The Mystery of the Third Pedal

Do you own an automatic transmission forklift? Ever ask yourself why your forklift has a third pedal on the floor? Well, believe it or not, this is a very frequently asked question.

To begin with, every forklift comes equipped with an accelerator and a brake pedal. That is standard. But what is that third pedal used for? Hopefully, this explanation will help clear up the mystery of that third PEDAL.

That third pedal is called an Inching Brake. Its function is twofold. It initially acts as a brake and secondly disengages the transmission, allowing the engine speed to increase or decrease without affecting the drive of the forklift. This process allows the forklift to be slowed or stopped while at the same time allowing the engine speed to be raised. Henceforth, this is how the, "Inching" came to be.

Why would you need this feature?  Inching is used when maneuvering the forklift and simultaneously lifting the forks. To accomplish this, the Inching pedal partially disengages the transmission at the same time the lift truck brakes are being slightly applied and is similar to "slipping the clutch" in a manual transmission   Inching allows slow controlled movement of the forklift truck and is accomplished by simultaneous operation of the inch/brake pedal and the accelerator

In today's lift trucks, this overlap of transmission and brake is controlled by a single inch/brake pedal.  Slight application of the inch/brake pedal allows for inching of the fork lift.  Further application of the inch/brake pedal will completely disengage the transmission, fully apply the brakes, and bring he forklift to a complete stop

Source:  George Espinoza - Customer Service Manager of Hyundai Forklift of Southern California