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$450,000 for a car with provenance is not terrible, honestly. Take a look at some Historic GP cars with half the history of the Nissan GTP. I cut my racing teeth watching the IMSA GTP cars - I'll never forget Doc Bundy in the "Corvette" GTP, Brabham, St. James, Pruett, Tullius, et al. Above all, Derek Bell and Al Holbert (RIP). I'll be at the Amelia Island Concours in March - Derek Bell will be guest of honor, so I hope there will be some cool old race cars!

I must say that was some of the most clear instruction I've seen in some time! Enrique, that was well written and concise - good job! Now, I have a question - my entire driver side handle won't stay on, I am missing the circlip (omega-shaped clip). I haven't made a real attempt to find one since my car isn't a daily driver, but are these available from places like Black Dragon or MSA? Rich

Who is the manufacturer? Always good to get another opinion/reference.

Bill, I have very young kids - I would agree with unplugging, so I suppose if everything is up and unplugged, chances of car slipping off is minimal? That's a good thing! Rich

I am less concerned with Capacity - as Carl pointed out, my E-Type is a lightweight (more like 2,900 lbs), my main concern is the safety and ease of use. While I certainly want to ensure that my cars are safe, I also have 2 children and I work away from home. God forbid something happened to the lift while the kids were inadvertantly close to it. This will be the major selling point for me - the product should be overbuilt for dummies like me (e.g., there should be no failure 99.999% of the time).

Congrats! I too purchased my Z off the 'net (actually right here on classiczcars.com), I felt the same anxiety as it arrived. Good luck!

Excellent! The more references the better! I will check out Challenger as well! How can we get Nissan Sport or some other magazine to do an independent test on these???

Greg, Sweet wheels - I have been jonesing for a 1965 GTO for some time...I think I looked at Eagle lifts. Seeing you are East Coast helps, since I want to minimize shipping, so I'll give them a look - THANKS! BillD - yes, I figured the car and lift would fit between. As I would likely put my E-Type up top, and it's a thin car, I have minimal worries. However, as many a good engineer have told me "measure twice, cut once!". Rich

Yes, good point. Interestingly, I have a front spring on one door (as the rails are close to the home entrance) and traditional side mounted springs on the door I wish to put the lift. I wasn't sure if the lift would fit between the rails - the added width needed for the 4-posts. I'd have to measure, but I thought of using a front spring and curving the rails way up so that the door/rails don't retract close to the car(s). I suspect some "rigging" is involved, but necessary. BillD - any pics of the door/rails? I couldn't tell from the picture you posted...

Carl, Good to know - I have a rather large garage, so I am less concerned about the size (of course it DOES have to fit!). With respect to price, consider the value that's at risk - in my case the combined value of my cars is $40K+, so haggling over a few bucks is not worth it. I need to know that the system WILL NOT fail, that's all I am concerned with. Thanks for the guidance!! Rich

Carl, Would you go with a Ben Pearson lift? Curious if you've had any experience with Backyard Buddy (I am guessing you have!)... Rich

Now in reading that post, there's reference to the FUD (fear, uncertainty, and doubt) factor I talked about - he mentions lift failures, Chinese made, etc. I am absolutely shocked that there hasn't been a comprehensive test done by some classic car magazine (since many car buffs have or want these).

Bill, One more question - what made you pick Metro? Any specific quality/feature or was it something else? Rich

Great feedback guys! Bill, I will definitely go with a 4-post, for many of the reasons stated above. In my case, it's more about storage space, since I only have a 2-car garage. My ceiling is EXTREMELY high, 16+ feet, so no problems fitting anything. I would prefer the bolt down, but the idea of the unit having wheels is intriguing, especially if I need to move the unit out. Right now, I have both bays occupied (240Z one side, E-Type on the other) and my wife's car is outside. Since my kids are very young, it's a bit selfish that I make them park it in the cold, so the lift is a great compromise and very reasonable in terms of price. If I can work on the car from underneath, that's gravy, but my preference is to work on the ground or jacks on the ground.

Anyone have experience or own a car lift for their garage? I've seen a ton advertised in the classic car mags, but I am nervous and there's some good FUD out there (e.g., lift collapsing) that makes me want some references. Here are some examples: http://www.superlifts.com/ http://www.americasprideonline.com/ http://www.pantherlifts.com http://www.rhilifts.com/ It has to be a 4-post lift, and I have something like 16 feet from ground to ceiling, so I should be ok. I have a neighbor that has one, but I can't ever seem to find him home to get more data. It's critical I get this right, my E-Type will be on top and my 240Z on bottom - if something catastrophic happens I am screwed. Any thoughts? Rich

This is true! Actually, if I get some funds (BIG IF!), I think my next axe will be a 12 string Rickenbacker a la George Harrison or Carl Wilson. Partial to the colors of the Harrison model, but have always been more a BB fan...

Although I am left handed, I play guitar right handed, so I'm out. Try eBay, you might not find too many left-handed players here...

I agree with Arne and Mike, there are a few bad apples or moments, but on the whole, this group is very good. Here's my real world example - I went to sell a Saturn I had on a Saturn board. I asked for an opinion on what it was worth and I got blasted...it was totally hilarious. I wish I could say they were all kids, but they weren't!! I must say though, my Jaguar boards are much like this board - very classy, helpful group. Again, as testimony - I purchased my Z from this site. The gentleman I purchased it from was more than honest and I have had the car appraised, which confirmed I bought well.

Give that man a cigar! I'll say it 'til I am blue in the face - NEVER trust a Photoshopped product on eBay. That is simply asking for trouble - if you can't accurately and honestly represent your item, then something is wrong. To whomever bids on this I would say "beware". Minimally, it would need an in-person inspection (which I stress is a given if bidding on a vehicle listed on eBay) which would validate/invalidate any blemishes 'shopped out. Recently, I was interested in a 2000 Maxima listed on eBay. It looked very nice, and the listing implied the car was in good shape (with low miles). The owner was failry close, so I took the time to see the car -- it was a WRECK. It had been in a few minor accidents, the owner had Pep Boys maintain it which is a no-no...Obviously I passed, but that was a reminder of how important it was to inspect the vehicle before bidding. I have seen this car on eBay a few times, I'll be shocked if it sells at this price.

I have a fiberglass one you can see in the my user gallery. I had it up for sale, no one took it. Still available if you want it.

Dude, Those billet parts are SWEEEEET!!! Eye candy for sure....

Arne, Good for you! I always thought that you had a big challenge with the yellow car, converting from auto to manual and all that. I think this is a good move, now you can really enjoy the new Z and get out for a drive! Much luck! Rich

Carl, you are a veritable encyclopedia! I am familiar with Juran, not with Gorham, so that looks like fine reading! At GE, I had been exposed to Six Sigma, which was something that worked very well for Motorola. The downside is that management started drinking too much Kool-Aid and everyone was doing "green belt" projects - no one did any real work!! There's certainly pros/cons. I am with both you and Bob on the Quality thing between Nissan and Toyota. This is why I always refer back to Deming et al - Quality is a holistic "thing" - it's not simply lowered defects, it's part of the end-to-end lifecycle and processes, including the customer experience. While Japan, Inc. certainly has the product quality down pat, the Achilles Heel still remains the customer experience. Toyota is on such a roll that products practically sell themselves - but has anyone purchased a Toyota in the past 10-15 years? I won't say this is a blanket statement, but the process is so bad, I have literally walked out of a Toyota dealership cursing up a storm. Nissan can stay in the game with designing good products from a desirability perspective. Their product quality has been deficient since Renault has taken over. They COULD minimize that perception by improving the customer buying experience - strategically, that's Toyota (and Honda's) weakest point. I'll supplement the requested reading library - "Well Made in America: Lessons from Harley-Davidson on Being the Best" by Peter Reid. It's the story of Harley from the management buyout from AMF to it's ultimate success in the Motorcycle industry. One of the focus areas for Harley was the customer experience. They knew that product quality improvements would take time, but they could sway perceptions by making the dealerships "user friendly". They strong-armed the dealers, and those that didn't cooperate were disassociated from HD. Back then, you'd walk into a dealer that catered more to the Biker Gang crowd. Today, all showrooms are well lit, airy, friendly, etc. In my line of work, it's easy to forget that quality does not stop once product is in the channel. It's carried through all the way to the customer - something many vehicle manufacturers are forgetting in this day and age.

Carl, Even with that work, it sounds like a deal to me! Bob - that's a keeper, if I only had the extra cash! Rich

Dennis Conner was a gamer though! Interesting story - I worked with a woman that was part of the all-woman America's Cup effort. It was kind of neat to see the pics and hear the stories of her experience. Ok, pulling the conversation back - when is there going to be an awesome 2000GT replica built? We already have 2 buyers...heck, I was ready to buy a Beck 550 Spyder, but I'd take this one instead!