Aerial Lift Gas Engine Package from Mitsubishi
Published in: Diesel Progress North American Edition
Date: 4/1/2001
Mitsubishi Engine North America (MENA) has introduced a new gaseous-fueled engine package targeted specifically at aerial lift applications. Focusing on aerial lifts with booms up to about 60 ft., the Addison, Ill., manufacturer is packaging its 2.4 L model 4G64 gasoline engine as an LPG/gasoline dual-fuel engine.
The LPG version of the 4G64 will be rated 62 hp at 2700 rpm. MENA has packaged this 2.4 L engine into nearly a cube for this application at 25 in. wide and a maximum 33 in. high. The Power Unit package has a weight of 480 lb. All service points are on one side of the engine.
The gasoline version is one of Mitsubishi’s most proven engines, powering the Galant automobile. The 4G64 has already been marketed in North America for many years as an LPG engine in the forklift industry, with over 85,000 units sold since its debut in the mid-1980s.
The fuel system for the aerial lift spec 4G64 is a Barber-Colman electronically actuated throttle body fuel injection package with electronic governing, all controlled by a Barber-Colman digital ECU. The Barber-Colman ECU provides a complete engine fuel management system, allowing drive-by-wire operation that also eliminates linkage and thus reduces the potential for tampering with the fuel system.
Peter Gallegos, MENA’s national sales and marketing manager, said the electronic governing provides balanced torque loading and better air-to-fuel control that in turn provides lower fuel consumption. The system also has dual-fuel capability allowing the engine to switch fuel types “on-the-fly.”
The engine officially debuted at World of Concrete in late February Prototypes are available immediately, with EPA certification expected in June/July.
The launch of the 4G64 may also mark the first step in an expanded Mitsubishi gaseous-fuel program. There are currently five gasoline models in MENA’s industrial engine line covering outputs from 19.4 to 81.5 hp, spanning 0.65 to 3.0 L. Gallegos said that as future key market opportunities are targeted, the development priority of other gaseous-fueled models will be determined.
Packaged in the U.S., with most of the additional components sourced domestically, the 4G64 package includes a tropical-duty low-profile radiator, matched with an adjustable pitch fan. The engine also uses a specially designed KTR rear housing with hydraulic pump mounting face.
The base engine has a cast iron cylinder block, aluminum alloy cylinder head with valve covers and a cast iron exhaust manifold. The 4G64 is an overhead cam design with a gear driven lubricating pump and includes a 12-volt starter and 12 V, 65 amp alternator.
Gallegos said the 4G64 is the first factory packaged gas engine available from MENA designed for a specific type of equipment application. “It also allows us to now offer an equipment manufacturer both a diesel and gaseous-fueled engine from a single global entity, and supported by Mitsubishi’s worldwide service network.”
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