Lister Dealership

In 1962 Glasgow Engineering became the state distributor for the famous Lister engines from England, which proved to be very popular with farming and fishing communities. Lister diesel engines were available from 2 b.h.p up to 60 b.h.p and were renowned for their fuel economy and reliability. Mr Cecil Lister himself came out from the UK to reappoint Glasgow Engineering as the new distributor in Tasmania. The R. A. Lister Company was founded in 1867 by Robert Ashton Lister and the company were producing agricultural machinery such as shearing plants.The company manufactured their first diesel engine in 1929 which was the 9/1 (9 hp @ 1000 rpm), which also became known as the JP. The JP came from the Joint Product agreement between Lister and Ruston & Hornsby, whereby they apparently agreed to keep to their own engine size ranges and not compete against each other. The next engine was of Lister’s own design; this was the "CS” or (cold start) diesel engine which was made in Dursley. The CS was a slow-running (600 rpm) and reliable engine, suitable for driving electric generators or irrigation pumps. The CS type engines were available in single-, twin-, triple- and four-cylinder versions in a range of power outputs and gained a reputation for longevity and reliability, especially in Tasmania. Some CS engines ran practically continuously for decades in agricultural, industrial and electrical applications earning them a wonderful reputation amongst the farming communities in the State. In 1986 R A Listers and Petters Ltd merged to form Lister-Petter Ltd.