Not So Fast

I have been wanting a lift forever but my garage has limited ceiling height (8'4") but that's good enough for a MaxJax. Thought of the QuickJack but not high enough so the MaxJax seems like the one.
Can any one who has one give me pointers/opinions/ likes or dislikes please
Thanks
NSF
https://www.maxjaxusa.com/

Icecap

The height of a standard garage ceiling as well as the possibility of the garage floor concrete being not thick enough for a post hoist has me interested in the BendPak MD-6XP Scissors lift. It's portable having wheels at one end and a power unit with wheels and a hitch that can also be used as a lifting and moving device. It has a 6,000 lb capacity and lifts 48". The only issue I can see using it for a Corvette is the minimum lowered height is either
4 3/4" or 5 1/2" depending on where its measured to arms or adapters that fit on the arms. The clearance issue could be overcome by driving a car up on 2 X's which would increase your ground clearance by 1 1/2", Since our families fleet contains everything from a Ford Diesel Pickup, Ford Fusion, VW Jetta, Honda Accord, Mitsubishi Eclipse and a Corvette it should be able to handle them all nicely.

Coyote Dave

Very in depth reviews and discussion on Garage Journal forum. If it's out of line to ref another forum, please let me know.....

Not So Fast

Will check it out
It fits the bill as they say, like to have a full height but its what it is right.
NSF

Rickzach

Not So Fast

That's a a very worthwhile suggestion, and it wouldn't be in the way, just park on top of it, Thanks
NSF

doomi

It may be worth checking Craigslist as well. Grabbed this one for $600. It works great due to my short ceiling and has a maximum lift height of 48". However I'm limited to 36" because of my bulkhead.

Please disregard my disaster of a garage. I have an obscene amount of tools on the woodworking side.

Edit: it's easy to drag it outside if I need that other foot of height as well.

soggysailor

So did the lift eat up the Race Deck flooring? It looks like its all bunching up and sliding where the the lift operates

Also I would consider what you plan on doing under your car. Just brakes and oil changes? Then any jack will suffice. If you want to get busy and tear out your exhaust or trans you'll want a lift with good access to those items.

doomi

The flooring was badly warped prior to the lift. When I dragged it in it displaced some tiles and I just haven't reset them yet. I just got it in over the weekend.

Not So Fast

Is your car extremely low? I measured my clearance and 4 3/4" is real close in the front but it might make it without the boards.
If I can drive over it so that I can leave it in place without the boards then it looks like the way to go.
I wont be doing any trans work or such so the middle bars shouldn't matter, there's drawbacks to all the lifts one way or the other, tradeoffs ya know.
Thanks for the advice guys
NSF

doomi

My car is factory height as far as I know. Not sure if the Z51 package affects that at all. However, I do have a front splitter and side skirts... though if I remember correctly you do as well.

For reference I had to use (2) 2x12's stacked to fit my low profile Harbor Freight jack under the frame rail with space for the pucks.

And I overestimated the height I'd need to clear the parts on this lift. I could get away with one board, but frankly it's kind of nice having the car higher in the air. It's my daily driver so getting in and out is easier with that extra ~4-6" depending on which level I park on. The extra height is also nice as it makes it easier to position the lift arms on the frame rail. I'm not squeezing through as tight of a space.

I believe the highest point on my lift is ~5 1/4" inches, but I can measure when I get home if that would help give you an idea of the clearance you'd need for your different options.

Either way, get a lift. I've only had mine set up for a week and it's saved my back a ton of pain. Had that broken front splitter off in seconds.

Not So Fast

Can you if you please measure the lift arm height, I think they measure the lift without them attached.
I will check mine very closely today for cleareance, I know that the front splitter is 4 3/4"
Thanks Bobby

Batman75

I've been looking at the MX-6. The $2200 lift in your link. Any of the 3 would work best in my 1.5 car detached garage. Since I'm no spring chicken I'm trying to decide if I really want to do much of my own work though.

Not So Fast

^^^ Me too Phil, tough call but I want to get under the car, but then what after I'm finished ?? I'm not doing any major repairs
BV PS heres a little video of the Scissor jack, the center bars are potentially in the way but I don't think I would ever have cause to remove any thing that would be restricted by them
Like I said its about tradeoffs right ?
Wrong one, try this one, shows under car accessibility in the center

Corvette_Ed

It does. The Z51-equipped cars sit just a bit lower.

HOXXOH

The lift I'm buying, right after I take care of the wife's wish list (gotta make her happy first ), is the Atlas garage pro 8000 4-post from Greg Smith. I thought I'd prefer a 2-post lift and made preparations for that when I built the house, but due to the contractor errors, that's now off the table. Now I'm glad he screwed up, because the 4-post really fits my needs better.

The top of the posts are under 7' and it'll lift the car up to 6' in 6" increments. For the average 4' high Vette, it'd max out at 10' to the top of the roof. I have a 12' ceiling in my workshop, so even the Rogue the wife wants will work. The lift is portable and can be easily rolled around by one person when I don't want it in the middle of the shop. I can park it next to a wall and only have 2 posts to walk around. Since the bottom of the runners in the full up position is 5' 7 1/2" and I'm 5' 7", I won't get head smacked either. I'm really liking how easy it is to just drive it on and lift and especially the roll around portability part, so storage isn't a problem.

With your 8' 4" ceiling, it'd still allow you to lift your Vette to the 48" stops and give you about 54" under the car, which is the most no matter which lift you choose.

windyC6

I was thinking about a 4 post lift also. But you still have to lift the vehicle while its on the lift to get the wheels off correct ?? Most of the reason for me wanting a lift is to get the wheels off the ground all at once. Am I missing something ??.....

doomi

Keep in mind that mine is not a MaxJax, so there will be some differences. The lift arm height without the pad attached is 4 3/4", with the pad it is 6 3/4". However, I don't have the pads on there as I drive over the lift. I swing the arms towards the center when I'm pulling up, then rotate them to the frame rail location and add the pads once I'm above them.

Not So Fast

Thanks Doomi; that's the same measurement Bendpac has at the top of the arms not including the pads. I have clearance of 4 3/4 except for the headers and cats which are about 1/4"+ lower so I'm afraid I will have to have a 2x ramp of sorts damnit, I was hoping to park over the top of it.
one thing for sure is there are so many choices of lifts, it gets confusing, all have trade offs, like drive ons but then the wheels are still supporting the car, 2 post take up more room and then the concrete drilling and strength, none serve all things. Tough call but the scissor looks like the least invasive so far and beneficial to my needs.
And the HF model LOOKS EXACTLY like the Bendpac and $500 less hmmm, I wonder, hate to make a mistake and crash my car, AND MORE IMPORTANTLY ME
NSF
PS now that I look at the photos I'm wondering if at the frame/cross rails it is low enough since the swing out arms are above them, maybe the headers will clear the frame ?????

doomi

Keep in mind that the HF one is 220v if that affects your decision.

I think you're good with your headers with one 2x. You may be able to clear this thing without a 2x, but it's risky. On mine the center portion of the lift is only 4" high.