Propane: Can You Use It in a Motor Vehicle?
When most people think about propane, they think about grills, furnaces and a fuel that can power their appliances.
When propane is part of the conversation, it normally doesn't involve motor vehicles.
All of that could be changing in the near future.
Contrary to what you might think, this fuel can be used to power a motor vehicle.
Estimates indicate there are 270,000 vehicles on the road in the US powered with fossil fuels.
Propane is definitely a viable source of fuel.
As the country shifts toward clean fuel, it is going to become more popular.
Propane Vehicles Two main types of propane vehicles are available: those developed by the manufacturer coming off the assembly line and those that were once gas powered and were now converted to run from propane.
Bi-fuel vehicles are those sharing two fuel tanks, one for traditional gas and one for propane.
Many of the manufacturer vehicles running on propane are fleet vehicles, such as school buses, police cars and more.
A conversion kit allows you to convert your vehicle to propane, but the cost is around $10,000 to do so.
Due to the high cost, you can easily see why there aren't more people converting their vehicles to propane in the US.
How Does Propane Compare? The biggest question when it comes to propane is how it compares to other fuels.
Propane has a relatively high octane rating and low contamination characteristics, which means it is going to be a lot easier on the engine.
Vehicle engines running on propane can last twice as long as those running on gas.
Cold starts are far easier when your engine uses propane.
Propane is also a lot cleaner of a fuel than regular gas, which means you aren't flooding the environment with emissions.
Propane is about 10 percent less efficient than regular gas, so there is a good chance that your propane vehicle is going to need a fill quicker than that of traditional gas-powered vehicles.
However, it makes up for it when you consider how inexpensive the fuel is going to be.
You can find propane for as little as $1.
50 per gallon where it is commonly used as a source of fuel in vehicles.
The Future of Propane Propane continues to gain traction in terms of usage in the US.
It is the third most popular form of fuel to trucks and cars in the world.
It could end up becoming just as popular one day.
Grants are now being given to the Department of Energy to build these fueling stations across the US.
Constructing one of these stations only costs $100,000 compared to $1.
5 million for traditional gas stations.
As propane continues to grow in popularity, it will become natural for automakers to create vehicles that run exclusively on propane.
When this happens, conversion kits will probably drop in price.
It might be a little bit of time before it happens, but it is on the way.
When propane is part of the conversation, it normally doesn't involve motor vehicles.
All of that could be changing in the near future.
Contrary to what you might think, this fuel can be used to power a motor vehicle.
Estimates indicate there are 270,000 vehicles on the road in the US powered with fossil fuels.
Propane is definitely a viable source of fuel.
As the country shifts toward clean fuel, it is going to become more popular.
Propane Vehicles Two main types of propane vehicles are available: those developed by the manufacturer coming off the assembly line and those that were once gas powered and were now converted to run from propane.
Bi-fuel vehicles are those sharing two fuel tanks, one for traditional gas and one for propane.
Many of the manufacturer vehicles running on propane are fleet vehicles, such as school buses, police cars and more.
A conversion kit allows you to convert your vehicle to propane, but the cost is around $10,000 to do so.
Due to the high cost, you can easily see why there aren't more people converting their vehicles to propane in the US.
How Does Propane Compare? The biggest question when it comes to propane is how it compares to other fuels.
Propane has a relatively high octane rating and low contamination characteristics, which means it is going to be a lot easier on the engine.
Vehicle engines running on propane can last twice as long as those running on gas.
Cold starts are far easier when your engine uses propane.
Propane is also a lot cleaner of a fuel than regular gas, which means you aren't flooding the environment with emissions.
Propane is about 10 percent less efficient than regular gas, so there is a good chance that your propane vehicle is going to need a fill quicker than that of traditional gas-powered vehicles.
However, it makes up for it when you consider how inexpensive the fuel is going to be.
You can find propane for as little as $1.
50 per gallon where it is commonly used as a source of fuel in vehicles.
The Future of Propane Propane continues to gain traction in terms of usage in the US.
It is the third most popular form of fuel to trucks and cars in the world.
It could end up becoming just as popular one day.
Grants are now being given to the Department of Energy to build these fueling stations across the US.
Constructing one of these stations only costs $100,000 compared to $1.
5 million for traditional gas stations.
As propane continues to grow in popularity, it will become natural for automakers to create vehicles that run exclusively on propane.
When this happens, conversion kits will probably drop in price.
It might be a little bit of time before it happens, but it is on the way.
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