Gary,
All the lifts are good. If you don't believe it just ask the seller!
I have drive ons and 2 posts. If "I" had to have one lift it would be a 2 post. 2 posts are much better for working on cars and you can use it for storage if needed. The 4 posts are great for storage but are not near as useful for work/service unless you buy a lot of extra equipment.
The cheap China made lifts have caused a number of the US manufactureres to go out of business since the US guys could not compete. Autolifters is one example. Rotary lifts are regarded by many as the best in the business. Challenger is also a very good brand. These 2 companies primarily make commercial lifts. Rotary now has a home market lift made for them by someone? Stinger and Backyard Buddy are good products for the home. These lifts are not particularly cheap but are a good product. There are others that I am sure people on this site own that will give you an opinion upon.
I suggest you first look locally at the 1 or 2 commerical lift dealers near you that sell commercial lifts. My first lift purchases were Rotary brand lifts. I bought new since the price INSTALLED was not much more over a high quality used lift or a no name hobby lift. The product was INSTALLED and had a 5 years parts and labor warranty. The price difference was about $1,000 over a used lift installed and about $1,000 more than a new hobby lift WITHOUT installation.
You can also look for a used lift. Most of these come out of commerical business and were used HARD. Probably NOT the best buy for you since drive-ons are MUCH harder to find used and they are usually in poor condition. Having said that, I just purchased a 12K lbs Challenger drive on used from a Ford dealer that went out of business. 1995 model lift in nice condition. I paid $1,250 for the lift and $400 to the local lift guy, Jim Shoemaker, to disassemble and reassemble the lift for me at my house. That was $400 WELL SPENT!!! It took him and his helper almost 2 hours to disassemble this drive-on and 5 hours just to reassemble and set up this BIG drive-on lift. He installs 2 post lifts in less than 2 hours!
My comment at the beginning about all the lifts being good, just ask them, is really true. Nobody will tell you their lift is junk when it really is! I have always bought high end new or high end used tools or equipment rather than cheap new tools or equipment. Good equipment lasts a lifetime at home and will always have resale value when you want to get rid of it. Since SAFETY is a primary concern with a lift, GOOD equipment is a neccesity!
Ask a lot of questions to other hobbyists about their lifts and the reason they bought what they did. Call the local commercial lift dealers and review their products. Let's face it, the price difference between the BEST and the CHEAPEST, notice I did not say the worst, is only about $1,000 or less. Keep that in mind when shopping!
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