Any of you guys looking for a Kwik-lift, I was at Back to 50's in Minneapolis this weekend and ran into the original owner of Kwik-lift, Danny, and he is back in business. He sold the company and they went bankrupt and Danny and another guy bought it back and he has reopened the business. You can find him on the web just put a - in Kwik-lift when you look for it. He is a really nice guy and he is working really hard to get the business back to what it was.

 

I have a kwik-lift...great lift for my lowered Z. It's good to see that he's back in business.

http://kwik-lift.com/

 

maybe I should be telling the company this but for now I'll share this with those who have a quick lift.

I keep mine flat and I park on it. The instructions said to use 2x4's in certain locations to stabilize it. It works great but I used 2x6's. I think it's more stable that way.

So I have to raise and mount my front cradles each time I use it. No big deal when you're 25 and still a hunk, but some people may need some assistance in raising the ramps onto the cradle.

The previous owner of mine had a 2x4 across the top front and bolted down so as to mark locations and to use as stops for his different cars.

I was looking at that one day thinking to myself, and said self, I think if one would bolt that 2x4 to the ramps, then you could use a bumper jack and lift them up together and then just slide the cradles into position.

So I happened to have access to an old style bumper jack and tried it. Worked like a charm.

I have also thought about mounting a frame to my garage ceiling that I could hang a portable wench to and raise the ramps together by use of the wench.

Now keep in mind I can use the same spread of the ramps for all the cars I use the kwik lift for. But even if you wanted to shorten or widen the spread you could always just drill different holes for the bolts on one of the ramps.

I also have a small Kubota tractor that that's not very wide and to use the lift I would have to take out that back bar and just use it like ramps. Too much trouble for that IMO. It's not light. But if you have help it's doable. I personally don't have much help working on this type of stuff myself so I have to make it as simple for one person as I can.

Also if you keep it flat, make marks on the floor so you can make sure it's not moving on you. If it does there are steps to alleviate that problem.

 

Great info RetiredSFC 97. Considering getting one. My car is very low and I do not think the air dam would clear the front. Also wonder if the bar to lift the back would hit the suspension. I guess if the front neded to clear I could put blocks up there.

 

Mine showed up at the shop today. I'll get it to the house and set it up either this afternoon or in the morning. I'm really looking forward to trying it out. Danny took my order and seems to be a nice guy.

 

I doubt it would hit your car but it very well may, mine's not lowered.

When the lift is flat I barely touch the front dam. But I tried to back on once with the ramps laying flat and the lip of the ramp caught one of my leave in place jacking pucks and ripped it out. Driving forward going on I don't have that problem.

Also if the ramps are raised on the front cradles I can then back on with no problems. (it's all in the angles) And I have to back on to change the oil due to the front of the lift being slightly higher than the rear and the oil drain plug being on the front of the pan.

So far I've changed brakes and rear outer tie rod ends and of course one oil change. I've used it for my STS as well changing rotors and brakes.

As a side note for those who have one of these or are considering it. Make sure if you use the centerbridge it is mounted properly and sits in the V grooves. Also you need to make sure your jack stands can sit inside the centerbridge. The ones I got at harbor Freight cannot. If you look at the last picture in this link http://kwik-lift.com/uses.html, you will see the stands not sitting inside the bridge. These are the same stands I have and they will not fit inside the bridge. I do not recommend them for this application.


Also I don't use a towel under my bridge as they talk about. I suppose it wouldn't hurt if you have it powder coated and don't want to scratch it, but it's not mandatory.

 

Glad to hear this. I need another bridge and was bummed when they went out of biz. Guess I know what I'm buying with part of my bonus check.

 

Same here!

 

Exactly how high does the lift get the vehicle? - Oops, looked at the FAQ's... 20"

 

Good stuff! Glad to hear that he's back. If anyone is considering one, make sure that you buy the lay-flat ramps which are not included. You'll need these if you want to park your car on the ramps when they are lowered.

 

Since my garage ceiling is not very high (8'), the Kwik Lift is certainly an option for me. Good to hear that they are back in business.

 

Can a cat-back swap be done on a Kwik-lift? Does it get the car high enough to snake out the exhaust?

 

What do you think?




You can go even higher with the KwikLift CrossBridge

 

Sorry to be off topic but can I see more of this garage!!!???

Tyler

 

Yes, and you can install/remove TI catback. I've done it a few times. It's a little tough working the pipes out but it can be done.

 

I like my Kwik Lift and have used it for a lot of things. For the oil changes, I don't even lift it. I use it in the lay flat position. It is high enough I can slide under it in front, and then jack up the back of the car a little to make it drain. I jacked the back of the car instead of the Kwik lift with a floor jack. It worked great.

Good to hear they are back in business, I wanted another bridge.

 

Can someone explain--and/or post pics--of a "bridge"?
Does it somehow allow you to remove your wheels while it's on the lift?
Thanks in advance for the info!

 

Really good news I've always wanted one of those.

 

Here ya go...

http://kwik-lift.com/manual.html

 

I was just on their website and Danny is going to be at Bloomington as a vendor if anyone is going.