Forward FSL-6 Review: Reliable Scissor Lift at a Fair Price

The Forward FSL-6 is a fixed scissor platform, 70 in long and 62 in wide, that sits 4.75 in tall collapsed and raises 6,000 lb to 42 in. Four rubber-padded arms meet the vehicle at its lift points, a hydraulic cylinder drives the scissor, and automatic locks hold the platform on steel at several heights. Power is selectable between 110V and 220V. It weighs about 780 lb, which is the lightest fixed mid-rise here, and it costs around $2,199.

The savings against the BendPak MD-6XP ($700) and Dannmar DMR-6 ($300) come from three places. The rise is 42 in rather than 47 or 48. The warranty is 2 years structural and 1 year on components rather than 3 or 5. And there is no ALI certification listing. The powder coat and detail finish are plainer as well, which the cons list on this page notes and which does not affect how the lift works.

What Forward did not cut is the mechanism. The scissor, the multi-position locks, the relief valve and the dual-voltage power unit are the same arrangement the more expensive platforms use.

The 6,000 lb rating covers every passenger car, crossover and half-ton pickup at curb weight, and the platform's adjustable pads reach the lift points of most of them without extensions. Very long wheelbases should be checked against the 70 in platform before ordering.

The 42 in of rise is the spec that separates the FSL-6 from the class above it. On a sedan it puts the rocker at about 46 in, which is chest height for a shorter person and a slight stoop for a taller one. It is enough to run a transmission jack underneath and to work at a wheel well standing. It is not quite the head-clear standing height a 48 in platform gives a 6 ft person, and buyers over that height should think about the 5 in the DMR-6 adds for $300.

The 70 in by 62 in footprint is the smallest fixed platform in the group, which is the FSL-6's quiet advantage: it fits a standard two-car garage with walking room and it leaves more of a single bay free than the 74 to 78 in platforms do. The 4.75 in collapsed height lets a stock car park over it. A lowered car needs ramps.

The FSL-6 ships on a pallet at roughly 780 lb, so liftgate delivery and a pallet jack or engine hoist to move it are the first costs. Forward's manual covers placement, leveling with shims, connecting the power unit to the hydraulic port, filling the reservoir and cycling the platform unloaded to bleed the system. Two people with basic tools can do that in an afternoon, and anchoring is optional on a flat, sound slab of the thickness the manual specifies.

Power is selectable, 110V or 220V. On 110V the lift works and rises more slowly with a heavy vehicle; on 220V the pump runs cooler and faster. A home garage lifting a car every week or two is fine on a dedicated 20-amp 110V circuit, and the 220V option is there if an electrician is already coming for something else. That flexibility is one of the reasons to prefer the FSL-6 over a 110V-only portable platform like the Triumph NSS-6.

Leveling is the step to be careful with. A scissor that sits out of level engages one side's locks before the other, so the shims go in before the first vehicle goes on, not after.

The FSL-6 uses automatic multi-position safety locks that engage as the platform rises, a pressure relief valve in the hydraulic circuit and a flow control on the descent. With the locks set the vehicle sits on steel. Lowering requires raising the platform slightly to unload the locks before they release, so they never let go under load. That is the same sequence the BendPak and Dannmar platforms use.

Forward's spec sheet does not claim ALI certification, and the model is not in the ALI directory. For a home garage that is a judgment call on a conventional scissor mechanism. For a commercial bay that answers to an insurer, it rules the lift out, and the certified answer at the lowest price is the Rotary SMRX6 at around $2,599.

The warranty is the FSL-6's real cost. Two years structural and one year on components is the shortest cover on any fixed mid-rise here; the Dannmar DMR-6 gives 3 years structural for $300 more, and the BendPak MD-6XP and Greg Smith GS-MR6 give 5. A home garage that lifts a car twice a month will likely never claim on any of them. A shop cycling the lift daily should pay for the longer cover.

The Dannmar DMR-6 (around $2,499) is the closest competitor: 47 in of rise, 4.75 in collapsed, 900 lb, 3-year structural warranty, 110V or 220V, no certification. It costs $300 more than the FSL-6 and buys 5 in of rise, a year of structural cover and a heavier build. In our view that is the better buy for anyone over 5 ft 10 in who will stand under the car, and the FSL-6 is the better buy for everyone else.

The BendPak MD-6XP (around $2,899) is the certified platform: ALI/ETL listed, 48 in of rise, 850 lb, 5-year structural warranty. It costs $700 more than the FSL-6, and the sticker and the warranty are what that buys.

The Forward MR-6 (around $2,299) is the same brand's rolling platform: 34 in of rise, 4 in collapsed, 650 lb, 110V only, on casters. It costs $100 more than the FSL-6 and gives up 8 in of rise and the 220V option for mobility between bays. Buy the MR-6 only if the lift will actually move; for a fixed bay the FSL-6 is more lift for less money.

The FSL-6 is for the home mechanic who has decided on a fixed mid-rise, has one bay to give it under a low ceiling, and wants the mechanism without paying for the badge. It handles brakes, suspension, exhaust, fluids and driveline work on anything up to a half-ton, parks a stock car over it between jobs, and runs on whichever voltage the garage has. Two jobs a month is roughly where the around $2,199 price starts to pay back against shop labor, and at this price that math closes sooner than on any other fixed platform here.

It is the wrong lift for a commercial bay that needs certification, where the Rotary SMRX6 is the answer. It is the wrong lift for a tall owner who wants head-clear standing height, where the DMR-6's 47 in matter. And it is the wrong lift for a garage that has to be cleared for parking, where a QuickJack stores and 780 lb does not.

For the budget fixed bay, the FSL-6 is the mid-rise we would buy, and the $300 saved against the DMR-6 is honest money if 42 in is enough.