Pl. read my comment dated 25-3-2008(scroll down), before reading this article, as LPG current prices of Rs. 33 to Rs. 36 do not make this option economical.
As Maruti Alto is MPFI engine, LPG is most suited to this machine.
Good things about LPG:
1) Clean fuel, it cannot be adulterated like petrol.
2) Creates less pollution.
3) Running costs is about 40% lower than petrol.
4) Does not heat up the engine like CNG.
5) Does not show major power loss as in CNG.
6) LPG tank is smaller than CNG tank for same capacity, because it is liquid.
7) LPG tank is much stronger than petrol tank, hence, safer.
8) No vibrations, as compared to diesel.
When you decide about converting your car to LPG following things come to your mind:
1) Cost of running.
2) Loss of boot space in dicky.
3) Convenience
4) Safety
5) How much abuse the car will have to bear by drilling and hammering
ANSWERS: Low running cost, 50% loss of boot space, very convenient as no alterations done to your original petrol settings, only extra parts are added. Safer than petrol, Your car body will be drilled to screw the parts. The car body will be cut by circular cutter to fit the inlet of LPG on the rear side. The dickey’s raised floor portion where the stepney is placed will be hammered to flatten it to accommodate the toroidal tank. The ignition switch will be opened to add some more connections with a safety fuse.
Some advice for Maruti Alto / 800 car users:
1) Cost of running on LPG is about 40% lower than petrol.
2) To save space, the best option is to go for 35 Litre toroidal tank. This is of the same size as the stepney of the car and fits in the space provided for stepney. In this way you don’t lose in the dickey space.
3) The best and most popular model is STAKO toroidal tank manufactured in Poland. This tank costs about Rs. 4000 more than cylindrical tank. Indian ’’Econ’’ tank of 35 litres capacity is also being used. It costs Rs. 3000 more than cylindrical tank. This tank is manufactured in Visakhapatnam and is approved by the Chief Controller of Explosives, Nagpur.
4) Now, you will have to keep the stepney in an inclined position on the left side of dickey. When you go for shopping to nearby places, you can take a little risk and leave behind the stepney in order to use the full dickey space.
5) There are two types of kits: one that requires manual switching to LPG from petrol after ignition(generally for carborater cars), other that does this job automatically(for MPFI cars).
6) So, be aware of this, automatic version costs Rs. 2, 000 more. In this version you have option to switch to a)always on petrol, b) always on gas and c) starting on petrol and switching to gas on acceleration.
7) The total cost of automatic system with toroidal tank will cost Rs. 24, 000.(Cost of imported toroidal tank is Rs. 4000 while indian toroidal tank is Rs. 3000 more than cylindrical tank).
8) If using ordinary cylindrical tank(larger capacity) with manual system, including RTO formalities), the cost will be about 20, 000.
9) During installation, be ready to get your car’s body to be drilled at a few places to fix the vapouriser, solenoids, etc. To fit the toroidal tank, the dickey base has to be flattened by hammering(sometimes with little damage). Prefer to have the filling inlet for gas on the right hand side opposite to the petrol inlet. You can have it inside the dickey also(t avoid geting the car body drilled), but only if you agree to open the dickey every time you need to fill the tank.
10) There are many varieties and makes of the kits available in India. Popular names are LOVATO, BRC, LONGAS, LANDIRENZO, TARTARINI, etc. These are all Italian kits. LOVATO and BRC is expensive as it has all imported parts. But the others have only the multi valve, and vapouriser made in Italy, and rest of the parts like copper pipes, change over switch, solenoids, etc are Indian. Yes, if toroidal tank is being used, only imported version ’’Stako’’ is now rarely available in India, the indian version is ’’Econ’’ which is very common. Normal cylindrical tanks are all of Indian make, generally Econ, having larger capacities of 40 litres and 60 litres is preferred ny many people who have big cars.
11) The process of installation is as follows: First you have to take permission from the RTO on Form BTI to install the LPG kit, (then again get clearance within 14 days of approval for using the kit after installation). The fee is only Rs. 50 but the LPG fitters charge somewhere Rs. 1500 to 2000 if they get this clearance through RTO agents. After getting this permission, you can go ahead with fitting the kit. (You can do the simple RTO formality yourself and save another Rs. 2000)
12) It takes about 6 to 8 hrs. for fitting the kit. After fitting the kit, it is advisable to fill the gas to full tank and check the indicators. You have to take RTO permission within 14 days after approval. RTO will write details and stamp your original RC book. Now, you are fully authorised to use this kit. hence, minimum it takes 2-3 days for the whole process.
Running costs:(LPG becomes cheaper in summers and expensive in winters).
Milage on petrol worth Rs. 500:
Assuming that you fill petrol for Rs. 500(@Rs. 48.30 paise as on 27-9-05 in Mumbai) you will get 10.35 litres of petrol. At the milage of 17 Kms/lit your Alto/800 would run 176 Kms.
Milage on LPG worth Rs. 500:
Now, if you fill LPG for Rs. 500(Rs. 24.50/Lit) you will get 20.40 Litres of LPG. At a milage of 15 Kms/Lit your Alto/800 would run 306 Kms.
How much extra milage you will get on LPG worth Rs. 500?
On every Rs. 500 you get 130 Kms extra(on LPG as compared to petrol)
How much petrol will I save on every Rs. 500 on gas?
Well, in order to run this 130 Kms extra you would have required 7.64 lit of petrol costing Rs. 369.
In short, on every Rs. 500 consumed on LPG(instead of petrol), you will save Rs. 369 worth of petrol.
So, go ahead and enjoy your trip on LPG. But remember, when your kit is being installed, don’t move away from your car, as lot of supervision will be required to see that the work is done neatly. Don’t rely on the mechanic, sometimes they are in great hurry to finish the job. One more thing, pay only after the job is done. Take proper bill. Inform them beforehand that you will require a pukka bill, else the installer will put 12% more as taxes if you ask for the bill after the job is done.
Complaint against defective product and services.
Visit https://icrpc.org for free help if you have a complaint against any defective product or service, including faulty LPG equipment, or defective fitting.
ALSO READ ’’HOW RO GET BEST OUT OF YOUR LPG KIT’’ by the same author. It’s about fine tuning your LPG kit for best performance. Please feel free to ask me if uou have any doubt or need help.
