Car Lifta works beyond the crash repair shop

Bankstown smash repairer Ted Listkow has developed a self-contained lifting machine that’s easy to use and gives technicians easier access to work areas on a vehicle.

Ted Listkow reckons he’s onto a good thing: the Car Lifta which he has spent the past year developing.

What makes this lifting unit stand out from the others is its portability – or more precisely, its independence from an electrical cable or air hose to make it work.

Listkow, who also operates PR Smash Repairs in Bankstown in south-west Sydney, has designed a lifter that has its own power supply built in.

The Car Lifta uses two 12-volt batteries, hooked up in series to power a 24-volt, DC electric motor. This motor works a threaded rod which rotates and moves the lifting forks up and down.

The main drive behind Listkow’s design was the desire to remove cables or hoses running across the floor, adding to the unit’s versatility as well as enhancing workplace safety by removing some potential trips and slips in the workshop.

As well as the Cat Lifta unit, the package also includes two car stands.

The system works by rolling the Car Lifta under a car with the forks going either side of the tyre. The unit is then turned on and a simple push button operation lifts the car to the desired height.

The Car Lifta is fitted with a safety cut-off switch which cuts off the power to the motor once the fork has reached top or bottom of its travel.

The advantages of this unit are numerous, according to Listkow.

The obvious advantage is the ability to lift a car so technicians – both beaters and painters – can have better access to the areas they need to work on.

Lifting up the back of the car, for instance, gives much better access to the fuel tank, making the tank easier to remove in some repair processes.

It can also be rolled into the spray booth and used to lift the car to give the painter easier access to the skirt.

It also means that the car can be quickly lifted for an assessor who might not be able to fully appreciate the extent of damage when the car is sitting on its four wheels.

Another advantage of the unit is its quiet operation. It lifts the car higher than a conventional hydraulic floor jack, also removing the pumping action required to operate the jack to lift the car.

The Car Lifta has the capacity to lift 1200kg.

Listkow said as well as the collision repair industry, the Car Lifta would also have application for mechanics, auto electricians and car dealers.

He is also developing an engine-lifting bar and extension legs to the Car Lifta so it can be used to lift engines from the engine bay.

It can also double as a jump-start unit for starting a vehicle with a flat battery.

The Car Lifta has an in-built battery charger which is regulated, so charging the batteries is as simple as plugging the unit into the wall.

The Car Lifta will work through 60 lifts before the batteries need to be recharged and has been CE certified and tested.

Contact (02) 9796 8666 or email carlifta@prsmashrepairs.com.au