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Taylor Ray

“You have to turn left to go right.” That statement was made famous in the 2006 movie “Cars’, but in the real car world there is a term for that. A “Drifter.” In years gone by that might not sound cool, but in today’s world a drifter means someone who can perfectly put cars into a controlled turning skid, at high speed, while deliberately barbequing the driving tires. You Tube’s, Taylor Ray is a “Drifter” who is definitely a natural at his trade. He makes what many might consider impossible, look easy and manageable; especially behind the wheel of his heavily modified Miata.

Taylor Ray thrives as a versatile car enthusiast/car builder/car drifter, plus he has a growing list of over 300,000 YouTube subscribers that support his cause. Accordingly, his work days are filled with all types of car projects, engine transplants, and out-of-the-ordinary circle track racing such as the Freedom 500. If you are unfamiliar with the Freedom 500, it is a wild circle track race with a derby vibe and not too many rules. Most of the many dozen cars competing are former Crown Victoria Police Interceptors that are outfitted with roll cages and special race paint (aka any spray paint color from the local Dollar store). None the less, the extremely low-budget race takes no prisoners and the winner is the first to the finish line after many brutal and fender-hitting laps. In other words, the Freedom 500 is a huge blend of fun and racing.

When Taylor Ray is back to work at his home address, his capacious shop lives as a wild marathon with new projects featured on his YouTube channel continuously surfacing. And like the Freedom 500, Taylor Ray’s shop is a blend of fast fun and quick wrenching. Watching this fun and work happen on Taylor Ray’s YouTube channel is simply captivating. Even if you don’t subscribe to the practice of uncommon engine swaps or someone piloting any car in a completely reckless manner, albeit with total control. To build his extraordinary cars he chooses Bendpak auto lifts and shop equipment because of their proven quality and versatility.

Bendpak equipment helps Taylor Ray to perform his work swapping new drivetrains, building roll cages, making general repairs, or preparing a car to compete. Taylor Ray finds equipment like his BendPak XPR-10AS-LP 2-Post lift, air compressor, tire changer, and wheel balancer extremely necessary.

Taylor Ray installs a BendPak XPR-10AS-LP 10,000 lb. 2-post lift

If you check out Taylor Ray’s YouTube channel, you will most likely appreciate his excitement when he unloads and installs his new BendPak auto lift. The core reasons are simple. The lift he chose is BendPak’s XPR-10AS-LP 2-Post lift and it features a sturdy 10,000 lb. lifting capability so it is ready to raise just about any car or truck that Taylor Ray needs to work on. For vehicles that ride low to the ground, Taylor Ray opted for the LP two-stage, low profile lift arms. This way he can easily move the 4 lift arms below lower chassis points to raise vehicles that set closer to the ground. These two features combined, provide an auto lift that is equipped to handle just about any vehicle size that Taylor Ray is working on, or better said “from top to bottom.” Whether it is a drifting Miata, a Crown Victoria, or even a Full-Size one-ton pickup that has a curb weight near 6,500 lbs., Taylor Ray’s Bendpak can handle the load with room to spare. Plus since the XPR-10AS-LP is a 2-Post lift, the design offers full wheels free undercar access for those jobs that require removing, tires, wheels, suspension items or anything that needs the vehicle to be free from wheel-supporting contact.

Plus, BendPak’s XPR-10AS-LP 2-post lift allows a narrow or wide installation, with columns mounted either 137” or 145” apart. This way you can secure the lift in place to best serve the usual size of vehicles you work on. Whichever width you choose, the XPR-10AS-LP’s 2-post lift columns are mounted in an asymmetric position (30-degree rotation) so the sides facing each door are generally positioned to be parallel to each car door when it opens. Thus increasing the side opening areas, while minimizing the opportunity for the column’s corner to contact the door skin. This also allows easier car interior exiting and entry as well. If you have ever had to go back into a car once it has been racked, you can appreciate this feature.

Taylor Ray Doubles his pleasure:

Since one XPR-10AS-LP 2-post lift works so well in a shop, why not have a matching set of auto lifts? So Taylor Ray is installing a second BendPak XPR-10AS-LP 2-post lift next to his original XPR-10AS-LP 2-post lift. This way he does not need to work on just one vehicle at a time. Just imagine, you are removing a rear axle assembly from one vehicle and installing it into another. If you have the room for two lifts, you can leave both cars in the air, while you swap major components between vehicles. No more having to leave one vehicle on jack stands and apart as you do a parts swap. This not only makes everything easier, but it also saves on time.

Taylor Ray’s YouTube Channel-Thrives on Pressure

Do you have enough air supply? To car builders who spend their days running air tools, the phrase “works well under pressure” is a compliment to pneumatic operation. In other words, good pressure means an ample supply of high-volume air pressure to operate pneumatic tools, shop equipment, and a host of other gear to efficiently and quickly complete jobs on time. The handy supply of 80-gallons of air pressure propelled with a 5 horsepower motor that Taylor Ray relies on is supplied from his BendPak Air Compressor. With so many daily activities that include removing transmissions, swapping wheels and brakes, repairing engines, or supplying air pressure to tire machines, Taylor Ray’s days are filled with using pneumatics 24/7. Like just about anyone in the automotive trade, he lives the life of relying on air tools and compressed air. In other words his BendPak air compressor is always keeping the air supply up to pressure and available.

If you work with air tools, you appreciate having plenty of volume on reserve for those jobs where you are running a ½” impact removing and installing a set of U-bolts that secure a 9-inch housing to leaf springs or other uses. You likely work against the clock and standing around waiting for a compressor to catchup means you are losing flag time. Therefore, large capacity tanks combined with robust maximum air pressure of 175-psi helps you keep pace the moment you need a high-torque impact wrench operating at full power. These are the same features that Taylor Ray relies on when he is busy hustling in his shop performing engine swaps or preparing vehicles for his next drifting episode.

BendPak’s air compressors are well-built and designed to reliably perform over many years. In more detail, BendPak air compressors are available in 5 through 10 horsepower ratings and utilize lower speed compressor operation with a cast iron pump that provides excellent performance with endurance. The efficient RPM operation also means BendPak air compressors run quieter, stay cooler and cost less to operate than many other comparable compressors. The cast iron pump construction is designed to withstand the rigors of daily and frequent use found in most heavy-work garage applications from automotive and body repair to manufacturing and industrial service. BendPak’s air compressors arrive ready to help you get more done in the least amount of time. BendPak’s air compressors keeps the pressure on, wherever you need it.

BendPak’s R76ATR Tire Changer/Tilt Back/Right-Tower Single Assist/30” Capacity

Taylor Ray’s YouTube channel runs full-speed building and drifting some really cool cars. It is no secret though that all of this is really hard on tires. As most car builders understand, taking the time to go to the tire store to swap tires can often turn your schedule upside down. So when Taylor Ray decided that access to his own tire changer would improve his timetable, he chose BendPak’s Ranger R76ATR. With a Ranger R76ATR Tire Changer you can manage your time better and mount tires on your schedule, not the tire stores. Taylor Ray calls his time management improvements like these, “Future Proofing”. In other words, ways to improve efficiency, while not having to outsource predictable automotive operations.

The Ranger R76ATR tire changer is easy to operate, and comes equipped with power assist tower tools to help when mounting low-profile performance tires. A large 30” capacity turntable features adjustable, hardened-steel RimGuard wheel clamps. These provide an internal clamping capacity of 9”- 28” and external clamping capacity of 10”- 30”. When your day-planner is as packed as Taylor Ray’s is, you need to find more time where you can capture some extra minutes because often a 24 hour day goes by way too fast.

BendPak’s Ranger DST30P Wheel Balancer-Taylor Ray takes one for a spin

Does it drive smoothly? As with any tire install, your next step after mounting is to either rebalance the tires or at least check their balance. Taylor Ray has it all handled start to finish because he opted for BendPak’s Ranger DST30P wheel balancer at the same time that he set up his Ranger tire changer. Taylor Ray did this because he knows that when it is time to balance tires, BendPak’s Ranger DST30P wheel balancer has a smooth solution. The well-designed Ranger DST30P wheel balancer quickly balances most tires in just one-spin and with the least amount of wheel weights.

Ranger DST30P’s exceptional accuracy is based on the use of a 64-tooth magnetic transducer encoder that provides precise wheel weight placements. The larger encoder features precision-cut square teeth to convert rotary position to a digital electronic signal, quickly achieving maximum profile and top-dead-center positioning. A nominal and precise use of balancing weights is especially important on exotic alloy wheels where almost all sides of the rim are visible. Customers with high-end wheels will really appreciate the minimal sight of wheel weights. BendPak’s Ranger DST30P wheel balancer handles jobs of all sizes too including wheels up to 30” in diameter and it will operate on either 110V or 220V. Taylor Ray knows that with a new set of tires installed on rims, he just needs to take them for a quick spin on his BendPak Ranger DST30P wheel balancer, install the weights, and then enjoy the ride.

Below you'll find excerpts from the full interview.