Top Car Lifts Available

Car lifts are indispensable in an automotive workshop, they allow you to work safely, easily and comfortably when accessing the underside of a vehicle. Using a lift to carry out inspections, maintenance and repairs is much more efficient than having to access the vehicle’s underside by climbing down a pit or sliding under the vehicle on your back.

Why choose our Car Lifts?

OMCN produce all their industry-leading equipment from their factories in Italy. Supplying the most technologically advanced equipment in the market. A new development has been remote diagnosis of vehicle lifts. Once connected to the internet, the technical office in Italy can see exactly what the lift is doing to help diagnose any problems that may occur remotely.

If you choose to buy a high-quality Car Lift from Automotive Tools you can be confident that you not only get an excellent product, but you also get much more on top. The Automotive Tools Sales team has years of knowledge and experience supplying these types of products to all types of garages and workshops. They will help you to choose the right one for you, taking into account the type of vehicles you are working on, the available space, height, etc. with an in-depth site survey. During the process we are on hand with any help or guidance you may need. And once the Lift is installed we’ll make sure that you are compliant with all the latest Health & Safety regulations.

We also provide excellent after sales service, and any repairs needed are carried out with our large range of authentic OMCN brand parts.

Mechanical Car Lift

The vast majority of mechanical car lifts are 2-post lifts – the exception to this are a few 4-post lifts that run mechanically rather than hydraulically.

They all use the same mechanisms to raise the vehicle – a vertical screw with load bearing nuts attached to the carriage. As the screw turns the nut and carriage will travel up the length of the screw.

Due to the nature if this type of movement, mechanical lifts need regular maintenance especially lubrication to ensure the nuts run smoothly up and down the screw.

Hydraulic Car Lift

Hydraulic Car Lifts work by pumping hydraulic fluid into cylinders to raise and lower the car. There are a range of Hydraulic Car Lifts available, 2-post, 4-post and Scissor lifts.

Hydraulic Car Lifts require much less maintenance than their mechanical counterparts. There are fewer wearing parts that will need to be replaced overtime.

If you are in the market for a Hydraulic Car Lift you should keep in mind what capacity you might need. They can be used to lift a variety of vehicles such as, cars, trucks, vans, and SUVs. There are a range of different capacities, so ensure that you select one that can handle the weight of the necessary vehicles.

Hydraulic 4-Post Car Lift  

Hydraulic 4-posts lifts used to be the most popular lift in garages, these are now often being replaced with 2-post lifts. However 4-post lifts are still very popular in MOT bays. They raise the vehicle via wire ropes which are pulled by a hydraulic cylinder located under one of the platforms.

OMCN’s 4-post lifts have 3 safety devices built in – ladder racks, cable brakes and an electronic safety. As well as hydraulic safety valves to stop overloading or in case of hydraulic pipe damage.

Mechanical 4-Post Car Lift

Mechanical 4-post lifts look very similar to hydraulic ones at first glance, however the mechanism for raising the vehicle is completely different. Much like mechanical 2-post lifts, each post has a vertical screw which spins allowing the carriages to move up and down the thread on the screw.

OMCN’s mechanical 4-post lifts have a much higher lifting capacity than the hydraulic models – up to 20 tons for heavy goods vehicles. Electronic devices align the 4 carriages to keep the platforms level through out the travel of the lift.

FAQ:

How do Car Lifts work?

Car Lifts use either electro-mechanical or electro-hydraulic power in order to raise vehicles to make them easier for mechanics to work on, inspect and repair.

Car Lifts can either be wheel free – there is no weight left on the wheels – 2-post lifts and Scissor lifts are examples of this, or the vehicle can be lifted from the wheel – this is done on Platform Scissor lifts and 4-post lifts.

How much do Car Lifts cost?

Car Lifts come in a wide variety of styles, types, and costs. We would recommend that you check any prices quoted include delivery and installation. The initial cost price is also not the only thing to consider. You may pay a bit more for a higher quality piece of equipment, but over the long length of service you will get out of any OMCN equipment you will get better value for your money over buying a cheap product.

Where can I use a Car Lift?

A Car Lift can be installed pretty much anywhere, as long as there is a suitable base and depth of concrete able to anchor it correctly and safely. However, we would advise against installing one outside or where it is particularly at the mercy of the elements as, water could get into the electrical power supply, or the structure could begin to rust.

If you require a lift for a wash bay for example, we can provide a hot galvanised model to stand up to the elements.

Are Car Lifts hydraulic?

Car Lifts are generally either mechanical or hydraulic, there are a few pneumatic lifts out there but these are few and far between.

Both mechanical and hydraulic lifts are safe to use, the choice between the two often comes down to personal preference.

A few things to consider on 2-post lifts are:

OMCN’s hydraulic lifts require very little maintenance, their carriages are aligned electronically and therefore there are no wire ropes, chains or pulleys to wear out.

Mechanical lifts will wear out their load bearing nuts over time and they will need changing. The time frame for this depends on how often the operator lubricates the system.

Most hydraulic lifts will raise up slightly when you press the down button, this is to release the safety locks. Some cheaper lifts will require the operator to manually release the safety on each post before lowering the lift – the safeties on OMCN’s 2-post lifts are fully automatic.

Mechanical lifts will lower straight away when the descent button is pushed, this can make it a bit easier when trying to fit or remove a major component such as a gearbox or even a battery pack from an electric vehicle.