Fuel System Issues

tim leech · Post by **tim leech** » Mon Nov 20, 2006 4:57 pm

Hmm LPG is ok but what it cost to convert it will you get your money back? you will need to do alot of miles to make it pay. Yes your fuel bills will halve but if your putting £20 a week say thats 2 years before you see a saving if converting cots about £1000?, on a car with the best will in the world is worth a third of that maybe half at best. If I were you matey I would out the money into get something newer.

Can you convert these cars to LPG? If so will it have a affect on the car as its done a few miles.

Ian_Fearn · Post by **Ian_Fearn** » Mon Nov 20, 2006 4:59 pm

£400 to convert it, we reckon we'll re-coup it within a matter of months.

tim leech · Post by **tim leech** » Mon Nov 20, 2006 5:07 pm

For £400 then I see the logic, but for a bag of sand it wouldnt be.

Ian_Fearn · Post by **Ian_Fearn** » Mon Nov 20, 2006 5:13 pm

no, you're right Tim. The conversion price is actually a little less than £400. I've been quoted £350 for the kit i need without the Lambda sensor.

TinleyTech do DIY conversion kits. They're quite well respected in this market as they supply a kit with all the odds and sods you're likely to require to do the full conversion.

I've played with the camper LPG bits and its fairly simple stuff.

With regard to engine life, it should actually enhance it. LPG burns far cleaner than petrol so you dont get the carbon deposit build up you get running petrol.

tim leech · Post by **tim leech** » Mon Nov 20, 2006 5:31 pm

Cool, didnt know that, just that they smell a bit lol

Way2go · Post by **Way2go** » Mon Nov 20, 2006 6:10 pm

Ian_Fearn wrote:no, you're right Tim. The conversion price is actually a little less than £400. I've been quoted £350 for the kit i need without the Lambda sensor.

TinleyTech do DIY conversion kits. They're quite well respected in this market as they supply a kit with all the odds and sods you're likely to require to do the full conversion.

I've played with the camper LPG bits and its fairly simple stuff.

With regard to engine life, it should actually enhance it. LPG burns far cleaner than petrol so you dont get the carbon deposit build up you get running petrol.

This is very interesting Ian, especially if like me you intend keeping the BX going for a long time to come.

What tank do you use; a torus fitted in place of the spare wheel or cylindrical inside the boot?

Can you complete the job yourself or do you need to have it examined and certificated afterwards?

Is the transfer of Pet to Gas and vice versa automatic or manual as I've heard that you should start&stop on the Petrol? If automatic presumably you can set priority to Pet or gas?

Ian_Fearn · Post by **Ian_Fearn** » Mon Nov 20, 2006 6:25 pm

My camper runs on gas 100% of the time if you want. I've started it at -3 degrees with no problems at all.

You switch between the 2 fuels manually.

'Some' insurers insist on an installation certificate although most have given up on that now. If you buy a DIY conversion kit from Tinley Tech they'll inspect your installation and give you the required certificate for 25quid so no bother there.

Their kits come with full installation instructions too and i've heard they're very good.

I'm currently debating which tank to go for. The problem with the toroidal tank is that the spare wheel holder isnt really big enough for a tank with a big enough range. I've now got all the dimensions so i've left that decision with the missus for a week to decide as she doesnt really want to loose her boot space.

I've done about 2 years of research on this now on and off and i'm definately moving towards selling the diesel BX and going back to a GTi on LPG.

Bear in mind theres a lot of people with a downer on LPG for whatever reasons but having now ran LPG i can honestly say the engine runs smoother without any noticeable loss of power.

citroen7 · Post by **citroen7** » Mon Nov 20, 2006 7:30 pm

iteresting i had toyed with the idea of converting the gti a few years back but then a kit was £1500 so it was not really in the frame, i thought the bx was a good candidate for conversion because of the large space available once the spare wheel carrier was removed
Of course this raises the question bx +xantia v6 +lpg

Ian_Fearn · Post by **Ian_Fearn** » Mon Nov 20, 2006 9:52 pm

I considered in on the Xantia V6 but there were a few problems as i saw it.

The Xantia V6 would require the latest sequential gas injection kit which does cost around a grand as is super complex to install.

You have to drill 6 holes in your inlet manifold in very specific places. If you screw up its time to look for a new inlet manifold which is a pretty rare commodity.

Finally there is virtually zero space under the bonnet of a Xantia to mount the vapouriser although i'm sure with a bit of thought it could be located somewhere in there.

The kits have really come down in price since competition has increased.

From a complexity and function point of view you cant really beat the BX GTi for an ideal candidate. The fuel injection system works particularly well with LPG due to its relative simplicity and theres plenty of room to mount the tank and vapouriser.

tim leech · Post by **tim leech** » Tue Nov 21, 2006 9:28 am

And Xantia V6s have lots of electrical bits/clever suspension which as we all know can give trouble on older citroens as they age!

Philip Chidlow · Post by **Philip Chidlow** » Tue Nov 21, 2006 11:25 am

I'll be monitoring this thread with interest, Ian. I am thinking our GTi auto would benefit from enhanced economy! One question, if the spare is removed for a toroidal tank, what if you get a puncture? Use a can? Or put a space-saver in the boot? I would have thought it's vulnerable down there too. So, let's see what options you come up with for boot-mounted tank...

Post by **docchevron** » Tue Nov 21, 2006 11:33 am

Cant see it being a problem to fit the tank under the boot floor. They are pretty tough and it would be easy enough to make a plate up to cover it if you really wanted to.

I'd probably sling the spare in the boot if I did it that way.

Putting the tank in the boot is fine if you dont often have stuff in the boot but mines usually chocka so having a tank in there as well would mean I'd have to get a trailor!

Cheers
Chris G

Way2go · Post by **Way2go** » Tue Nov 21, 2006 5:11 pm

I agree, the BX boot is not sufficiently "Cavernous" to house the tank and still be useful. Plus it would also interfere with loading bulky items with the seats down. Maybe a spacesaver wheel in the boot would be a good option. What cars used these that would fit the BX as a secondhand item? Expected cost from a breaker or new?

Ian_Fearn · Post by **Ian_Fearn** » Tue Nov 21, 2006 7:00 pm

If I can find a decent sized tank that will actually fit in the spare wheel carrier AND give a decent range then i'll go for that option and just chuck the spare in the boot.

Bear in mind cars like the Lotus Elise have no spare, they just have a can of tyre weld.

sleepy0905 · Post by **sleepy0905** » Tue Nov 21, 2006 7:37 pm

keep an eye on ebay ian you occasionally get tanks on there.