Avoid Costly Mistakes: The Importance of Ensuring Proper Usage of Your Vehicle Lifts

Automotive lifts are an essential piece of equipment for both car enthusiasts working from their garage and commercial shops. Safety and proper usage are also imperative in both cases.

Improper usage can result in damage to vehicles or – far worse – serious injury to technicians. The Automotive Lift Institute insightfully wrote, “The prospect of a falling vehicle is much too heavy to take lightly. Lack of training, operator error, being in a hurry, and neglected maintenance will cause lift-related accidents. Lift accidents result in serious consequences.”

In the content below, we discuss the first step to proper lift usage: choosing the correct lift for your desired applications. Then, we’ll list a few important safety tips to keep in mind when operating lifts. Our goal is to provide a helpful guide to avoid lift injury that could have been prevented.

Choose the Proper Lift

Safety begins with choosing the proper lift for your desired applications. Which vehicles will you work on? Are you maintaining motorcycles or semis? Choosing the ideal car hoist for your needs is an essential aspect to ensuring proper usage. Though not a comprehensive list, below are a few of the many different variations of available vehicle lifts:

  • Two-Post Lifts
  • Four-Post Lifts (for cars or trucks)
  • In-Ground Lifts
  • Car Parking Lifts
  • Portable Lifts
  • Air Powered Lifts

Two-Post Lifts:

Certain two-post lifts are powered by hydraulic cylinders, eliminating the need for chains and cables. Hydraulic-powered cylinders can be cost-effective, saving on repairs and heightening safety. Two-post lifts hoist up to around 18,000 lbs., excellent for cars and light trucks. Symmetrical two-post lift models center vehicles, ideal for asymmetrical cars and trucks.

Four-Post Lifts:

Four-post lifts are extremely heavy-duty. These lifts are capable of hoisting cars and lighter trucks; however, they are perfect for lifting large, heavy trucks.

Scissor lifts, unintended for long-term storage, offer a great deal of space around the vehicle under maintenance, regardless of the make or model.

Alignment lifts fall under four-post and scissor lifts. Alignment lifts are perfect for performing wheel alignments, due to radius turn-plates along the front of the lift and floating slip plates along the back.

In-Ground Lifts:

In-ground lifts are commonly seen in quick stop shops. These lifts are un-invasive, low profile, with powerful lifting capabilities of around 8,000 on up to 100,000 plus lbs. In-ground lifts are usually affordable and possess great quality. Perfect for quick jobs in a fast-paced environment, in-ground lifts are a great option for a variety of applications.

Parking Lifts:

Parking lifts are, of course, for vehicle storage. Parking lifts must be durable, secure, high-quality, and trustworthy – able to withstand the weight of a full-sized vehicle for an extended period of time.

Specialty Lifts:

Specialty lifts are important for a wide variety of applications; however, they don’t seamlessly fit into any of the categories listed above.

Heavy-Duty Truck lifts possess extraordinary quality and durability, with secure locking systems. Many heavy-duty truck lifts can hoist trucks over 70,000 lbs.

Utility Vehicle lifts are self-explanatory. These smaller lifts are ideal for ATV repair, turf equipment maintenance, and other small-vehicle applications.

Motorcycle Lifts are small, portable, convenient, and ideal for motorcycles of all sizes.

Safety During Vehicle Hoist Operation

Once your ideal vehicle hoist has been selected, take measures to ensure proper, safe usage. The Automotive Lift Institute (ALI) suggests 11 vehicle hoist safety precautions:

  1. Daily, inspect the entire lift, making any necessary repairs with original equipment parts. Never operate a broken or damaged lift.
  2. Don’t block open or override lift controls. Controls are meant to close when released.
  3. Don’t load the lift beyond the manufacturer’s officially stated capacity. Double-check the rated capacity on the plate attached to the lift.
  4. Only trained, authorized personnel should position and operate the lift.
  5. Never lift a vehicle with individuals inside; all bystanders should leave the lift area.
  6. Keep vehicle hoist area clean and free of debris, grease, oil, and trash.
  7. Don’t run over lift arms, adapters, or axle supports with a vehicle. This can damage the vehicle, the lift, or both.
  8. Load vehicle carefully. Position lift supports to contact at the vehicle manufacturer’s recommended lifting points. Lift vehicle to desired height after checking that supports are secure.
  9. Removing or installing components in some vehicles results in a shift in the center of gravity. This will result in instability in the raised vehicle. Always be familiar with the vehicle manufacturer’s service manual for ideal component-removal procedure.
  10. Remove tool trays, stands, etc. from underneath the vehicle before lowering the lift. Also release locking devices before lowering.
  11. Provide an unobstructed exit before removing vehicle from lift. Once again, if the vehicle comes in contact with the lift arms, adapters, or axle supports, the vehicle or lift could suffer damage.

The ALI offers further insight into lift safety, stating that owners and technicians are equally responsible for lift safety. “Owners,” ALI wrote, “must provide technicians with proper training before authorizing them to operate lifting equipment. If the owner does not feel comfortable delivering the training the lift manufacturer or lift service company may be employed. If a facility uses more than one type of lift, separate training must be delivered for each type. Technicians must know the maximum weight capacities, how the controls operate, proper vehicle spotting methods, lift safety features, rules for safe lifting, and good housekeeping procedures.”

On the other hand, technicians must be constantly aware of hazards present during lift operations. As mentioned in the introduction, many accidents can be prevented with careful, safety measures. Being hypervigilant, wearing protective equipment, taking necessary precautions when vehicle is hoisted, and being aware of other technicians are all important steps vehicle-lift operators must consider during operation.

SVI International, Inc

Maintaining the integrity of existing lifts is a crucial component to proper usage. SVI International, Inc is the leader in repair parts for automotive equipment, with over 40,000 repair parts for numerous lifts.

Never operate a damaged lift. If you are in need of repair parts or complete new lifts, explore our extensive inventory – or talk to us for insight into the correct option to choose. We’re always a phone call away. Please call us at (800) 321-8173 or complete our online contact form.

SVI: The Leader in Repair Parts for Automotive and Industrial Equipment

SVI International, Inc has been providing quality products and repair parts for a wide variety of automotive and industrial equipment since 1977.

While we began as experts in hydraulic seals for in-ground lifts, we have expanded our horizons, now specializing in hydraulic cylinders for all kinds of lifts. Over the years, we have engineered parts for a wide variety of equipment including lubrication equipment, air compressors, and equipment used in the oil and petroleum industries.

We are best known for our enthusiasm to problem-solve and engineer solutions for older equipment, providing replacement parts that are no longer manufactured or overpriced because of their limited quantities. With three ready-to-ship warehouses scattered around the country for convenient shipping of our many stocked products, as well as a team of engineers who are eager to provide custom solutions, we pride ourselves in being able to quickly provide high-quality parts for numerous applications.

Full-Size Products

For over three decades, hydraulic cylinder lifts have been one of our main supplied products. We provide cylinders for many different makes and models of automotive lifts so you can keep your current lift working for many years to come. Our cylinders can also be used in almost any application that lifts heavy loads (e.g. turbines, printing presses, and commuter rail cars). We also provide large, single-acting cylinders for steel and lumber mills.

SVI specializes in custom solutions. This includes building automotive lift adapters to ensure that your lift can be used safely with car/truck models that are more complex, such as 2019 GM Trucks. These adapters can be installed directly onto most lifts for repairing models that are not compatible with the standard lift.

In addition, we offer top-of-the-line completely new lifts. We provide specialized lifts for small outdoor and turf equipment, including ATVs, golf carts, and landscaping equipment. Additionally, we manufacture car and light truck lifts as well as heavy truck and bus lifts with in-ground fore and aft, in-ground side by side, or in-ground single post configuration options.

Replacement Parts

At SVI International, we provide replacement parts for major lift brands, including Rotary, Challenger, Acanus, Benwil, Mohawk, Manitowoc Lifts, Nussbaum, Bend-Pak and more. For customers who are not quite ready to replace a trusted, decades-old lift, we can provide parts that other manufacturers have discontinued or are selling at exorbitant prices.

Some of our best-selling replacement parts include cables, chain pulleys, slider-blocks, and rubber arm pads. For more complex or lesser-known parts, we have an extensive offering of those, as well as the capacity to create a custom solution for parts we don’t yet carry. We enjoy problem-solving so that a quality lift can last for many years.

Engaged Engineers

Our team of mechanical engineers thrives on receiving specific requests for replacement parts that are not available on the market or that are too expensive elsewhere. The engineering team will come up with a quality solution at a competitive price, and the part designs will be available forever. Customers are involved in the entire design process to ensure that engineers meet the specific needs, and if the engineers are not able to provide an excellent solution, our customers will be notified as soon as possible.

Success Stories

General Motors needed to modify two of their in-ground lifts to increase the weight-bearing capacity without making the current in-ground lift impossible to store by changing the lift structure and size dramatically. The SVI engineering team had to account for safety requirements as well as GM’s desire to have the lifts recede into the ground to create a flush floor when the lifts were not in use. Our team of engineers successfully accomplished this goal using stronger rack bars, pinion gears, cross shaft, and lock components to increase the lifts’ capacity by 2,000 lbs, accommodating GM’s newer, heavier models. 

A customer approached SVI to provide a solution for Porsche 911-model lifts. These models are extremely low to the ground, which lead SVI to create a custom solution called a Dial-A-Dapter™, allowing users to locate the correct lifting points on the vehicle without full accessibility. The Dial-A-Dapter™ has a fine adjustment wheel, removing the need for spotting and guesswork while aligning the car on the lift properly.

Safety Solutions

SVI International is known in the lift industry for innovating methods to update existing lift models to meet continually developing OSHA standards. Safety and compliance are our top priorities, and we have created multiple easy-to-install solutions (including a solution for the DTO model Rotary lift) so customers can quickly update equipment to meet strict OSHA standards.

SVI International Inc.

If you’re not yet convinced that we are an industry leader in innovation for shop equipment repair parts, lifting equipment, and complete new lifts, request a quote today and let us impress you with our team’s customer service, competitive prices, and creative problem-solving.

Contact Us

We have included a few excellent reviews received below:

Kevin Valdes, President of Automotive Equipment Parts Network stated, “SVI has consistently been a key partner in our business and pivotal to our success. SVI’s representatives are extremely knowledgeable, friendly, and courteous. Their knowledge of industry equipment is second to none. SVI’s quick turn-around times and high availability have been instrumental in minimizing our end user’s downtime.  SVI has consistently allowed us to source replacement components for otherwise obsolete equipment, ensuring high customer satisfaction levels. We look forward to continue doing business with SVI for the foreseeable future.”

Stacey Youngblut, Office Manager of F&W Service Co. also experienced one-of-a-kind service: “What a great company to work with! Even though I have only been involved in this particular industry for a short time, I come from a very long line of customer service work and know what great customer service is. Whenever I reach out to SVI, I am always given excellent customer service. They have a great response time whether it comes to correspondence via email or phone. They are quick to resolve any questions I have and when orders are placed I can always rest assured that they were received because I get an email letting me know! Great job and keep up the excellent customer service!”