The Top 10 Things You Need To Know Before Buying A Lift
By: Brian Q Davis
Submitted: 2010-08-04 11:31:32 | Word Count: 1161
Here at BendPak, we hate it when we hear about fellow auto-enthusiasts getting burned by a bad deal. That’s why we devised the following checklist to help you avoid an unfavorable fate and get the car lift of your dreams.
But please, keep in mind that this is just a place to start. The first and final step will always be research. Be an informed consumer, not a victim.
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10. Availability of information
Because research is such a large part of your decision-making process, you should be wary of car lift companies that don’t offer you much in the way of product and company information. Reputable car lift companies are proud of their products, features and corporate achievements, so they publicly stand behind them. Generally, they’ll want to get the word out about their products to as many people as possible. If you are attempting to research an automotive lift company and you find yourself on page six of Google with no real useful information, chances are they are hiding something.
9. Who REALLY made this lift
This one comes straight off the previous tip. There should always be a lift manufacturing company proudly placing their name on a prospective car lift. Unfortunately, many lift “brands” are just labels fabricated by smalltime warehouse dealers, deceptively supplying these products as their own. The car lifts are actually manufactured offshore in factory sweatshops with little or no regard to worldwide standards. If you find an auto lift that interests you, be sure to search for an informative and detailed manufacturing company website or at least a brochure.
8. Know thy garage
Sometimes sheer enthusiasm will overshadow what’s physically feasible. It’s important not to get carried away. Measure, re-measure, and re-re-measure your garage. Car lift alterations are sometimes possible, but they are rare and always costly. Double-check with local installers to find out the minimum space required to work on your new auto lift. Triple-check the physical dimensions of your favored car lift either online or over the phone. If you can, find out if anyone nearby, such as a dealership or a neighbor, already has the automotive lift you’ve got your eye on. Most lift owners are extremely proud of their car lifts and will probably be happy to give you a quick tour.
7. Company reputation
When you dig deeper than the marketing hype, you’ll quickly discover what others are saying about the company that makes your prospective auto lift. Online garage-themed message boards are often a fantastic resource for unfiltered opinions about your potential car lift purchase. Also, be sure to consider how long the company has been in business, as that is usually directly tied to their reputation. The longer they’ve been around, the more likely it is that they’ve taken the time to develop positive customer relationships. Established automotive lift companies also have a better chance of being around in the future to honor warranties, replace parts and generally provide solid customer service should the need arise.
6. The right price
It might seem obvious, but it bears repeating. Make sure that the value that you are getting out of your car lift matches how much you are going to pay. It doesn’t hurt to shop around for the best deal, as long as you stick to a pre-determined list of essentials that you are unwilling to compromise on. Remember: the best car lift for you will rarely, if ever, be the most expensive car lift or the cheapest car lift. Instead, it will be right where the cost meets the benefit—exactly where it should be. You get what you pay for and maybe a little more if you catch a retailer during a sale.
5. The warranty
Even the best automotive lift in the world is still just a machine, so it’s susceptible to human-error and unexpected failures (though potential devastating effects can be greatly minimized with the correct systems in place—more on that below). Honest car lift companies realize this and offer warranties on the frame, the moving parts and the labor at varying levels depending on their pricing structures. Warranties usually come standard with purchase, but can often be extended to cover years or even the entire life of the auto lift in some cases. Take this as a good sign that the car lift manufacturer not only stands behind their product, but is willing to put their money where their collective mouth is.
4. The ALI seal of approval
The Automotive Lift Institute’s certification is the only nationally recognized standard for car lifts of all designs. They are a non-partial coalition of engineers, designers, industry experts and professionals who rely on third-party laboratory testing methods to recommend and test industry-class safety measures far above those set by any government or municipal agency. What happens when you purchase a non-approved car lift? We urge you to investigate thoroughly as many business owners quickly find themselves on the short end of a long battle once their local inspectors levy penalties for non-compliance or worse yet, shut down their business entirely. Yes, it can and does happen.
3. Customer support
This goes hand in hand with reputation. Sure, lots of car lift companies will be sweet as sugar when they are taking your cash, but where are they when something doesn’t exactly go according to plan? Once again, it all goes back to research. By now, you’ve probably narrowed down your selection to a couple of options. Go ahead and read up on what each prospective company offers in the way of customer support, but don’t forget to call into their support number, too.
2. The features you want
This requires a little bit of foresight on your part. Not only do you have to determine the heaviest thing you’re likely going to need to lift, but also how closely the vehicle runs to the ground, the physical dimensions of the largest and the smallest vehicle you’re going to lift and whether or not you’re going to want to easily move your car lift around on casters. Your best bet for future-proofing your car lift is to go with a manufacturer who not only has the features you want, but also offers a lot of optional equipment in the event your needs change.
1. Real engineering
Finally, do not settle for a piece of rebranded generic junk. Make sure your prospective car lift came from the minds and hands of a dedicated team of engineers who were dead-set on making their auto lift the best it could be. If someone took pride in designing your automotive lift, chances are you’ll take lots of pride in owning it. Also, lifting operation tends to be much smoother when human minds thought more about how you were going to use the lift and less about shoving a product out the door.
