Lotus Elan and Lotus Elan Plus 2 Forums

Hi, I would like any opinions on adjustable tilting lifts, Automech and CJ Autos have them on Ebay.
I have a Plus 2 with Spyder chassis and Sills in excellent condition, I would use tight fitting threaded bolts in the jacking points.
My garage has limited space so the lift would be left down and parked over, one concern is that I haven't the width to use the winding handle supplied so I presume a socket would be O.K.

I would appreciate any comments, Thanks John

Hi John,

I couldn't find the ones you mentioned but I did buy a garage lift through eBay this year, if you search on...

"Strongman Clifton Mobile 3T Home Garage Car Lift" you'll find it.

It's a top quality bit of kit, over-engineered for what I needed as it will lift 3 tonnes, I use it for an Elan and a Plus 2. It folds down flat so I always have one of them parked on it when not in use.

Pic attached.

Happy to answer any questions on it.

Cheers
Iain

Thanks Ian, but that is way out of my price range, I am looking at hand operated ones around ?400.

However as these have to be slid under between the wheels from the side I still have a lack of width to the garage wall.

I think that its back to ramps/trolley jacks/axle stands.

Regards John

Hi Iain,
I am looking both the 'Clifton' and also the slightly lower priced 'Montford' Scissor from Strongman. Can you tell me please do you need starter ramps to get a +2 on the lift?
Also can you tell me is Strongman scissor lift directional?..In other words can you have the car reversed on the lift or must the engine end of the car ( the front) always be over the ram end of the lift due to the weight/centre of gravity?

Apologies for jumping in and the thread drift John!

Alan.

Hi Alan,

No need for starter ramps, there is plenty of clearance to drive straight on.

The ramp is not directional, I use it both ways with no instability, in fact I sometimes use it to lift only one end if the car if I need to quickly look under one end, obviously you only use a low lift height and make sure to chock the wheels.

My main reason for choosing this lift was my limited roof height in the garage, as it stands I can get full lift and the car roof is still clear of the garage roof beams.

Iain

Hi John,

Nothing wrong with ramps and jacks, I?ve used those for years and got most jobs done!

Cheers
Iain

Thanks for that Iain.
That is very useful information particularly so about being the Strongman being non-directional. I have looked at other mid rise scissor lift makes which do specifically state that their lift is directional and must not be used reverse on.
I too have limited height, only 8ft, so I think I would just about get full height with a +2 on it.

Alan

Hi John
I have one of the tilting lifts you mention and find it is really good. Very easy to use and as you say you can just leave it underneath your car. I'm not sure if you can drive over it or not as I have only ever used it by sliding it under from the side, which can be done by lifting it on its side so you don't need to have the full width of it to the side of your car.
David

Hi David, thanks for the info. I just think with the width of the Plus 2 and the lift needing to be at a wide setting in order to align with the sills I would run out of space between the car and the garage wall.

I now realise that you cannot drive onto them like a normal ramp. John

An interesting idea - I can see it being handy to get hubs high up to brakes etc.

I don't think I'd work under one without one set of wheels being on the ground though.

sprintsoft wrote:Hi Alan,

No need for starter ramps, there is plenty of clearance to drive straight on.

The ramp is not directional, I use it both ways with no instability, in fact I sometimes use it to lift only one end if the car if I need to quickly look under one end, obviously you only use a low lift height and make sure to chock the wheels.

My main reason for choosing this lift was my limited roof height in the garage, as it stands I can get full lift and the car roof is still clear of the garage roof beams.

Iain

Hi again Iain,
Just a longshot but I was wondering if you had a photo of a +2 actually on your Strongman Clifton lift? It would be very interesting for me to see how it sits with regard to the position of the ramps and may help my decision making.
Don't mind PM or on here whichever is easiest.
Thanks.

Alan

I`ve just bought the Automotech Adjustable Tilting Lift for my S3 Elan diff` change ... which looks a really good bit of kit .... & I wonder where is best to mount it ?

Obviously , it can be mounted inboard or outboard ... & the sill is the natural choice ... but the pad won`t quite reach the strongest corner point at the end of the sill ... ?

When I rang Automotech , they didn`t have any experience of it with Elans .... & I have thought about extending the mounting pad ( again Automotech couldn`t help ) to reach the full length of the sill ... which I think would be ideal , for spreading the load ... ?

Maybe David or somebody can advise .... I just like to keep the stress on the fibre glass body to a mimimum : )

Cheers ,

Paul .

Hello Paul,

Can you show some pics and and at least give a measurement of the long side so we know what we're looking at?

Hi Iain ,

Yeh , I`ll get a picture ... my lift looks the same as David`s above ... and the mounting pad length is about 500mm ( I`ll check ) shorter than the car`s overall sill length ....

It`s probably not an issue ... as it is a substantial mounting pad ( for spreading load ) anyway ... & of course some of the weight is also being transferred to the 2 remaining wheels on the floor ... but you do have the option to level the car when raised ... so , a full length sill mount would be ideal I guess ....

Btw., keep me posted about those driveshafts : )

Cheers ,

Paul .

Hi Paul

Just wondering how the tilting lift was doing?
Have been looking at similar options & some appear to be adjustable for width

Was wondering if slightly longer and wider pads may reach the sill corners and pick up on the backbone?

Cheers

Mel