gazsa401:
hereford1971:
gazsa401:
hereford1971:
Hi not a 401 but a couple of unused 400’sDo you know where they are ■■?
hereford 1971Hi Gazasa401 yes at home in my barn.
Are they units and what engines have they got fitted ?
Thanks Gazsa
Morning
Yes both are tractor units. One has a Gardener 8 pot and the other a ■■■■■■■ 290 big cam. Both with Eaton boxes
Cheers
hereford1971:
gazsa401:
hereford1971:
gazsa401:
hereford1971:
Hi not a 401 but a couple of unused 400’sDo you know where they are ■■?
hereford 1971Hi Gazasa401 yes at home in my barn.
Are they units and what engines have they got fitted ?
Thanks GazsaMorning
Yes both are tractor units. One has a Gardener 8 pot and the other a ■■■■■■■ 290 big cam. Both with Eaton boxes
Cheers
Good morning are you going to restore them
Thanks Gazsa
Both rare motors nowadays especially the 8 potter, never see them at shows mind you most 240 bordreres were butchered for their engines so the 400’s probably went the same way.240’s looked just right under a sleeper cab just the right fit
What’s the full spec ,which one is which ,are they both day cabs ?
HI Gazsa
Both units have never turned a wheel in anger.They have been in storage since being delivered,they are still in the factory primer.
wow,what is story behind them. were they ever registered?
atkiman:
wow,what is story behind them. were they ever registered?
Morning atkiman
My father bought seven or eight in the late seventies.He registered and ran two sold a few and kept three.
No never registered just parked up still in the factory primer.
Nigel
hereford1971:
atkiman:
wow,what is story behind them. were they ever registered?Morning atkiman
My father bought seven or eight in the late seventies.He registered and ran two sold a few and kept three.
No never registered just parked up still in the factory primer.Nigel
Hi Nigel,
Did Tony get the above idea from when he worked at Fordhouse Transport? Cheer’s Pete
pete smith:
hereford1971:
atkiman:
wow,what is story behind them. were they ever registered?Morning atkiman
My father bought seven or eight in the late seventies.He registered and ran two sold a few and kept three.
No never registered just parked up still in the factory primer.Nigel
Hi Nigel,
Did Tony get the above idea from when he worked at Fordhouse Transport? Cheer’s Pete
Hi Peter
My dad never worked for Brian,they were the best of mates.
In the seventies and early eighties with 100% capital allowances it was common to buy stock and avoid a bit of tax. In fact we had two guys and an Atki of Brians in one of the barnes for some years after Fordhouses finished.
Nigel
afternoon nigel . you’ve definitely got a couple of rare birds there.do they still run i know that they are inside but what are the cabs like? them cabs only had to see a cloud in the sky and they’d start to dissolve-i think they were made of sugar! !!
Some cracking pics of taberns 401’s and 411’s in this months classic and vintage commercials
jamie
dafdave:
ramone:
gazsa401:
012
This is XRR252Y this gave us over 13 years of sterling service it was one of around 20 of the 401s we ran
All our 401s were Gardner poweredNowt wrong with those 320 Gardners
I beg to differ mate.The man I worked for had 4 trucks with 320 gardners and all 4 had the same problem,the cylinder heads kept going porous.It was a big problem at the time.
regards dave.
We ran 3 401s with 320 Gardners
2 on “B” plates and 1 on a “C” plate
The 2 “B” plates ran 24 hrs a day running 6 days a week taking waste paper from Pye Hill to Thamesmead paper board mill returning fully loaded to West Hallam
They were bought because they were lighter and more fuel efficient than a similar ■■■■■■■ powered 401
We didn’t have any major engine problems with those two
The “C” plate one on the other hand was not as reliable it had problems around the 300k mark with the heads after the second replacement of heads
Our fleet engineer( a staunch Gardner man) decided to replace the engine with a 6LXDT Gardner
That was trouble free in fact it ran til 95 when it was written off in an accident
The “B” plate ones ended up on our roaming side of the fleet
I wish I’d of bought one to restore
The rest of our 401s were made up with a sortie of 6LXCTs 8LXCTs and 6LXDTs
atkiman:
afternoon nigel . you’ve definitely got a couple of rare birds there.do they still run i know that they are inside but what are the cabs like? them cabs only had to see a cloud in the sky and they’d start to dissolve-i think they were made of sugar! !!
Hi atkiman
Yes cabs good and they start of the button
Cheers Nigel
Gazsa 401 PM sent.
Can’t read reg no so I don’t know if it is a 400 with 401 grill, Ellis J Fellows once part of Chris Kelly’s TCH empire.
pete smith:
Can’t read reg no so I don’t know if it is a 400 with 401 grill, Ellis J Fellows once part of Chris Kelly’s TCH empire.
I would say its a 401 the front bumper is not the same tow eye location and rubber step ups to windscreen. 
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8LXBV8BRIAN:
pete smith:
Can’t read reg no so I don’t know if it is a 400 with 401 grill, Ellis J Fellows once part of Chris Kelly’s TCH empire.I would say its a 401 the front bumper is not the same tow eye location and rubber step ups to windscreen.
Cracking pair of motors Dennis
Hello,
I recently purchased an "85 401 tractor unit powered by a RR 300Li. I intend to restore this truck, possibly to show standards and am looking for some parts.Does anyone know of any 401’s being broken? I am looking for a front spoiler and the large grille badge ( RR 300Li ). I would appreciate a picture of the grille badge so I could attempt to make a copy if anyone has one.
Also, I have been told that if I remove the fifth wheel I can drive the truck on a car license - is this true?
Ultimately I would like to pass the appropriate test to enable towing a lowloader ( for classic machinery ). My background is in engineering not transport so just wondering how difficult / expensive it is to pass this test. I assume I would need a class 1 for an articulated vehicle.
Thanks,
Phil.
