Show us your workspace – garage, carport, driveway, rented storage unit. What's your setup, what tool made the biggest difference, and what do you still need?

There's a saying in the car community: "The project is never finished – it just reaches a state of temporary contentment." The same is true of our workspaces. We're always tweaking, rearranging, upgrading, or dreaming of more square footage.

This thread is a chance to step back and appreciate where we work. Not the cars themselves – the space where they live. The garage, the carport, the driveway, the rented bay, the barn, the storage unit, the back yard under a tarp.

Here's what I want to know:

1. What's your workspace? Describe it, and post a photo (or two). It doesn't have to be clean – in fact, dirty is probably more honest.

2. What tool or upgrade made the biggest difference? Could be a lift, a good lighting setup, a rolling tool cart, a parts washer, or even just a shop stool.

3. What do you still need? The thing you're saving up for, or the space you're dreaming of.

I'll go first.

My Workspace

My garage is a single‑car attached unit, about 9 feet wide and 18 feet deep. The concrete floor slopes in three different directions (thanks, 1970s construction), and I have exactly one 110V outlet – which is on the ceiling for the garage door opener. I've added a 4‑foot LED strip light, a cheap power strip, and a heavy‑duty extension cord.

Despite the limitations, I've made it work. I have a 4‑drawer rolling tool cart (Harbor Freight – the classic red one), a bench grinder, a vise bolted to a workbench I built from 2x4s and plywood, and a couple of jack stands. The car (E36 328i) spends most of its time on jack stands, with the front subframe dropped or the rear axle out.

The tool that made the biggest difference: My rolling tool cart. Before that, I was running back and forth from a fixed toolbox on the wall, carrying one wrench at a time. Now everything I need for a job rolls with me – socket sets, screwdrivers, pliers, even a magnetic parts tray. It's not fancy, but it saves me an hour every weekend.

What I still need: A two‑post lift. I know it's impossible in this garage – the ceiling is too low, the slab is too thin – but I dream about it. More realistically, I need better lighting (a couple of 4‑foot LED tubes mounted overhead) and a parts washer. Also, I'd love to have a dedicated welding table instead of clamping things to the floor.

Now It's Your Turn

I've shown you mine. Now show me yours.

Don't be shy if your workspace is just a driveway and a tarp. Don't be intimidated if you have a 4‑post lift and a heated floor. The point isn't to compare – it's to share ideas, inspire each other, and maybe spot a clever storage solution or tool hack we haven't thought of.

Post a photo, answer the two questions, and tell us one thing you'd change if you had infinite money.

A Few Prompts to Get You Thinking

• Lighting: What's your setup? Fluorescent? LED? Natural light? Drop lights?

• Flooring: Epoxy, bare concrete, race deck, or gravel? How do you keep oil from staining?

• Storage: Are your tools on the wall, in a chest, on a cart, or scattered on every flat surface?

• Heating/Cooling: Do you work in a climate‑controlled space, or do you freeze in winter and bake in summer?

• The "one weird trick": Everyone has a jury‑rigged solution that works surprisingly well – share it.

Examples

Photo of a tight single‑car garage with tools on pegboard and a car half‑assembled.

"I've got a 10×20 garage with a plywood workbench and a Harbor Freight tool chest. The best upgrade was a magnetic parts tray – I stopped losing 10mm sockets. I still need a real bench vise and a parts washer."

Photo of a wide open carport with a car on jack stands.

"I work in a carport – no walls, just a roof. The game‑changer was a drop‑light on a retractable cord. I need a compressor so I can stop borrowing one from my neighbor."

Photo of a messy but well‑equipped workshop with a lift and a welding station.

"I'm lucky – I have a 2‑car detached garage with a lift. The best tool is my TIG welder, but the real MVP is my movable work table on casters. I still need better ventilation for the welding area."

Photo of a storage unit with a car stuffed inside.

"I rent a 12×30 storage unit – it's not climate‑controlled, but it's dry. My biggest improvement was a small LED light that clips onto the hood. What I need is a way to get 220V power for a welder."

Let's See It

This is the only place on the internet where we celebrate messy garages, crooked workbenches, and the creativity that comes from limited space. So don't clean up before taking the photo – show us the real you.