigger it gets.

I resized mine 4 times before I finally stopped changing my mind... still regretting I didn't add another 4 feet.

For parking only you can go 44 ft. deep for 2 cars with ample walking space. 2 trucks is very tight. My dad built a 44 x 50 & it was fine for storage. You will want more room if you plan to work on cars while parked this way. In this case I would stay closer to 50 ft. Add 3 more feet if you plan to put a workbench on the back wall. Remember you lose about 1-1.5 ft. in wall thickness, plus the garage door track is inside of the wall, losing another 3-4".

 

[durk_2007]

I have a 44 deep it is enough to fit an extended cab 6.5 bed gmc1500 and a 03 Yukon tip to tail with a toolbox at the front and still walk around both ends barely

 

[Rc_Guy]

Its pretty rare we see someone come back here and say they wish they would have built it smaller.

I have a neighbor that had one of the premade sheds delivered a couple years ago, a month ago he sold it because he didn’t really need the storage

 

[Leaflessshadetree]

Ok is that internal 36' so if I was going bigger I'd sensibly jump to 40'?
Did the graph paper and it's ok but doable. I won't store any trucks there apart from my '56 pickup and its only 15' long. Wife's cars are only 14' so even smaller. Other problem is I'm limited height wise so I'm already dropping garage floor to lowest grade and can't mess too much with pitch of roof. Deeper garage means lower back wall.
With storage 4 post hoists against the wall, I have 40 ft width for three remaining bays so over 13 ft wide per bay which when I also draw out on graph paper should be plenty. Bay at the other end has a two post hoist planned where stuff gets worked on.

40FT should be OK with 2 average sized modern vehicles. Leaves a little room in front, between and behind them.

But then the outside (and possibly roof) dimensions won't be on 4ft increments. Depending on interior, exterior and roofing materials it really shouldn't be a big deal.

 

[2level]

I wanted to build 48' deep but city code/setbacks wouldn't allow it. Settled on 46', works well, but 48' would come in handy at times. Crab-walking *****.

 

[Gotcha640]

Is this just car storage? My 2 car currently has bikes, plants in from the cold, an extra table saw, and a bunch of borrowed camping gear. I can put 2 cars in it, but it would take a weekend to make that space.

If its just roll the cars in and close the door, thats a different calculation than a family garage or a workshop, even for oil changes and airing up tires.

 

[aventino68]

Yep, all it is is storage, and its against the far wall away from the area I'll be working on stuff and the cars will only be moved from there once or twice a year and then put back. But I get the point that it may still be a pain and I need at least a couple of extra feet. I'll talk to architect.

 

[greg13]

How many times have you ever heard a person say "I wish I had a smaller shop"?

 

[FANTM58]

40’ min . That’s what I have, and with my truck 2018 crew standard bed
In I have room for a car on the lift
With a 36’ you loose 12” on the interior, due to wall thickness..
Mine is down to 39’ int

 

[lkempf]

Mine is 40' deep and it fits 2 mustangs perfectly. Sounds like you have similar sized cars.

 

[NitroShark]

Mine is 46" deep, I have a 4 post and 2 post in line. 2 Crew Cab Dually's will fit end to end. More than enough room for 1 car and 1 truck. This would be the minimum I would go with.

 

[Mr. Roboto]

I wish I had a better photo, but this is what 2 cars front to back look like in my 36" deep garage. The gray rav4 in the front has an 18" deep cabinet in front of it, and its parked nearly touching that,

 

[aventino68]

I wish I had a better photo, but this is what 2 cars front to back look like in my 36" deep garage. The gray rav4 in the front has an 18" deep cabinet in front of it, and its parked nearly touching that,

Thanks for photo, I get where you’re coming from. I have just the hoists in the bay so I’d get that extra 18” I’m sure 38’ is more than enough, I’m never putting a crew cab truck in there. (Famous last words)

 

[Falcon67]

The 70 Mustang and the 67 Falcon are 16' nose to tail, the F-150 is 19' and the F-350 is 240" nearly exactly. I'd want 44' at least to park two tree-fiddys nose to tail.

 

[cderalow]

I'd look at it this way; If i'm stacking two vehicles in a row, one is going to be a daily use, the other would be an occasional use.

So what's the biggest daily driver? crew cab pickup probably? 20'?

What's likely as an occasional use vehicle? vintage coupe? modern coupe? 16'?

I'd want enough space to comfortably walk in front of the occasional car, and between them. behind the daily is less important as you can always have the garage door open to make space.

So that'd give me 18" in front, 24" in between and 6" behind. another 4'.

20+16+4=40'

That's probably a safe minimum depth to double stack two vehicles and leave space.

it wont' cover two pickup trucks, but should cover two cars, two mid-sized suvs or a pair of minivans and allow for walking space around them.

 

[Sevenhills1952]

Here's mistake I made! In early 90s I started with a 40x60 garage. Over years added on. It seemed great parking 12 cars as I figured 2 deep, 6 across. I didn't allow for posts, walls, etc. So I staggered short and longer cars. It's still a problem. I can walk through but I'd give anything for that extra 4 feet.

Sent from my SM-S320VL using Tapatalk

 

[PhantomEB]

I have a ‘96 extended cab/reg 6.5’ box F150. Can park it in my 24’ deep with a foot +/- in front and behind.

I would go 48’ wide 36’ deep. 12’ is plenty in front of some of the longer trucks out there. 48’ to me would be 4 maybe 5 bays? That’s an easy spot to leave open or convert into work space.

 

[rmmiller]

Amazing how many miss the part of car storage only. Sounds to me like you have the right size from what you say you plan to use it for. I had an attached garage that was 36' deep and I had my Maverick and a Tacoma extended cab nose to tail in it before I built my benches in the back. I had the Maverick touching the back wall, about 2' between the two and just enough room at the door to squeeze through. If I was just storing the cars and only occasionally needed access I would have had no issues with it at all.

This was after the bench was added.

This is before the Tacoma and the bench. That F250 was long, extended cab long box, I don't miss that thing! It was parked a ways from the door so it doesn't give a true indicator of the depth.

 

[2level]

Amazing how many miss the part of car storage only. Sounds to me like you have the right size from what you say you plan to use it for. I had an attached garage that was 36' deep and I had my Maverick and a Tacoma extended cab nose to tail in it before I built my benches in the back. I had the Maverick touching the back wall, about 2' between the two and just enough room at the door to squeeze through. If I was just storing the cars and only occasionally needed access I would have had no issues with it at all.

I don't think that part was missed. OP answered his own question: sure some cars can be squeezed in end-to-end in a 35ft deep space.

And then the OP asked 'Who has a two car deep garage and how deep is it?' People are answering that question.

 

[aventino68]

Thanks for all the info and advice. I think I have lengthened it enough for the vehicles I'm storing. At worst it's 6 ft spare. Can't put a couple of pickups in end to end but that's ok, somewhere in there i need to keep in budget and I'm eating into my Deere tractor fund that comes next.