Last spring we installed an autolift garage for a car collector in West Des Moines who wanted to service his own suspension components on a rotating fleet of weekend cars. He had been debating a used lift from a shop auction versus a new install for months. Twelve months in, he asked us to write up how the first year played out — install day, the first oil change, the first shock and spring job, and the honest verdict on whether he made the right call between used and new. This is that piece. Names are changed and generalized, but the sequence and the lessons are exactly as they happened in a working autolift garage in the metro.
We install every lift we sell and stock parts for it long after the warranty ends. Call 800-674-9302 to talk through your West Des Moines garage.
The Used-Versus-New Debate Before Install Day
The collector had a real decision on his hands. A local auction had a decade-old two-post going for roughly a third of a new lift price. It looked clean in photos. The seller could not produce the original ALI certification paperwork, and the equalizer cables were the original ones. We walked him through the math: a used lift with unknown cable age, unknown cylinder seal age, and no ALI paperwork is a lift that needs a full inspection, likely new cables, potentially new hydraulic seals, and possibly a new safety-cam ladder before it is safe. Add the freight to move it, and the delta between used-and-refurbished and new is usually a wash. For an autolift garage where his own family would be under a car, the calculus tipped toward new with a warranty.
He went with a new Rotary SPOA10 asymmetric at 10,000 lb capacity. It is the same lift we recommend for most home autolift garage builds because it handles everything from a Miata to a half-ton pickup, the asymmetric geometry keeps doors clear of the columns, and the resale value ten years out is real. Used or new is a real debate, but for a home garage where you are the tech, we lean new every time.
Install Day: One Day, Two Techs, One Bay
Install day was a single Tuesday. Our two-tech crew rolled up with the crated columns, the powerpack, and the hardware kit at 8 a.m. The garage was cleared out the night before, which is what we ask for in any autolift garage install. Anchor drilling and column layout took the morning. Plumbing the hydraulic lines, wiring the powerpack, and running the equalizer cables took the early afternoon. First cycle test with a car on it was mid-afternoon. Signed off and walked the collector through the safety features by 4 p.m.
Two things surprised him. First, how much dust the anchor drilling produced — worth taping off the tool cabinets ahead of time. Second, how quiet the lift is at operating pressure. The powerpack cycles at conversational volume, and the safety pawls click into place with a soft, distinct sound. Nothing about the day was chaotic. This is what an install day looks like when the crew does it every week; it is boring in the best possible sense.
First Oil Change and the Sightlines That Changed
The first job on the new autolift garage was an oil change on a mid-1990s BMW. He had been doing that job on ramps for a decade. The difference was immediate. Access to the filter, room to swing a wrench on the drain plug, and enough vertical room to stand upright while draining fluid. What used to be a two-hour crawl-under job became a 25-minute stand-up job. That first cycle is when most home-shop owners realize what an autolift garage actually changes about the hobby.
The second job was a differential fluid change on a 4×4. Same story. The rear pumpkin at chest height, gasket surface visible, fluid pouring clean into a catch pan without lying on cardboard. When we do the safety walkthrough at install, we always mention that the first month feels like a completely different hobby. A year later he still says the same thing. The lift did not change the cars; it changed the relationship with them.
The First Big Job: Suspension and Shock Replacement
Six months in, the big job was a full suspension refresh on a 1970s American muscle car — new springs, new shocks, new bushings, new sway bar links. On ramps, that job is a weekend. On the autolift garage, it was a Saturday afternoon. Being able to raise the car to eye level, put both hands on the strut assembly, and use a spring compressor without contorting is a different exercise entirely. He did not need to buy anything special for the job because the standard lift arms and pad set accommodate a spring compressor rig without modification.
The one thing he did add was a set of jack pad extensions for the lower control arms on that specific chassis. Those are inexpensive and worth having for any autolift garage where the collector fleet includes older cars with unusual pinch weld locations. We stock them for most models. He ordered a set the week before the job, they arrived in two days, and he was ready. Small detail that made a big job easier.
What Broke, What Needed Attention, What Did Not
In the first year, nothing broke. That is the honest answer. The lift went through roughly 250 cycles. The powerpack held pressure. The safety pawls dropped cleanly every cycle. The equalizer cables stayed tensioned. Hydraulic fluid stayed clean and at level. He did not have to replace anything. The one item he tightened was the anchor bolts at the six-month mark, which is a standard check — anchors sometimes take a partial turn as concrete finishes curing around them. That is a five-minute job.
What he added, unprompted, was a light kit for the underside of the vehicle. Not because the lift needed it, but because a well-lit autolift garage is a better hobby space. LED strips on the ceiling above the lift, plus a couple of magnetic work lights for the underside of specific cars. Total add cost was minimal. If you are planning a garage build, plan for that lighting up front — it is easier than retrofitting.
The Annual Inspection at Twelve Months
At the twelve-month mark we sent a tech out for the ALI-recommended annual inspection. Cable condition: excellent. Cylinder seals: dry and clean. Arm restraints: functional. Safety-cam engagement: crisp on all notches. Anchor tightness: within spec. Hydraulic fluid: clean, at level. Column plumb: within tolerance. The whole inspection took under an hour, we left a written report, and the autolift garage is good to go for another year. Nothing needed replacement, nothing was flagged, and the collector got peace of mind for a small annual fee.
That is what year one of a properly installed lift looks like. The reason we push new over used, and ALI Gold over unknown, is exactly this outcome. When the lift is right and the install is right, the first year is quiet. The drama-free year is the entire point.
Would He Do It Again?
His verdict a year later: he would not go back. The autolift garage changed how much of his own maintenance he does, how much he trusts the work, and how much time he saves on jobs that used to eat a full weekend. He has recommended us to two other collectors in West Des Moines, both of whom now have their own installs. Word of mouth in the collector community moves fast, and the first-year experience is what drives it.
If you are on the fence between used and new for a home the lift, the honest answer is that a new Rotary or Challenger with a proper install and ALI Gold paperwork is the right call in almost every scenario. Call 800-674-9302 and we will walk through your specific West Des Moines garage — ceiling height, slab age, door widths, and the cars you plan to work on — before we quote anything.
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