Challenger Lifts CL4P7 — the four-post that fits an ordinary two-car garage

The CL4P7 is the smallest and lightest lift in Challenger's four-post home storage range, and that is the reason to buy it. Challenger's minimum recommended bay for it is 10' x 20' — smaller than the 9,000 lb models in the same range ask for — and it ships at 1,650 lbs. Columns stand 6' 7.5" tall. Taken together, those figures describe a lift that goes into a conventional residential two-car garage instead of requiring a purpose-built one.

Its rated capacity is 7,000 lbs — enough for the overwhelming majority of cars, crossovers and light trucks people actually want to stack, and the model to choose when the constraint is the building rather than the vehicle.

One thing to know about the feature list below

The Product Features section further down this page covers Challenger's whole four-post home storage range, including the 9,000 lb models. Several of its figures are range maxima and do not describe the CL4P7:

• "Up to 85.5" service rise" is the tall 9,000 lb models. The CL4P7 rises to 68.125" at the top of the runway.
• "Up to 80" clearance" is likewise the taller models; the CL4P7's crossbeam clearance height is 63".
• "Multiple heights, lengths and widths available" and "larger columns and base plates" are explicitly noted in Challenger's own list as applying to the 9,000 lb models only.

We have spelled this out rather than let the bigger numbers sit on the page unqualified. If you need the taller figures, the 9,000 lb models in the same range are the ones to look at.

Will It Fit?

Confirming the bay, the ceiling, the door opening and the slab before ordering is the buyer's responsibility. Ten minutes with a tape measure is the most valuable ten minutes of this whole purchase.

• Footprint: 195.5" overall length by 100.5" overall width.
• Column spacing: 92.125" inside the columns, 147.5" between columns front to back.
• Column height: 6' 7.5".
• Recommended bay: a minimum of 10' x 20'.
• Drive-through width: 5.25'.
• Runways: 20" wide, 38" apart, only 5.75" off the floor when fully lowered.
• Longest vehicle: 141.5" maximum wheelbase.
• Weight: 1,650 lbs.
• Power: 115v or 230v single-phase, 1HP or 2HP motor.

That 5.75" runway height is worth pausing on. A low lowered height means a shorter, gentler approach ramp angle, which matters far more than it sounds if the car going on top has any kind of front lip or lowered suspension. It is also the number that decides whether you can still walk past the lift comfortably when it is down.

Light on its feet, and light on your slab

At 1,650 lbs the CL4P7 is the lightest lift in this range, and weight is not just a shipping detail. A lighter lift is easier to position during installation, easier to relocate if you move house, and imposes less on a domestic garage floor before you have even parked a car on it.

It is also the practical reason this is the model most home buyers end up with. Getting a heavier four-post off a freight truck and into a garage without commercial equipment is a genuine problem; this one is the least demanding of the family in that respect, though it is still a crated freight shipment and still needs planning.

Locks, releases and no compressor

The CL4P7 uses Challenger's adjustable lock ladders. Garage floors slope — that is simply true of concrete poured to drain — and where a fixed lock position forces an installer to shim columns until all four agree, adjustable ladders absorb the difference in the mechanism so every lock engages at the same point and the runways sit level.

Lowering is by a single-point manual lock release that disengages both column locks at once, rather than the walk-around-and-drop-each-one routine some four-posts require. And the lift needs no compressed air at any point in its operation, which for a home garage removes a compressor, an air line and a maintained tank pressure from the shopping list. An electrical circuit is the whole requirement.

The runways carry a built-in accessory rail, so a rolling jack can be added later to raise a wheel clear of the runway for brake or tyre work, and oil drip trays can be dropped in to protect whatever is parked below. Both are sold separately.

Perfect For

• The standard residential two-car garage — the case this model is sized for.
• Cars, crossovers and light trucks within 7,000 lbs and a 141.5" wheelbase.
• Seasonal and long-term storage of a second vehicle, motorcycle collection or project car.
• Light-duty general service, which is how Challenger describes this range.

What's in the Box

A complete CL4P7 four-post lift: columns, commercial-grade formed runways, crossbeams, the adjustable lock ladders, the hydraulic power unit and the single-point lock release, in a powder coat finish. Black is the listed colour. Rolling jacks and drip trays are separate purchases. If your installation depends on a particular ramp, caster kit or adapter, confirm with us in writing that it is included before ordering.

Specifications

One spec-sheet caveat we will not paper over: the storage clearance height in Challenger's data for the CL4P7 is written with a foot mark where an inch mark is plainly intended, which makes the value unusable as printed. We have left it out rather than guess at it and have quoted the crossbeam clearance height of 63" instead. If storage clearance is the figure your purchase turns on, ask us and we will get it confirmed from the manufacturer in writing.

Certification and anchoring

Challenger lists this range as ALI/ETL certified and states that anchoring is not required to maintain that certification. That is the exception rather than the rule among four-post lifts, and for a rented garage, a finished or heated slab, or an owner who expects to move, it is worth real money.

It is a statement about the terms of the listing, not an invitation to ignore the floor. The slab must still carry the load and be flat enough for the lock ladders to take up. Where an insurer, inspector or fleet policy applies its own documentation or inspection rule, check it against this model before you buy.

Shipping and delivery

This lift moves as freight to the lower 48 states, priced live at checkout for your address so you see a current rate rather than an old estimate.

Even at 1,650 lbs this arrives crated on a truck. Have a forklift, a tractor with forks or enough people and a plan ready, or opt to collect from the carrier's terminal. A residential delivery address carries a residential fee.

Inspect before you sign. Check the crate and contents with the driver present and record any damage or shortage on the bill of lading before you sign it. A clean signature says the freight arrived in good order, and it is hard to walk back.

Warranty

Warranty is under Challenger's published terms and our claim process is at mechanicsuperstore.com/pages/warranty-claims. The data we hold for the CL4P7 does not state a warranty duration, so none is printed here — ask us and we will confirm the current term in writing.

If something fails, take the lift out of service and call before you dismantle anything. A stripped component is much harder to claim on than one inspected as it failed, and photographs taken before anything is touched are the strongest evidence you can offer.