Not having a lot of funds I bought a used Rotary lift. It came from a Toyota dealership so it had lots of usage but good maintenance. The baseplates had heavy rust that I had to chip off, but there was sufficient metal left. I did check with the Rotary to make sure. Anyhow, got it home in a pick up truck and lifted it out with my Dingo. Got some friends together and up it went. Ran a new 220 circuit and it was running great in no time. I think if you buy quality a used lift is a good choice. Mine is like this: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Rotary-AT0...ont-arms-2-stage-rear-arms-w-RA-/231786253538
I just committed to a Challenger SA10 overhead lift. Not the cheapest lift in the world, but I get nervous about buying stuff online without some personal interaction and references. I went through Advantage Lifts, since I know a guy that sold for them for a while. He also mentioned, besides the fact that this is a really high quality lift, that it suits my situation about perfectly. My ceiling height and need for overhead basically were the deciding factors. I have plenty of concrete poured with mesh reinforcement. It is supposed to be on the truck this week sometime, and delivered to my work address within the next 10 days. Looks like I need to have a lift installing party!
Congrats! Like I said, I am partial to Challenger lifts (I have 5 CL-series currently) and have had a new Rotary and inherited a used Challenger and use Benwill, all of which are gone including the Rotary. One thing I don’t like about Challenger, and it’s something you’ll have to work through, is sometimes some of the “stuff” doesn’t assemble as neatly as Rotary. We had some QC issues, had to have customize some of the hold downs for cables and wiring, etc. Once you get through that nonsense (if you have to go through it at all), you will enjoy years of trouble-free use. Another good idea is to get Cat hydraulic oil additive and put a splash in with the fluid. It makes the pump and cylinders operate better and it cures the pesky chattering that can occur. The Cat additive is not cheap, but you’ll only need a cupful.
Adam -I read something on the garage journal - "is there a cylinder that sticks out of the post that is higher than the post either always or when you lift your car to max height? I'm going back to Challenger's spec that says 'overall height with cylinder is 142.5"'. Are you aware of that?
Yes. Tony mentioned that to me, but we will be checking on that to make sure I don't reach that point.
I've read that you could cut an access hole in the ceiling just above the cylinder to allow full lift.
As someone who has had both, my preference is a 2 post. The reason for that is anytime you need to take the wheels off, you have to jack the car up (on the lift). If you do a lot your own work on the car this becomes a pain. Not to mention it cuts down on your room while working underneath the car. If all you are going to do is store the car (and maybe park another one underneath), the 4 post is great. You just drive on and get out. No squatting down to adjust the arms to the correct position.
