bio diesel

[fredkruger]

alright chaps.was wondering what your thoughts were on running my car on 100 percent bio.my brother has a 1.7td isuzu engine and he runs it on 100 bio.he has no problems with it.his engine is a lot quieter than mine.his emissions at the m.o.t were realy low as well.any body ran there 306 td on it.cheers for any info.dont wanna knacker my engine.

[HDi fun]

The XUDT engines should be OK on 'proper' processed biodiesel by which I mean that SVO or filtered WVO should not be used directly. Biodiesel can corrode rubber pipes in some cars, this can also afflict injector pump seals.

Do NOT, however, use biodiesel with PSA's HDi engines. They won't stand it. Lot's of sites say that any car pre-2004 is fine. Peugeot has been making the HDi engines since 1998.

[geraint13]

is bio diesel cheaper than normal diesel ?

[HDi fun]

Originally Posted by geraint13

is bio diesel cheaper than normal diesel ?

Not by much unless you brew it yourself.

I never put bio anywhere near my 2.2 litre 406 - too many reports of injector failure - the pressures are outrageous (higher than the 2.0 HDi engines) and later systems higher still.

We did try the Seat on SVO 50/50 with dino-diesel but that was flawed.

I advise against raw SVO.

[jarrus]

I think you're running the lucus pump aren't you?

be careful on those as I used some bio on mine and it didn't like it, but to be fair it wasn't filtered properly, something to note as well that you will need to change your fuel filter more often as it will clog up quite quickly,

don't worry about your fuel pipes as they are corrosion resistant, (pugs were used by farmers so they took biodiesel into account), the fuel filter housing is warmed on these engines from the coolant system, but if you upgrade to a bosch pump (a fairly easy and cheap affair) then you can run straight veg oil with no problems, just remember to add a thinner of some sort, but do note this is the bosch pump ONLY

in your situation though I would use a 50/50 mix with some good quality biodiesel and pump diesel

these engines do like biodiesel, it's just the lucas pump can be finicky,

[buymycar]

its 99.8p a litre near me,oh so tempting.

[HDi fun]

Originally Posted by buymycar

its 99.8p a litre near me,oh so tempting.

Not in your car it isn't.

[geraint13]

hdi - why isnt it as good then ? doesnt burn aswell or somthing does it ?

[HDi fun]

Originally Posted by geraint13

hdi - why isnt it as good then ? doesnt burn aswell or somthing does it ?

You 325tds will be fine on biodiesel but check the suitability of the seals and hoses. But I do mean biodiesel, not just SVO or filtered WVO. I would suggest starting with a 50:50 blend with mineral diesel initially and increasing to no more than about 80:20 unless you plan to fit additional fuel heating equipment for winter use.

You should also change the fuel filter after the first tank - biodiesel has very strong detergency.

The reason I said to buymycar that it wouldn't work is because he has a Mitsubishi GTO and I don't ever recall theri being a diesel model.

[geraint13]

Originally Posted by HDi fun

The reason I said to buymycar that it wouldn't work is because he has a Mitsubishi GTO and I don't ever recall theri being a diesel model.

ive never heard of a diesel gto.

wasnt thinking of changing, just curiosity. testing texaco with techron at the moment. car doesnt feel any different, pulling wise. less smoke though when i start her up first thing.

[HDi fun]

High detergent diesel is worth using in my experience. The 406 didn't smoke at all.

Two reasons:

1. HDi engines use high pressure direct injection - no need for glow plugs etc.

2. It was fitted with a particle filter

If the smoke is heavy at startup try running the glow plugs for two cycles. If this doesn't make much difference then get the glow plugs replaced.

[geraint13]

Originally Posted by HDi fun

High detergent diesel is worth using in my experience. The 406 didn't smoke at all.

Two reasons:

1. HDi engines use high pressure direct injection - no need for glow plugs etc.

2. It was fitted with a particle filter

If the smoke is heavy at startup try running the glow plugs for two cycles. If this doesn't make much difference then get the glow plugs replaced.

am changing the glowies soon mate.

[jarrus]

yeah, bio will work well in your car mate,

when i fit a bosch pump on my engine i will be using it more often, I would just use a 50/50 mix all the time, just easier

diesels that can run on biodiesel should run at least a 10% mix, it can benefit the engine in many different ways, chief of all it will help to keeps the fuel system lubricated,

also bio burns a bit colder so can increase power slightly and from what I can tell in my car it is cleaner burning

[HDi fun]

Colder combustion is of no consequence and biodiesel has a lower cetane rating than standard mineral diesel. UK pump diesel has a minimum cetane rating of 51.

I think what you mean is that biodiesel has a lower flashpoint than mineral diesel.

You don't want anything running too cold because this is a good way to fur up an engine with partially burnt fuel deposits.

[jarrus]

Could be that yeah, my car felt better on bio than any other diesel i have used including bp ultimate, other people who use bio make the same claims

but i did use bp ultimate and biodiesel and that was a good mix,

[HDi fun]

Originally Posted by jarrus

Could be that yeah, my car felt better on bio than any other diesel i have used including bp ultimate, other people who use bio make the same claims

but i did use bp ultimate and biodiesel and that was a good mix,

I've always liked the anti-establishment feel about using an alternative fuel.

If you want to invest in some grown up chemistry set stuff you can make your own bio for pennies.

And the biggest benefit is that since 2007 you can make and use up to 2500 litres per year personally without paying any road fuel duty at all.

You cannot sell the stuff and I doubt you'd be allowed to use it for haulage though.

[geraint13]

Originally Posted by HDi fun

I've always liked the anti-establishment feel about using an alternative fuel.

If you want to invest in some grown up chemistry set stuff you can make your own bio for pennies.

And the biggest benefit is that since 2007 you can make and use up to 2500 litres per year personally without paying any road fuel duty at all.

You cannot sell the stuff and I doubt you'd be allowed to use it for haulage though.

how easy is it then ?
and what damage will you do to your car if you mess it up ?

[jarrus]

I know you can do, but I live at home with my parents and they won't let me make it,
and besides i wouldn't know where to get the meths and soda lime from and i dare say they are both hard to come by

I would use far less than 2500 litres any way, not that i would make that much anyway. I've just worked it out, if i drive to work only (as in use my car only for commuting) then I will only do about 1900 miles a year (compared to my last job where i would do 10,500 miles commuting)

If I could do it well enough and prove it's worth I might sway my parents, as long as I can do it all legally as well (including obtaining the materials)

[jarrus]

too much meths will eat your fuel lines, but most cars use corrosive resistant fuel lines (i forgot what the material is, nylon comes to mind but I don't think it's that)

also in the how easy is it bit, you need to work out how much meths and soda lime to add and if you are using clean veg oil then there is a set amount which works, but on WVO then you need to titrate some of it to determine the exact amount to add, however i'm sure there are biodiesel systems that will do it for you though,