Well, it was close, but I made it.

[bonnevista]

Those of you that know me and will actually admit it to other people, would know that last year I bought a rebuilt 455 Pontiac engine from the US.

I installed it during the week before Christmas last year and fired it up on Christmas Eve, with the engine having it's maiden voyage on Christmas Day (a trip from Wollongong to Manly and return).

All along, I'd planned to put 20,000 miles on it in it's first year and I just made it, tonight.  As I put it in the garage, it has 20,002.

For a while, I didn't think I was going to get there, but I fixed that by going to Albury for the weekend a couple of weeks ago.

I just have to get the A/C fixed now!!  

[1977 Transam]

That's a lot of miles Bonnevista.  I'm lucky if mine gets out once a month.

[peterp]

I don't know bonny !

You must have shares in Caltex or Ampol. LOL.

peterp

[bonnevista]

I don't know bonny !

You must have shares in Caltex or Ampol. LOL.

peterp

Unlike everyone that complains about the price of petrol, I acutally did something about it back in 1990. I converted every car I owned since then to LPG.  Last weekend, I bought 140 litres of gas for 43 cents per litre.

In any case, it's more expensive to own two cars - a daily driver and weekend only car than it is to drive your american car every day - whether it uses lpg or petrol.

[ozpont]

Gotta agree with Bonne..  I also spent a bit on LPG.. $2800 all up for the latest up to date system 18 months back  for my 2006 Chrysler 300C V6.. GREAT CAR.. drive it everywhere.. all the time.. just like back in the 70's.. fuel is NOT an issue, have racked up 70,000km in two years.. will keep it serviced and probably run a half million easy...
     Brought recently another 2007 Toyota table top.. ex mining company.. $7400 at south coast Auctions.. it drives like a brand new ute..manual .. 4 cyl.. been used as a parts chaser for the mining company driven from Picton, Hunter valley and Gladstone.. serviced every 10,000 kms and well maintained.. has wait for it.. 521,000 km on it.   PERFECT vehicle..  and .. on LPG.. cost about $20 to return trip to Canberra..
   Sons Honda CRV.. on gas  with a government kickback.. cost around $1300.. he can now afford to drive ..   Daughter brought a 2007 CRV already on latest gas.. cut her fuel bill in half basically.
 
    If I had a daily driver yank tank.. I'd gas it.. why give the Government and Arabs more the you need to .. only to restrict your movement and freedom...
    If the Federal Government was fair dinkum about Carbon Emissions & fuel use etc... .. they'd heavily promote LPG.. .. but both sides are two faced when it comes to LPG and its benefits...

[bonnevista]

A few years back when I was still married, I even had the Mrs. Peugeot 505 converted to straight LPG.
 
The guy that did the job was also a Peugeot enthusiast and used a bunch of 2nd hand parts he had lying around.  The conversion cost me $1000 - no gov't rebate back then.

The Pug returned 33 mpg on a trip and performance wise, you couldn't tell the difference from petrol.

Cost wise, it would be like having a car that gets 90 miles per gallon.

People that don't use lpg have always said to me, a: next year it'll be as dear as petrol.  b: hardly any petrol stations have lpg, so you'll run out and be stuck.  c: you have to drive thousands and thousands of miles to get the cost back.

As far as a & b are concerned - b.s.  And as far as c is concerned - I do drive thousands and thousands of miles, isn't that the whole idea??

I've never calculated the time it's taken me to recover the conversion cost in my Grand Ville, but I did calculate the cost of the first car I had converted back in 1990.  It was a '64 Pontiac Bonneville Brougham.  That car did 20,000 miles a year every year for 10 years.  It took me 11 months to recoup the cost.

That 43 cents per litre I paid last week - less that a third the price of petrol at the same station.  

[LeighP]

Yeah, LPGs not a bad thing, eh?

[bonnevista]

Yeah, LPGs not a bad thing, eh?

43 cents per litre x 150 litres (my tank capacity) - $64.50

$1.40 per litre x 150 litres - $210

Why would you bother??