05r50 suggested I start a thread to share my thoughts on the MaxJax, and to drive general discussion on other lifts, pros and cons, etc. I've had the MaxJax for several months now, and absolutely love it. I wish I had bought it 5 years earlier. It really has transformed how I work on the car, made everything much more fun, and much faster. But, largely, these benefits could apply to most any lift. So I'll talk separately about what I think are the key decision points for selecting a lift, pros and cons of different types of lifts, why I picked the MaxJax, and why others might choose something different. (I'll borrow some pics from Big Boys Garage Toys, where I bought my MaxJax, and from manufacturers.) The basic types of lifts, and their characteristics: Scissor Lifts Use a collapsible mechanism to lift the car from below. Lots of variations of lifts in this category. One piece lifts that fill the space under the middle of the car (e.g. BendPak MD-6XP): One-piece lifts that lift under the sides of the car, leaving the center fairly open (e.g. BendPak LR-60P): Two-piece lifts that function similarly (e.g. EZcarlift): Two-post lifts Use two floor-mounted towers to raise the car from the sides. Semi-permanent shop lifts (e.g. BendPak XPR-10A): Semi-portable lifts (e.g. MaxJax): Four-post lifts Use four floor mounted towers, typically to raise the car by the tires (e.g. BendPak HD-7P) Pros and Cons (not an exhaustive list, feel free to add your thoughts and I'll revise this). Scissor lift Pros: Can be fairly portable Can be truly drive-on, drive-off Can be left in place on the garage floor all the time, you just drive over it every day. Can be embedded in the garage floor, so you don't "bump" over them when you drive on. Once installed, no setup required. Most lift by the jack points, so wheels can be easily removed for service. Scissor lift Cons: Many are low-rise, and don't lift the car very high. One-piece scissors fill the space under the car, making some under-car work (like exhaust) more difficult or impractical. High-rise scissors look scary. :devil: Two-post lift Pros: Leave space under the car open. It's like the car is just floating in space. Nothing gets in the way when working under the car. You can walk or roll around under there easily. Most are mid-rise or high-rise, giving you more space under the car and more height options. When properly installed and loaded, are VERY solid and stable. Don't lift by the wheels, so you can remove wheels easily for services when necessary. Two-post lift Cons: Require enough width and height to install the lift towers. Much wider footprint needed than a scissor lift, not practical in many one-car wide garage bays. Must carefully consider overhead space for both the car and the lift mechanism. Car must be loaded correctly to balance the lift side to side and ESPECIALLY front to rear. Must consider the F/R weight distribution of the car when doing this. When car is loaded properly, the posts typically prevent you from opening the doors fully. In some cases, the inability to open the doors mean you may need to manually roll the car into position, because you can't drive it to its correct location and exit the vehicle. While high-rise two post lifts can be used to stack cars, the posts may get in the way when entering and exiting the lower vehicle. Four-post lift Pros: Leave space under the vehicle open for work Easily facilitate "stacking" of cars in a garage Don't require as much width as a two-post lift Posts don't get in the way when entering and exiting vehicle Drive on, drive off. Can be left in place all the time. Car can be loaded with normal weight on the suspension, so with a few tweaks, this can be easiest for DIY alignment work. Four-post lift Cons: Typically lift the car by the tires. Additional hardware (like a bridge jack) is required to lift by the jack points, to enable wheels to be removed. Cross-bars at front and rear of vehicle may get in the way of some services. Lifting platforms may get in the way of some services. Considerations: How much space do you have? This is probably the primary consideration. Different types and models of lifts require very different amounts of width, height and length. Height is a primary constraint for many garages. Where is your garage door and opener? Will you hit them? Will you need to modify your garage door installation to make more space available? In garages with high ceilings, it is often possible to have roll-up garage doors re-hung to go up and hug the ceiling, to provide more overhead space. Garage door openers can often be relocated. Do you have enough width for a two-post lift? They commonly require 9'-11' of total width. There are disadvantages of putting the posts too close together. What types of things do you need to be able to do? Ensure the type of lift you choose won't "get in the way". Low-rise lifts still require you to work on a creeper when under the car, and can't get wheels and brakes to standing height. Four post lifts lift by the tires. So swapping wheels, working on brakes, some suspension work require additional steps. Once you have a lift, you'll use it in ways you didn't anticipate. For example, I raise the car about a foot to do work on the topside of the engine... No more leaning over. It makes a huge difference. How much installation are you able to do? Two post lifts require anchors to be installed in the garage floor. If the garage floor slab is not adequately thick or stable, you'll need to cut and pour concrete. Scissor lifts can be fully portable with no permanent installation, but require you to drive over them, or you can embed them in the floor if you're willing to cut and pour concrete. Four post lifts should be anchored to the floor, also. Cost is probably less of a consideration than many people think. There's not a ton of difference in cost between types of lifts, of similar capacities. My Choice I looked at a lot of lifts, and ultimately chose the MaxJax. Why? Mid-rise lift would accommodate my garage ceiling and door height with no modifications, and would allow me to work under the car at "stool height". I could accommodate the width requirement in my two-car garage. I can leave one post in place all the time, installed beside a wall, and only need to move one post to open the garage back up for two-car storage. I prefer the two-post configuration for ease of access of most anything on the outside of the car, or in the engine bay. The lift doesn't get in the way for 90% of the things I do. I was able to install the lift in a position that would work for any of our cars: MINI, BMWs, VW, even large Hyundai Veracruz. I don't have enough garage ceiling height to be able to stack cars. If I did, that would have impacted my decision. Install of the MaxJax was pretty simple. Drill 10 holes in concrete with hammer drill (gave me an excuse to buy a hammer drill from Harbor Freight). Hammer in and set 10 concrete anchors. Done. It takes more time to figure out the best layout, than it does to install. Flexible install. I can install a second set of anchors for my moving post, to have a "wide" and "narrow" configuration. Setup is easy. Roll post into position, install 5 bolts, hang the two lift arms, hook up one quick release hose, one minute bleeding procedure. Takes about 5 minutes to setup for me (because one post stays in place all the time). Would take 10 minutes if I moved both posts. Working on the car is so much more efficient, it's worth 5 minutes setup and tear down. I'll never use jack stands and a creeper again. That said, there are a lot of factors that could (and should) drive others to make a different choice. Definitely not a one-size-fits-all need. So show us your lift if you have one, add your thoughts on why you chose what you did, ask questions if you're considering a lift, and discuss.
Scissor lifts are used by good detailing shops because you can polish the whole car without posts in the way or having to bend over so much.
Nice Write up! I have the EZ car lift, and Paul is right, it doesn't go up high enough to sit underneath the car. But, it's get's high enough to easily do brakes sitting on a mechanics stool, and it gets high enough that working underneath the car is easy, plenty of room to get to tight spaces and swing a wrench, although yes, you do have to use a creeper. You can get to any part of the car with ease, with the exception of the trim pieces underneath the doors. The center of the car is COMPLETELY open, and if need be, the front cross piece can be removed for more access once the car is up, but it's never been in the way of anything (yet) up front. The rear crossbar can't but it's not in the way of anything, there is nothing you can't get to in the back. It has no hydraulics--which is why I like it over scissors lifts. There is nothing to leak, it's purely a mechanical lift. It is low profile--with the drive over kit, I simply drive right over it. Although it is light enough to move and place against the wall. Why did I go EZ-lift over MaxJax? Space. I have three kids, and I just don't have the room for posts at the moment. In the future, maybe, but to be honest, the EZ lift takes care of everything I need in a lift. Downside of the EZ-lift is mainly cost. I love the lift, but it's not a bang for the buck purchase. Then again, they're easy to sell when it's time to get rid of it; many people take them to the track they're so portable (which is the first place I saw one), so there's a market for them. I am not a fan of scissors lifts or the race jack setup, they are prone to hydraulic failures (relatively cheap hydraulic setups) and stability failures, especially the ones that don't lock.
I have a few observations...... I teach automotive courses at college so I work with all of these lifts and more, plus I have a scissors lift in my garage. One type not mentioned is a two post in-ground lift, they now make these in a cassette form, everything contained in a box so that if it ever leaked the oil would stay in the box and not leach out into the soil - this lift is the best of both worlds, giving complete clearance under the car and no posts to prevent you from getting into the doors or working on the sides as Dave said. (The hydraulic fluid used in these is actually propylene glycol, which is not toxic even if it did leak.) It's also really expensive to buy and expensive to install! I would have one of these in a heartbeat if I had the money and ceiling height. An example..... My scissor lift has been a godsend to my back, as I work mostly on Classic Minis, and I used to just sit on the ground to work on it! Here's mine.... I bought this no-name generic lift for $600 off of Craigslist, I have low ceilings and no budget so it has worked out perfectly! If I had celling height and plenty of budget I'd have several lifts, a two post in-ground, a scissor and a drive-on lift for alignments. BTW, a 4 post does not need to be anchored to the floor, many are sold with caster kits, but they are the preferred choice for storage as the suspension is not hanging down as on a two post. No lift is perfect for every job, but my scissor lift has been a great value and help to me - the one thing I would like to do yet is recess it into the floor so I don't have to use ramps for clearance. The Max Jack is another great choice and I like that it gives complete access under the car and of course, it's portable - the only downside to me is the intrusion of the posts for interior work when on the lift....that and the cost. A scissor lift can be had for under $1500 brand new - Max Jacks are $2200 or more.
Thank you Paul for the nice comparison. My ceiling height is just over 10' which limits my choice of lifts somewhat. I'll end up with a 4-post because I am not sure about the thickness of my floor and I'm not enthused about cutting the floor and installing the necessary steel reinforcement require for a 2-post design. Thanks for the tip to look at the cross-braces on the 4-post designs and their possible interference with service locations. I've raised my garage door so it's tight to the ceiling; just need to pick a lift, as I'm tired of crawling around under the cars!
A good friend installed an Eagle lift in one of his outbuildings. Worked great for the Mini, but he uses it for his crew cab Chevy P/U, jeep, and his wife's Volvo. Fairly easy installation and the price was good. <$1500, but we saved on delivery costs by driving down to Greensboro and picking it up. At 6'4" I can walk under it easily. The only experience I have with it is when we were working on the Mini, but my bud is really happy with it. I don't have a picture of it all the way up but I'll post the two I do have, and a link to the company. View from beneath. https://www.eagleequip.com
My neighbor has an in ground garage lift. He was driving by an old gas station that they were tearing down and asked about it. They gave it to him! He had to get a boom truck and a jack hammer to take it out of the ground, but he already had a one ton flatbed truck to get it home with. He built a shop with 16 foot ceilings over it. I use it a lot, and it's right next door!