The only two-post lift on this site that publishes an arm-restraint force

Every two-post lift has swing-arm restraints. Almost nobody says how strong theirs are. The 12APX does: its Automatic Swing Arm Restraint System is a forged-steel design that grips through a full 360-degrees and holds the arms with over 2000-pounds of load-holding force.

That number exists because of a specific failure. Arm restraints have historically been a toothed gear and a pin, sized for stopping an arm drifting while you position a car. They were not sized for the moment a vehicle shifts on the pads — a gearbox coming out, a diff going in, a load placed slightly off the centre of balance — and that is when a restraint is asked to resist a real force rather than a nudge. Heavier vehicles make that moment worse, which is the honest reason this lift exists in the form it does.

Arms that retract shorter and reach further

The second thing worth understanding is the arm design, because it decides whether a lift can take the cars you have. These are triple-telescoping nested arms: the inner tubes retract right through the back of the arm assembly, past the pivot pin, instead of stopping against an end plate or a tube closeout. That gives both a shorter minimum retraction and a longer extension from the same arm.

Front arm reach starts at 26 in. / 660.4 mm and rear arm reach at 29.50 in. / 745.3 mm, and each arm is rated to 3,000 lbs. / 1,361 kg — four of those is exactly the lift's 12,000 lbs. (5,443 kg) rating, which is a useful sanity check when you are placing a heavy vehicle asymmetrically. The Bi-Metric arms then let the same lift work symmetrically, with the vehicle's centreline at the columns, or asymmetrically with it behind them, without swapping arms over. A long saloon and a short van no longer need two lifts or a set of arms in the corner.

Low-Pro arms and the cars that used to be a problem

The Low-Pro swing arms use telescoping channels with a shorter profile and a dropped-end pad receiver. In plain terms, the arm gets under a lowered car without touching the side skirt, the running board or the ground effects on the way in — the class of vehicle that generates the awkward conversations.

The pads are double-telescoping screw adapters with gouge and tear-resistant polyurethane faces, spun up or down to level the vehicle on its lifting points. Stackable adapters extend that: 2.5" medium and 5" tall adapters come as sets of four, and a 2" low adapter is an optional set. Total adapter height is 7.50 in. / 188 mm, which is what to add to the minimum pad height when working out whether a low car will clear the pads at all.

Will It Fit?

• Ceiling. Overall height is 169 in. / 4,294 mm, with the floor-to-top-switch measurement at 162.50 in. Measure to the lowest obstruction over the bay, not the highest part of the roof.
• Floor width. 156 in. overall, 143 in. across the outside of the posts.
• Getting a car in. Width between the inside of the posts is 120 in., about 10 ft, and drive-thru width 103 in., about 8.5 ft. Extra-wide column spacing is part of the design brief, not a happy accident.
• Rise. Maximum rise 75.75 in.; lifting height 78.50 in. with the pad down and 82.5 in. with it up, about 6.5 ft. A full rise takes roughly 45 seconds.
• Lowest point. Minimum height with the pad is 4 in. / 101.2 mm — the number that decides whether a low car can be driven over the arms at all.
• Power. 220 VAC, 60 Hz, 1 Phase, running under 70 dB.

Our record does not state a required concrete thickness or strength. On a two-post lift that is the single most important installation figure there is, because the whole load and all of its overturning moment go into the anchors: the columns are held up by your slab and nothing else. The requirement is in the installation manual linked on this page and we will confirm it in writing before you order. Verifying ceiling height, slab specification and electrical supply is the buyer's responsibility.

Locks, and the single point that releases them

The automatic safety lock system engages on every rise without the operator doing anything, and releases from one ergonomic single-point control on descent. That is worth more than it sounds on a lift that gets used forty times a day: a lock system with a per-column release is a lock system somebody eventually skips.

Behind it, dual hydraulic direct-drive cylinders raise the carriages, a self-lubricating Dura-Glide bearing system carries them up the columns, and heavy-duty aircraft-quality equalizer cables running over oversized sheaves keep the two sides level. Above the vehicle, a padded overhead safety shutoff bar stops the lift before a roof reaches the beam — and the top beam is expandable, which is how the lift is configured for wide or narrow installation from one package.

Perfect For

• Shops taking on electric vehicles, which are heavier, carry armoured battery packs and put their lifting points further outboard than the cars this equipment grew up on.
• Mixed workshops that need symmetric and asymmetric loading from one lift.
• High-throughput service bays, where single-point lock release and fast arm positioning are measured in minutes a day.
• Shops working on lowered or low-clearance cars alongside trucks and vans.

What's in the Box

Included as standard, from this model's own accessory list: 2.5" medium adapters (set of four), 5" tall adapters (set of four), adapter holders (set of two) and drop-in cradle pads (set of four), with the four triple-telescoping Low-Pro arms, the Automatic Swing Arm Restraint System, double-telescoping screw pads, the padded overhead safety shutoff bar, the expandable top beam, dual hydraulic direct-drive cylinders, the electric-hydraulic power system, safety locks in each column with single-point release, and equalizer cables with oversized sheaves.

Optional, and not included: quick-fit pinch-weld pucks and pads, wide frame cradle adapters, the 2" low adapter set, steel lift pads, replacement urethane pads and spare screw pads. If you work on a marque with unusual pinch welds, sort that out at order time rather than on the first job.

Specifications

Certification, stated honestly

Our record for this lift carries no third-party safety listing, and we are not going to write around the gap. That describes the paperwork we hold rather than the engineering.

An independent North American lift safety listing means an outside body has examined the design and listed the product; a manufacturer's own conformity declaration does not replace it. On a two-post lift in a commercial workshop this comes up more often than on any other kind of equipment, because technicians stand under the load all day and insurers know it. If your cover or a local code official requires the independent listing, ask us in writing before you order.

Shipping and delivery

Freight only, to the lower 48 states, priced live at checkout for your own address — which is why no shipping figure appears on this page.

Delivery is kerbside. Arrange unloading first: a forklift and an operator on site, or collection from the freight terminal, which for a crate this size is often the easier route. Warehouse pickup can be arranged for this brand from our BendPak locations, and a residential address carries a residential fee — call us to set it up. Inspect the shipment before you sign and write any damage onto the bill of lading at the time — a clean signature makes a later claim very hard to win.

Warranty

The manufacturer's warranty document is linked on this page; read the term and the exclusions there rather than any summary of them. Whatever the terms, never dismantle a component you intend to claim on — photograph the fault, leave it assembled and contact us first. A stripped part is the usual reason a sound claim is refused.