Car Conversions To Autogas

[peacemakers]

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Car conversions to autogas encouraged

Traditional petrol could double in price Pattaya Park Resort and Hotel in Jomtien hosted a well attended seminar to explore the benefits of adapting your vehicle from petrol to autogas. The meeting was held by TC Auto Car Centre of the Tienchai petrol station group with the mayor adviser and candidate Mr Ittiphol Khunpreum in attendance. The two alternatives to traditional petrol are NGV (Natural Gas Vehicle) or LPG (Low Pressure Gas) . NGV is favoured by many new users, it’s lighter and safer without a smell, but is more expensive to install initially, in fact in the region of 45,000 – 60,000 baht as against an initial outlay for LPG of 16,000 –25,000 baht. But experts say that there is a similar potential efficiency between the two alternatives. LPG gas is heavier than air which results in smelly spills if there’s a leak; a spare tank is another requisite for conversion.

Autogas vehicles are already making a real contribution to alleviating pollution problems as well as saving money at the same time. NGV is composed mostly of methane. In its natural form, NGV is colourless, odourless and lighter than air. It offers complete and clean burning in engines with lower levels of emission than other fossil fuels. NGV made its debut in Thailand in 1984 with Bangkok buses and tuk-tuks although the then low cost of fossil fuels and the high expense of conversion meant that the programme then, unlike now, was not economical. The reasons for changing over to autogas are many and varied. Unstable and rising oil prices are making autogas a compelling choice for many motorists as experts predict that the price of crude oil could easily reach US$100 in the next couple of years. Even at that high figure, supplies could be interrupted by factors as diverse as strikes in Nigeria or terrorist activity against pipelines in the middle east.

Separately, natural gas engines have developed in recent years to the point that engine life and reliability can be twice as much as that offered by other fuels. Environmentally, NGVs typically offer greenhouse reductions of as much as 30% and as much as 100% where biomethane is used. With climate change now firmly on the agenda at all levels of society, NGVs offer an economic and environmental advantage unmatched by any other fuel. On the question of air quality, natural gas vehicles are typically five years ahead of most other commercially viable fuels. The conversion to compressed natural gas in Delhi, India, of 10,000 diesel buses has led to measurable improvement in air quality. The conference heard that similar progress can be achieved in cities throughout Thailand and that Pattaya comes near the top of the list.

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[warwick7735]

Hi

LPG actually stands for Liquified Petroleum Gas, its better if it does smell because then you know if you have a problem.

In 4 yrs of driving LPG converted car never had any problems with leakage, the tank is in fact more safer than the petrol tank itself, with safety solenoids on the tank and inside the engine bay.

Expect a drop of about 10% in performance and Km/ltr as it has a lower calorific figure, in other words less bang for a given quantity

Warwick

[monty]

I have been driving on LPG as well for quite a while.

With the newer electronic controlled LPG injector systems (1 injector for each cylinder) the power loss is much less then 10%, more in the region of 3% and hardly noticeable.

Although LPG has indeed a lower caloric figure, it also has a much higher octane figure (over 110) so a lot of the power loss can be offset by advancing your ignition.

Safety is indeed a moot point, these tanks are extremely strong, have solenoids and safety valves (valves shutting off when the flow goes over a certain limit, e.g. broken gas line). Every accident invariably happened because of people tampering with the system. Without joking, I have seen LPG equipped cars drive around with a standard cooking gas container hooked up. Asking for trouble that is!!!!

And you can't beat 9.85 Baht/liter

[Gary A]

I'm quite interested in the LPG plus diesel. The diesel engine runs on about 25% LPG ad 75% diesel. There are many companies working on this because they claim the LPG acts as a catalyst and the diesel is burned much cleaner. They are able to inject liquid LPG with the diesel fuel. They are claiming up to 30% more power along with a 30% to 40% fuel savings. There are also simpler systems where they feed the vaporized LPG or compressed natural gas directly into the engine's air supply although the results are not as spectacular as the liquid LPG injection. I really think we'll see this marketed in the near future. Just one more reason to have a diesel. If the LPG supply runs out the system simply uses 100% diesel. No problems.