Toyota 8-series forklift

By Daphne Haneman Toyota's 8-series of one tonne to 3.5-tonne internal combustion, pneumatic-tyre forklifts was officially released in Australia last week. Sydney-based Toyota Industries Corporation Australia Pty Ltd (TICA) launched the 8-series on November 1 and said it would soon be rolled out across Australia through Toyota dealerships and specified markets. The 8-series was manufactured by Toyota Material Handling Company in Toyota's Takahama plant, Japan, where it was released locally in early September. It replaces the Toyota pneumatic-tyre 7-series. A TICA statement said "420 quality improvements" had been made since the same capacity 7-series. "The 8-series has a smaller steering wheel, lower step height, increased seat fore/aft travel, increased head clearance, increased ease of entry and exit, reduced noise levels at operators' ears and reduced vibration," it said. Toyota has increased operators' range of visibility and redesigned the instrument panel, steering wheel, mast, load backrest beam, mast tilt beam and cabin roof. The statement said the range would include 23 pneumatic-tyre internal combustion models from one tonne to 3.5 tonne payloads, including petrol/LPG and diesel models with a choice of manual and power-shift transmission and compact models. TICA product & brand manager Bob Walmsley said the 8-series design and development team interviewed 4,500 7-series global customers for feedback. "Teams of engineers came to Australia on several occasions to meet customers, operators and dealers," he said. The TICA statement said the 8-series was the result of eight years "intense" customer research and a "multi-million dollar" investment in research & development.