LXCHEV: I belive that "scuba tank" setup is from an LPG-only ford setup. They remove the fuel tank and raise the boot floor and use that as their tank on factory fords. Apparently theyre about 70 litres usable gas and on teh stock 6 banger they get around 500-550 Kms from the tank of gas ( My mate has one! thats how i know...)
No idea on the cost though mate, best of luck!
Time to convert my Torry to LPG
Started by
LXCHEV
, May 10 2006 02:21 PM
44 replies to this topic
#26
Tiny
-
- Administrators
-
- 10,018 posts
Oh My, Don't you post alot
- Name:Tiny
- Location:Sydney
- Joined: 04-February 07
Posted 15 May 2006 - 10:15 AM
#27
LXCHEV
-
- Members
-
- 3,515 posts
Lotsa Posts!
- Name:Brett
- Location:Melbourne
- Car:'76 LX - 383 Chev
- Joined: 08-November 05
Posted 15 May 2006 - 10:28 AM
Thanks Tiny, I'll see what I can find out.
Yella - I can see your point, but I just couldn't afford a 3rd car, 3rd rego, and 3rd insurance. I like driving the torrie every day, and after driving around in my Mum's Ford Telstar for a month or two a couple years ago, I hated every minute of it, so gimme a cool cruiser!!!! I reckon the hatchback on gas will be the ultimate daily driver.
Yella - I can see your point, but I just couldn't afford a 3rd car, 3rd rego, and 3rd insurance. I like driving the torrie every day, and after driving around in my Mum's Ford Telstar for a month or two a couple years ago, I hated every minute of it, so gimme a cool cruiser!!!! I reckon the hatchback on gas will be the ultimate daily driver.
#28
LXCHEV
-
- Members
-
- 3,515 posts
Lotsa Posts!
- Name:Brett
- Location:Melbourne
- Car:'76 LX - 383 Chev
- Joined: 08-November 05
Posted 15 May 2006 - 11:03 AM
Do you know what models these tanks are out of Tiny???
#29
Tiny
-
- Administrators
-
- 10,018 posts
Oh My, Don't you post alot
- Name:Tiny
- Location:Sydney
- Joined: 04-February 07
Posted 15 May 2006 - 11:22 AM
I belive AU models the dedicated LPG cars, Not sure about BA series??
(I Know my mates is an AU... his has this setup!)
Cheers
(I Know my mates is an AU... his has this setup!)
Cheers
#30
_Lostit_
_Lostit_
-
- Guests
Posted 15 May 2006 - 11:46 AM
Screw that just put another 2-3 grand into it and put a injected 5 litre in it .. all problems solved less fuel consumption... more power.. bigger smile!
Good luck in what ever choice you make... i personally drive a 2 litre hilux that barely can do 100kph but its good on juice .
Denis
Good luck in what ever choice you make... i personally drive a 2 litre hilux that barely can do 100kph but its good on juice .
Denis
#31
MRLXSS
-
- Members
-
- 12,400 posts
The Render Garage
- Name:Matt
- Location:Upwey, Melbourne
- Car:355 LX Hatchback, DeLorean DMC-12, LX SS Hatch, VY Cross8 Crewman
- Joined: 09-November 05
Posted 15 May 2006 - 12:11 PM
I love that setup heath has shown! it looks like its absolutely perfect for the ole Hatchback! Wonder how much a system like this would cost all up?
#32
LXCHEV
-
- Members
-
- 3,515 posts
Lotsa Posts!
- Name:Brett
- Location:Melbourne
- Car:'76 LX - 383 Chev
- Joined: 08-November 05
Posted 15 May 2006 - 12:34 PM
I just called a local Ford wrecker and he said they usually sell these scuba tanks for around $250 - $300. They have nothing in stock at the moment though, but I'm gonna keep my eyes open. I think this is definitely the way I want to go now. If they hold 70 litres of gas, it may be worth sacrificing the storage space rather than using a donut tank (which I'm assuming would be closer to 50ish litres?)....
I might try another few wreckers this arvo and see what I can find...
I might try another few wreckers this arvo and see what I can find...
#33
Tiny
-
- Administrators
-
- 10,018 posts
Oh My, Don't you post alot
- Name:Tiny
- Location:Sydney
- Joined: 04-February 07
Posted 15 May 2006 - 12:45 PM
Way to go i think mate! thats pretty reasonable for the tanks.. they'd still be well and truly in date too! Try and sus out if the car had a rear end hit or a front ender and obviously grab the front ender if you can! ( not that it matters too much i dont think!)
Cheers!
Cheers!
#34
_73LJWhiteSL_
_73LJWhiteSL_
-
- Guests
Posted 15 May 2006 - 01:27 PM
I did ask if they could fit those tanks to the LJ when i did my conversion however i was told they would not fit between the chassis rails, and below that they would foul on the 'rear entry' angle between the back of the car and the rear wheels.
Doughnut tanks will also not fit in a LC/J as they won't fit between the chassis rails.
You should have plenty of options with the LH/X/UC platform. I had to kiss my boot good bye... well most of it anyways. But then i didn't get a Torana to carry stuff anyways. Thats what the towbar and a trailer are for.
Steve
Doughnut tanks will also not fit in a LC/J as they won't fit between the chassis rails.
You should have plenty of options with the LH/X/UC platform. I had to kiss my boot good bye... well most of it anyways. But then i didn't get a Torana to carry stuff anyways. Thats what the towbar and a trailer are for.
Steve
#35
_tj81_
_tj81_
-
- Guests
Posted 15 May 2006 - 06:09 PM
Just for clarification there are dedicated gas models in the AU and BA model falcons.
Try Ferntree Gully Auto Salvage, they will freight it too you if it cant be picked up.
Try Ferntree Gully Auto Salvage, they will freight it too you if it cant be picked up.
#36
Heath
View Garage
-
- Administrators
-
- 18,364 posts
I like cars.
- Name:Heath
- Location:Eastern Suburbs, Melbourne
- Car:Heavily Modified UC Sunbird Hatchback
- Joined: 07-November 05
View Garage
Posted 15 May 2006 - 06:27 PM
That's the spirit Brett, you've seen the light!
The bloke who owns that car is or used to be on these forums, he had it made up as a custom job AFAIK. There is not much work involved in making a tank, it would be under $500 for even something that wild I expect.
With the size of that thing, it'll probably hold more than 70 litres anyway. Mine holds 68 and it ain't huge.
Matt: It's all about the tank mate. You can get the rest of the gear as cheap or as expensive as you want as Gary showed us earlier. Even GRA gear sometimes comes on the market relatively cheaply.
Talk to different gas people, if you can get four different cars that all want those kinda tanks made then I'm sure you could save some bucks, or if the Ford wreckers can get a few hatches sorted out I'm sure they'd be happy to lower the cost a bit as well.
The bloke who owns that car is or used to be on these forums, he had it made up as a custom job AFAIK. There is not much work involved in making a tank, it would be under $500 for even something that wild I expect.
With the size of that thing, it'll probably hold more than 70 litres anyway. Mine holds 68 and it ain't huge.
Matt: It's all about the tank mate. You can get the rest of the gear as cheap or as expensive as you want as Gary showed us earlier. Even GRA gear sometimes comes on the market relatively cheaply.
Talk to different gas people, if you can get four different cars that all want those kinda tanks made then I'm sure you could save some bucks, or if the Ford wreckers can get a few hatches sorted out I'm sure they'd be happy to lower the cost a bit as well.
#37
_uc253_
_uc253_
-
- Guests
Posted 15 May 2006 - 07:19 PM
heath picture is of aidan's car ask aidan he has all the answers
david
david
#38
Heath
View Garage
-
- Administrators
-
- 18,364 posts
I like cars.
- Name:Heath
- Location:Eastern Suburbs, Melbourne
- Car:Heavily Modified UC Sunbird Hatchback
- Joined: 07-November 05
View Garage
Posted 15 May 2006 - 07:35 PM
Ahhh that's his name. I think he had a good thread on the old forums about the vehicle, 308 under the bonnet (ask me if you want pictures) or talk to him about his setup and some information.
#39
_Aidan_
_Aidan_
-
- Guests
Posted 15 May 2006 - 08:08 PM
Yeah its my setup, its a 65L tank, the most I've put in is 55L. The tank is to suit a late model ford, pretty sure its AU, APA makes them anyhow. theres a bit of modification to fit in it, the filler neck inside the boot floor needs to be removed, you can see the lip that was cut out on the boot roof , which is needed for clearance to access the controls/taps/guages/ in and out lines for the gas. Also some slight paneling beating to the floor is needed in a few places and it has the handle sort of things that the top has. All the mounting points had to be modified, two bolt it to the floor and two bolt behind the rear bumper. The ones behind the rear bumper had to have the position changed so they would actually be behind the rear bumper and not visible, this was done by bolting a piece of thick angle iron to the existing mounting point to lower its position. The ones that bolt to the boot floor originally bolted out to the side, the end was cut off and a hole drilled through the mounting bracket to bolt it to the floor. There is TONNES of room on the sides for your jack, wheel brace, spare coolant etc, but not for a spare unless you want to put it on top of the gas tanks and make a custom lid for your boot (lose some boot space), or put it where your fuel tank was. Not sure if you can do this install with a fuel tank underneath as it may interfer with mounting points and the SLIGHT panel beating, and gas lineKnoath has a pretty impressive setup that I was intrigued by, but my personal choice would have to go to this baby.
Get a second hand Impco Mixer (for strait gas) and Evaporator in half decent condition, you can get them rebuilt if need be. New lines will set you back $50.
Eliminate your fuel tank, fuel lines, carbie and pollution gear.
In the case of a hatch, I'd go a brand spanking new custom tank in the spare tyre well. You will not need to get it restampted or retested; it will be good to go and made with suitable straps/brackets.
I was referring to this kinda setup:
I tidied the boot up since that pic heath
Edited by Aidan, 15 May 2006 - 08:11 PM.
#40
_Aidan_
_Aidan_
-
- Guests
Posted 15 May 2006 - 08:23 PM
donut's are like 40L so probably 30 - 35L useable.. ie f***k all.I just called a local Ford wrecker and he said they usually sell these scuba tanks for around $250 - $300. They have nothing in stock at the moment though, but I'm gonna keep my eyes open. I think this is definitely the way I want to go now. If they hold 70 litres of gas, it may be worth sacrificing the storage space rather than using a donut tank (which I'm assuming would be closer to 50ish litres?)....
I might try another few wreckers this arvo and see what I can find...
253ToranaSS the setup cost 2400 all up, minus 500bux for WA gov gas rebate. but I would reccommend paying a bit more to get brass gas fittings instead of plastic and a proper bracket made up for the gas condenser (instead of bolted it flat in the engine bay) as oil from the gas contaminates the diamphram (which is rubber) and eventually eats it, destroying the condenser.. you loose a little throttle sensitivity when the diaphram is dirty. Also the plastic fittings will brake eventually. Other than that the setup is fine. Impco 425cfm carby, mounted in a holley square bore base plate (that is almost 200bux alone new), single plane manifold (for bonnet clearance and apparantely the gas like its better, but make sure you got a nice high ratio first gear as its gutless down low for a 308)
Its reccommended to get your dizzy recurved to suit gas timing, 300bux I've been told, and its meant to give you another 10horsies as well as alot more response..
You can see the condenser half hidden by the radiator hose in this picture (top of left hand side) its mounted flat, it needs to be mounted vertical with the top of the condenser facing you (the passenger side of the vechile) so braking and acceleration doesn't interfer with the diaphram movement.
LXCHEV - good luck doing it for 500bux!! The parts cost a shitload more than that.
Edited by Aidan, 15 May 2006 - 08:24 PM.
#41
LXCHEV
-
- Members
-
- 3,515 posts
Lotsa Posts!
- Name:Brett
- Location:Melbourne
- Car:'76 LX - 383 Chev
- Joined: 08-November 05
Posted 16 May 2006 - 12:57 AM
Cheers for all the great feedback guys. Thanks heaps for posting up all those pics Aidan - I'm very impressed with what you've done, it's an excellent and very practical setup. Big thumbs up from me! Yeah I realise it's gonna cost me more than $500 to do it properly, how much more just depends on what stuff I buy brand new and what I can pick up second hand. I'd be interested to see pics if you have any of your carby setup without the air cleaner on top.
Anyway mate, well done on a ripper of a job! (Go the hatchbacks!!)
tj81 - I live 5 minutes away from FTG Auto Salvage, I might suss them out tomorrow & see what they say. If I bite the bullet and buy a tank, then I'll be forced into going through with the rest of the conversion!
Anyway mate, well done on a ripper of a job! (Go the hatchbacks!!)
tj81 - I live 5 minutes away from FTG Auto Salvage, I might suss them out tomorrow & see what they say. If I bite the bullet and buy a tank, then I'll be forced into going through with the rest of the conversion!
#42
_Yella SLuR_
_Yella SLuR_
-
- Guests
Posted 16 May 2006 - 09:47 AM
I can appreciate that. Poor Ole Laser has nearly become a UC Sunturd a few times. Might happen one day yet.Yella - I can see your point, but I just couldn't afford a 3rd car, 3rd rego, and 3rd insurance. I like driving the torrie every day, and after driving around in my Mum's Ford Telstar for a month or two a couple years ago, I hated every minute of it, so gimme a cool cruiser!!!! I reckon the hatchback on gas will be the ultimate daily driver.
#44
LXCHEV
-
- Members
-
- 3,515 posts
Lotsa Posts!
- Name:Brett
- Location:Melbourne
- Car:'76 LX - 383 Chev
- Joined: 08-November 05
Posted 17 May 2006 - 03:19 PM
One day soon Yella??!!
Aidan - interesting that you mention you've never put in more than 55 litres. I dropped into APA's head office today and had a chat. The max capacity for these tanks is 59 litres. Wishful thinking when I thought they might hold up to 70 litres! But 59 litres is still decent enough.
Just for interests sake too - these tanks weigh 45kg (I assume this is empty of course), so it does add a bit of weight to the car. From the spec-sheet I have, it appears a typical single LPG tank weights approx 30 - 38kg, so in comparison the triple tanks aren't much heavier...
Anyway, tracking down a 2nd hand one for a real cheap price isn't that easy either. APA themselves said these tanks are very popular brand new, and they can't meet the demand for them. At the moment they have a back-log of orders.
There are quite a few floating around 2nd hand, but it's just getting them nice and cheap that's the problem! I found one in stock for $500, but after other wreckers quoted me $250-$300 I don't want to pay that much! Will keep my eyes open and see what happens...
Aidan - interesting that you mention you've never put in more than 55 litres. I dropped into APA's head office today and had a chat. The max capacity for these tanks is 59 litres. Wishful thinking when I thought they might hold up to 70 litres! But 59 litres is still decent enough.
Just for interests sake too - these tanks weigh 45kg (I assume this is empty of course), so it does add a bit of weight to the car. From the spec-sheet I have, it appears a typical single LPG tank weights approx 30 - 38kg, so in comparison the triple tanks aren't much heavier...
Anyway, tracking down a 2nd hand one for a real cheap price isn't that easy either. APA themselves said these tanks are very popular brand new, and they can't meet the demand for them. At the moment they have a back-log of orders.
There are quite a few floating around 2nd hand, but it's just getting them nice and cheap that's the problem! I found one in stock for $500, but after other wreckers quoted me $250-$300 I don't want to pay that much! Will keep my eyes open and see what happens...
#45
_devilsadvocate_
_devilsadvocate_
-
- Guests
Posted 17 May 2006 - 05:21 PM
That was the only reason I never bought a hatch, where to put the lpg tank. Wish the scuba option was around when I bought my torrie back in 90(or was it?)
Looks a great car all round Aidan.
Looks a great car all round Aidan.
1 user(s) are reading this topic
0 members, 1 guests, 0 anonymous users
