Atlas PV15PX: a 15,000 lb overhead two-post lift you size to your ceiling

Almost every overhead two-post lift is sold at one height, leaving the buyer to find a building that suits it. The PV15PX turns that around. Its overhead assembly is built at either 177″ or 165″, and there is a third, deliberately low setting of 150″ (12′6″) for a bay whose roof, ductwork or door track will not clear a full-height column. That option carries one condition, better known before the order than after: the 150″ build needs extra short cables, and those are a separate purchase.

Underneath the height choice is a plain commercial-duty lift: 15,000 lbs of rated capacity, symmetrical columns standing almost 123 inches apart on the inside, a drive-through opening of more than 109 inches, and columns formed from 6mm steel. Tall and wide together is what lets one lift take service trucks, vans and box vans as well as cars, and why this model shows up in fleet bays rather than only in body shops.

Settle the foundation before a concrete truck or a hammer drill arrives

Nothing here is reversible once the anchors go in. Do not book a pour, cut a core sample or set a single wedge anchor until we have given you the foundation requirement in writing. This page’s specification sheet asks for a minimum of 4″ of concrete rated at 3,000 PSI. Atlas’s current published requirement for the PV15PX is a thicker minimum slab at that same strength. Both cannot be the requirement, and we are not going to hand you the convenient one or average the two.

Of every line on this page, this is the one with no margin in it. An anchor holds because there is sound concrete gripping it along its whole length, not because the bolt is long, and depth is what a thin pour cannot give back later. Tell us what your bay was poured to, or what you plan to pour, and we will go back to Atlas for the requirement that applies to this model today. If nobody knows what is under the paint, core it — the test costs a fraction of a day of concrete work; cutting a slab out again costs very much more.

A second figure here is disputed, and it governs what you can drive onto the lift rather than what holds it down. Minimum pad height is listed as 7.5″; Atlas publishes a slightly lower minimum. Small on paper, absolute in practice — a pad either slides under the sill of a low car or it does not. If low vehicles are part of why you want this lift, confirm the current figure with us in writing before you order.

Will It Fit?

Measuring the building is the buyer’s job. Check these against your own bay before ordering, and call us if anything is marginal.

• Ceiling. Decide between 177″ and 165″ at the time of build, and allow clearance above the overhead beam for your own lighting, sprinklers and ductwork. If neither height clears, the 150″ (12′6″) configuration is the fallback — with the extra short cables it requires.
• Bay width. Overall floor width is 150 3/4″. Between the columns you have 123 ½″, and the drive-through measures 109 ½″. The drive-through figure is the one that decides whether a dual-rear-wheel service truck can be driven straight in rather than jockeyed.
• Lift height. 72″ under the arms, or 81″ with the truck adapters fitted. Minimum pad height — what governs how low a vehicle can sit and still be picked up — is listed here as 7.5″ and is disputed; read the section above before you order for low-slung cars.
• Floor. Disputed, and it is the reason for the section above. This page lists 4″ of concrete at 3,000 PSI; Atlas publishes a thicker minimum at that same strength. If you do not know what your slab is, have it cored or tested.
• Power. The power unit runs on 220V, single phase. Have an electrician confirm your supply and protection before delivery day rather than on it.
• Fluid. Budget 3-5 gallons of AW32 or AW46 hydraulic oil. It is not supplied with the lift.

The hardware that keeps a tall vehicle off the crossbeam

Extra height introduces a hazard a standard lift does not have: a van or box truck roof rising toward the overhead assembly while the operator is watching the wheels. The PV15PX answers it with a padded shut-off bar spanning the overhead. Touch the bar and the power unit stops. It is a mechanical interlock rather than a sensor, which is why it still works in a dusty shop years later.

Two smaller details do quiet work. Door guards on the carriages take the hit that would otherwise be a customer’s door swung into a bare column. The single-point lock release drops both columns together from one handle, so the lift cannot be released on one side while the other stays latched, and automatic arm restraints engage as the arms take load rather than waiting to be remembered on a busy morning.

Direct-drive cylinders, and the honest trade in a symmetric lift

The carriages are moved by direct-drive cylinders rather than by a long chain run. Fewer stretching components between the cylinder and the load means less routine adjustment to keep the two sides level, and level is the only condition in which a 15,000 lb rating means anything.

Symmetric is a real choice and it cuts both ways. The columns face each other squarely with equal-length arms front and rear, so the vehicle sits centred between the posts — the right answer for a long, heavy truck, because the weight is shared evenly. The trade is that on a short passenger car the doors open closer to the columns than on an asymmetric lift. Mostly compact cars all day and that will annoy you; trucks, vans and mixed fleet work and it is exactly what you want.

Perfect For

• Truck and fleet service bays — the height settings and wide drive-through suit vans, box trucks and dual-rear-wheel service bodies.
• Commercial general repair shops wanting one heavy lift rather than a light one and a compromise.
• Municipal, utility and contractor fleets servicing their own vehicles in-house.
• Large private shops with the ceiling for it — where the 150″ (12′6″) option earns its place, extra cables priced in from the start.

What’s in the Box

• 12-piece truck adapter set, included with the lift.
• Adapter heights of 1.25″, 2.5″ and 5″ on a 1.5″ peg.
• Mounting hardware for anchoring.
• Powder-coated columns, carriages and arms.
• Not included: hydraulic oil, the extra short cables required for the 150″ build, concrete work, and installation labour.

Capacity and Heights

Reach and Clearance

Power, Fluid and Weight

Certification, stated honestly

The published data for this model does not state an independent North American lift safety listing, so we do not claim one. For most private and general commercial use it makes no practical difference. It matters in a specific set of cases: some insurance policies, some fleet and municipal contracts and some local inspection regimes will only accept a lift carrying a recognised third-party safety listing. If any of those govern your bay, get the requirement in writing from whoever imposes it and talk to us before you order.

Shipping and Delivery

This lift moves as freight within the lower 48 states. It is not a parcel item and it will not be carried into a garage: you need a forklift, a loading dock or comparable equipment at the delivery address, or you can collect it from a warehouse instead — pickup locations are listed further down this page. Residential delivery is available and carries a fee, quoted live at checkout because carrier pricing moves.

When the truck arrives, count the pieces against the paperwork and inspect every crate before you sign, noting any damage or shortage on the bill of lading at that moment. A clean signature is the carrier’s evidence that everything arrived intact, and it makes a later claim very hard to win.

Warranty

The PV15PX is covered for 5 years structural and 2 years hydraulic, parts only. Parts only means the covered component is supplied; the labour to fit it is not, so factor that in if the lift will live somewhere a technician has to travel to.

One warning applies to every lift we sell: if you think a component has failed, do not disassemble it before you contact us. A stripped or partly rebuilt part is very difficult to assess and can end a claim before it starts. Photograph it, leave it, and get in touch.