Cheap Two-Post Lift vS. BendPak

Non-certified bargain brand lift vs. BendPak® XPR-10* series two-post car lifts

*Design features and specifications are subject to change. Please consult Babaco for updates.

After exhaustively reviewing the merits of both BendPak® and a typical non-certified bargain asymmetric two-post lifts, the BendPak® team released the following report. In it, critical design features are compared, evaluated and illustrated in broad detail.

The Truth Behind Cheap Lifts

Established lift manufacturing companies will proudly place their brand name on their product. Unfortunately, many lift “brands” are just labels fabricated by dealers supplying these products as their own. If you find an auto lift that interests you, be sure to search for an informative and detailed manufacturing company website, or at least a brochure. Also check to see if there are multiple dealers offering the same brand for sale. Some dealers may bill themselves as exclusive suppliers, but only for a brand that they created. If you can’t find solid, verifiable information relating to the actual manufacturer of any given automotive lift, or if only a very limited number of dealers even sell the lift, you are probably best off searching for alternative options.

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Cheap is Not Value

Value is a word that gets thrown around a lot these days. Everyone is looking for the best value whenever they purchase something. Equipment retailers have latched on to this idea; they try to position themselves as “value leaders” by offering cheap products at low prices.

But when you think about the true meaning of value, two primary things should be considered. (1) How much you’re paying and (2) what you’re getting for that amount. Discount lift retailers want you to forget about the second part of the equation. They claim to provide the best value, but they are only providing you the best price. Business owners know that they need to consider the overall cost of the automotive lift throughout its entire life of service. The checklist is slightly different for home users who don’t plan on earning revenue off of the purchase. For them, saving a couple hundred bucks can still mean the difference between enjoying time in the garage and having a total service nightmare.

While an expensive car lift will not always mean high-quality materials, an exceptionally low-priced automotive lift will almost certainly be cheaply made. That means no engineering to speak of, compromised safety systems and thinner steel. These are the kinds of things that can cost a business owner untold thousands of dollars in damage or downtime.

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Make Sure You Get What You Pay For

Car enthusiasts are willing to spend thousands of dollars on their beautiful automobiles, but they senselessly cut corners on the very thing that holds the cars up. There’s nothing wrong with shopping around for a good price, but make sure you are willing to at least pay for the value you hope to get out of your new car lift.

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The Purpose Of This Study

At Babco, we believe the customer should always get what he or she wants. The best way to do that is for the customer to have all the information available. However, it’s difficult for the average consumer to do their own lift comparison, particularly when the true manufacturer of many lifts is kept secret by the reseller.

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This is Where We Come In

We purchased one of the more popular no-name lifts on the market that are sold on many websites under a variety brand names. There is a very good reason why these lifts are sold for hundreds of dollars less than a BendPak. Check out this side-by-side comparison and determine for yourself which lift is safer and which is really the better value.

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Tuxedo and BendPak Comparison

See an Overview of the BendPak vs. Tuxedo two-post lift comparison.

Specs/Features	Tuxedo®TP9KAC	BendPak® XPR-10A	BendPak® Advantage
Lifting Capacity	9,000 Pounds (Stated)	10,000 Pounds (Certified)
ETL Certification	No	Yes
Asymmetric Configuration	Arms Only - Non-Rotated Columns	True Asymmetric - Arms & Rotated Columns
Wide-Narrow Configuration	Fixed Position	Adjustable - Configures Wide or Narrow
Lifting Design	Dual Cylinder - Chain Lifting	Dual Cylinder - Direct-Drive
Column Construction	Multi-Piece	Single-Piece
Carriage Construction	Multi-Piece Formed Steel	Welded Steel Tubing
Rubber Bumpers - Reduces Door Damage	None	Carriage Face / Rubber
Arm Construction	Welded Tubing	Welded Tubing
Top Beam Construction	Boxed Steel - Non Adjustable	Boxed Steel - Adjustable Wide or Narrow
Sheave Material	Machine Steel	Machine Steel
Sheave Diameter / Upper	3"	5"
Sheave Diameter / Column	4"	5"
Equalizer Cable	3/8" up to 2" Adjustment	3/8" Up tp 3" Adjustment
Integrated Cylinder Throttle Valve	No - Restricted Flow Raise and Descent	Yes - Restricted Flow Descent Only
Minimum Pad Height	4 1/2"	4"
Max Rise - Top of Pads / Less Adapters	69"	73"
Max Rise - Top of Pads with Adapters	70-1/2" - 74" - 75-1/2"	76"-79"-82"
Contact Pad Type	Bolt-On Rubber Pad/td>	Slip-Over Rubber Contact Boot
Adapter Type (Standard)	Multi-Stackable	Multi-Stackable
Arm Restraints - Rack Gear	Replacable Gears	Replacable Gears
Arm Restraints-Arm Gear	Welded-On Non-Replaceable	Bolt-On Replaceable Gears
Overall Height	142"	145"
Floor to Overhead Trip	137"	140"
Overall Width	134"	132" or 145"
Dimensions - Inside Column	110"	99" or 112"
Drive Thru Clearance	101"	89" or 102"
Lift Column Configuration	Non-Rotated Columns	30-Deg. Rotated Columns
Locking Latch Release	Manual Pull Type at Each Column	Single Point Release at Power lift
Overhead Stop / Safety-Shutoff	Trip Wire/Pull - No Electric Micro Switch	Padded Stop-Shutoff Bar / Electric Micro Switch
Front Arm Reach / Min.	24"	23-1/2"
Front Arm Reach / Max.	35"	45-1/2"
Rear Arm Reach / Min.	39-1/2"	42-1/2"
Rear Arm Reach / Max.	58-1/2"	60"
Rise Speed	50 Seconds	50 Seconds

Warranty Compare	Tuxedo® (*)	BendPak® (*)	BendPak® Advantage
Structure	60-Months	60-Months
Hydraulics	30-Days / After 30-Days Seals Only	24-Months / Power Unit & Cylinders
Shipping Charges	Purchaser Responsible	Free for 12-Months
Labor	Purchaser Responsible to Pay Labor	12-Months Free On-Site Labor

*Contact factories for full warranty details.