Fork Lift Shite

[warren t claim]

I was talking to a forky driver the other day and he told me that FLTs use diesel and LPG'd car engines, usually Renault and VW (I think). Is this true? Could scrap fork lifts be a good source of used engines and cheap LPG kits?

 

Also, what other equipment have car engines been used for? I'm thinking boats, stationary engines and fridge units etc.

[Shep Shepherd]

The Ford 1600 'Crossflow' was used as a marine engine and as the power unit of refrigerated truck trailers until quite recently. A variation of the Volvo 'red block' was also used as a marine engine for quite a while, too

[Station]

There's a really shagged out fork lift in a scrap yard in Birkenhead. The controls are a mess of rope and missing bits and it takes 2 minutes to start when the inevitably use it to push a wheel-less Mondeo to the far corner.

[Justin Case]

Also, what other equipment have car engines been used for? I'm thinking boats, stationary engines and fridge units etc.

 

BMC/BL must have been quite big in the marine department. We went with some friends last year to look at a boat they were thinking of buying that had a Leyland Commodore engine which apparently was a marinised truck engine (well it vibrated like one ) and I've seen a number of narrow boats with small BMC diesels (1.8?) Also Ford did Watermota petrol engines, a version of the cross-flow 1600.

 

Unfortunately the boot is on the other foot so to say, the car engines are more in demand to cannibalise for the marine ones than the other way round I think that the bus experts will also confirm that a large number of Gardner-engined buses were sacrificed to donate their engines to fishing boats and ferries in the developing world.

[Timewaster]

BMC/BL must have been quite big in the marine department.

I've seen a number of narrow boats with small BMC diesels (1.8?) Also Ford did Watermota petrol engines, a version of the cross-flow 1600.

 

In my motor factor days, I would often get boatists coming in for parts as we were about 8million% cheaper than the boat place by the river.

 

Most were Volvo Pentas (a 2.1 4cyl very similar to a 144), Ford pre crossflow and crossflow, BMC 1.5 diesels and Perkins 4.108 (Beford CA etc.)

 

They are a tight arsed bunch in my experience, and would be flabergasted that a high street spares place didn't have BMC 1.5 gaskets in stock. "But there are loads of them on the river"

 

"Yes sir, maybe there are, but thet havent used them in a road car for 40 bloody years!!"

 

Do I miss serving customers?

[mattblack]

IIRC when I worked at Caterpillar (1990 - 2005, although they stopped building forklifts a few years before I left) they used Peugeot 504/505 type engines in the gas powered ones.

 

I should get a picture of the old Bedford(?) engine on the standby generator at work.

[Spottedlaurel]

I'm pretty sure that the Datsun/Nissan A-series OHV engine (Cherry/Sunny) was fitted to some of their fork-lifts.

[pogweasel]

Drove a Land Rover with an ex-forklift Perkins in it.

Acceleration measured in years, all out at 40mph. Summary: dreadful

[Richard]

I'm pretty sure that the Datsun/Nissan A-series OHV engine (Cherry/Sunny) was fitted to some of their fork-lifts.

 

Our forklift has a Nissan engine, next time I'm in I'll take a pic and see if anybody recognises it.

[shite_meister]

Right me ole cock munchers, I work in a commercial vehicle repair garage in the parts dept with a load of different franchises like LDV, DAF, Renault Trucks, Fiat etc etc but I also do alot of forklift parts being Linde agents we also do loads of other forklifts.

 

Linde used to use Perkins engines especially in the bigger sideloaders but then moved onto VW units, in fact most if not all the engine parts are VW but in a Linde box...and about twenty million times the price.

 

We have an old forklift diesel from 1980 at work, everybody hates it but I love it, its a joy to use I think it may be just a case of 'ah its old therefore shit' but its still more than capable of everyday use, in fact I passed my forklift test in it, I'll see if I can get a pic of it.

 

The old boy where I park my fleet of rotting crap has what appears to be an even older forklift, I've not had a close look at it but can tell from a distance that its 'fucking old'

[Mr_Bo11ox]

Quite a lot of forklifts use a Yank 4.3 V6 petrol/LPG engine from GM apparently, i wonder why that particular engine gets chosen.

[shite_meister]

Quite a lot of forklifts use a Yank 4.3 V6 petrol/LPG engine from GM apparently, i wonder why that particular engine gets chosen.

 

I'm not disputing what you're saying but I've never heard of that unless its the real big stuff like the crazy big-ass shit that unloads the shipping containers, Trig? oi Trig you'd be surrounded by that sort of stuff at work eny ya? can't you find out?

[Des]

I'm pretty sure that the Datsun/Nissan A-series OHV engine (Cherry/Sunny) was fitted to some of their fork-lifts.

It is indeed, I've seen my vans engine, an A15, in a Nissan forky, all painted black. It's a common industrial engine, possibly still being made. I suspect turbo versions exist which could be fun. Someone once told me that Nissan copied the engine off BMC, I replied no shit Sherlock, they copied everything off BMC, and BMC along with every muppet who's ever employed crank and pistons copied old Mr Benz.

[aled]

Quite a lot of forklifts use a Yank 4.3 V6 petrol/LPG engine from GM apparently, i wonder why that particular engine gets chosen.

 

I'm not disputing what you're saying but I've never heard of that unless its the real big stuff like the crazy big-ass shit that unloads the shipping containers, Trig? oi Trig you'd be surrounded by that sort of stuff at work eny ya? can't you find out?

 

it is indeed a v6 and 4.3 it is called a vortec made by gm hyster use it quite alot in the 3.5 tonne and above

also used by caterpillar in their forklifts

[aled]

I'm pretty sure that the Datsun/Nissan A-series OHV engine (Cherry/Sunny) was fitted to some of their fork-lifts.

 

yes they are but they are anuthing up yo 2.2 l the straight 6 engine is also used in the gas and diesel engined nissan truck above 5 tonne

[CreepingJesus]

I used to use an ancient forky (can't remember what make) at a garage I worked at. I do recall it having a 4-cyl Perkins diesel; the old beast was unstoppable! Ah, the days before H+S made sure you actually had a forky ticket...

Most fridge motors on road trailers are, as far as I know (from chatting to fitters) made by the likes of VM, Lombardini, Bombardier etc., and are basically very specifically designed for their purpose.

[Richard]

I've been to a factory where they make refrigerated trailers, it's quite an impressive place. Both sides of the road here.

 

Streetview

[scruff]

Our shite forklift is GR8.

 

 

Perkins diesel powah

[Owain-328i]

I drive forklifts sometimes, and diesel / gas are becoming less common, and i see no similarities with them and road cars lol. Plus diesels and gas are a PITA as u have to knock em into neutral and give it the beans when you'r lifting something. gas ones ive used have always had actual gas bottles clamped onto the rear counterbalance weight and use either CNG or LPG, like the one's you'd connect to a gas bbq tbh doesnt look refined enough to be used in a car or anything. Very industrial setup's tbh.

[cms206]

... I think that the bus experts will also confirm that a large number of Gardner-engined buses were sacrificed to donate their engines to fishing boats and ferries in the developing world.

 

 

Unfortunately yes, this is true; Leyland 680s and Gardner 6LXBs are/were also in demand in the UK for canal boats, strangely enough.

 

 

Veering slightly off topic but staying on the theme of plant, working the airport brought the chance to drive some wonderfully awful crud at times, most using modified car/van/truck engines. Two I can think of off the top of my head are...

 

 

AMSS TC886Ds (and I think TC888Ds, possibly) - Ford Transit 2.5Di engines, axles and wheels through a single speed forward or reverse transmission:

 

[http]

 

 

and Charlatte TD225 diesel-electric tugs, with Peugeot 1.5 diesel engines:

 

[http]

[cms206]

... I think that the bus experts will also confirm that a large number of Gardner-engined buses were sacrificed to donate their engines to fishing boats and ferries in the developing world.

 

 

Unfortunately yes, this is true; Leyland 680s and Gardner 6LXBs are/were also in demand in the UK for canal boats, strangely enough.

 

 

Veering slightly off topic but staying on the theme of plant, working the airport brought the chance to drive some wonderfully awful crud at times, most using modified car/van/truck engines. Two I can think of off the top of my head are...

 

 

AMSS TC886Ds (and I think TC888Ds, possibly) - Ford Transit 2.5Di engines, axles and wheels through a single speed forward or reverse transmission:

 

Servisair 29-3749 by cms206, on Flickr

 

 

and Charlatte TD225 diesel-electric tugs, with Peugeot 1.5 diesel engines:

 

[Gompo]

We've got quite a shite diesel forklift at work but I'm buggered if I can remember the make. It's orange and more of an off-road type and not very big, struggles with about 700 kilo these days. It's been in the yard since I first started (2003) but hasnt worked for the last 3-4 years. Just sits pushed into a corner, somebody tried to get it started a month or so back but couldnt. I wonder if it's got a car based motor..

[Dirty Habit]

My International Harvester truck is fitted with the LPG carb and vaporiser off a fork lift truck.........and it's great! No choke needed on the coldest of mornings. I can lower the tick over down as little as 350 rpm. It pulls better than it ever did on that smelly expensive stuff and your engine oil is still "fresh" clean after several thousand miles....