Clever Car leaning device... cool and scary at the same time! What do you think?

[LeeH]

Joe,

You should e-mail the guy that distributes this thing and see if he'll pay us a commission on the sales that result from this thread!

[Wine Red 82 911]

I wonder how long you could keep your car in that position??? Nice idea for winter storage.

[Joeaksa]

Thom,

Saw your pics months ago on your site and it got me to thinking about making one. Started looking into this for restoring my other car and then found this one on Ebay recently. Yours is better for a complete restoration but mine gets the car up and in the air in 15 minutes. Wish we could breed the two and get the best of both worlds!

Lee,

Contact them in NH with the URL on the other page. Bet they could use a sales rep out here. Interested in a part time job that you could do from home? Would do it partners with you?! Already have the demo unit...

Joe

[pwd72s]

I've been exchanging emails with Tom Back in the Netherlands for some time. He's restoring a '72S, and from time to time he writes, asking me to tell him of a detail on my car. Anyway, he just responded told me "we've been using one for years"...sounds like the Europeans consider this to be old news, and evidently they work. Perhaps not as sturdy as a rotissierie, but doesn't take as much room either?

[Chas White]

I wanna know what they used to tilt that garage......

[LeeH]

Joe - I sent him e-mail and the address was bad! Oh well, so much for my massive commission check!

[Joeaksa]

Lee,

Try this:


----- Original Message -----
From: "Joe Abrahamson"
To:
Sent: Tuesday, December 24, 2002 6:16 AM
Subject: Chassis tilter

Dear Mr. Abrahamson,

Thank you for your interest in our Vehicle Tilter.

We have a company in Nashua, NH.

The adress in the US:
LIQUI-CAR-TECH
P.O. Box 866
Nashua, NH 03060-0866
phone: 603-598-8567

The price for the Vehicle Tilter is $ 998, incl.
shipping + handling.

You also can order by e-mail from us.

Best regards
LIQUI-TECHNIC
Andre Liqui

[pwd72s]

An email from Tom Back in the Netherlands:

"Works excellent! What I saw on the thread is that people worry about fluids;
Since the rack is not defying the laws of physics, gravity will do its best
to let the fluids remain on their level.... Its an excellent tool for the
larger repair work, therefore an investment that pays off if you have more
work to do than checkig oillevels or changing tyres alone. The unit itself
works great, you hardly need additional space to work with the jig (rotating
around its own axle)."

[Joeaksa]

Paul,

All I needed to hear. Glad I got one and hope that Lee is interested in selling some here!

Joe

[Wayne 962]

Hmmm, this indeed is a very clever idea.

However, I have some concerns. The suspension components that this bolts to were never intended to take this type of loading. You probably wouldn't have a problem with it falling off, but what about placing unusual loads on the shocks, struts, towers? If I think about this correctly, then the front weight of the car would be placed entirely on both the a-arm and the front shock tower. The a-arm will be loaded not horizontally, but vertically, which is not how it is designed to take a load. Also, the top shock mount would now have vertical side loads that it's not designed to take. I'd have somewhat similar concerns about the rear components, however, I would think that they are a bit more robust because of their construction and the fact that they are power-loading components...

Island, Warren, any thoughts?

-Wayne

[Wayne 962]

From their website:

" Engine and transmission oil, fuel, coolant, washer and brake fluid stay in the vehicle."

Easy stuff there, but what about gas? Do you need to empty the tank?

-Wayne

[Joeaksa]

Wayne,

Everyone I talk to who has used on takes plastic and screws it on the cap for misc fluids (oil and brake fluid) but the gas cap should be sealed so doubt anything would come out. Battery is the main worry and I would pull it out unless its a Optima or other sealed unit.

Agree with your concerns on side loading but how much stress do we put on the same parts during a auto-X or track event? Its also a gradual rather than a sharp input and they have had them in Europe for over 10 years without any problems that I have heard of. The gent Paul knows of in Holland would be a better source of info there as they have been using them for a long time and no bad press.

Using it on a 911 or the like should not be a big deal, but even though its rated to 6800 pounds, I am not going to press the issue!

Joe

[Chuck Moreland]

The side loading of the suspension isn't a big deal. The loads are similar to corner loads which can actually exceed the weight of the vehicle with sticky tires.

I still think some cars will have fluid issues, these can be overcome.

I think it is a really cool product idea.

[Wayne 962]

The 356s (shown in the picture) have a gasoline overflow hole/hose in the side of the tank. You would only be able to lift it onto the driver's side without spilling out gas...

I agree with the side-load comments - in theory. Flipping the car on its side would generate a 1g side load on the suspension components. I can't put my finger on it, but there's just something that would make me nervous about doing this. But then, I'm the fellow who uses a minimum of six jackstands under the vehicle...

-Wayne

[cstreit]

I'm with Wayne on this... Just seems like load in all the wrong places...

Though I bet Chuck is probably right about it, but I would still would be really worried about what that might due to an a-arm or trailing arm...

[pwd72s]

I have to admit...I'm waiting for more user reports...Joeska? Late bulletin: Just in from another friend I sent this thread to:


"I forwarded that item to Udo in Germany and he said the tilt was as old as the castles.....saw one at the Essen motor show 20 plus years ago. He said they work great but draining fluids took quite a while!--but they work great on total restorations. You would really enjoy Udo--a very hard working and good craftsman, especially painting and body work."

[TimT]

Wayne would the vectors the self weight of the car impose (in the rotated position) be more than than the dynamic loads the suspension would see whilst being driven in a spirited manner?
I dont think so...

Still would have concerns about spilling fluids.

[jluetjen]

David,

For any work on the bottom or top of the car, I believe that this would be loads easier than lying on your back and working. Thats why I bought one! They are located not far from you, in NH.

The ad says Oregon which is a long way from NH. I assume that you are referring to the manufacturer. Do you have the name and address?

[vesnyder]

Looks interesting. I want to keep my eye on these thoughts!

[Joeaksa]

John,

They are based in New Hampshire. MS streets and trips says that they are 17 miles away from you. The link on the first page of this tread takes you to their website.

The seller of the Ebay auction lives in Oregon.

Joe

LIQUI CAR TECH P.O. Box 866 Nashua, NH 03061-0866

Phone : 603/598-8567 Fax : 603/ 598-2645 e-mail: info@liqui-tilter.com

http://www.liqui-tilter.com/