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8 Important Things To Consider Before Purchasing An Auto Lift like the Lift King

Matt Huculak • December 29, 2015

It’s no fun spending a small bundle of moolah on what should be one of the best purchases of your life, only to be let down by the reality of an underpowered auto lift or a disreputable automotive equipment company.

Here at Dream Garage, we hate it when we hear about fellow auto-enthusiasts getting burned by a bad deal. That’s why we devised the following checklist to help you avoid an unfavorable fate and get the car lift of your dreams.

How To Make The Right Choice When Buying An Auto Lift | Edmonton

The first and final step will always be research. We recommend being an informed and educated consumer. Here is a great place to start. Here are 8 Important things to consider when purchasing an auto lift for your garage.

1. Availability Of Information

Because research is such a large part of your decision-making process, you should be wary of auto lift companies that don’t offer you much in the way of product and company information. Reputable car lift companies are proud of their products, features and corporate achievements, so they publicly stand behind them. Don’t’ be afraid to speak to a qualified consultant and ask all the questions you need. If it is easy to get the information you are looking for, you can be confident you are on the right track.

2. Know Thy Garage

Sometimes sheer enthusiasm may overshadow what’s feasible. It’s important to measure, re-measure, and re-re-measure your garage. There are many things that will need to be taken into consideration here like the concrete strength, power supply and potentially various other structural requirements. Double-check with your local installer to find out the minimum space is required to work on your new auto lift. Basically, when it comes down to it a qualified consultant will help you to navigate all the installation needs and requirements for installing an auto lift in your garage.

3. Company Reputation

When you dig deeper you’ll quickly discover what others are saying about the company that makes your prospective auto lift. Ask to see their testimonials, most reputable companies will have these displayed on their website for easy accessibility for their customers. Established automotive lift companies with a good reputation also have a better chance of being around in the future to honor warranties, replace parts and generally provide solid customer service should the need arise.

4. The Right Price

It might seem obvious, but it bears repeating. Make sure that the value that you are getting out of your auto lift matches the cost. This is one area where quality really counts, as you will need to trust that the components can do the job of supporting your vehicle in the way it is meant to. Remember: the best auto lifts for you will rarely, if ever, be the cheapest auto lift. Cost should meet the benefits. You get what you pay for and maybe a little more.

5. The Warranty

Even the best automotive lift in the world is still a machine, so it’s susceptible to human-error and unexpected failures. Potential devastating effects can be greatly minimized with the correct systems in place. Honest car lift companies realize this and offer warranties on the frame, the moving parts and the labor at varying levels depending on their pricing structures. Warranties usually come standard with purchase on certain parts but the length of time may vary. If a company offers lifetime warranty on the frame and an extended warranty on other parts, take this as a good sign that the car lift manufacturer, like the Lift King, not only stands behind their product, but is willing to put their money where their mouth is.

6. The CE vs ALI Seal Of Approval

This is very important! Naturally, we recommend that you give a strong preference to CE certified car lifts. CE is the most recognized CERTIFICATION. You’ll find a plethora of non-certified lifts out on the market. Plus some will have you believe that ALI/ETL Certification lends to a quality difference, it does not. It just means that the manufacturer has joined the ALI membership program and is using their certification.

If the statements they make are true about ALI membership lifts being the best quality, then why are most of the lifts on their website not ALI approved or CE Certified? You will have to see through the smoke and mirrors here on this topic for yourself. CE (European Conformity Commission) sets extremely strict global manufacturing and safety standards that must be met in order to qualify for its certification.

For example: Lift King Auto Lift units are CE CERTIFIED which meets and exceeds all CSA standards. These units are shipped all around the world so they have to conform and meet certification that is accepted worldwide.

7. The Features You Want

This requires a little bit of foresight on your part. Not only do you have to determine the heaviest thing you’re likely going to need to lift, but also how closely the vehicle runs to the ground, the physical dimensions of the largest and the smallest vehicle you’re going to lift and whether or not you’re going to want to easily move your car lift around on casters. Your best bet for future-proofing your auto lift is to go with a qualified installer who can help you navigate this territory to make sure you are getting exactly what you want. Your lift’s ability to adapt to the new and unexpected will be the key to your satisfaction for years to come.

8. Real Engineering

Finally, do not settle for a piece of rebranded generic junk. Make sure your prospective auto lift came from the minds and hands of a dedicated team of engineers like Lift King, who were dead-set on making their auto lift the best it could be. If someone took pride in designing your automotive lift, chances are you’ll take lots of pride in owning it. Also, lifting operation tends to be much smoother when thoughtful minds have considered more about how you were going to use the lift and less about just shoving a product out the door.

If you reside around the Edmonton, AB area and would like to be guaranteed you will end up with the auto lift that’s just right for you, then the Lift King experts at Dream Garage are offering you a No Obligation FREE In-Home Consultation by simply calling us and mentioning this offer.

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