Because of a lack of garage space and a wife who doesn't like to scrape windows, I've had to put my Miata in storage Dec-Feb the last two years.

I noticed, however, that her parents had an extension off the side of their garage that was just about Miata-sized. Problem is that it is barely the exact same length as the Miata so I couldn't drive into it by angling back and forth.

I then saw an ad in GRM for "Carskates" (www.carskates.com) - they are metal trays with rollers for like $130/set. So you can jack up the car, put it on these bad boys and push it wherever you want. A little research also lead me to "Gojaks" (www.gojaks.com) which are similar except a jacking mechanism is built into the stands and they go for more like $300/set. I decided to go with the Carskates, figuring I'd rather invest the extra money in a good aluminum jack.

Trying to hijack a picture from their web site:


So yesterday afternoon I put the Miata on the Carskates, shoved it into the deep recesses of the inlaw's garage and piled stuff on it like a hillbilly. My how does winter make me sad.

But, back to the review - overall, the Carskates work as advertised. In addition to using them for storing a car in a tight space, I think they would also be good for people rolling cars around a shop.

Just a couple of cautions: They are a little taller than I would have liked so I did have to jack the car up kind of far to get them in there. They also don't like rough surfaces - the inlaw's garage features some pretty worn down cement that was hanging up the Carskates in part.

There you go, hope it helps some one else.

- Markus

 

Neat. What would even better is a version that would go under the jacking points so you can move the car around with the wheels or suspension removed removed while working on the suspension etc.

 

Harborfreight sells a set of car dollies. You can occasionally find them on sale for $40 a pair. The rollers aren't of the highest quality, but they get the job done.
http://www.harborfreight.com/c...38959
I almost busted a hernia pushing the crx around my garage because of the grading towards the floor drain.

 

I saw the HF ones but was concerned about the metal bars framing in the tire area - I liked how the Carskate is open so I didn't have to worry about tire width. Although $40 would be a darn good price.

- Markus

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by jsi &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote"> What would even better is a version that would go under the jacking points so you can move the car around with the wheels or suspension removed removed while working on the suspension etc. </TD></TR></TABLE>

I remember seeing a company that sold the same thing but you could also put a jack stand in a slot and be able to move the car around without having the tires on it.... wish i could remember the name of the company

 

I've had the HF/NorthernTool ones for a couple years now. I've been happy with them, and the side bars don't cause a problem - at least not for Honda-sized tires. I believe they sit lower than the ones pictured.

Three of the four currently have b-series longblocks residing in them. They fit surprisingly well.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Markus &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I saw the HF ones but was concerned about the metal bars framing in the tire area - I liked how the Carskate is open so I didn't have to worry about tire width. Although $40 would be a darn good price.

- Markus</TD></TR></TABLE>

We use these on the Super Stock drag car I crew for and they fit the 18"-20" rear slicks just fine. I wouldn't think there would be any problem getting any of the wheel/tire combo's a honda would use. They are great for moving a car around the garage or for moving cars into places you wouldn't otherwise be able to go in the garage