VF v8 LPG ?

[GeorgeDee]

Hi all

Just picked up a VF Series 2 calais V8. This will be my wifes daily commuter and I'm considering putting it on gas.

What are good gas systems i should be looking at and who are some good work shops in Melbourne to install that want butcher the car as I've had some bad experiences in the past where they made a mess of the install.

Cheers

 

[gossie]

Leave it on real gas.
Gasoline.

 

[Forg]

Leave it on real gas.
Gasoline.

I think you mean leave it on pet. Petrol.

What's the motivation for LPG?
I think some of the advantages it used to have, like better ability to avoid pinging with olde worlde carby engines, are effectively gone now everything's EFI.
LPG also isn't near as easy to find any more, now all the taxis are petrol hybrids.
And that ignores the complexity+cost of installing a modern system to a modern car, you can't just rip the gas bottle off your BBQ and put a burner from the kitchen stove into your air-cleaner like in the old days ...

 

[VS 5.0]

Not sure why people buy V8s and are then concerned about fuel economy.

 

[NJD-1992]

There is a video on YouTube of a bloke who had a Orange MY13 SSV, that he converted to gas and does a walkthrough of the system.

It was converted some years ago though, and he mentions it cost him over $4000 then, so almost certainly the price has gone up (Probably by a lot). And whilst it looks like a professional job, it will still look like all this equipment has been splice into the system.

Id agree with the others, leave it on petrol.

LPG just seems far to much of a hassle with the ridiculous tank in the boot, and everything else spliced in. Plus with the upfront cost, how long until you actually get your money back? Probably not a consideration, but I certainly wouldn't buy a car that had anything hacked on like that, regardless of who did it (Only if direct from Holden but that's just me). Otherwise an SV6 Calais V would probably be a better option

 

[J_D 2.0]

Hi all

Just picked up a VF Series 2 calais V8. This will be my wifes daily commuter and I'm considering putting it on gas.

What are good gas systems i should be looking at and who are some good work shops in Melbourne to install that want butcher the car as I've had some bad experiences in the past where they made a mess of the install.

Cheers

My system was done by this mob by a previous owner around 2012. I only bought the car early in 2020 so I can’t really comment on how it’s been going for most of its life but the only problem I’ve had with it during my ownership was a leaky injector, which is probably to be expected seeing as the system is ten years old now.

To everyone on here knocking LPG, don’t knock it till you’ve tried it. The only real disadvantages are the installation cost (I didn’t have to pay for mine so winning) and the lack of LPG pumps at servos now. Seeing as the OP is in Victoria it’s probably a lot more viable on that front as LPG was always more popular in Victoria.

Im happy that I get to fill up at around half the cost of premium petrol and am saving plenty of money on the daily commute. It’s also less wear and tear on the engine as the oil doesn’t accumulate carbon between oil changes. I change my oil around 10,000kms and it isnt black as the ace of spades like it would be if it was running only on petrol.



https://www.agautogas.com.au/

 

[Skylarking]

It’s a pity that Holden used an LPG gas injection system in their factory v6 cars and didn’t go the LPG liquid injected system as Ford did (since the later is supposedly much better). It‘s also a pity that Holden didn’t offer anything factory LPG for the v8 (as choice is always good).

Sadly LPG does get a bad wrap but that’s just a hangover from old carbi days. Todays LPG systems had enough potential that HSV spend development dollars and actually had it as an option for some of their models. Supposedly worked really well.

Still, spending $4k ++ to have a LPG system installed doesn’t make strong economical sense unless one does lots of kms each year so payback occurs within a couple of years.

If the payback period is long because one doesn’t do many kms each year, the LPG system must be maintained and the tank must be re-certified every 10 years) so those added maintenance costs just blow out the payback period even further. If payback is too long, the owner will never see any reduced operating costs out of the equation…

If I did many kms in my v8, so that payback would be around 2 years, then I’d not have any conceptual problem with having LPG installed. Ideally I’d want liquid injection but no one installs that any more

Whatever the case, LPG on a v8 is considered sacrilegious by many so who knows how it will impact price is one ever wanted to sell the car… though I must say that fantail orange VF looks nice which if sold at a similar price to other v8’s would be a bargain.

 

[EYY]

It wouldn’t bother me one bit. Do the calcs depending on how much you’re going to drive it Vs the cost of the conversion.

The difference of $1 per litre makes a massive difference to running cost. Fuel economy is approximately the same as petrol. The quality of the installation will be your biggest concern as far as reliability goes.

I fill up twice a week and save $60 per fill, so that’s $120 per week saving over petrol. If I had to run my vehicle on petrol, I’d have to sell it. I can’t justify that cost.

 

[Super Coach]

should of just bought a LPG V6 straight from the factory without any mucking around of converting.

 

[RWD4ever]

It’s a pity that Holden used an LPG gas injection system in their factory v6 cars and didn’t go the LPG liquid injected system as Ford did (since the later is supposedly much better). It‘s also a pity that Holden didn’t offer anything factory LPG for the v8 (as choice is always good).

Sadly LPG does get a bad wrap but that’s just a hangover from old carbi days. Todays LPG systems had enough potential that HSV spend development dollars and actually had it as an option for some of their models. Supposedly worked really well.

There was somebody offering liquid injection for LS engines (like what HSV did). I wonder if they would still be in business.