Any running propane bi-fuel setup ?

[arb]

We've talked about this here a while back, but now its being used commerically by some big boys. I was thinking of a simple manual setup for the highway miles I do every day - 77 miles or so... Maybe as simple as a 17 pound BBQ bottle in the back and a grill regulator / valve before the turbo -

Questions in my mind, will the heat of the turbine ignite the propane / air mix as its compressed to 10 psi, or is it better to skip the regulator / valve and inject with raw tank pressure into the manifold using a simple copper gas valve ?

http://green.autoblog.com/2011/05/13/icoms-bi-fuel-propane-diesel-system-boosts-fuel-efficiency-red/

[R.O.R-2.0]

raw propane to the intake is BAD..

and i think most of the kits actually have a type of propane carburator, so it actually changes the amount of propane with throttle..

[BigVWman]

Some sort of throttle control would def ^ be needed, since we regulate fuel instead of air like a gasoline motor. There are kits around if you dig hard enough. i looked at doing it in the early 90's on a carb'd rabbit but ran out of money on that project. Unless things have changed though most are DIY for sure due to emmisions regulations. You could also investigate some zamboni machines if you can find one to study, some ran 4cyl gas vw motors in them on propane. the hockey rink in fraser, mi used to have a couple. man the shavings were great to store beer in for the night.There was also a zamboni service place on gratiot between 8 and 9 when i moved away not sure if its still there!

[R.O.R-2.0]

Some sort of throttle control would def ^ be needed, since we regulate fuel instead of air like a gasoline motor. There are kits around if you dig hard enough. i looked at doing it in the early 90's on a carb'd rabbit but ran out of money on that project. Unless things have changed though most are DIY for sure due to emmisions regulations. You could also investigate some zamboni machines if you can find one to study, some ran 4cyl gas vw motors in them on propane. the hockey rink in fraser, mi used to have a couple. man the shavings were great to store beer in for the night.There was also a zamboni service place on gratiot between 8 and 9 when i moved away not sure if its still there!

the gas VW engines definitely had a propane carburator on them to run right. and they were running on pure propane, not any other fuel, just propane..

gasoline engines can do that just fine. propane burns SO CLEAN in a gasoline engine.. like, ready to change your oil, but it still looks brand new.. thats how clean propane burns.

[arb]

they are using a 50/50 mix of diesel and LIQUID propane in that system used on the International DT466 and Cummins 11.9, so they are not using a carb. When you have at least some propane in the mix for a diesel, the diesel fuel burns more completely, so you get more economy. And right now, propane is cheaper than diesel as an added bonus.

The no carb thing I was talking about was the steady state cruise control style driving I do - When my Caravan is back on the road, I'll post some mods for propane.

[trav1856]

liquid propane, you're playing with fire....literally.