Z Garage Lift

[S30Driver]

Very, very nice lift!

Is it a worm gear that moves is up & down?

 

Wish I was getting that for Christmas....

[240260280z]

Looks like a great tool!  Simply effective.

[Carl Beck]

Hi Guys:

Yes, it is a worm gear that moves it up/down. You use an electric drill with a socket adapter. The mfg. recommends a drill with at least 8 amp motor - that you can operate at between 800 and 1200 RPM.  I had a 22 year old Craftsman 1/2 Drill but it was only rated at 6.5Amp. It had enough power to drive the lift - but the drill was getting very warm and pretty close to HOT. Well it is pretty old and worn.

 

So off to Harbor Freight - right down the street..Bought a 1/2 Drill with 8.5 Amp rating. It doesn’t even get warm. The amazing thing is - the new Drill was $42.95, about $20.00 less than my old one cost 22 years ago. Plus for $10.00 HF warranties the new Drill for 24 months. I usually don’t buy store warranties - but given the questionable reputation of HF electronic products - for $5.00 a year .. count me in.

 

Several owners that use theirs at tracks etc - say the 18 to 24 Volt cordless drills will do the job, but it takes a battery for each up/down cycle. Most have power converters in their tow vehicles.. so they just use A.C. corded drills.

 

Dave - aka “Jarvo2” pointed me to the EZCarlift… I had been looking at scissors lifts for quite some time, but couldn’t find anything that really addressed my needs / desires. This lift does everything I wanted plus has several additional capabilities that I can actually use. When I checked the EZCarlift site - they were on sale for $1795.00 - a bit more than many others, but they do a lot more of the things I wanted. 1) open access from the side of the car, with nothing under the car;  2) can’t take up much room to store; 3) had to be easy to move & set-up; 4) had to be useful for most of our cars

 

"While I was at it” - I thought might as well get all the options and be done. Bought the Vinyl Floor Protector Pads, the Hocky Puck lift point adaptors [for the M/B}, the movable Castor Kit so I can roll the car around in the garage on the lift, Ramp Extensions to extend the ramps from 60 inches to 68 inches {wive's E350}, and a kit to turn the lift into a work bench.  Right off the bat I was glad I ordered the Hock Pucks..had to use them on the Z.

 

So far, everything I’ve seen has been first class materials and assembly. Very high quality though out and all made in the USA. The only downside that I can see so far - it takes about 1 minute to raise the car to 20 inches, and another 30 seconds to go up to 26 inches. Doesn’t sound like much - but seems like a lot of time as you are waiting. Of course it is FAR FASTER than using a floor jack at each end and setting up Jack Stands.

 

I put a few more pictures on my Web Page.. if anyone is interested.

http://becksystems.com/garage/EZCarLift/EZCarLift.htm

 

FWIW,

Carl B.

[EhlersRS]

Carl,

 

Thanks for sharing and the new lift looks great!  I also see you've got some new door openers in there and the blue '72 is back!

 

Robert S.

[zKars]

Nice! This system does seem to a pretty good comprimise of price size and function when a full size hoist won't fit.

 

Carl, do you find the cross bars that link the left and right halves get in the way when the lift is "up"? They are conveniently hidden in those shots.

 

Are they easy to remove if you "had to"? They sure seem like they'd be right in the way of the diff crossmember and maybe the trans/engine connection point. Maybe if you could post a shot from underneath with the lift up to show where they are positioned it would help clarify.

 

And did you have to use "that" Z in the shots? It's hard to concentrate on the lift! My eyes keep wandering all over that body, ohhhh baby..... 

[Carl Beck]

Carl,

 

Thanks for sharing and the new lift looks great!  I also see you've got some new door openers in there and the blue '72 is back!

 

Robert S.

Hi Robert:

Yes - two new 3/4HP Sears Chain Drive's. Best openers I've ever found. Seems that Sears will stop offering them - as all their newer models are now Tape Drives. {junk}. Had to replace the older ones - do to lighting hitting the Garage a few months ago.  You might notice that two or three of the lights are also out, lightening fried the transformers in them  - bought replacements for them today. 

 

Yes, the Blue Z is in for it's once every 20 year - refresh. Pulled the engine to work on detailing the engine bay etc - and to clean/repaint the block etc. One of the reasons for the lift was the three hours I spent under it, when it was up on Jack Stands...last month. Sent the White 72 home with my son.

 

Sorry I missed you when you were at Jim's - 

FWIW,

Carl B.

[Carl Beck]

Nice! This system does seem to a pretty good comprimise of price size and function when a full size hoist won't fit.

 

Carl, do you find the cross bars that link the left and right halves get in the way when the lift is "up"? They are conveniently hidden in those shots.

 

Are they easy to remove if you "had to"? They sure seem like they'd be right in the way of the diff crossmember and maybe the trans/engine connection point. Maybe if you could post a shot from underneath with the lift up to show where they are positioned it would help clarify.

 

And did you have to use "that" Z in the shots? It's hard to concentrate on the lift! My eyes keep wandering all over that body, ohhhh baby..... 

 

It was a pretty easy compromise for me to make. The alternative was to raise the roof - and block the walls up another 3 or 4 foot. Or move somewhere else and start over.

 

The truth is I don't need a full height lift 99% of the time. I like to lift the car for wheel and brake work, oil changes. Nice to have it up a bit for buffing/polishing the sides and detailing the area under the rockers etc.  Also, nice to be able to lift the car when reinstalling and engine and tranny combination - you can tilt the whole assembly down to clear the firewall and not worry about jacking the car up as you go. Plus with this lift you can easily roll it outside for use. I couldn't find a four post lift with Posts that were short enough to roll out a standard garage door {6'8"}.Then in a small garage like mine - a 4Post or even a single Post just take up too much room all the time. This one takes next to ZERO room when stored.

 

I'll get some pictures from under the car - yes you could remove the cross braces - they are held on with two bolts on each side (on each end). Each side of the lift has a larger footprint than any of my  jack-stands. Although I did like the fact that the two sides were connected -it just seems to be a more stable set up - -  most of the other scissor lifts I looked at weren't connected. 

 

The BRE Z is on the lift - because as you can see in the photo's - it is time to once again Polish the Mag.'s and detail the tires  - - this time I won't be sitting on the floor for hours. 

 

If there is a compromise or trade-off involved - it might be between Price and Function. I really like the build quality of this lift - and the extra uses I can put it too. That however does come with a slightly higher initial price.  Like most tools higher quality can cost more to start with - but I've never been disappointed buying Quality over Price alone.

 

FWIW,

Carl B.

[71Nissan240Z]

I guess I'll understand once I'm a little older (31). I put cars on racks at the shop where I work part time, so I understand. However, I still don't care about being under my back. My garage is carpeted so I don't have to deal with cold concrete. I do have a very good set of professional ramps ,jack stands and racing jack from napa. No skimping on hand tools or safety for me.

[Steve49841]

Thanks Carl, great pics and write up. When I started this thread I really thought I would end upwith a mid rise scissors lift but now I'm not so sure. There are a lot of variables when selecting a lift with respect to under car access, storage space and so on. And I honestly had never thought about using the lift as a work table, that's a great idea.

[Purie]

I really want to get a lift but living in a apartment with a tight one car garage make me think it might not be worth it.

What do you guys think. Would the EZ lift be able to slide under from the front?

Cheers

[Carl Beck]

EZCarLift - has already thought of you "Purie" - they offer a "drive-over" option. You back the car out - place the lift on the floor and drive over it. Then position the ramps under your pick-up points. When your done - reverse the process, then roll the lift over to a wall and stand it up on end,  out of the way. Visit their web site to see all the "options" and "uses".

 

If you have a relatively short job to do - and your driveway is flat/level - you can also easily roll the lift outside to work.

 

A big Plus is that if you move - it is very easy to take with you. 

 

Carl B.

[Purie]

Thanks, time to start saving because that would be perfect.