All that repair work and PM work could of been done onsite...the only thing we ever sent back to the shop was engine or transmission
swaps/replace......and that with working out of just a GM 2500 service van and nott some big truck

BBforks/kevin_t - There was a hydraulic fluid leak, several codes and it was time for some standard PM. It took them 11 days to determine that the tilt cylinders were bad, and that was after they had replaced hoses at the fork cylinder and added 2 gallons of hyraulic oil (because it had leaked all over my warehouse floor). They also replaced some gaskets, and the air and oil filters. It was another 7 days (not including weekends) for them to complete the tilt cylinder repair, and just as they were ready to return the unit, they finally spotted the the No Trans Braking & Temp Light codes. I had to tell him it may be related to the Tiss/Toss sensor. They were going to return the unit without clearing the codes since they couldn't unlock it. They said they were told that the those codes would not affect the performace of the unit. When they finally transported the unit back to my warehouse, the unit didn't have enough power to even drive up the ramp, in spite of the Service Manager's statement that he personally tested it before sending it back. They claim that sometime during transport, the cat got clogged.

Brewski, you are correct that they were not authorized Yale dealers and yes, we did get taken. I actually went back through 18 months of invoices and noted several instances of inconsistent billing practices. I turned it all over to my company's owner, who told them they could just keep the Yale. We have since purchased a new Toyota forklift, with a service contract, and will no longer do any business with this company. I don't know what was resolved, but I haven't seen the Yale since.

I am new to the world of forklifts (and a female), and appreciate the responses. Information is a powerful tool.

Thanks.

What was the lifts issue in the first place that the company had to take it to their shop to work on it?....unless it was a MAJOR repair all work can be done on site if the customer. Has the room and time,i have done everything from changing head gaskets and timing components to rebuilding masts onsite......

i would definately be looking for a diffrent service company,sounds likemyour current one is taking you for a ride...

It seems you took it to a non Yale dealer for repair. Several weeks to wait for a rep is ridiculous. Any of our service techs can plug in to a truck and retrieve codes. In the last 13 years we have had two plugged converters. these were on trucks that where neglected and fault codes ignored. Unless you had major mast repair or engine/ transmission work done you got taken. Sorry but its a fact.

I stand corrected on the price of the cat. I've paid $1200.00 for a cat ( not this model) so i assumed ( incorrectly) that all cats were over $1000.00. The one i replaced had only 7000 hrs on it. The customer tried to get warranty but was rejected because of not using the specified HD-5 fuel.

As far as the wait time & price of other repair, what was wrong with the lift?

It drives me nuts to read posts like this. $6000 for what? You got it back and it had no power? Several weeks to unlock and read codes? It is just crazy. I'll say it, "they don't know what they're doing and you're getting ripped off". List price on a cat is between $550 and $850 depending on what year you have. I service 2 of these models with 37000 hours and they have been through **** but they have the proper power and original cats. I don't know what's wrong with yours but this is way out of line. Sending the lift back from the shop and saying "there you go, you're all set" proves they don't have a clue. Rant over.

What was the lift sent to the shop for originally? I can't think of anything the service company could have done to clog the cat-cats clog from impurities in the fuel (not using HD-5 grade fuel), overheating the cat (running the engine with a faulty cylinder) or physical deterioration (banging around from rough terrain, etc).

The quote doesn't seem excessive as cats are quite expensive- unlike a car where you can get generic cats- the cat for your lift is specific to only a few models- so when sales volume goes down, price goes up.

As far as buying a new lift- just understand that newer lifts (2004 & newer) are full of electronics which are expensive to maintain.