On or around Fri, 26 Nov 2004 22:39:45 -0000, "StaffBull"
<
[email protected]> enlightened us thusly:
>Thanks for the replies - my local Landy specialist has 2 gas converted ES
>spec, auto V8's in - but I'm getting conflicting stories about the
>equivalent MPG, some say 40MPG equivalent some say 22-25MPG anyone on here
>actually got a V8 gas conversion?
Mine, 3.5i manual running open loop gas conversion, gets about 13 mpg in
conditions where on petrol it'd return about 16-17. A Tdi, properly set up,
on the same use cycle would probably get about 28-30. with gas at a little
under half the price of diesel, it still just about breaks even on cost.
The 3.9 however is reckoned to get a few mpg better than the 3.5, and if the
gas conversion is closed loop (which it should be on a cat-fitted vehicle)
then you ought to get 16-18 on gas. That would be more like 30-35 mpg
equivalent, and you'd struggle to get that from a TDi auto.
>Also someone has told me that the
>reliability of the V8 is not as good as the 300Tdi and that the catalysts
>need replacing at aroung 50 - 70 K at the cost of £700 each!.
part of the thing about cats is whether or not someone's killed 'em. Wrong
LPG system or wrong fuel setup can do that quite quickly. A cat-fitted
vehicle should normally have a closed loop system, i.e. with lambda
controllers and the equivalent of EFi. These are things you need to know.
If it has a recent MOT then the cats are apt to be OK, since especially on
petrol it won't pass without 'em. A really good engine with a really
carefully tuned LPG system can, if you're lucky, pass the cat test without
cats...
as to reliability - the V8 has its problems, but if you get a good one with
good history and look after it, they're no more prone to fail than other
engines. sometimes head gaskets go, but they're easy to change - easier,
I'd say, than the 300 TDi. The 300 TDi is not completely without problems,
either - there's the famous cambelt issue and they can also overheat.
>I like the
>idea of the V8 power but I also like the fact that my 300Tdi has not missed
>a beat in the 14 Months I've had it. I just want t o upgrade it to ES spec
>and five doors.
> The main use it will have is short trips 80% of the time, I've also been
>told this is even more detremental to a V8 than a Tdi
running on LPG makes for a cleaner-running engine, so it's probably
marginally better on the stop-start stuff. Main thing would be to change
the oil and filters at least every 6000 and to use good quality oil.
>Feedback on the V8 Gas stuff would be especially welcomed - I need to make
>the correct choice on this one as I intend to keep it for a long time and
>put some "additions" on it ( lift kit uprated shocks etc)
see above. Try and find out what systems are fitted, what type and what
maker, as that has a bearing on parts in addition to the stuff mentioned
above.
