Which Car Ramps Brand Wins?
2024 test11 productsAuto Parts & Repair

Which Car Ramps Brand Wins?

In our test we compared 11 car ramps options head to head. Pittsburgh Plastic came out on top. See the measured results, the runner-up, the budget pick, and a link to the full test video.

The verdict
Pittsburgh Plastic
Winner

Pittsburgh Plastic

Price shown in test: 60

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BiSupply
Runner-up

BiSupply

Price shown in test: 74

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The quick take

The short version of why each pick lands where it does, built straight from the measured results.

WinnerPittsburgh Plastic60

the Harbor Freight Pittsburgh plastic ramps came out on top with the best average score, a rating of 2.6

Best in 1 of 8 measurements, including Average finish score.

Runner-upBiSupply74

The measured results

Every number below is read straight from the test. Products are listed in the order they finished.

Claimed specs

  • 1Pittsburgh Plastic

    rated 6,500 lb per pair, claimed 6 in max lift height, claimed 17 degree ramp angle, extruded traction grooves, integrated rubber stops, made in China, sold at Harbor Freight

  • 2BiSupply
    6.3 in

    of lift claimed, 4,000 lb weight capacity per tire ramp claimed, extra wide at 11.5 in, claimed thick durable plastic construction, made in China

  • 3Likeem

    three-ton (6,000 lb) capacity claimed at product intro, 8.5 in of lift claimed, high-quality durable wear-resistant plastic, non-slip surface with raised edges, made in China

  • 4MaxxHaul
    up to3,250 lb

    per ramp or 6,500 lb per pair claimed, rubber stops on the base, claimed 6 in lift height, rigid traction surface, made in China

  • 5Black Widow
    10,000 lb

    weight capacity per pair claimed, 6.25 in of lift claimed, made in China, has six rubber stops (the most of any brand mentioned in the video)

  • 6Eastwood
    1.5

    ton (3,000 lb) per-ramp load rating claimed, made in China

  • 7Pittsburgh Steel
    2,000 lb

    per-ramp weight capacity claimed, raised safety ribs on both sides, claimed 8 in of lift (the most claimed lift of any brand), made in China, sold at Harbor Freight

  • 8EM Auto

    two-stage incline claimed, 2.5 ton (5,000 lb) capacity for both ramps combined claimed, 17 degree incline claimed, made in China

  • 9Rhino Ramp
    17 degree

    incline claimed for low clearance vehicles, stackable for storage, 'Core Trax' non-skid base claimed, made in USA

  • 10Val Wag
    5

    ton hydraulic jack built into each ramp, claimed 10,000 lb low-profile car lift service capacity, minimum height 7.7 in, maximum lift height claimed as 13 in (separately, the measured maximum clearance at the highest setting is given as 14.25 in, a discrepancy from the 13 in claim kept verbatim and unresolved), made in China

  • 11Peterson
    2,000 lb

    capacity per ramp claimed, maximum lift of 8 in claimed, durable black powder-coated finish claimed, made in USA, steel construction (one of only two steel-ramp brands in the video)

Weight

  • 1Pittsburgh Plastic
    9.7 lb
  • 2BiSupply
    9.28 lb
  • 3Likeem
    9.38 lb
  • 4MaxxHaul
    9.4 lb
  • 5Black Widow
    9.28 lb

    each (identical to the figure given for BiSupply elsewhere in the transcript; flagging as a possible coincidence or transcription duplication rather than resolving it)

  • 6Eastwood
    9.57 lb
  • 7Pittsburgh Steel
    15.15 lb

    the heaviest of all brands up to that point in the video

  • 8EM Auto
    8.5 lb
  • 9Rhino Ramp
    8.17 lb
  • 10Val Wag
    just over37 lb

    each, by far the heaviest of all 11 brands

  • 11Peterson
    14.42 lb

Slip test (rear-wheel-drive SUV on smooth concrete)

  • 1Pittsburgh Plastic

    did not stay in place on the bare floor; performed better after cleaning the floor and rubber stops but still slid; a damp cloth under the ramps made a huge difference, with only a little sliding once the vehicle reached the top

  • 2BiSupply

    slipping just as badly as the Pittsburgh steel ramps on the bare floor; began moving a little on the damp cloth but finally gained enough grip for the vehicle to reach the top without a problem

  • 3Likeem

    slipping just as badly as the other plastic ramps on the bare floor; the wet cloth underneath added a lot of traction and the vehicle made it to the top

  • 4MaxxHaul

    rubber stops did not prevent slipping on the bare floor; cleaning the floor and stops helped but the ramps still slid unevenly; the ramps finally stayed in place once damp t-shirts were placed underneath

  • 5Black Widow

    both ramps moved on the bare floor; stayed in place once placed on top of the damp fabric, which the narrator attributes to having six rubber stops

  • 6Eastwood

    sliding on the bare floor; slid just a little on the damp cloth before gaining a good grip

  • 7Pittsburgh Steel

    moved on the smooth concrete floor; a damp cloth did very little to help, and the ramps continued to move

  • 8EM Auto

    moved on the bare floor; with only one rubber stop underneath, continued sliding even on the damp cloth; made more progress on a second attempt but still slid out from underneath the front tire, one of the few brands that did not ultimately succeed on this test

  • 9Rhino Ramp

    slid on the bare floor; slid about as badly after cleaning; a damp cloth was not enough to keep the ramps in position on two separate attempts, one of the few brands that did not ultimately succeed on this test

  • 10Val Wag

    sliding on the bare floor, described as sliding as badly as the steel ramps; a damp cloth added a little traction but not enough to keep the ramps in place, one of the few brands that did not ultimately succeed on this test

  • 11Peterson

    moved on the bare floor; the damp fabric 'just didn't provide much traction for the steel ramps', and they continued to move, one of the few brands that did not ultimately succeed on this test

Runaway force test

  • 1Pittsburgh Plastic
    175 lb

    described as not having much of a hump behind the front tires

  • 2BiSupply
    163.8 lb

    described as not having much of a hump

  • 3Likeem
    just over172 lb

    described as not having much of a hump

  • 4MaxxHaul
    338 lb2nd

    restated as 338.5 lb in the closing recap; finished second overall in this test behind Val Wag

  • 5Black Widow
    just over173 lb

    described as performing very close to the Pittsburgh plastic ramps

  • 6Eastwood
    168 lb

    described as almost the same as BiSupply

  • 7Pittsburgh Steel
    240.5 lb2nd

    described as moving into second place at that point in the video (finished third overall behind Val Wag and MaxxHaul, per the closing recap: 'MaxxHaul finished in second place at 338.5 and Pittsburgh steel ramps 240.5 lb')

  • 8EM Auto
    196.3 lb

    described as a little better runaway protection than most other brands

  • 9Rhino Ramp
    215 lb

    described as a little better protection than Pittsburgh plastic

  • 10Val Wag
    367.7 lb

    the best (highest) of all 11 brands, won this test outright, attributed to a steel bar located just behind the wheel

  • 11Peterson
    around129 lb

    described as the least amount of force of any brand, the weakest result in this test

Tip-over force test

  • 1Pittsburgh Plastic
    752 lb3rd

    third place overall in this test

  • 2BiSupply
    705 lb

    described as looking and performing a lot like the Pittsburgh steel ramps

  • 3Likeem
    726.4 lb

    resolved from a transcript line reading 'the Lincoln ramps... performed a little bit better at 726.4 pounds', which is almost certainly a caption mangling of 'Likeem', resolved by elimination since it is the only untested brand remaining at that point in the sequence before Val Wag

  • 4MaxxHaul
    just over673 lb

    described as pretty good; cheapest brand tested

  • 5Black Widow
    just over678 lb

    described as pretty good

  • 6Eastwood
    almost691 lb
  • 7Pittsburgh Steel
    727 lb

    described as performing well without kicking out

  • 8EM Auto
    899 lb

    described as by far the best of all brands, winning this test outright

  • 9Rhino Ramp
    766.1 lb2nd

    second place overall in this test

  • 10Val Wag
    703 lb

    described as looking very stable but noticeably taller than most other brands

  • 11Peterson
    683.2 lb

    resolved from a transcript line reading '[Peterson] brand steel ramps held back the Ford Ranger for a while, but finally gave up at 683.2 pounds', where the brand name itself appears to have been dropped from the caption, resolved by elimination since Pittsburgh Steel was already covered earlier in this test at 727 lb and Peterson is the only other steel-ramp brand

Static overload test (~7,750 lb tractor)

  • 1Pittsburgh Plastic

    rated 6,500 lb per pair, held up fine under the 7,750 lb load

  • 2BiSupply

    rated 4,000 lb each; one ramp experienced small damage but did not collapse

  • 3Likeem

    rated 5,000 lb each; held up really well with no visible weak areas

  • 4MaxxHaul

    rated 6,500 lb per pair, handled the 7,750 lb load just fine

  • 5Black Widow

    rated 10,000 lb per pair, held up great under the load

  • 6Eastwood

    rated 3,000 lb each; held up better than BiSupply, with one ramp beginning to bend but not crack

  • 7Pittsburgh Steel

    rated 2,000 lb each; held up fine with no damage

  • 8EM Auto

    rated 2,500 lb each; held up better than some ramps with higher weight ratings

  • 9Rhino Ramp

    rated 6,000 lb per pair; the 7,750 lb load was a little too much and one ramp experienced a crack in the plastic, though it did not collapse

  • 10Val Wag

    held up just fine under the load

  • 11Peterson

    rated 2,000 lb each, the same as Pittsburgh Steel; collapsed under the 7,750 lb load, the only brand in the video to fully collapse in this test; the narrator notes 'a little more steel would have really helped'

Hydraulic press failure load test

  • 1Pittsburgh Plastic

    rated 3,250 lb, reached almost 25,000 lb before failing, described as doing even better than MaxxHaul; finished second overall in this test at just under 25,000 lb, behind BiSupply

  • 2BiSupply

    reached a peak force of almost 25,500 lb before beginning to collapse, described as the strongest ramp of all 11 tested and looking remarkably good afterward; won this test outright at well over 25,000 lb

  • 3Likeem

    in this section the narrator states a rated capacity of 'just 3,300 lb', which conflicts with the three-ton (6,000 lb) capacity claimed earlier in the video; kept verbatim as two different stated figures rather than resolved. Performed at over 20,000 lb, more than its stated rating, with quite a bit of damage; the test was held longer than most other brands

  • 4MaxxHaul

    rated 3,250 lb; reached over 19,000 lb before the test was stopped early to avoid flying metal objects, so the true failure point was not reached; described as performing about six times better than its rating

  • 5Black Widow

    reached almost 24,000 lb, described in the transcript as 'almost five times its rated capacity'; this only reconciles with the per-pair 10,000 lb claim if the press test loaded a single ramp at its per-ramp rating of roughly 5,000 lb (24,000 / 5,000 is approximately 4.8x), which is the reading used here; the ramp showed some damage but still looked usable

  • 6Eastwood

    rated 3,000 lb; collapsed at almost 22,000 lb; the narrator kept this test running longer than most other brands, causing more damage

  • 7Pittsburgh Steel

    rated 2,000 lb; performed better than expected, beginning to bend around 7,000 lb and reaching a peak force of 9,000 lb before finally collapsing

  • 8EM Auto

    rated 2,500 lb; performed at over 14,000 lb, with quite a bit of damage

  • 9Rhino Ramp

    rated 3,000 lb per ramp; performed at almost 15,000 lb, with quite a bit of damage

  • 10Val Wag

    began bending around 7,000 lb when the hydraulic ram itself began bearing the load; reached more than 23,000 lb before the test was ended early for safety reasons, so the true failure point was not reached; quite a bit of structural damage was noted

  • 11Peterson
    not tested

Front-wheel-drive low-clearance test (Buick LeSabre)

  • 1Pittsburgh Plastic
    about2 in

    of clearance; performed very well and stayed in position through both the ascent and the descent

  • 2BiSupply
    2 in

    of clearance, described as plenty; performed great

  • 3Likeem
    2 in

    of clearance, described as plenty; performed very well with no problems

  • 4MaxxHaul
    about1.75 in

    of clearance; performed well with only a small amount of movement once the vehicle was directly on top; the rubber stops were noted as already falling off

  • 5Black Widow

    the old Buick 'made it up and down the ramps without a problem'

  • 6Eastwood

    has six rubber stops (tied with Black Widow for the most of any brand); the Buick rolled up and down without any problems; the exact clearance figure was not clearly captured in the transcript ('with [inches] of clearance')

  • 9Rhino Ramp
    about2 in

    of clearance; the narrator did not use the brakes while descending and the ramps shot out from underneath the front wheels, causing minor damage to both the car and the ramps; the narrator attributes this to having only one rubber stop, located at the front of the ramp

  • 10Val Wag

    offered barely enough clearance; small amount of contact on the way up and small ramp movement at the top; the ramp nearly became a projectile on the way down but the narrator applied the brake just in time

  • 11Peterson

    explicitly skipped: 'Let's get the Peterson Ramps since there isn't enough clearance', consistent with its 8 in lift height being too tall for the low-clearance Buick

  • 7Pittsburgh Steel
    not tested
  • 8EM Auto
    not tested
All measurements (4 more)+

Measured incline angle

  • 1Pittsburgh Plastic
    18.23 degrees

    steeper than the claimed 17 degrees

  • 4MaxxHaul
    17.65 degrees

    (computed from a 2 in tire-stop height, 7 in high point, and 22 in ramp length as given in the video)

  • 2BiSupply
    not tested
  • 3Likeem
    not tested
  • 5Black Widow
    not tested
  • 6Eastwood
    not tested
  • 7Pittsburgh Steel
    not tested
  • 8EM Auto
    not tested
  • 9Rhino Ramp
    not tested
  • 10Val Wag
    not tested
  • 11Peterson
    not tested

Tire stop height

  • 1Pittsburgh Plastic
    about2.5 in
  • 2BiSupply
    not tested
  • 3Likeem
    not tested
  • 4MaxxHaul
    not tested
  • 5Black Widow
    not tested
  • 6Eastwood
    not tested
  • 7Pittsburgh Steel
    not tested
  • 8EM Auto
    not tested
  • 9Rhino Ramp
    not tested
  • 10Val Wag
    not tested
  • 11Peterson
    not tested

Average finish score

  • 1Pittsburgh Plastic
    2.6

    described as the best average score of all 11 products, based on the full set of performance tests

  • 2BiSupply
    not tested
  • 3Likeem
    not tested
  • 4MaxxHaul
    not tested
  • 5Black Widow
    not tested
  • 6Eastwood
    not tested
  • 7Pittsburgh Steel
    not tested
  • 8EM Auto
    not tested
  • 9Rhino Ramp
    not tested
  • 10Val Wag
    not tested
  • 11Peterson
    not tested

Side-load / hydraulic mechanism stress test

  • 10Val Wag

    unique to this brand: the narrator lifted a Ford Ranger to the highest position on the ramps and rocked the vehicle side to side, prompted by the ramp's 'pretty sketchy' design; one ramp bent and became stuck (would not lower), though it was eventually freed when the other side was lowered first

  • 1Pittsburgh Plastic
    not tested
  • 2BiSupply
    not tested
  • 3Likeem
    not tested
  • 4MaxxHaul
    not tested
  • 5Black Widow
    not tested
  • 6Eastwood
    not tested
  • 7Pittsburgh Steel
    not tested
  • 8EM Auto
    not tested
  • 9Rhino Ramp
    not tested
  • 11Peterson
    not tested

How it was tested

  • rear-wheel-drive slip test on smooth concrete (bare floor, then cleaned, then with damp cloths underneath the ramps)
  • ground clearance and incline angle comparison
  • four-wheel-drive drive-up test (all 11 brands passed without issue, not differentiated per brand in the transcript)
  • front-wheel-drive low-clearance ascent and descent test using an old Buick LeSabre
  • runaway force test: force required for a vehicle left out of gear with no parking brake to roll off the ramp
  • tip-over force test using a Ford Ranger driven off the ramp in reverse
  • static overload test using a roughly 7,750 lb tractor
  • hydraulic press failure load test

the Harbor Freight Pittsburgh plastic ramps came out on top with the best average score, a rating of 2.6

From the test video verdict.

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