Converting to LPG

[Supra Gaz]

So, the situation at work is changing, I will be loosing supplemented travel n the next few years so my only economical choice is to drive (ahhhh shame), I will be damned if I am going to make the journey in some Eco box p.o.s but the cost of blatting the supra up to Croydon and back may break me, so I was looking at LPG, who has done it to the Supra? Any good or bad points? The cost of the conversion doesn't bother me as I didn't buy the hatchback I was planning as I didn't like anything.

 

Advice regarding who can do the conversion etc would be great cheers

 

Oh and it's in my NA manual.

[Dnk]

LPG availability and how big a tank you fit in the car is possibly one area

for thought.

 

From my memory you can never get all the lpg out of the tank, i think it's

something like 20% stays in the tank

So if you had a 100 litre tank its really only 80 litres

 

I've seen 6 cylinder kits fitted for around £1200 but like anything theres

different quality kits on the market.

 

Prins and BRC are among the best from what i've heard.

 

http://www.lpgforum.co.uk could be worth a look

Edited February 11, 2013 by Dnk (see edit history)

[Supra Gaz]

Mmm that's interesting, I never let my car run below 1/4 anyway, so that isn't a problem, can you get specific tanks that go in the spare wheel well? The boots small enough as it is!

[JasonR24]

Also some people say the cost of maintaining the system when it goes wrong is about the same you'd spend in fuel in a year anyway :-/ my dad had LPG and said it was good on consumption but crap to rely on.

[jimojameso]

Yes you can get tanks in the wheel well Gaz. Works well on the NA. More difficut on a TT due to extra injectors needed, etc. There are 2 people on this forum i believe running lpg. Loads of places around near us Gaz to get LPG!

[Dnk]

Check what size tank can fit in the spare wheel space, if its only

50 litres then you'll only get 40 out of it so quite small.

 

Price for LPG varies quite a bit too and is anything from 69.7p

per litre to over 83.9 per litre

 

http://www.petrolprices.com

Edited February 11, 2013 by Dnk (see edit history)

[trebor69]

I have been informed that converting a vehicle to LPG will shorten the engine's lifespan unlike modern vehicles which are manufactured to run on gas . The Supra was made to run on petrol and although conversion to gas is an option, it is (in the long run) detrimental to the engine .

It was an option that I was consdering on my girlfriends Toyota .

[Dnk]

Don't they have lubrication systems built into them now to

help reduce wear to valve seats.

 

http://www.lpginfo.co.uk

Edited February 11, 2013 by Dnk (see edit history)

[Supra Gaz]

I have been informed that converting a vehicle to LPG will shorten the engine's lifespan unlike modern vehicles which are manufactured to run on gas . The Supra was made to run on petrol and although conversion to gas is an option, it is (in the long run) detrimental to the engine .

It was an option that I was consdering on my girlfriends Toyota .

 

I haven't read that anywhere, what wears out more quickly? To be honest I can get an NA engine for 47p so it's not a problem, I as properly looking at NA-t as well, but then I keep looking at v8 1uz videos......

[Supra Gaz]

LPG availability and how big a tank you fit in the car is possibly one area

for thought.

 

From my memory you can never get all the lpg out of the tank, i think it's

something like 20% stays in the tank

So if you had a 100 litre tank its really only 80 litres

 

I've seen 6 cylinder kits fitted for around £1200 but like anything theres

different quality kits on the market.

 

Prins and BRC are among the best from what i've heard.

 

http://www.lpgforum.co.uk could be worth a look

 

I will have a good scan of that sight mate, reliability is something I cherish, hence the whole NA aspect.

[Dnk]

There's definitely issues with valve seat wear running on lpg which varies from

engine to engine, some have hardened inserts for seats and some don't

Edited February 11, 2013 by Dnk (see edit history)

[mihai]

You need about 60 litres tank, it will not shorten the engin life becouse on every 10.000km you have to drive on petrol about 500km or more, I seen a S600 Mercedes converted to LPG and a lot of cars. maybe the engine will lose 10 hp maximum. Is a NA is a good ideea! much better than drive a Twingo 3 cilinder At the end you can expect about 45 % economy. Good luck!

[Dnk]

I will have a good scan of that sight mate, reliability is something I cherish, hence the whole NA aspect.

 

Have a look at http://www.lpginfo.co.uk as well

[David P]

Supra Gaz, good handle.

 

I ran LPG on a V6 4Runner for 70k miles with an oil drip-feed system and experienced no problems whatsoever.

[Dnk]

Quite a lot of info to read but worth it

 

http://www.ijest.info/docs/IJEST10-02-10-063.pdf

[Abz]

I think Havard's old NA was converted to LPG, chap called Purity (I think) owns it. Maybe worth dropping him a PM?

 

Though personally I'd get a big old sofa type of diesel car to waft into work in, as great as the Supra is it would lose some magic being a daily driver.

 

Depending on the suspension your back might forgive you too!

[JasonR24]

I think Havard's old NA was converted to LPG, chap called Purity (I think) owns it. Maybe worth dropping him a PM?

 

Though personally I'd get a big old sofa type of diesel car to waft into work in, as great as the Supra is it would lose some magic being a daily driver.

 

Depending on the suspension your back might forgive you too!

 

My NA was my daily! Didn't lose the magic at all! Loved it

[trebor69]

I haven't read that anywhere, what wears out more quickly? To be honest I can get an NA engine for 47p so it's not a problem, I as properly looking at NA-t as well, but then I keep looking at v8 1uz videos......

 

Not exactly sure what wears out most but the guy who told me was Buffalo Bob off the Toyota Estima owners club, he is a wizard with toyota engines ....petrol and diesel , he assured me that this was the case with any engine that is not specifically designed to run on gas ......Only because of his skill and knowledge did I take this as fact and as such it put me off .

Please do not let this put you off but I recommend you read ALL the info you can on this .......especially as its your SUPRA

Edited February 11, 2013 by trebor69
correction (see edit history)

[ubersonic]

Prior to buying my UK MKIV I owned a Lexus LS400 which was LPG converted and that ran fine, I couldn't even notice a power difference when running it in petrol mode, when I first got the Supe I did think about converting it however, due to the space saver wheel and the design of the boot floor a doughnut/toroidal tank isn't really a viable option unless you don't mind a pathetic range and want to go all out customizing the boot floor around it/etc, A long cylinder in the boot behind the seats is a much better option imo. Also the conversion has been done on multiple 2JZ-GE and GTE engines before now and I even remember seeing a thread on an LPG owners forum where a guy converted his 450BHP RB26DETT so its not like converting a Supe is treading into unknown territory and like many people have said modern systems are lubricating so you don't really have to worry about extra engine wear these days.

[Supra Gaz]

Quite a lot of info to read but worth it

 

http://www.ijest.info/docs/IJEST10-02-10-063.pdf

 

Cheers Dnk, summary seems to be, less power, possible engine issues if run long term, as said, NA engines are not exactly sparse or expensive.

Some good info guys, cheers, my suspension is somewhat hard, hks jobbies, but my lovely Oem Recaro's look after me.

I need to find a decent company to get it all fitted now then, I have a year or so before the change in travel allowance so I have no rush.