Body Off with 4-Post Lift

[Mark P.]

I just pulled the body this weekend using my 4-post lift. It worked really well. By having the car on top of the lift ramps instead of under it made the whole process much less difficult. I raised and lowered the car as necessary to remove all necessary components then when I was ready I connected my straps and lowered the chassis then slid the body dolly under it. With a C2, there wasn't sufficient clearance to slide out the chassis due to the range of my lift if the car is under the lift ramps. There was enough clearance to do this with my C1, probably because I had the engine and tranny out already for that body lift.

To make this approach work I just needed to securely anchor brackets to the ceiling to attach my lift cables. I used lift cables with flat hooks. I preferred this approach over one of those non-adjustable lift kits made for a cherry picker.

Lessons learned - pull the gas tank before lifting the body. It makes it easier to push the chassis forward while dropping the chassis to clear the #4 body mounts from the lower rear quarter panels. Also, don't forget to remove the wire clip in the rear most crossmember. This attaches the rear lighting and radio wiring to the frame.

It's hard to imagine that I am this stage after having a wheel bearing go out in a trailing arm. I needed to pull the body to deal with some frame repairs needed due to rust. The car will be so much better though with a solid frame and fresh body mounts and suspension.

[Joe R.]

Re: Body Off with 4-Post Lift

Mark,

Strong work! Please keep us posted of your progress.

Joe

[Jim T.]

Re: Body Off with 4-Post Lift

Thanks for the photos. Using your lift was this a one man operation to separate the body and frame?

[Mark P.]

Re: Body Off with 4-Post Lift

Yes it was a one man operation. It was smooth and drama free to separate the body from the frame and set the body on a dolly. Took most of the weekend because I wanted to take lots of photos and get everything bagged and tagged.

[Timothy B.]

Re: Body Off with 4-Post Lift

Mark,

Excellent job, I can tell from your attention to detail the cars problems will be repaired properly. Good work!!

[Russ S.]

Re: Body Off with 4-Post Lift

If any one else is thinking about doing it this way I would be sure and double sure that the ceiling can support the weight and that you have hooks or attachments that won't pull out of the ceiling.

[Rich W.]

Re: Body Off with 4-Post Lift

This looks fun..so did you raise the car up as high as you could then hooked the ratchet straps on the body and lowered the lift to separate things..seems to be the way you would have done it..I have done some frame replacement on trucks that way..just at work though ..how high is your ceiling? Mine is 10 foot..yours looks to be somewhere in there..makes me really want to get one of those lifts..I have attic space above the garage I could add support to it to do it this way..where did you get the tool or part to hook the straps to the body? Got to love wheel bearings..sounds like you are going all out..

[Mark P.]

Re: Body Off with 4-Post Lift

Hey Russ,

Good point.

I was comfortable my ceiling could handle this. Every 2 feet I have two 2X6's sandwiching a 2 X 4 (part of original engineered truss). I had a structural engineer involved when my garage ceiling was reframed to accomodate my lift and carry these kind of lateral loads. Two large glue lam beams going front to back of the garage carry the bulk of the load of the celing.

I assumed my C2 coupe body weighs about 1,000 lbs (maybe less) since it has the glass and seats installed.

That means that each 2 X 6 is carrying 250 lbs and the 2 X 4 is extra "cushion".

The 8 screws each carry 125 lbs when loaded with the body. These screws are rated to carry 250lbs in Doug Fir and are rated as stronger than 1/2" lag screws.

If someone just has engineered trusses spaced 2 feet apart then that would not be sufficient I believe and they should consult a structural engineer.


Mark

[Mark P.]

Re: Body Off with 4-Post Lift

Hey Rich - yes, I raised the lift about 4 feet off the ground. I then attached the straps and with a few clicks the body started to slightly float so I was comfortable they would separate cleanly.

I then raised the lift up a couple inches and opened the safety stops then dropped the ramps so the chassis came down and the body stayed up.

My ceiling slants from 8'6" up to about 13".

I did the cathedral ceiling so I could use the 4 post lift to stack a C1 on top of my C2.

The lift straps I used just connect to the bottom of the rocker. It did not damage the body or paint in any way. I used this $20 2" straps made by Keeper:

http://www.amazon.com/Keeper-04623-R.../dp/B0002YU0OK.

I would have liked to spread the hooks a bit to make them less snug with the body rails but since the hooks were tempered they would not budge.

I have been very happy with my 4 post lift for both car storage and working on them.

Mark

[Paul J.]

Re: Body Off with 4-Post Lift

Hey Russ,

Good point.

I was comfortable my ceiling could handle this. Every 2 feet I have two 2X6's sandwiching a 2 X 4 (part of original engineered truss). I had a structural engineer involved when my garage ceiling was reframed to accomodate my lift and carry these kind of lateral loads. Two large glue lam beams going front to back of the garage carry the bulk of the load of the celing.

I assumed my C2 coupe body weighs about 1,000 lbs (maybe less) since it has the glass and seats installed.

That means that each 2 X 6 is carrying 250 lbs and the 2 X 4 is extra "cushion".

The 8 screws each carry 125 lbs when loaded with the body. These screws are rated to carry 250lbs in Doug Fir and are rated as stronger than 1/2" lag screws.

If someone just has engineered trusses spaced 2 feet apart then that would not be sufficient I believe and they should consult a structural engineer.


Mark

Great picture, Mark. I think you're definitely OK for the stresses in the wood, but I don't like the brackets, especially the twisted brackets on top of the glue lam. It's not a bad design, but whoever did it was too concerned with picking up the weight of the ceiling in the other bay. You'd get more strength bringing the load directly to the top of the glue lam, rather than the eccentric loading down the side. However, for what you're doing I would'nt worry about it.

Now, why did you need to use a 4 post lift?

Paul

[Mark P.]

Re: Body Off with 4-Post Lift

Hello Paul - good observation. The reason the engineer designed it that way is because all the engineered trusses over my 3 car garage would no longer be effective when I had to cut them to make the cathedral ceiling. This cathedral ceiling is on the left side of the garage and allows me to have the clearance for my lift. Therefore, he needed the glue lams to mainly support the 2/3 of the celing that is over the right hand side of the garage. I also have an attic over that part of tha garage and since I store a lot in there I wanted that beefed up too. In addition, plywood gussets were added for all the connections in those remaining trusses to handle the downward loads.

I wanted to use the 4 post lift because I wanted a very controlled body lift. I didn't want to have to call in all my buddies to do the "buddy method" and I don't really like the cherry picker method because of the balance issues and ceiling height issues I had on my friends C1 body lift.

Which method do you prefer for a body lift ?

Mark

[Keith L.]

Re: Body Off with 4-Post Lift

I did the same thing by myself. But I had a piece of steel laying across the trusses and hooked to it. Rolled the frame out and the dolly on and raised it up to the body and unhooked, then lowered the dolly with body.

[Mark P.]

Re: Body Off with 4-Post Lift

The piece of steel probably distributed the weight more evenly across the trusses. It is very convenient to have a place to hook a winch when you need to as well.

[Paul J.]

Re: Body Off with 4-Post Lift

I wanted to use the 4 post lift because I wanted a very controlled body lift. I didn't want to have to call in all my buddies to do the "buddy method" and I don't really like the cherry picker method because of the balance issues and ceiling height issues I had on my friends C1 body lift.

Which method do you prefer for a body lift ?

Mark

This is in a purpose built shop so it's not a fair comparison to your situation. The hoist is on a trolley, and easily rolls. You can raise and lower it to the slightest fractions of an inch, as the chain pully moves it only a slight amount as you pull it. The block and tackle design takes all of the weight in the lift, so 1,000 lbs. is no big deal on your arms. It's set up with the leveler for engines, but I have a strap kit for bodies.

[Terry M.]

Re: Body Off with 4-Post Lift

This is in a purpose built shop so it's not a fair comparison to your situation. The hoist is on a trolley, and easily rolls. You can raise and lower it to the slightest fractions of an inch, as the chain pully moves it only a slight amount as you pull it. The block and tackle design takes all of the weight in the lift, so 1,000 lbs. is no big deal on your arms. It's set up with the leveler for engines, but I have a strap kit for bodies.

Wood is good, but steel is better.