I am interested in getting a car lift for my Chevelle. I have a 36x48ft steel building with a 5 inch concrete floor so room/height/size IS NOT an issue.

Any suggestions on which brand?
2 post vs. 4 post?
Approximate cost I would be looking at? I'm NOT looking for the cheapest because the cheapest price today IS NOT always the cheapest in the long run. I just do not want to buy more lift than I need for minor automotive repair and muscle car tweaking?

Thanks!

I know I'll get the RIGHT answer from fellow Chevelle tech-es

There are a couple recent posts on this topic in the bench racing section.

http://www.chevelles.com/forums/search.php use use lift, eagle, or bendpak and they should pop up.

I have a four post Backyard Buddy and a four post Direct Lift.
DL is a piece of junk. I only use it for storage.
Any and all maintenance is done on the BB.
BB is manufactured in Warren, Ohio.
I went there and picked mine up.
JMHO.

david

Since we are on the discussion of lifts, what ceiling heights do you have (the members with lifts)? I built a 24'x32' garage last summer with 10' ceilings and I'm throwing around the idea of purchasing a lift (primarily for storage of another car) when I get my 'vintage' ride.

I have a Bendpack two post MX-10AC with 12' ceilings. The place I bought it from (see below) currently lists the lift at $2345 delivered. This is my first lift so I can't compare it to other brands - but I am very happy with it.....I would consider a four post as a second lift, likely for storage only. IMO they're just a little harder to do some routine stuff on, like remove or rotate tires. It's doable, but not much easier than just doing it on the floor.

http://www.asedeals.com/two_post_lift_specs.html

I agree with MJRIBEIRO, 4 posts are great for storage and simple maintenance ie: oil changes. But if you are goin to be doing some work on your cars, asymmetric 2 post lifts are the way to go. At the shop I had, we mainly used the 4 post for oil changes and did most of the heavy work on 2 posts.

With a 4 post, to unload the suspension and do any work, you have to get "plates" that span the rack from side to side. As they have to be strong enough to support the vehicles, they are large, heavy and combersome. They always seem to be exactly where you want to be.

Bend pak 12,000LBS 4 post lift is what we had and I think it was about $2500 at the time. Unless you are lifting a bus, I don't think you'll need much more capacity than that.

Try these:
http://eagleequip.com/page/EE/CTGY/LI
http://www.bendpak.com/default.isg?cPath=216

I pulled the frame out from under my 67 gto with my four post.
i also have the rolling jack platform. comes in very handy.
friend of mine has a two post and i prefer my four post over his.

plus i have the caster kit and i'm able to move the lifts around.
right now i rolled both of them into my other garage so i can put down porcelain tile on the floor.

david

I have a 4 post Autolifters unit that works great, but the company went broke along with my life time warranty. But as said, it is a pain to work around for any suspension, wheel, exhaust etc. Better for storage and great for waxing and detailing the Chevelle as it makes everything easy to reach. I am in the process of putting up a new garage and actually just ordered a two post 20 minutes ago for less than 2 grand delivered. I have been doing a lot of research and reading for the last couple of weeks, and decided on the SL 10,000 OH from Complete Hydraulics. http://www.completehydraulic.com/sl10000oh.html I looked at units that were twice as much, and others that were quite a bit cheaper, and came up with this one as in the middle somewhere. It is 10,000 lb and both Symmetric and Asymmetric and adjustable to about 12 1/2' as I am putting in 13'8" ceilings, and looked like an extremely safe unit. Hopefully this will give me the best of both worlds. I will still keep the 4 post for storage and portability, and use the 2 post for everyday work.

american automotive equipment is where i got my 9000 lb lift and it was priced good to and it isnt one of those cheasey hobbyist lifts it commerical duty one and it cost me $1800.00