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Date: Sun, 2 Apr 2000 06:03:30 -0500
From: "Shad Laws" <s-lawsnopsamedu>
Subject: Re: Teenager Buying a used car


A couple things to consider about propane... it does not have as much energy per amount burned with air in a given size chamber as gasoline. What this means is that if we consider the energy given off by each and how much air is needed (i.e. how much we can cram in the cylinder), gasoline will give off more power. BTW, this is why nitromethane is a powerful fuel - not much energy per volume, but it requires much less oxygen than gasoline. However, propane does resist knocking very well with an equivalent anti-knock rating of about 130 octane. Perhaps it'd be best to find a car with an engine you can modify (like your bus) and increase compression to take advantage of this. Also play with timing to find out how quickly that propane is burning in there - make it as advanced as possible without pinging. If this isn't done, you're losing a good amount of efficiency... Another consideration - propane is nice now... but it is kept inexpensive artificially because of a relatively low demand. When oil prices climb, so does propane (it's a bi-product of petroleum cracking). When oil goes away, so will most of propane. If you really want to get some power and have fun, convert to ethanol and make ethanol in your backyard. Then again, this is a range limiter because outside of home, the closest thing to fuel you'll find is Everclear (190 proof) which is quite expensive... :-) That certainly is a plus of propane over ethanol - you can get propane (right now) at just about any gas station. Best of luck with your project! Take care, Shad anony_13 <anony_13nopsamo.com> wrote in message news:B50C4A6E.D40%anony_13nopsamo.com... > I'm a 17 year-old looking for a used car. I'm known for my unique-ness, > and would like to reflect that in the next car I buy. I have been driving a > 1965 Bus, which is WONDERFUL for getting questions and admired for it's > unique-ness. The only problem is that I'm limited to a 30 mile range due to > it's unpredictability and limited to 45 MPH max. Plus trying to corner it > in a strong wind is a safety hazard. > Frustrated with having to drive my mom's Carvan (where's the uniqueness > in that, not to mention the clutch.) I'm embarking on a search to find a > used car. I've searched the classifieds online and in the paper and there > are some cars that have gotten my interest, (as you can see all Euopean's). > I've found: VW Jetta, VW Golf, Saab 900, and some Volvo's. > Added to my unique ness I'm looking for a car that has a separate cargo > compartment (I can seal off a hatchback) or a lot of room under the car. > And I'd highly prefer a carburated engine... For my "science" experiment > (and cost effectiveness) I plan on converting the car to run on Propane. > And I need a place to put the tank (not allowed in a passenger compartment, > and fuel injection is messy. > Anyone have any suggestions? Thank you for anytime you take to answer. >

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