I've been thinking about buying a lift for my garage.  Originally I didn't plan on a lift because I don't have the ceiling height to stand up straight under a car, but a friend of mine put a lift in his ordinary 2-car garage and he loves it because he can at least get the wheels up to 3 or 4 feet for brake and suspension work and he can sit and use a rolling stool to work under.   I've got 8 feet to a beam but a 12 foot span between beams where the height is at least 10 feet.  I figure I could lift a Corvette or most sports cars to where the hood is just under the beam and that would put the bottom of the wheels at about 5 feet off the ground.  Here is a link to a picture of my garage.  The space where the red car is would be where the lift would go.  I figure I'd just move the shelving to the opposite wall.

Garage Pic

Lifts seem pretty straightforward but I've never used one so I don't really know what questions to ask when shopping.    I think I'd prefer a two-post lift because it seems much more versatile as far as the kind of work you can do with it and takes up less floor space.  On the other hand, I've got to park a car in that space even when the lift is not in use and I so I'm kinda wondering if the 2-post would be even more inconvenient for parking (I'm not saying that I want a storage lift, rather just that I'd be parking on the floor between the posts and having to be careful about opening the doors all the time.)  I also don't know what questions to ask regarding safety features and I read something about leveling features on a couple of 4-post models that I didn't understand.  Anyone care to share their insight on hobby lifts, I would appreciate all knowledge.

I've been pondering what sort of lift would work for my garage also (leaning towards a 4 poster though).  Ceiling is just over 8 foot so know I wouldn't be able to stack two cars, but might be able to put the lift across the back wall, get a car on it and lift it high enough to pull the nose of another car under it.  That would solve the winter storage issue.

[QUOTE=Norsky] [/QUOTE]

The Supra is an 85.  Supras are another obsession with me.  I've had a bunch over the years, still have that red one and another silver. 

I have a four post Gemini lift (made in Texas), and I love the thing. Its a drive on, but I purchased a pneumatic secondary lift with it in order to lift one end of the car up off its tires. I also wanted a two post lift, but I couldn't find one that would fit (most need 14' verticle clearance) my garage is 10' on the sides, and 14' in the middle. One thing I really like about this lift, is its not bolted to the floor, and it came with casters so you can move it across the floor with a car on it. Mind you, the car cannot be up high to move it, but it makes it nice to be able to move the thing around if you have to.

I have 4 post with 10' of ceiling height. I bought it for storage of two cars and use it for most jobs that do not require the suspension to hang loose. Works fine for me. Keep your jack and stands too, you'll always need them. Willis762008-06-03 11:08:21

I've been reading that most 2 post lifts only require 4" of 3000psi concrete.  The anchor bolts that come with the kits only go in 3 1/2" deep.  I don't know why, but I can't seem to wrap my head around the concept of using just a few shallow anchors, typically six per base.  I keep picturing the whole thing tipping forward or back or collapsing toward each other and ripping the anchors out.  The bases aren't very big so the leverage would seem enormous.  Am I being unnecessarily paranoid or are these anchors really a lot stronger than I think?  I had thought possibly to weld up some struts to secure the tops of the of the posts to the roof structure for added stability, but then mabe thats not a good idea for some other reason.  Any of you guys structural engineers?

At this point, after much research and deliberating, I'm leaning toward a 4 post with rolling jacks.  One of my thoughts was that at some point if necessary, I could use a four-post to lift a body off a frame by hanging straps from it.  However, most of the hobby lifts only have about 69 inches of clearance below the runners.  A C3 is what, about 48-49 inches tall.  I'm thinking I may need to spring the extra $ for a taller lift.  Can anyone tell me how far you have to lift the body in order to roll the chassis out from underneath?  

Got some help from over at NCRS and thought I'd share back here

[QUOTE=pdupler]
[quote=Stephen]If you plan on rolling the chassis out from under the body then you need the tires on it. Having said that take the following measurements.

With the tires on...
1. Height of tallest point of engine or fuel tank from floor.

2. Distance from lowest point of body (floorpan or core support) to highest point of body (roof or windshield top)

Add these dimensions, throw in some "working clearance" and the total is the minimum clearance you'll need

Example: engine = 37 inches
body = 43 inches
clearance = 2 inches
Total = 82 inches[/quote]

So, I did some rough measurements.....

Engine and Fuel Tank Lid both appear to be about = 31 inches
Body from floor pan to roof = 43 inches
Give me clearance of say = 4 inches*
Total = 78 inches

*I figure the chassis might rise a couple of inches as the body is lifted, thus unloading the springs.

The next taller model at 81" clearance over the standard at 69" should be plenty. Thats good because to go any taller, the runners have to get longer. Thanks for the tips.
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