dafdave:
Tell you what mate they are truly fantastic pics,the ridings scammell and the 6lw engine what memories,thanks.
regards dave.
Thanks Dave glad you like them, thought they may be of interest.
What Tom Riding and his friend John Killingbeck don’t know about Gardner engines just isn’t worth knowing. 
Retired Old ■■■■
I live near to our Stagecoach depot,which years ago was Eastern Counties,and i remember in the 70s and up to the early 90s,no-one hung out any washing before 7am,as if the wind was in the right direction,the blue cold Gardner engine fog would smother us!!
You could spread that smoke on your toast in the depot canteen 
Only one bus company here now with gardner engined motrs,and they are 25
year old leylands!
Sad not to hear the chug of a lxb these days,i assume the smoke from cold was
due to the lower compression ratio??
Spot on Kev73.
I’m told that there is a cold start button on the pump of Gardner angines,
would this have affected the smoke when cold?
Also,reading somewhere else on the internet,of a guy with an Ex Birmingham
daimler fleetline,fitted with a 6LX/LXB highbrid,ie,a 6lx block/pistons and poss
pump,but the rest was all marked (6)LXB. He said it was a 165bhp engine,as
the 6LX side was limited to 1700rpm,and 165bhp was the 6LXB rating when
governed down to 1700rpm
Found these video’s on Youtube showing indside the Gardner factory at Particroft in 1985.
It’s in three parts
Part 1 youtube.com/watch?v=Z0AUzztExTo#t=21
moomooland:
Found these video’s on Youtube showing indside the Gardner factory at Particroft in 1985.It’s in three parts
Part 1 youtube.com/watch?v=Z0AUzztExTo#t=21
I tried to find this thread yesterday so I could post those links up, couldn’t find it so started another 
(typical )
viewtopic.php?f=35&t=107599
OK So the old Gardners had their good points & bad points But at the end of the day day they were one of the best engines ever made in IMO, The bloke I drove for when I started on HGVs in the 50s was a fantic on fuel ecconemy, & he had it all worked out to a fine art as to MPG, & he was delighted with the fuel returns on the 150s, & apart from that they were trouble free, I must admit that they filled the garage with smoke on a Monday morning, These were 8 wheeler Atkis, Returning 11/12Mpg running Manchester Glasgow loaded both ways, One of my late pals Parkey Denholm drove one of them 645NVK, & He could drive anything he loved this motor & was very proud to drive it for old Jonny Baxter on the Quayside at Newcastle, The good old days Eh long gone sadley to say, But Im sure there will still be some of the Gardners knocking about, Regards Larry.
Hey guys, I’m really enjoying this thread, I haven’t posted before so hi to eveyone.
I used to work for an agency, this would be the late 80s and I was in love with trucks at the time. I drove a lot for the supermarkets and at the time I was always delighted if I got a Daf 2500 as I’d driven a lot of Bedford TK’s and Ford D Series.
What I dreamed of was a proper british truck with a Gardner so I was over the moon when I was given an Atkinson with a massive looking straight 8 Gardner and the promise of a weeks work, it didn’t work out too well for me though. I think it must have had a Fuller 9 speed but I’m not sure, I was fairly okay with the Fuller having done quite a few miles in a Leyland Cruiser with a tar trailer, but I think I was a bit too impatient and stressed when making gear changes. You seemed to need to wait for a long time for the box to slow down before you could get the next gear in and I must have pulled to hard on the stick too many times. The result was that a ball joint or linkage snapped somewhere on the top of the box.
I was pretty determined to get the job done and I managed to lash the thing back together with what I could find in the passenger footwell, getting me back on the road. I know I had a curtainsider and at least some heavy loads but I can’t remember if it was 38 or just 32 tonnes, possibly just a tandem trailer at the time. Anyhow I would get it rolling but even the hills on the M25 would have you dropping down into low range, which at the time I took to mean that the engine was badly worn, but having read the comments on the thread I’m not so sure. I’m pretty sure I didn’t have to put much oil in it, and I would have checked, I don’t remember it smoking any more than other trucks I’d driven but I don’t know about the fuel consumption.
I made it to the end of the week with a couple more emergency repairs to the gear linkage, and reported the problem then. I was told to drive the unit straight into the workshop, but as I approached one of the fitters came out and stopped me, I put on the handbrake and opened the window to talk to him, he said leave it there, so I let up the clutch on idle, forgetting that it was still in gear and I must have snapped a halfshaft, because the prop would spin but it wouldn’t drive anymore. I had probably severely weakened it with my dreadful clutchless gear changes, so I felt like a right plonker, and they never asked me to drive it again, they did sign my time sheet though.
Saviem:
Some would say the finest oil engine ever, economic , light, ultra reliable. Were they? Were the products as good as the image? Why did they loose their captive market? Did their inability to satisfy demand lead to the demise of the UK assemblers, ERF, Atkinson, Guy? What were they like to “live with”, every day ? Over to you Gentlemen…
Just proof of their legendary reliability
This is a Gardner turbo powered 401 many of which my ex employers J. Stirland of Nottingham ran the first picture was taken when
XRR 252Y was about a year old in late 83 and the second was took 13 years later repainted in a later livery with the same driver Mick Norman
It covered over a million miles with only the injectors being replaced twice and a head gasket replacement
Hiya … quick one for the Gardner hate mob… Gardner,s fleet cars had Gardner engines. when i visit a friend of
mine i see a Lagonda that belonged to the Gardner family. before you laugh you’d need a pools win to buy this car.
there are some Jaguar mk 7/9s with Gardner engines.their are some people who just love Gardner,s
John
3300John:
Hiya … quick one for the Gardner hate mob… Gardner,s fleet cars had Gardner engines. when i visit a friend of
mine i see a Lagonda that belonged to the Gardner family. before you laugh you’d need a pools win to buy this car.
there are some Jaguar mk 7/9s with Gardner engines.their are some people who just love Gardner,s
John
I wonder if “Carryfast” has a 2 cyl LK in his Robin Reliant that he bombs around Leatherhead in,getting under everyones feet 
Bewick.
3300John:
Hiya … quick one for the Gardner hate mob… Gardner,s fleet cars had Gardner engines. when i visit a friend of
mine i see a Lagonda that belonged to the Gardner family. before you laugh you’d need a pools win to buy this car.
there are some Jaguar mk 7/9s with Gardner engines.their are some people who just love Gardner,s
John
Didn’t he have chickens in it at one time john,and he has tankers red and white ?
3300John:
Hiya … quick one for the Gardner hate mob… Gardner,s fleet cars had Gardner engines. when i visit a friend of
mine i see a Lagonda that belonged to the Gardner family. before you laugh you’d need a pools win to buy this car.
there are some Jaguar mk 7/9s with Gardner engines.their are some people who just love Gardner,s
John
How about a Gardner powered Rolls
Or even a Gardner powered Jag MK7? Fitted with a 4LK.
Pete.
Dan Punchard:
3300John:
Hiya … quick one for the Gardner hate mob… Gardner,s fleet cars had Gardner engines. when i visit a friend of
mine i see a Lagonda that belonged to the Gardner family. before you laugh you’d need a pools win to buy this car.
there are some Jaguar mk 7/9s with Gardner engines.their are some people who just love Gardner,s
JohnDidn’t he have chickens in it at one time john,and he has tankers red and white ?
…Spot on Dan that,s how the story goes. the tankers is right.
I never knew anyone had done the Rolls conversion…i know of a later cloud with a Perkins in it, word was Rolls said if it
used on the road the argument would end up in court.
John
The late Jonnie Brewster from Newcastle had a Daimler at one time & If I recall correctly he fitted a 4 LK into it, Then he had an old London Taxi after that, Regards Larrry.
GARDNER DIESEL-OIL ENGINES
GARDNER DIESEL-ENGINED MOTORCARS.
A few Gardner diesel-oil engined motorcars,including some fitted with the rare Gardner 6LK 5.7-Litre Diesel Engine - from what I can make out
only three of these engines were built…
Good usable classic. Complete Body rebuild 1996 photo’s available.Same owner 40years Gardner trained engineer. Rt Front wing bubbling around side light,no further corrosion. all disc brakes lined in stainless steel,SS Exhaust System,Seats recovered in velour.Many Mods to fit Gardner 4LK diesel. driving thro 5 speed ZF gearbox Syncro on all gears.High ratio Diff.gives 30 MPH/1000rpm Engine built at Gardner in 1956 for car use.with special Valve springs Etc. for high revs.Converted to 14/1 Comp.ratio pistons, Belt driven Vac,pump for brakes, Koni shocks F&R. Previously used by Gardner sales director and converted at the factory.5 good tyres. currently on sorn due to steering box leak, Being reconditioned at specialist.
Jaguar Mk9 Gardner 4LK Diesel Factory Converted 1964. This car reg No 6403WY was damaged rear end crash, in 1977. another Mk9 VDM850 was bought and all parts including Engine,Gearbox & axle where all transferred to new car. 1991 complete body rebuild by specialist (photo’s available) Historic car tax (£0) classic car insurance £270 agreed value Jaguar enthusiast club £15000. ON SORN pending steering box repair. Sale due to ageing owner going abroad:-
Bentley 3-Litre,Gardner 4LW 5.6-Litre Diesel-engined,4-Door Saloon Motorcar,NK 9008,registered in Hertford circa 1925.Came fifth in the 1933 Monte Carlo Rally:-
Lagonda M45,Gardner 6LK 5.7-Litre Diesel-engined,4-Door Saloon Motorcar.OC 5235.1933.Gardner diesel engine production 410.1.Robert Knight:-
Lagonda M45 3-Litre,Gardner 6LK 5.7-Litre Diesel-engined,4-Door Saloon Motorcar.OC 5235.1933.2.Anson Engine Museum:-
Gardner 6LK 5.7-Litre 6-Cylinder Diesel Engine…a rare diesel engine.Anson Engine Museum.A 6LK was also fitted to an Invicta sports car:-
Lagonda LG45 4-Door Sports Saloon Motorcar,originally registered EPE 231 in 1936 in Surrey.In 1951 it was re-registered NTB 550,re-built,re-engined with a Gardner 6LK and used by Hugh Gardner until 1964.It was sold,the Gardner 6LK engine was retained by the Gardner company,and Lagonda was fitted with a Jaguar XK engine.
Details: 1936 Lagonda LG45
Reg. No. NTB 550 (Originally EPE 231)
Chassis No. 12124
Engine No. V6668-8
This project LG45 comes with an academically interesting history. Originally registered EPE 231 it was purchased in 1946 by Eric Gardner of Gardner Engines Ltd with the intention of fitting a 4LK engine. Eric’s sudden death meant that the car lay dismantled in the works until 1951, when Hugh Gardner took the project over. He rebuilt the car, fitted an experimental 6LK engine and re-registered the car NTB 550. It was driven by Hugh Gardner until 1964 when the engine was removed and the vehicle sold to Mr Ellison of Rolls Royce, the 6LK was retained by Gardners. The car was then fitted with a Jaguar XK engine at some later time. Now presented as a car that has been stripped for restoration but is an unfinished project. The interior is stated to be original, the outer body is complete requiring rear wings to be fitted and the chrome work is in good order. The XK engine is supplied ready to re-assemble prior to fitting to the chassis. Gardners supplied their history file on the vehicle and there is much correspondence with the company and later owners. A receipt for the last change of hands in 2008 clearly states what was supplied at that time and outlines the 3.5ltr XK engines refurbishment. A very worthy project complete with V5 documentation.
Result: £6400.
Cheffins,Lot 1456:-
VALKYRIE
Hiya i’ve just looked up the 24 hour race. the record mileage recorded a couple of years ago is 3,360 miles.
the Bentley did 2,350 miles…with my pencil and paper i worked out that,s about 40 mph faster(over 24 hours)
than in 1933.wow we,ve come a long way haven’t we…with new oils and slick tyre,s…i bet the Bentley drove
to France raced and drove home.
John
