Challenger Lifts CL16-0-3S — 16,000 lb Extended-Height Two-Post Lift

The CL16-0-3S is the extended-height build of Challenger's 16,000 lb two-post lift, and the thing that decides whether it belongs in your building is that it is not one fixed machine. It is ordered in three column heights and three widths, so the lift is specified to the bay rather than the bay being rebuilt around the lift. For a fleet garage, a municipal shop or a truck-and-SUV-heavy independent, that is the difference between a lift that clears your door header and one that does not.

The configuration is symmetric, with three-stage front and rear arms and a maximum load of 4,000 lbs per arm. Three-stage arms matter for a mixed fleet: the same arm set retracts far enough to reach the pinch welds on a car and telescopes far enough to reach the frame rails on a long-wheelbase van, so the bay does not have to be reserved for one class of vehicle.

Every CL16 is supplied with the Stack Adapter Kit, part number 10315, which is why the rise height is quoted as a range rather than a single figure.

Will It Fit?

Work through this before you order, because the column height you choose cannot be changed afterwards. The three overall heights are 162", 168" and 174", and Challenger's minimum ceiling requirements for those builds are 13'8", 14'2" and 14'8" respectively. That ceiling figure is not the column height — it allows for the overhead assembly and the shut-off bar above it.

Floor width is governed by the width you order. Overall width options are 154.75", 160.75" and 166.75"; the clear space between the columns is 120", 126" or 132", the widest of which is 11 ft. Drive-through clearance — the gap a vehicle actually passes through — is 104.25", 110.25" or 116.25". Floor-to-overhead-switch height is 155", 161" or 167" depending on build.

Power is a 3HP motor on 208/230V, 1Ph, 60Hz supply, and the lift also needs shop air: 90–120 psi is the stated air supply requirement for the air-actuated lock release. A 62-second rise time is the manufacturer's figure.

What is your responsibility: confirming your ceiling clearance, your door header, your floor and your electrical supply before the lift is built and shipped. Our product data for this model does not include a concrete thickness or concrete strength requirement. Do not assume your slab is adequate and do not take a figure from a similar lift — ask us and we will obtain the manufacturer's written floor requirement for the CL16 before you commit. A two-post lift is anchored into the slab, and the slab is the part nobody can retrofit cheaply.

The single-point lock release, and why air matters here

The lock release on this lift is single-point and air-actuated, meaning one control disengages the locks in both columns at the same time. On a lift without it, a technician walks to each column, and the two columns come off their locks a moment apart. Simultaneous release is what keeps a heavy, offset load — a service van with a full body, or a pickup with a loaded bed — from being momentarily supported unevenly. It is also why the air supply requirement above is not optional equipment: no shop air, no lock release.

The equalisation system: a 5" pulley, a 3/8" cable and a 60" carriage

Two-post lifts wear out at the cable and the carriage long before the structure gives up, so the sizes here are worth reading. The steel pulley is 5" in diameter and the equalisation cable is 3/8". A larger pulley means a gentler bend radius on the cable, and a cable that is bent less sharply, less often, is a cable that lasts longer — this is the same reason wire rope in any application is specified against a minimum sheave diameter.

The lifting carriage is 60" tall, which spreads the load over more of the column and reduces racking as it travels. Both details are maintenance economics rather than headline specs.

Arms, pads and reach

Arm reach runs from a minimum of 36.625" to a maximum of 75". Screw pads adjust between 5" and 6.5" of height, and the maximum rise measured under the arms is 71". With the supplied stack adapters, rise height is quoted between 75.5" and 81.5". Dual integrated rubber door guards are standard, which is a small thing that stops a door edge finding a column on a lift where the columns sit close to a wide vehicle.

Before you plan the bay

Published figures for three measurements differ between sources. In two of them the catalogue field rounds the manufacturer's spec-sheet figure; in the third the two fields are not describing the same measurement:

• Rise height. The spec sheet gives 75.5" minimum and 81.5" maximum with stack adapters; a second catalogue field gives 76" and 82".
• Drive-through clearance. Spec sheet 104.25" / 110.25" / 116.25"; catalogue field 104" / 110" / 116".
• Overall width. Spec sheet 154.75" / 160.75" / 166.75". A catalogue field labelled overall width instead reads 155" / 161" / 167", the same numbers this lift publishes elsewhere as floor-to-overhead-switch heights.

None of these change the lift you receive, but if you are laying out a bay to the inch, confirm the figures with us and we will check them against the current factory drawing.

Perfect For

Fleet and commercial shops that see vans, box-body service trucks and heavier SUVs alongside cars, and need one bay that does not have to be re-tooled between them. Dealership service departments ordering to a fixed building height, where the choice between the 162", 168" and 174" columns is made by the architect's drawing. Municipal and utility garages where the vehicles are heavy and the ceiling is whatever the building already had. It is not a home-garage lift: at 16,000 lbs with a 13'8" minimum ceiling on the shortest build, the building is the constraint, not the budget.

What's in the Box

The lift is supplied with the Stack Adapter Kit, part number 10315. Dual integrated rubber door guards are described as standard equipment. Anything else — extra adapters, drive-on accessories, installation — is not listed in the manufacturer's copy we hold, so ask us before you assume it is included rather than after.

Specifications

Certification

Challenger states that this lift is ALI certified. That is a third-party North American lift safety listing rather than a manufacturer's own declaration, and it is the document insurers, fleet policies and some local jurisdictions ask to see. One practical note: a listing applies to a model and its published configurations, so if you are ordering an unusual height or width combination, or fitting accessories, ask us to confirm the configuration is covered before you order rather than after the lift is on your floor.

Shipping and Delivery

This lift ships by freight to the lower 48 states, free of charge. You must be able to unload it — a forklift, a telehandler or a loading dock — or collect from the carrier's terminal, which is often simpler for a shop without lifting equipment on site. Residential delivery is available and carries a residential fee. Inspect before you sign: count the crates against the paperwork, look for crushed corners and torn wrap, and note any damage on the bill of lading at the moment of delivery. A signed clean bill of lading makes a damage claim very hard to win.

Warranty

Warranty is handled through the manufacturer, and our claims process is on our warranty claims page. We have not published a term here, because we would rather send you the manufacturer's current wording than a period we cannot stand behind — ask and we will get it for you. One warning applies to every powered lift: do not disassemble a component you intend to claim on. Photograph it in place, stop using the lift, and contact us first. A part that arrives in pieces is almost always assessed as misuse.