Do you use veggie oil in your TD4?

Do you use veggie oil in your TD4?

I have read on here that is a definite no no, so no!

It is a no no. I tried with just under 25% mix of veggie oil (pure rapeseed) to diesel just over a year ago, started the car up & took it for a 4 mile run through the back roads to mix it all nicely up & it ran great with no problems. Overnight the weather turned colder & there was signs of a light overnight frost. Bloody car wouldn't start. I kept trying & recharging the battery for the next three days till the weather warmed up a little again & then drove solidly for over two hours to burn off some fuel before going to the garage to brim up with real diesel. Cursed the whole episode & won't ever bother trying again.

chromiumuk said:

It is a no no. I tried with just under 25% mix of veggie oil (pure rapeseed) to diesel just over a year ago, started the car up & took it for a 4 mile run through the back roads to mix it all nicely up & it ran great with no problems. Overnight the weather turned colder & there was signs of a light overnight frost. Bloody car wouldn't start. I kept trying & recharging the battery for the next three days till the weather warmed up a little again & then drove solidly for over two hours to burn off some fuel before going to the garage to brim up with real diesel. Cursed the whole episode & won't ever bother trying again.

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But that can happen even to many, if not most motors during cold weather. If it was frosty then it must have been pretty cold.

RichM said:

But that can happen even to many, if not most motors during cold weather. If it was frosty then it must have been pretty cold.

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Exactly why it's not worth the hassle.

No. But I do use bio, (not to be confused with straight veggy oil) which I make myself.
So far so good, and a bloody sight cheeper than dino diesel. (about 20ppl)

Andrew McIntyre said:

No. But I do use bio, (not to be confused with straight veggy oil) which I make myself.
So far so good, and a bloody sight cheeper than dino diesel. (about 20ppl)

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Yeah, cheaper but the chemicals used to process it are not good for the seals in your fuel system. Think from memory it was the sodium hydroxide & methanol which causes the most damage but not 100% sure. All I know is it's not recommended on the BMW common rail diesels. OK for the old L-series though.

Safe way to run Veg Oil in any car is Twin-Tank with heat exchangers etc, single tank conversion (upgrade bits of your engine) or run Biodiesel.

I know the TD4 is not recommended to run on twin tank. Just too modern & sensitive, fuel pump-wise, I believe.

Elsbett are a company that specialise in converting cars to run on Veg Oil. Check their website for Freelanders. This costs a lot!

Using Biodiesel is probably your easiest option. Do ensure your seals are in good order using biodiesel definitely & have a fuel filter handy, as using bio can basically clean the crap out of your fuel tank.

Some recommend changing the fuel filter after so many miles, but I'd say just keep a spare fuel filter for the day it starts running lumpy (may never happen) & change as per regular service intervals.

I'd just check your fuel lines as part of your regular oil/water weekly check if I were you.

The gents on the following forum know much more than I do about the subject, either using Veg oil straight or using/making Bio:

vegetableoildiesel.co.uk - Powered by XMB

If bio-diesel is properly processed, there is no sodium or potassium hydroxide or methanol in the finished fuel, so no problem. And personally I wouldn't like to use raw veggy in any vehicle, but especially not a common rail.

Veggie oil will cause starting problems in winter.... d good trick if you get caught out is to take engine cover off get a towel pour boiling water over 3/4 and lay it over top of engine .... then get anther towel lay it over the top and wet it with boiling water... being careful to try and avoid electrics. I did this and managed to start my golf when I put 60% veggie in!!!!!
Only use pure veggie oil ..... and only use in summer months june to september don't go over 20% ...... so it's not that worthwhile cheapest oil i have seen at costco is 85p ltr.

D3savage said:

Veggie oil will cause starting problems in winter.... d good trick if you get caught out is to take engine cover off get a towel pour boiling water over 3/4 and lay it over top of engine .... then get anther towel lay it over the top and wet it with boiling water... being careful to try and avoid electrics.

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Or just spray WD40 into the air intake...

RichM said:

Or just spray WD40 into the air intake...

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Are you speaking from personal experience there, Rich?

'Cause I don't think it would work - certainly when diesel waxes up your pretty well screwed until the temp rises.

I've a lot of experience in very, very, low temperatures (-30C) and for me any veggy oil in wintertime would be a no-no.

For the Balkans in Winter we carry the Shell Winter Diesel Additive which says it's good down to -25C, but even then we used to have a rota system where one unfortunate bloke had to go out in the snow and go round all the motors and start them up every hour or so during the night.

In Romania we had locals who wanted to shove burning sheets of cardboard under the tanks - not a good idea if you have a plastic tank!!!!!

Best keep the veggy stuff for Summer - if at all.

been using bio in a td4 since new and its been fine np at all to many scare mungers when it comes to this subject 2002 td4 105,000 miles now 50/ 50 mix

Used it on my TD4 and within days it seemed to cause problems. Car wouldn't go past 70mph. Might be unrelated but seems like too much of a coincidence.

Use it in my disco 300 tdi. So far it has killed a fuel lift pump and has also caused some difficult cold starts. I've since replaced the lift pump with a better one and now pay more attention to my fuel mix ratio in order to avoid difficult cold starts.

Cold starting is an issue ....... maybe if your truck is garaged you may get away with it..... Cremator is yours garaged??? do you live in Scilly Isles!!!! My golf TDi and SAAB Tid loved veggie ..... up to about 40% used to run until September and then use again in May. Affraid to use in my TD4 fuel pumps are like chocolate tea pots.

no its not garaged and no live in kent wifes range rover in garage along with my jag use bio all year around in it 50/50 mix with know probs at all

Hmmm is this garage bio or just plain glupy virgin veggie???

well made bio

Virgin veggie oil and bio diesel are completly different entities!!!!

Yes yes yes