Every gearhead would love the luxury of owning a garage lift, but few of us have the space to make this dream a reality. Fortunately for those tired of squeezing under a vehicle, an entire cottage industry has emerged to provide the maximum lift in a minimum amount of space.
A scissor lift is a strong, and versatile garage lift option.
Portable Power
Scissor lifts are the perfect pop-up answer to this question: “How am I going to deal with that suspension/exhaust/wheel/brake problem?”
Starting at around $1,500, and capable of lifting up to 6,000 pounds—about the same weight as a full-size SUV—scissor lifts use 110-volt electrical power and come on a rolling tray for easy storage. Some models can be folded up against the wall when not in use, saving even more space.
Scissor lifts use hydraulics to rise up from a perfectly flat position, elevating a car or truck to the most comfortable working height. Typically, these types of lifts are used for jobs that don’t require access to the middle of the vehicle, as that’s the location for the lift’s bracing.
Perhaps the best part about a portable scissor design is that it works even if you have a low ceiling in your garage. Simply roll it out into your driveway and take care of the job there. It’s also perfect for quickly changing wheels, tires, and brakes—letting you pop your vehicle up at all four corners and then sit comfortably on a stool to get the job done.
Four Posts for The Win
If you have a tall garage ceiling, and are looking for a solution that’s more about storage than shade-tree repairs, a four-post lift (shown at the top of this post) might be the answer. With a few thousand extra pounds of capacity compared to a scissor unit, these permanently installed lifts allow you to drive on and jack up—leaving enough room under the vehicle to park a second car or truck. Pricing is competitive too, typically starting at $2,000.
You can still work on your car using this type of lift, but your options are more limited. Since the drive-on design makes use of full-length ramps, you can’t easily remove the wheels or suspension of the car that’s sitting on them. Unlike a scissor lift, however, the area between the ramps is fully exposed, making it simpler to do exhaust, driveshaft, and transmission/clutch work.
Two-post lifts offer the best access to your car when working on a repair job.
Two Post Compromise
Sitting between these two options are two-post lifts. Typically priced a little higher than a scissor design, and offering four adjustable lift points, a two-post hydraulic system gives you full access to every aspect of your vehicle’s chassis, including the wheels. Like a four-post, however, you’ll need a tall ceiling to accommodate this type of lift, and it’s not portable at all. It’s also not designed for long-term storage of a vehicle, and you have to know how to perfectly balance a car on its lift points to avoid disaster.
Breaking it down, there’s a definite hierarchy in the world of garage lifts. Scissor lifts offer portable convenience, an easy-to-store form factor, and the best pricing. Two-post lifts provide the ultimate in vehicle access, but require a tall ceiling and come with a certain degree of anxiety regarding balance. Finally, four-post lifts are the best answer for doubling the amount of storage in your garage, as long as you have the necessary ceiling height.
