Natural Gas Conversion for 3rd Gen 4runner. Seeking information on any conversions

haven

Expedition Leader
Thanks for mentioning the Freightliner site. There's a calculator there that lets you figure out the cost of converting and running CNG versus gasoline or diesel. For long distance truckers, it looks like costs are recovered in a year, and they would enjoy 50% lower fuel costs after that.

http://freightlinergreen.com/calculator

There's a unit of measure called the Gallon Gasoline Equivalent, or GGE. It's the amount of CNG, or electricity, or any other fuel, that provides the same amount of energy as a gallon of gas. GGE helps you compare the cost of alternative fuels with the cost of a gallon of gas.

About 126 cubic feet of CNG has the equivalent energy of one gallon of gasoline. Compressed at 2400 psi, 126 cubic feet of CNG occupies 0.77 cubic feet, or about 5.6 gallons. To provide a practical driving range, a CNG tank has to be very large. That's not a problem on a large truck, but becomes an issue in a passenger car. The Honda Civic GX, for example, loses 2/3 of its trunk space to the fuel tank, and still has a range of only 225 miles.

CNG burns cleaner than petroleum fuels, so emissions controls can be simplified. Cleaner burning means more miles between oil changes, and less carbon buildup in the combustion chamber.
 

brp

Observer
Don't mean to hi-jack the thread, but a "similar" option is a vegetable oil conversion on diesel. I had a Jetta wagon converted and I could easily fit 2,000 miles of FREE vegetable oil the back for road trips. Fillup4free.com is a network of people who share oil around NA, so you can really use it on extended trips. I am not in a state that tests emissions, so I don't really know, but with a veggie system, you can choose between diesel and veggie, so you could just switch over to diesel for the test. The veggie would probably test so good they would think something was suspicious.
 

haven

Expedition Leader
CNG burns like 130 octane gasoline, so it can be used in engines with higher compression. A couple of companies make kits that add CNG to diesel trucks.

Here's a web site that helps you locate CNG filling stations in your area. I was surprised to find 10 stations within 15 miles of my location. Price is about $2.10 to $2.30 per GGE. Diesel costs $4.30 a gallon around here.

Http://Www.cngprices.com
 

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