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Old 09-15-2008, 08:28 PM   #12 (permalink)
rmay635703
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MPaulHolmes View Post
In Tacoma, WA, sort of near my house there's a CNG fueling station. It costs $2.89/gallon equivalent (equivalent to gasoline for distance traveled???). Or is it per gallon at like 3000 psi, or what. I don't get it.
Generally they charge you per equivalent to a gallon of gas, otherwise it would say FT^3

You should note that because CNG is generally not well researched by most people and that prices vary A LOT from one pumping station to another (much like the overpriced E85 I encounter occasionally) It would be sort of like gas being $4.99 at one place and $2.50 5 miles away.

The best way around this is to get the older faster at home filling stations as the gas is almost always much cheaper at home than through a station. Even with the cost of the "disposable" pump.

Quote:
gotta have a licensed installer AND you have to have an emissions approved conversion kit for your specific vehicle.... sounds like lots of red tape.... wonder why?.
LoL, is that a joke? the reason is quite obvious, if we got enough normal people to force the issue maybe the reason would start giving up!

Quote:
Originally Posted by MPaulHolmes View Post
Is it hard to convert an old car to CNG? That way, there may be no emissions requirement. But where I live there aren't any emissions issues anyway. I had no idea that a regular car could be so easily converted to CNG. I thought it would be a major engine change.
No more difficult than propane, just need higher pressure lines and equip and an old car is much easier than a new car because it already has a carburator which is needed for propane or CNG, no fuel injection for you! The motor actually runs exactly the same on gas as it does on gasoline, just much cleaner, no modifications at all except the obvious carburator fractioning setup needed.

As for those $100-$200 kits they are generally big enough to run a lawn mower, maybe a motorcycle if your lucky and also very illegal.

I would think one could buy a used CNG pumping system from someone and install it yourself (as complex as repluming and installing a gas water heater) and buy a used car with CNG already there or a Mexican special and just not talk about it and get away with it.

Main issue though is that you could never fill up with natural gas at a legit station if your car isn't certified and like many things the wrong word to the wrong person at the wrong time might result in a $10k per day fine.

Whats the deal with non EPA conversions? [Archive] - Natural Gas Vehicle Owner Community

We need to work to get the price reduced dramatically and get exposure out there so people know CNG is a legit solution.
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