Propane powered Datsun??

[torquejunkie]

I have a 74 I converted to propane, I left the stock system intact so it still runs gas if I run out of LPG, although its really not that hard to find propane dealers. I scavenged parts from an old Clark forklift and picked up some basic fittings and hoses from a hardware/automotive store, it cost me something like $250 for everything, maybe 4 hours of work pulling parts and making them fit on my rig. Runs pretty well with the stock setup (230K on the engine too) and yes, some loss of power and lower mpg goes with it, something like a 10% decrease on my particular truck. I'm planning on rebuilding the old girl in the near future and bumping the compression ratio and maybe changing the cam and upping the valve sizes along with adding a Weber. The carb won't affect the propane system in any way other than a marginally higher flow rate but the rest of the mods will. Propane has a higher octane rating so the higher compression ratio in particular should increase the power and mileage both, theoretically to better power and mileage levels than the original gasoline system. That will mean that I will have to run a higher octane fuel if I happen to run out of LPG but as I said, its not too difficult to refuel propane, at least in my stomping grounds. I drive just under 50 miles a day and with the current lower mileage I'm only saving maybe $20 a month, which doesn't sound like much until you follow the math out and realize that you're saving $240 a year, still not a huge amount but better than a poke in the eye. That $240 a year makes it worth it to me and if gas prices continue to rise and hit the $5 a gallon they're projecting in my area then that $240 would be more like $400 - $500 with no further mods to make the propane more efficient. Anyways, that's my $ .02.

[Z chopper]

I have a friend that has a street legal propane injected diesel drag car, he uses Propane instead of Nitrous, with propane he does not need to purge the lines to drive it on the streets unlike nitrous. Legally here if we have nitrous the lines need to be purged of nitrous.

[zenndog]

It is all doable, just start checking out forklift places that service Nissan forklifts. Before my divorce started I found a place in LA and they had a 2000cc engine from a forklift that had fallen off the dock, they were going to sell the running motor with a tank and straps for $600. I didn't do it because it was the size of an L20 and I have a l320 truck. I wasn't sure if the trans would bolt up so I backed out. I didn't have time to check it out more. I went in to see if they could get a J15 but they seemed to think they are getting very rare. The forklift guys get a lot for parts since forklifts just tend to be owned by businesses that need them repaired quickly, so they can be hard to deal with.

[king bee66]

who wants to drive around with a tank of propane behind their head? count me out.