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To LPG or Not LPG, that is the question...


Pentathlete
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So what's the concensus on this then?

I've got a 3.0l A8L and do up to 16000miles/yr in it returning around the 30mpg mark which I work out to be about 18pence/mile at current prices(£1.20/Litre).

1. Is it worth the cost of conversion (where's best to go for this?)

2. What sort of mpg are people getting/should I expect on LPG? Am I right in thinking you don't get equivalent MPG on LPG?

3. What sort of common teething problems should I be expecting?

Thanks in advance as usual guys!

Mat

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1 - About 2k for a good install (don't scrimp!)

2 - MPG is lower, but most people base it on the equivalent cost in miles which works out better.

3 - Teething problems - should be 0, but usual things are lumpy running and switchovers not working smoothly.

16k/year should see your money back in about 18 months.

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I have over 60k on LPG at and am getting the equivalent of 31MPG out of my 4.2 V8. It took me 21k to cover the cost of installation and I went for a Prins Multitronic. I have had one failure of an ECU clone which cost me £400 to upgrade to the latest generation. Do it your pocket will love you.

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Agreed, about £2k to convert.

I converted my 4.2 about 18 months ago. Early 20's MPG on petrol, but you drop a few MPG on gas, so I now get 18-20 on gas. My gas costs 58.9p/litre. When working out where your breakeven point is, please remember that you will still use some petrol even while running on gas. Most systems will start the engine on petrol and switch automatically to gas at a pre-programmed engine temperature. I still use about £25 of petrol per month.

Problems: Not much really. Maintenance: Not much really. Very very slightly less power, but you cannot really notice any difference. If you have it programmed to switch to gas too soon, i.e when your engine is too cold, it will run lumpy because the engine doesn't like gas when its cold. Easy solution is get your gas guy to turn up the switchover temp on the gas ECU.

HTH

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Cheers guys for your replies, all very helpful. I've been doing the sums and trying to work out if it is actually worth it at the mo if the price is going to go up.... it's a question no one can answer, I know, but as I'm in the middle of buying a house now might not be the time to be outlaying £2k and risking problems...or am I just being too cautious!?

Any one got any ideas roughly how many users on this forum have LPG? - Percentage of A8 users!? ie is it a popular mod?

One more thing: Where do people have the filler point for the gas? Is it discreet? I don't particularly want to start putting holes in the rear quarters!

Edited by Pentathlete
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There are quite a few LPG users on here, but we are the 'converted'. The cost does seem to put people of but once done people seem to be very happy with the running costs.

On the D3s there are quite a few who have managed to get the filler point inside the petrol filler flap; so completely stealth. +++

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Hi

I've just converted my A8 CVT 3.0ltr to LPG, no problems, engine runs smooth and was easy to install. Managed to get the filler in the petrol opening.

I needed to solder the cables to the injectors as the injectors on the loom were different. Tank in the boot behind the seat and with air suspension drives spot on.

I fitted LPG to my old A8 D2, even easier as it was all plug and play.

I originally used a donut tank in the spare wheel but didn't like the feel on the steering with a full tank of gas!! very light

I used a stag 300 system with 90kmiles no faults at all.

Thanks

Barry

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  • 1 month later...

I had a BRC sequential LGP system fitted about 18 months ago and havent had any issues with it.

Its got a 90 litre tank and holds about 75litres.

I also had a broquet fuel cell added to the tank when it was fitted.

This is full of tiny lead pellets that realease their goodness into the fuel when you fill up. These are supposed to be good for around 250k. It helps with the burn temp of the fuel and you dont see a performance decrease.

It wasnt cheap. I got mine done at the peak of the dreaded £1.38 fuel issues a while back and it set me back £2700.

Green fuels did it for me but they are just resellers. Its was Worsley Autogas that fitted the system and they did a fantastic job.

I have my filler placed just below the rear bumber right in the middle.

That way i can fill it from either side. The filler just looks like a towbar stub from behind. almost invisible and saved drilling holes in the bumper etc.

To me it wasnt just the financial aspect. Yeah it save me money and its gets my equivalent mpg up around 25-28mpg.

Here's what i mean......

I drove to france last year.....decided to fill it up will petrol and gas.

I put £91 of unleaded in and £37 of lpg.

I drove all the way to portsmouth from wigan and then on to paris with two tanks of lpg.

I can guaruntee i would have had to fill up with pertol again at portsmouth.

It just feels better when your filling up and it costs £40.....roughly the same as your mates for focus!!!! LOL

Mines a 4.2q petrol btw.

I would recommend it....and nows the time. Fuel is going up and up and we have a budget in two weeks.

Its only going to get worse.

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