Vegetable oil motoring, is this a naughty subject?
Discussion
I was chatting to a friend recently about how early diesel engines were initially designed to run on vegetable oil (dont ask me how we got onto it) and being one who likes finding out facts and likes to know more about a lot of subjects in general I thought I would try and find some more information. And perhaps might even come across some money saving alternative fuels along the way.
On google various sites and topics come up, but a search on here surprisingly found nothing. So is it something that we aren't allowed to talk about on here, or are people just not interested in it?
On google various sites and topics come up, but a search on here surprisingly found nothing. So is it something that we aren't allowed to talk about on here, or are people just not interested in it?
It's perfectly leagal to do (up to 2500 Litres) but you really need a bosch pump as the seals on lucas pumps leak with pure new cooking oil AND they are the weaker of the 2 pumps and the higher viscosity of the oil can ruin the lucas pump.
You can add petrol to thin the oil but again the seals still leak, i run 60/40 diesel/new cooking oil and my lucas pump handles it fine.
Waist veg oil is a whole differant matter that involves chemical washes and heating to purify enough to use safely.
Oh and it makes the zorst smell of chip shops
there are bio fuel forums about for advice on heated tanks ect (to thin the oil down) and system mods ect 
You can add petrol to thin the oil but again the seals still leak, i run 60/40 diesel/new cooking oil and my lucas pump handles it fine.
Waist veg oil is a whole differant matter that involves chemical washes and heating to purify enough to use safely.
Oh and it makes the zorst smell of chip shops
there are bio fuel forums about for advice on heated tanks ect (to thin the oil down) and system mods ect I'm very new to diesels and with vegetable oil at a £ a litre are there really any significant savings to be had after you've added the extra ingredients and is it as economical MPG wise without causing lasting damage? Also what does it do for performance?
My friend runs a mix of used engine oil with diesel in his passat and it f*cking stinks and smokes and I dread to think what it's doing to the engine and I'd rather not risk damage for the sake of it.
My friend runs a mix of used engine oil with diesel in his passat and it f*cking stinks and smokes and I dread to think what it's doing to the engine and I'd rather not risk damage for the sake of it.
Haven't looked at it in while (basically since deciding to commute by train), but in Germany this has been going on for at least a good 15 years or more.
IIRC you want some robust fuel system as pointed out, plus an engine as simple as possible so no EGR/DPF/Turbo/Direct Injection parts act up. Car of choice used to be W124 Diesel Mercs as these things can apparently deal with the stuff OOTB. Running one of these on Aldi's cheapest rape seed or sun flower oil should be seriously cheap. Only bettered by asking the local chippie if he'd like to get rid of fat waste for free. Looks like that stuff can be put to good use with some home made filtration devices.
Downsides: smells, somewhat work intensive refuelling procedure, fuel filters and oil changes (as the stuff contaminates engine oil) should be a lot more frequent, in cold climates you might have a problem getting started. And if you drive a 75 PS 200D, walking is a lot faster so there's no real point.
IIRC you want some robust fuel system as pointed out, plus an engine as simple as possible so no EGR/DPF/Turbo/Direct Injection parts act up. Car of choice used to be W124 Diesel Mercs as these things can apparently deal with the stuff OOTB. Running one of these on Aldi's cheapest rape seed or sun flower oil should be seriously cheap. Only bettered by asking the local chippie if he'd like to get rid of fat waste for free. Looks like that stuff can be put to good use with some home made filtration devices.
Downsides: smells, somewhat work intensive refuelling procedure, fuel filters and oil changes (as the stuff contaminates engine oil) should be a lot more frequent, in cold climates you might have a problem getting started. And if you drive a 75 PS 200D, walking is a lot faster so there's no real point
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