Edward T , you,re absolutely right.
it all comes down to the operator.
i worked in a yard with a turnover of over 38 thousand teu a month and the whole lot got new identical machines.
the machines that broke down most often were the ones with operators who were stressing under the workload.
i know the question doesnt apply to containers but it goes to show.

Well, I do agree with the comments about the importance of pms and well trained operators, but some brands are definitly better than others, and some dealers and service companies are also better than others as well. I am not going to name names because I don't want to turn this discussion into a brand preference fight. Go check up on the reputations of the local dealers' service departments, when you find one (or more) that you are comfortable with, buy a machine that they sell lots of, that is made by an established and financialy sound manufacturer.

Generally if you look after the equipment and have regular services they should all be reliable. Find a supplier that have lots of customers nearby.

Bravo Edward T. It's kind of like the companies that invest in a PM program have fewer repairs and less downtime than those that don't. Why, not because of the PM's but because of the owners mentality about taking caring of the investment.
When I came into this business most of our customers were severely abusive with their forklift trucks and because of that attitude they were driven out of business because that attitude permeated the whole company.
As we all know, materials handling costs are a large percentage of the cost to get a product to market and most other costs have been cut to the bone. I believe that sometime in the near future large companies will not only lease their forklift truck fleet but they will also lease the drivers as well, all from the same company. Then they will have gotten their material handling costs under control. They will learn that the driver is absolutely the MOST expensive variable cost of forklift ownership.
So yeah, just pull a name out of a hat for the forklift truck but hire the best drivers you can find.

the brand that only has 1 operator per shift as opposed to the brand the whole world and their dog drives all day.
what is reliable has far more to do with operators being concerned and considerate than what is the spelling of the name on the counterweight.