2 posts or 4 posts hoists. What’s the difference and which you should choose?

Classic Lift Australia Product Factory 6

Looking for a new post lift for your workshop? Not sure if you need a two post or four posts or the difference between each lift? Well, you have come to the right place. Classic Lift Australia has multiple products in our range to meet your needs. We can also help settle the difference. Whether it’s a light or heavy duty solution you are looking for, the team at Classic Lift can help you make an informed decision about the right lift for you. Its no secret that standing and looking at the underside of a vehicle is a lot easier than lying on your back and trying to look up in a dark space to find the problem, so a post lift can be really handy in that respect. Almost a necessity for everyone in the automotive industry.

Assessing your needs

The most important thing to decide on before you look at the difference between the two types of post lifts is what your needs are. There is no need to spend the extra money on a lift you will only use to a percentage of its capability. The other consideration to make is the space available to you for the lift. Ensuring the lift will fit in your workshop with enough safe access around the lift without impacting how you work, is an important factor to be considered. Otherwise, let us shed some light on the differences between a two post and four post lift.

Two Post

As the name suggests, a two-post lift has only two posts supporting the lift mechanism. The arms come out into the middle for the vehicle to be loaded onto. These arms are then raised to the appropriate height and locking pins keep the lift from lowering while you are under it. The two-post lift is a rather simple and effective design. At Classic Lift Australia we have a range of light and heavy duty lifts allowing you to hoist between 3.5 tonnes and 6.8 tonnes depending on the typical vehicle you find yourself working on. Most of the differences between the two-post lifts is how much they can hold and whether the support bar is at the top of the apparatus or bottom. Those are the key differences, obviously there are smaller differences like size and measurements of the apparatus, but the big thing is the lift is tall, rather than long. So, when installing in your workshop you need to consider how much space to go up you have. Although most lifts come with adjustable height arms, it is still a factor to consider, as ultimately, you need to raise your vehicle high enough so that you can get underneath it, and you need it to be stable.

Four Post

Again, as the name suggests a four post lift is almost the same as the two post, however instead of have just the two posts and arms in the middle, the four post hoist has four legs and between the four posts is a bed for the vehicle to rest on as it is raised and ramps for the vehicle to be driven onto the bed and back off it. Given the extra posts as well one of the benefits of a four-post hoist is that it can spread the weight of the load of the vehicle making it slightly more stable than arms underneath the vehicle. There is also a widely held view that lowered vehicles are easier to load on and off a four-post lift than the two post. So, another consideration to make is the bulk of the vehicles you see in your workshop, if they are mostly lowered vehicles, it may be better to install a four-post lift over the two. The other difference to consider is that the four-post hoist is like a bed for the vehicle so when installing in your workshop you need to be more concerned with lateral space than vertical.

No matter which hoist you choose, make sure you talk to the team at Classic Lift Australia. We are happy to provide advice and guidance on the best lift option for you and your business. Our range is extensive and can cater to vehicles up to 6.8 tonnes.

Whether it’s a hoist, scissor lift or stacker you need, Classic Lift Australia is the best place to go. Our friendly team are on deck to help you with all of your questions and queries and we service most of Australia. Call to speak to one of our friendly team on 1800 951 022, or email us and we will be in touch shortly.