Just Found Out About Advantage Lifts

[steve392]

I just found out about the Advantage lift fold-up. I have read the other thread regarding the bankruptcy, and saw the letter from Stacey Mack. I too am one of the victims, and actually feel a little ashamed for allowing myself to be led along for such a long time. I ordered my 9000 HD back in October of 2025, just when Advantage was supposedly changing over to US manufacture. I was originally promised a delivery date of January 2026, which slid to March, and then May, and finally July. Tim, the salesman couldn't be more optimistic that delivery was just around the corner, all the time knowing it was a sham. Silly me, I tried all of the phone numbers for Advantage/Real Garage Life and got nowhere obviously. Tim's "direct line" was surprisingly out of service...go figure. They got me for half the total price: $3700.00, apparently up in smoke...
My purpose in this post is to see if anyone has gotten a hold of the correct government/ business agency to see if filing a complaint is possible and which state I should do it in. The closest office they had to me was the Hanover PA facility, but not sure where the parent company is located.
I would appreciate any contact info or more information on exactly who to contact regarding getting on the list of creditors perhaps, even though there is little hope of ever seeing any of my deposit back.
Thanks,
Steve

 

[racecougar]

Why not add this to the ongoing thread so that all of the pertinent info remains in one place?

 

[caleb383]

I just found out about the Advantage lift fold-up. I have read the other thread regarding the bankruptcy, and saw the letter from Stacey Mack. I too am one of the victims, and actually feel a little ashamed for allowing myself to be led along for such a long time. I ordered my 9000 HD back in October of 2025, just when Advantage was supposedly changing over to US manufacture. I was originally promised a delivery date of January 2026, which slid to March, and then May, and finally July. Tim, the salesman couldn't be more optimistic that delivery was just around the corner, all the time knowing it was a sham. Silly me, I tried all of the phone numbers for Advantage/Real Garage Life and got nowhere obviously. Tim's "direct line" was surprisingly out of service...go figure. They got me for half the total price: $3700.00, apparently up in smoke...
My purpose in this post is to see if anyone has gotten a hold of the correct government/ business agency to see if filing a complaint is possible and which state I should do it in. The closest office they had to me was the Hanover PA facility, but not sure where the parent company is located.
I would appreciate any contact info or more information on exactly who to contact regarding getting on the list of creditors perhaps, even though there is little hope of ever seeing any of my deposit back.
Thanks,
Steve

That is a terrible situation to be in with the lost deposit on the lift. You should start by filing a claim with the Attorney General's office in the state where the parent company is headquartered, and also submit a formal complaint with the FTC to get on the creditors list.

 

[steve392]

The only ongiong thread was shown as closed...If there is an open thread, moderator please move.

Filed complaint with Pennsylvania Attorney General this morning.

I was able to get a response from the CEO of Automotive Lift Service, the installer of Advantage Lifts in my area and that is included here:

Steve,

I need to update you on Real Garage Life.

The Advantage/Backyard Buddy factory has shut down; it is insolvent, there are no remaining funds, and the senior secured creditor will be selling assets. We tried to save the 35 manufacturing jobs but could not.

Your deposit will not be returned due to the insolvency.

If you made the purchase using a card, try to charge it back through the credit card company. There are no other means of relief.

We are truly sorry of this outcome.

Stacey Wayne Mack
President & CEO
Automotive Lift Service

 

[manwithtools]

So if I understand correctly, Stacey Mack is the President and CEO of Automotive Lift Service and formerly was the President and CEO of Advantage Lift and Backyard Buddy - this is according to his LinkedIn profile?

If Advantage Lift and Backyard Buddy is no more and Automotive Lift Service is still in business, it would seem the assets of Automotive Lift Service could be legally pursued, unless the entities had the proper legal separation. But, the more I think about it, I'm betting they had the required separation, given how long they have known they were in financial peril.

EDIT: If Automotive Lift Service continued to take orders (and deposits) when Stacey Mack knew Advantage Lift and Backyard Buddy did not have the means to fulfill those orders, it would seem that would constitute fraud on his part.

 

[39Tudor]

Why not add this to the ongoing thread so that all of the pertinent info remains in one place?

That thread got locked last week.

 

[racecougar]

That thread got locked last week.

I see that now. Tis a shame.

 

[717owner]

A little more context. I too ordered a side by side in November 2025 with a promised delivery date of January 2026. Tim, the sales person who most of us have dealt with was a master con man. January turned into February was turned to March to May then July was turned into October. In early June, I requested a full refund which Tim happily said would happen. After a few weeks of no contact, I reached out again and it turns out the entire sales staff was let go, including Tim. That was red flag number one then I was transferred to the accounting department who told me that only the senior executives could authorize a refund so we waited and we waited and after two weeks of no executive contact I escalated. I called nonstop for probably 75 to 100 times in a row. Finally, they transferred me to the last remaining vice president of engineering in Ohio. I’m holding his name back, but he was probably the last honest and genuine person working there. He told me there had been no manufacturing happened in all of 2026. So for almost 7 months at that point they were taking deposits without a single employee making anything.

At this point, the VP of engineering that I was talking with in mid July 2026, gave me two options: one to deal with the court, appointed administrators and hopefully luck in getting anything back or two lose most of my deposit and accept the very last lift they had in their warehouse which was a trailer lift. So an extra wide lift that while did not fit my needs was better than a complete loss. I obviously chose the second option. The lift was delivered on July 28, 2026 there was one missing piece which I called on July 30 and was informed that the company was officially closed as of July 31 and completely insolvent.

The final piece in all of this cannot be substantiated, but was told to me directly by a very, very close and reliable source. We know that no manufacturing occurred in the United States for the seven months. They were taking deposits before the bankruptcy. A very close source confided in me that Stacy Mac owed the Chinese over $10 million which is why he was bragging about moving production to the United States not because of about a product but because they would not produce anything more until he caught them up with what he owed. Secondly I was confided in that there were more than $22 million in customer deposits taken in this final seven months before bankruptcy with only a handful of lifts delivered. The Small Claims Court in Hanover PA where their headquarter has over 400 claims against them to date so any chance of a refund is basically nonexistent. In the insolvency, I’m certain the Chinese creditors will take their $10 million first and then Stacy will probably walk away with a golden parachute. It ***** massively and I hope he gets his in the end.

 

[kngelv]

Wow! This is all horrible to hear. I got my Backyard Buddy in June of 2024 and my rolling air jack in July of 2025 so I just squeeked in without getting scammed. Taking deposits while not making anything is certainly a criminal enterprise. I also feel for the workers who lost their jobs. Hopefully the cheats get what's coming to them.

James

 

[Aspen RT]

Wow....this is terrible. I was so happy when I got rid of a tuxedo and got my Advantage. (Back in 2020) I hate to hear all this is going on.

 

[steve392]

Thanks for all of the responses. Did a little more digging yesterday, and also looked into a company called Warren Steel Specialties located in Warren, Ohio. This was (is) another company which also has Stacy Mack as president/CEO. Warren Steel Specialties, (not to be confused with Warren Steel Holdings, which is another bankrupt company) still seems to be in business and obviously related to Advantage.
I will be filing a complaint with the Ohio Attorney General's Office today regarding Warren Steel, aka Advantage Lifts, aka Backyard Buddy, aka Real Garage Life.

It looks like everyone has the same opinion of salesman Tim Dixon.

717, your experience was almost identical to mine, even the dates that were promised to me. I only found out about this on Monday when I went to the website to get the name of their management team when I saw that the website was gone and the "Coming Soon" page was there instead. When I called Tim's "direct number" it was disconnected. Did a few more google searches and the rest is history.

Steve

 

[717owner]

Steve - the scumbag issue is that all of them are created as LLCs with legal firewalls between them. So even though that scumbag is ceo of them all, they are considered separate legal entities and can’t be linked. The way to get his guy is to subpoena records showing no production for 7 months and deposits being taken to the very day they declared bankruptcy. Also, the multi million overdue debt to the Chinese factory is a factor. It’s done and I’m sure he walked away comfortable. It will take money and a great attorney to put him in jail where he belongs.

 

[717owner]

On the “coming soon” part of the website :

While I was in talks with them during the final days of them in business, they had an offer from a competitor company that makes very similar products. Like VERY similar. You can look them up. That deal was contingent on fiscal due diligence and apparently at the last moment, that revealed something and the deal immediately fell through. I’m sure the books are cooked and gross criminal negligence is there. HQ in Hanover is fenced off and they actually had a sheriff car parked out front for the first few days in August. I haven’t driven by in a few weeks so no idea if they are still there.

I actually commented on their FB page in April that it feels like they run a ponzi scam and was immediately blocked from all their social accounts. Of course Tim seemed taken aback by it at the time but every sign of a master con was there. I just didn’t want to believe it.

Look up the problem on fb. There are a bunch of people who were conned out of 30k+. Some way more than that.

 

[Just_Steve]

Did you put the deposit on a CC? Did you contact the CC company for a disputed claim "Goods not received"?

 

[717owner]

Sadly no. I did a wire transfer in Nov 2025 to avoid the 3% fee. I’m a gullible *****.

 

[Just_Steve]

Sadly no. I did a wire transfer in Nov 2025 to avoid the 3% fee. I’m a gullible *****.

I don't know about "gullible *****" but I guess that's an expensive lesson learned. I personally never do business with any company without using a CC unless it's a face to face cash transaction.

 

[durangochad]

I am another victim. Placed my order in January 2026 thinking they had the lift in stock. Was surprised right away by the delay and the story about relocating manufacturing. I did not need the lift right away and really wanted what I had ordered so I opted to wait. Every month I got the same run around from Tim. They were always waiting on one part or another. In May they supposedly were down to just needing the ramps and would be ready to ship in June. Tim disappeared and a new guy took his place. Two more months of stories and then the new guy told me he and the entire manufacturing staff had been let go. The website switched to Exciting News Coming Soon. Perhaps they are going to post a photo of Stacey Mack sipping umbrella drinks on the beach of a country with no extradition treaty. I ordered my lift through an installer and paid cash so I'm out the full $10k. Clearly we were the victims of deceptive business practices. I doubt I'll ever see a penny of that money back, but if anyone figures out how to lodge a complaint against this crook, I'd like to know about it.

 

[717owner]

I am another victim. Placed my order in January 2026 thinking they had the lift in stock. Was surprised right away by the delay and the story about relocating manufacturing. I did not need the lift right away and really wanted what I had ordered so I opted to wait. Every month I got the same run around from Tim. They were always waiting on one part or another. In May they supposedly were down to just needing the ramps and would be ready to ship in June. Tim disappeared and a new guy took his place. Two more months of stories and then the new guy told me he and the entire manufacturing staff had been let go. The website switched to Exciting News Coming Soon. Perhaps they are going to post a photo of Stacey Mack sipping umbrella drinks on the beach of a country with no extradition treaty. I ordered my lift through an installer and paid cash so I'm out the full $10k. Clearly we were the victims of deceptive business practices. I doubt I'll ever see a penny of that money back, but if anyone figures out how to lodge a complaint against this crook, I'd like to know about it.

It’s not about a complaint. I’m sorry you are one of us now. I was told it was greater than 22 million in fraudulent deposits taken over 7 months. There are years of backlogs for “complaints”. He ran a multi million dollar Ponzi scheme and cooked the books. It’s going to take a team of attorneys, legal action and the FBI handcuffing him on the evening news. Even then, if the money is gone then it’s gone. I hate to say that but I don’t know what else to say

 

[steve392]

When I purchased mine I used a Costco Citibank Visa card. I thought it was too late also, but I called and filed a claim. Costco/Citi opened a claim and gave me a "conditional credit" for now as they investigate. It may be pulled back and I get nothing, but at least they are doing something. They didn't tell me that it was too long ago, in my case about 300 days.

It looks like the same lift is being sold as Guardian lifts. Went on their website this morning and just did a quick online chat. Asked where their products were manufactured, China of course. Asked if their lifts were ALI certified, and they are not. Asked if their company was affiliated in any way to Advantage/BB/real garage life/automotive lift service/Warren Steel/Stacey Mack, and they are not. Although the salesman did say that the same China factory that makes their lift was the one used by Advantage.
Advantage claims that their lift was ALI certified, not sure if that was smoke also.

Just for fun I took the time to file a complaint with OHIO Attorney General's Office mentioning Warren Steel along with the 4 other companies owned by Mack.

Looking at Wildfire Lifts now, Vice Grip Garage/Derek B. hawks their lifts on Roadworthy Rescues.