4 post ramps

[Jon H]

Hi everyone,

Just wondered if anyone has any experiences of the 4 post garage ramps marketed by SJR garage equipment of St Helen's, Merseyside. I'm thinking of getting one for my new garage. Too old for crawling around under cars now !! They are probably Chinese but they look solid and seem to get good reviews.


Thanks,

Jon

[Grant]

Hi Jon:-)
Even if you buy a new good old English "Bradbury" Ramp... they are made in China too now , most of the suppliers of everything now have their stuff made in China

[Jon H]

Hi Grant,

I know what you mean and obviously they have a CE certificate so they should be ok. They have a SWL of 3.6t so even with an interceptor on should be well within the capacity.


Thanks again,

Jon

[Grant]

Hi Grant,

I know what you mean and obviously they have a CE certificate so they should be ok. They have a SWL of 3.6t so even with an interceptor on should be well within the capacity.


Thanks again,

Jon

No probs Jon.. I did buy a couple of years ago a Chinese ramp, the one that is set into the floor when not in use and then comes up like a scissor sides, but I haven't actually put it in yet.. I thought I would really make it simple and build another building!! .. So I can't advise on that one yet.. but the few people I know that have bought these cheapish 4 posters have not had any probs as of yet.. go for it sport.. I'm fairly sure you'l be Ok.. I'd chance it anyway... they have dead man stops so I'd go for it Mr Man

[jvcarrier]

About 3 years ago got a Eurotek lift from GEG in same sort of area.
Lift is made in China, but certified to meet the various standards.

In general it was ok, the solenoids that released the locks were badly fitted without self locking nuts etc - minor really but knocked confidence in product. Worked well for a year or so and then oil started been blown out of air blead valve on end of ram when lift was fully raised. Clearly oil was getting past the piston, spoke with GEG who advised warrantee was parts only! And supplied a new set of seals, on dismantling the ram it was full of swarf and bore was scored v badly. They replaced ram and it was easy to fit, which I did and had to clean out system, replace oil at my expense etc etc.

Not sure if all have the electric release of the safety locks, certainly needed I would not wish to be walking to the back posts to release them. Plus would defiantly go and have a look at them for quality and check warrantee term.
In the end I am happy with mine but could have turned out badly.

PS these guys seem to have a fair margin so worth trying it on.

[Jon H]

Hi there,

I think I have seem the eurotec lifts on the Internet at a similar price to the SJR ones. The SRJ one has a manual lock release but all 4 corners are linked to one release lever. I will certainly try to see one before I decide finally.
Thanks for your input.

Jon

[Michael Richardson]

OMG. Having been in the motor trade since 1961,yes I do mean '61,our lives revolved around the ramps. The first requirement was a ramp,and the first port of call was Bradbury. It was a major investment to buy a four post /wheel free Brad. For starters you needed it for MOT tests It was the best bit of kit available.... Are you saying that some private owners are considering this bit of kit in a domestic garage ?. I don't get that,unless your garage is an industrial building. Flush fitting floor ramps involved major groundworks,so if you were building new premises,that would work. The Brad bolted down on any floor,and could be moved without a problem. I personally bought six various ramps during my time ,but the thought of having my own lifter at home....well the mind boggles. !

[Grant]

OMG. Having been in the motor trade since 1961,yes I do mean '61,our lives revolved around the ramps. The first requirement was a ramp,and the first port of call was Bradbury. It was a major investment to buy a four post /wheel free Brad. For starters you needed it for MOT tests It was the best bit of kit available.... Are you saying that some private owners are considering this bit of kit in a domestic garage ?. I don't get that,unless your garage is an industrial building. Flush fitting floor ramps involved major groundworks,so if you were building new premises,that would work. The Brad bolted down on any floor,and could be moved without a problem. I personally bought six various ramps during my time ,but the thought of having my own lifter at home....well the mind boggles. !

Michael.. in my opinion every keen car enthusiast should have one, especially when you get to 50ish.. and of course if you get a 4 poster in your garage and you have 2 cars you can use a 4 poster as a storage facility and have one the ramp up in the air and then another beneath it .. I am not sure why you wouldn't agree about having one at home.. every bedroom should have a car lift

[Kevin Birch]

Grant, I have been looking at thishttps://www.automotechservices.co.uk/pr ... icle-lift/, a single post lift, as I have a double garage, a 2 post lift will eat into the second space leaving my garage basically a single garage again. This would go right up against the wall and possible turn my garage into a 3 car garage by putting one on the lift, one under it, and one by the side. Just need to sort the roof out to allow clearance.
Good price too, and will lift 2.5 T, so plenty for the home DIYer. Automotech are at the NEC next weekend so will investigate.

[jvcarrier]

Spot on Grant these days working on a car without a ramp is no go. Best thing I have bought in years makes most things under the car so much easier.

I had to go the 4 post route as the floor is beam and block, the plus point is it does not need bolting down so if I am not useing it a lot I can lower it on to four skates and push it to the side of the garage, gives me an extra space.

[Steve Payne]

4 post ramps are great but becarefull of the cheaper ones on the market. I did some work on a car on one of budget priced lift last year and the way it wobbled didn't inspire confidence.

Steve

[Grant]

Grant, I have been looking at thishttps://www.automotechservices.co.uk/pr ... icle-lift/, a single post lift, as I have a double garage, a 2 post lift will eat into the second space leaving my garage basically a single garage again. This would go right up against the wall and possible turn my garage into a 3 car garage by putting one on the lift, one under it, and one by the side. Just need to sort the roof out to allow clearance.
Good price too, and will lift 2.5 T, so plenty for the home DIYer. Automotech are at the NEC next weekend so will investigate.

Bloody Brilliant idea Kev.. Once you have something like this.. you will wonder how the hell you worked without it.. go for it Kev.. treat yourself..Good Man

[Tone]

Might not be to everyone's taste but i looked at several options and ended up installing one of these.

https://www.garageequipment.co.uk/Vehic ... i-Spec-3ph" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Really pleased with it as it allows free access to the suspension, exhausts etc.

[johnw]

I have been looking at used Bradbury 4 post car lifts, for the reasons stated about simply bolting them down. It looks like Jensen used them? I would steer clear of the single post lift. A dealer we bought a car off had a portable single post, 2.5tonne lift, and told me to avoid buying one. He said it might lift the 2.5 tonne, but it is really scary with anything above a small car. It is clearly right on its limit at close to that, he said he would not buy another. Also Range Rover state to use 4 post lifts, even if the lift is a two post rated at over the vehicle weight. If you think about the leverage, the amount of stress the floor is under. If it is not 4 post you are reliant on the floor strength. One nice solution a Swiss hobbyist had, was a metal plate, 1/2" thick, the full width of the two post lift, by about 1.5 yards long, with the two post lift bolted to it. You then position the two post wherever you want it using a fork lift. You could put it in the driveway and jet wash underneath.

[Tone]

Most of the lift suppliers have an H frame option for poor quality floors. Even though I saw my 6" thick floor laid, i still purchased an H frame as an extra precaution.