For your basic weekend mechanic, a regular floor jack and a set of jack stands will get most jobs done. However, for those that are a little more serious about wrenching on cars, one tool that can save your back and tons of time is a lift. With a lift, all you have to do is position the car and push a button, then the car lifts like magic. Then you can simply walk under the car to make any repairs or changes as necessary. There is a few different styles of lifts out there, and we will cover the three biggest styles. 

The first is the low style lift. This lift allows you to drive over it and lift the car a few feet off the ground. These lifts are great for working on tires, suspension, brakes, and doing oil changes. Due to the fact they only lift the car a few feet, you can utilize these in a standard height garage. The downside to these is that because they only lift the car a few feet and you can’t walk underneath them. Another plus to these is that they are compact, fitting into just about any garage. 

The second style is a four post lift. As the name implies, there are four posts that get anchored into the ground. This style has two ramps that allow you to drive your car onto the lift, then push a button. These are great lifts as they will allow the car to raise up fully, so you can walk underneath them. The bad part of this style of lift is that if you need to work on the suspension, you have to support the car on jack stands, on the lift which can be tricky since the car is still held up by the wheels. But the positive is these are an affordable lift that’s easy to set up and use. Another huge positive for these lifts is that you can put one car on the lift, raise it up, and store a second car underneath. A word of caution though as these will require a taller ceiling in a garage in order to go up all the way. That usually means eleven to twelve foot minimum ceiling height. 

A four post lift also gives you room for another car!

The last style is a two post lift. This style of lift has only two posts, but four arms that swing under the car to lift it into the air. This style of lift allows you to get under the car, work on the suspension, or anything else that you would need. This is the most versatile lift, and the one most commonly seen in a professional setting. Here at Chevy Hardcore, we have two of these lifts in our garage. Just like a four post lift, these do require a taller ceiling to fit inside and have room for the car to go up. 

No matter what style of lift you choose, these can save a ton of time and effort. Most importantly, they can save your back! Due to the large amount of weight involved, we send a word of caution to have your lift professionally installed to be as safe as possible.