Tru,
That nice looking red lift I have was a big break for me. I had been looking for something that I could get the car up on, and this outfit had just started up. So when I talked to them, they sold me one for a very low price if I would take some pictures of the car on it and let them show them at car shows. I even got the bridge and bottle jack free. But I love it. The lift is 20" high and with the car on it I can sit up in most places under it to work. Took me 20 minutes from the time I took the boot off untilI had the transmission on the work bench once. A guy that I knew here built one with heavy wood and he measured mine and it worked just as well as mine. Only he is a retired machinist and he went a little farther than I would have. He cut through his garage floor and put in hydraulic jacks on each side so all he had to do was push a button and it would lift the front up. But he can't widen his or move them like I can to work on other cars.
Sounds as if your weather is on the way to getting better. What is the switched reverse trick? Good luck on the axel seal.
Ron
