QuickJack 5,000lbs Portable Car Lift | $1,099 | Home Depot
I can’t think of jokes to make about this car lift, which is on sale for $1,100, so I’m just going to give it to you straight: this car lift can lift up to 5,000 pounds into the air for easy access to the undercarriage, and its compact, portable nature makes it a little more convenient than ramps for getting a car up off the ground. It may be a touch impractical for a normal person to just have lying around in their garage when a standard floor jack and jack stands will do, but who am I to tell you what to actually do with your money? I’m just a bellwether here, telling you which way the wind is blowing, and right now, it’s blowing towards a 25% off deal on a car lift that’s already cheaper than the typical industrial machinery employed by a shop.
This thing has 14-gauge welded steel frames, quick connect hoses, and promises to reach full rise within 31 seconds while being compact enough to sit in your trunk. It’s electric and its power unit is portable—otherwise, what use would it be?—and those hoses I mentioned probably clued you in to the fact that this baby is hydraulic. It has no cross members, either, so you should be able to line it up with any frame, and a secondary cylinder, filled properly to 40-50psi, will safely and slowly lower the car when you’re done reconnecting your brake lines after your jilted former lover gets a little homicidal. In fact, now that I think about it, that’s probably the primary market for this thing: jilted former lovers and the people they’re trying to kill. Hey, look, I thought of some jokes after all!
*I don’t think I should have to say this, but don’t actually leave your car jacked up all the time with this, and don’t work under a car without some jack stands for safety. Hydraulics can fail, and you don’t want to be under your car when it happens. It should be noted that, as commenter the caddy that zigs points out in the comments below, this lift has a locking mechanism, and in their personal experience, it is sufficient. I’d still probably use jack stands to be sure, but I hate working underneath lifted cars.
This article was published by Wes Davis on 12/23/2021, and subsequently updated with new information.