BendPak

BendPak is an American manufacturer of automotive service equipment, headquartered in Santa Paula, California. The company was founded in 1965 by Don Henthorn and has grown into one of the better-known names in the North American garage-equipment trade, selling through distributors and dealers rather than a consumer retail chain. Its catalogue centres on the hardware that professional workshops and serious home garages need to lift, align, balance and service vehicles. The core of the BendPak range is lifting equipment: two-post and four-post car lifts, low-rise and mid-rise lifts, scissor lifts, parking lifts and heavy-duty truck lifts. Around that core the company has built a broader workshop ecosystem, including wheel balancers, tyre changers, alignment systems, brake lathes, pipe benders, air compressors, shop presses, oil drains and garage storage. Several of these lines are marketed under companion brand names such as Ranger, which BendPak uses for wheel-service and tyre-shop equipment. BendPak positions itself as a value-oriented but professional-grade supplier: the products are engineered for daily commercial use, certified to relevant North American lift standards, and priced below premium European and Japanese competitors while offering a wider range than typical budget importers. The company sells mainly business-to-business — to auto repair shops, dealership service departments, tyre centres, municipal fleets and industrial facilities — with a growing direct-to-consumer channel for home and hobby garages. BendPak remains a privately held, family-influenced business rather than a listed corporation, and it manufactures and assembles much of its output at its California facilities while sourcing components globally. Its brand identity rests on lift safety and load capacity, straightforward installation support, and a long-running reputation among mechanics and car enthusiasts.

BendPak was founded in 1965 by Don Henthorn in Southern California, starting out as a small operation serving the local automotive workshop trade. The company's early identity was built on lifting equipment, a category where safety certification and load engineering matter more than styling, and that focus shaped the brand's reputation among mechanics. Through the 1970s and 1980s BendPak expanded its catalogue beyond basic lifts into a wider workshop offering, adding wheel-service machines, brake equipment and shop tools. The company also developed companion brands — most notably Ranger, used for tyre changers, wheel balancers and alignment equipment aimed at tyre shops and wheel-service bays — allowing it to address different customer segments without diluting the BendPak name. A significant phase in the brand's development was the move to larger manufacturing and distribution facilities in Santa Paula, California, which gave BendPak the capacity to assemble lifts domestically while sourcing components internationally. This combination supported the company's value positioning: professional-grade equipment at prices below premium European imports. In the 2000s and 2010s BendPak broadened its reach through e-commerce and a network of North American dealers, and it became a familiar name in the home-garage and car-enthusiast market as four-post and parking lifts moved from commercial shops into private garages. The company also extended into heavier-duty and specialty lifting products, including truck lifts and high-capacity parking systems for space-constrained properties. BendPak has remained privately held and family-influenced, with no public listing. Its growth has come from catalogue expansion, dealer distribution and export sales rather than from acquisitions or retail expansion, and the brand continues to be associated primarily with vehicle lifts and workshop equipment in North America.

• 1965

  BendPak founded by Don Henthorn in Southern California.

• Expansion of the catalogue from lifts into wheel-service, brake and shop equipment.

• Ranger established as a companion brand for tyre-shop and wheel-service equipment.

• Move to larger manufacturing and distribution facilities in Santa Paula, California.

• Growth of dealer and e-commerce distribution in North America and export markets.

Professional-grade, value-priced automotive service equipment for workshops, fleets and enthusiast garages.

• Two-post lifts

• Four-post lifts

• Parking lifts

• Ranger wheel-service equipment

• Shop equipment

1. 1BendPak official websitebendpak.com
2. 2BendPak Launches AB28 Digital Wheel Balancermoderntiredealer.com