Auto-LPG Conversion Thread

[Paolo_e_b]

Hey Guys,

I'm thinking of converting my 1998 Ford Expedition to LPG. With the number of conversion kits and suppliers available, I'm pretty confused and am looking for some advice as to which kit I should use and where I should have it done. I don't really understand the differences between all the suppliers in the market. Which supplier would you guys recommend for Expeditions and why?

Also, after testing for some time (maybe a month), I plan to sell my Exped and get a newer one (2003-2006) then transfer the kit there. Is that possible? The reason I wanna stick to an Exped is because of the ride but at the same time, gas prices are pretty ridiculous already.

I would really appreciate any advice on this especially from people who understand the details of LPG systems.

Thanks a lot!

[1997]

curious lang po kc nasa denso ngaun sasakyan ko for lpg conversion. ano po ba naging problema sasakyan ka tropa mo after the conversion at bakit ayaw ipa-back job ng denso? sabi denso may 1-year warranty daw lpg conversion nila. medyo parang kinakabahan tuloy ako ah...

Yung natakot din ako dito ah... Denso din ako eh...

Kakakuha ko lang ng Car ko eh... huhuhu...

[ghosthunter]

Hey Guys,

I'm thinking of converting my 1998 Ford Expedition to LPG. With the number of conversion kits and suppliers available, I'm pretty confused and am looking for some advice as to which kit I should use and where I should have it done. I don't really understand the differences between all the suppliers in the market. Which supplier would you guys recommend for Expeditions and why?

if you don't mind costs, Macro comes to mind. Greenfuel also has done a number of big Fords including first gen Ford XPs and costs less than Macro. Alpgas also has done XPs but I haven't personally seen the work. SKN also has done XPs but there seems to be certain details that I would prefer not to recommend them though.

Also, after testing for some time (maybe a month), I plan to sell my Exped and get a newer one (2003-2006) then transfer the kit there. Is that possible? The reason I wanna stick to an Exped is because of the ride but at the same time, gas prices are pretty ridiculous already.

Although technically possible, it would be a waste of time and labor to install the LPG kit into one vehicle and then transfer it to another one because certain parts will be un-reusable like the LPG feed tubing, electrical wiring, etc. Converting an XP takes about 3 to 4 days as compared to 1 to 2 days for a compact sedan. That shows how much extra work it takes to do an XP.

If you really are planning to get a newer XP, it would be best to sell the old XP and directly install the LPG kit to the new XP.

Although fuel prices today is ridiculous, the XP's fuel consumption is really terrible (petrol or LPG) and I do wonder why you prefer to drive the XP when a big sedan (like a Camry) would do the same with lower fuel consumption.

BTW, most auto-lpg conversion shops only use 60L tanks as their largest size ... this would mean a cut-down on your XP's maximum range when compared to the original 100L petrol fuel tank.

[legato]

mukang hindi pa ako nakakatipid. from 8km/l im only getting 3 km/l sa civic ko. yikes !
old air filter pa gamit ko.

in case i buy a new filter n changed it. should i have it re tuned?

Would love to hear kung ano na status ng civic. Hope you let us know.

[aamd]

MANILA TIMES
Monday, July 14, 2008

Gov’t warned on LPG push

By Efren L. Danao, Senior Reporter

Sen. Juan Miguel Zubiri urged the government to go slow on pushing for the use of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) as fuel for motor vehicles.

“LPG has cleaner emissions but it is not reliable in reducing transportation cost because it is fossil-based,” he said on Sunday.

Zubiri pointed out that while LPG was cheap at first, it became more costly as prices of fossil-based fuel increased.

Is this a good reason not to go for Autogas? I dont think so. This is for the simple reason of the price difference between unleaded and LPG. Whatever happens, LPG will always be lower than unleaded. As for the difference, so far as i can remember, LPG is cheaper by 25 to 55%

[Djerms]

Is he running for president? Hahaha.

Just filled up yesterday at Petron Wack-Wack. Price is the same as last week at 31.90 per liter. I think Yung 1 peso per Kg na price increase last saturday was exclusive to shell only.

[dieselNUBI]

regarding my crv n civic. i bought aftermarket air filters and replaced them. problem now is they wouldnt run. the engine would die down on lpg. parang kapos sa hangin.
GH advised me to have it re tuned. that i did. filled it up again full tank and re tuned it at a nearby lpg station. now im waiting for my next FC computation.

[Myco]

Its better to have your car checked by a reputable AutoLPG installer, or mechanic because as far as i know older vehicle engine is made from cast iron cylinder heads without andy additional hardening of the valve seat material, thus will show signs of premature valve seat wear when operated on LPG Autogas, typically this is present in exhaust valves pounding into the cylinder head due to erosion of the valve seat.

Explanation:

LPG Autogas is referred to as a dry fuel because there is no cooling effect on internal engine components due to vaporization of the incomming fuel where only intake air is drawn in but there is no lubricating effect of the particulates from the combustion of the fuel providing librication of the exhaust valve seat.

Chuaed

Thanx 4 the infos!

[Myco]

You have to check if your engine is compatible to unleaded gasoline. If yes, it will probably use a LPG venturi mixer system when converted.

GH

Yes im using unleaded gas,anyway who's ok i mean who's the best auto LPG installer here....


Thanx.....

[JohnM]

Sinilip ko Greenfuel last Saturday. Shop ba nila yung may malaking green gate? Sarado kasi gate that time di na rin ako bumaba to ask.

[Mile2]

Got this excerpt from this site: http://www.go-lpg.co.uk/

"The only difference is that we will probably recommend that you ask for NGK spark plugs to be fitted. NGK plugs are much more suitable for LPG operation."

I'm using Toyota's Denso plugs right now. Coming from high rpm and sudden pedal release, my engine would die out. Would NGK solve my problem?

[paolorenzo]

Got this excerpt from this site: http://www.go-lpg.co.uk/

"The only difference is that we will probably recommend that you ask for NGK spark plugs to be fitted. NGK plugs are much more suitable for LPG operation."

I'm using Toyota's Denso plugs right now. Coming from high rpm and sudden pedal release, my engine would die out. Would NGK solve my problem?

I have a similar problem. When running, then approaching a full stop, idling will drop to about 600rpm, and the engine chokes for air. On few occasions, it dies on me. Yung sa akin naman (EROOM), I think it's the air adaptor. Iba ang air adjustment with the car moving, as compared to idling. Feeling ko nag-aagaw yung dalawa as I do a full stop, or hard breaking.

I was told to switch to colder plugs (1 step colder lang), which is better for LPG. I was supposed to change plugs last Saturday, pero no stock yung colder plugs as Denso. I'm thinking of switching to Bosch Super 4 (WR78) or NGK. Don't know lang where to find reliable sellers in the Eastern part of Metro Manila.

[Mile2]

Paolorenzo,

Exactly the same problem i have, I already have it tuned by GreenFuel last Saturday but still experience the same problem this morning. Never experienced this one on Petrol though.

BTW, how do we know or what markings on the spark plugs that will indicate it is a colder plug??

[ghosthunter]

Sinilip ko Greenfuel last Saturday. Shop ba nila yung may malaking green gate? Sarado kasi gate that time di na rin ako bumaba to ask.

greengate and has a small GREENFUEL sign on the right side gate.

Just honk twice and the guard will open the gate for you. If the guard asks, tell him that you are going to the auto-lpg conversion.

[paolorenzo]

Paolorenzo,

Exactly the same problem i have, I already have it tuned by GreenFuel last Saturday but still experience the same problem this morning. Never experienced this one on Petrol though.

BTW, how do we know or what markings on the spark plugs that will indicate it is a colder plug??

Innova and Revo might be using the same plugs? Revo stock Denso is W16EXR-U11. Next colder plug is W20EXR-U11. Stock W16EXR-U11 map to Bosch Super 4 WR78 and NGK BPR5EY-11. Colder plug W20EXR-U11 map to Bosch Super 4 WR56 and NGK BPR6EY-11. These all have 0.8mm gap, by the way.

[Auto_Xer]

I vote GH to be the high priest of the followers of LPG.

A few observations.

If you've got an EFI vehicle the only kit to go for is an SGI kit.
You can always retrofit an o2 sensor if the SGI LPG kit electronics must absolutely require it to operate properly.
In any event an SGI system will be more fuel efficient than a venturi mixer system.

You can think of the venturi mixer type to a primitive carb.
The emulator type will differ from the mixer type in that it will have some electronics to shut off the original fuel injectors, but the LPG delivery system is still similar if not identical to a venturi mixer system.
The SGI systems, shut off the original fuel injectors and deliver fuel to the engine via individual solenoids.
Here's the interesting thing.
Since the SGI solenoids take their firing signal from the original fuel injector signals, they will be either sequential if the original fuel system is a sequential injection system and they will be batch fired if the original efi system is batch fired, whether or not they have an o2 sensor.

The o2 sensor signal input is simply to tell the LPG ecu if the a/f is correct and if it should do some fine tuning of the LPG fuel delivery program.

If you don't have an o2 sensor originally, the SGI system can still be used albeit you may or may not have to invest a bit more time & money to get it tuned as efficiently as possible.
Or you can choose to retrofit the an o2 sensor for the SGI system ecu to read.

We can do either at SpeedLab(plugging, sensya na) either on the dyno if additional tuning is wanted or necessary, as long as the LPG system installer/seller is willing to work together with us to deliver a better product and service to their clients.

We're currently working with Mike of Green Fuel, as well as having done some testing work for a couple of other LPG system sellers for some of their projects(details not for disclosure).

[ghosthunter]

Got this excerpt from this site: http://www.go-lpg.co.uk/

"The only difference is that we will probably recommend that you ask for NGK spark plugs to be fitted. NGK plugs are much more suitable for LPG operation."

I'm using Toyota's Denso plugs right now. Coming from high rpm and sudden pedal release, my engine would die out. Would NGK solve my problem?

If you are using SGI kits, going for colder plugs might help given its the cause of your problem like rough idle.

[niky]

Hehehe... GH for the high-priest of LPG! He's converted all of us! Wahahaha...

[manager]

Hi, you'll need to use an SGI system. Try to find a converter near your place as you'll need to make adjustments frequently. Where are you from may I ask?

webmiester, is the frequent adjustments an important consideration? in your experience how often is this done? or initial setup lang?

am from sta rosa and so far no installers here in the south, i think. was considering greenfuel kaya lang baka madalas adjustments, hassle lang. the nearest would be stargas sa may NAIA, which is also the most expensive

also, has anybody converted an opel astra here?

thanks

[nazmacjr]

What is the maximum capacity of a toroidal tank that can be fitted to a CRV gen2 ?

OT. How to post pictures on this forum ?

TIA