Cooking oil

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Bick
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Cooking oil

Post by Bick »

Hi all im new to this forum so please forgive me if this topic has been done to deth before!

But are any of you using cooking oil in your diesels?

If so what kind of mix and have you had any trouble with it?


many thanks
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Post by Peter.N. »

If no one turns up here with any info, there is some very good mail regarding the use of cooking oil on the 'Club XM' forum.
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Post by Ross »

try dieselveg on a search - there are a lot of sites on the web - some on ebay - search under veg oil - its really interesting and something I wouldnt mind doing once I can afford the modifications, preheaters switch gear etc - on some of the American sites they even use solid oil melted in a pre heat tank by immersion and then circulated - watch the tax - evidently you need to fill in a form for customs declaring 100lts a month - I assume whenever you are stopped you are still using the same 100 litres - if you really get into it you can also access plans for tank/filter arragements and advice on how to reuse the cooking oil which is allegedly collected for free - happy days
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Post by AndersDK »

You may also try "veggie oil" on a search.
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Post by James.UK »

Hi bick. I tried some ordinary cooking oil straight from the supermarket shelf. All I did was pour it into my fuel tank.. No mods of any sort. In total I used approx 6 gallons in my ZX then topped up with diesel, so it was close to a 50-50 mix.

The result was, my mpg went down by about 10%, but the engine performed slightly better and ran a bit quieter.. :) I have not bothered since, as the penalty if caught does not warrant the money saved... My milage is only about 4,500 a year.
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Wedgewood Blue 75 CTD auto Connoissaur. 2002. 144k. used daily. ave mpg 40 ish.
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Post by Ross »

james is dead right - if they catch you say goodbye to the car and loads of money - unless you complete the paperwork Customs are merciless
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Post by Peter.N. »

In the summer or a hot climate you can probably get away with using it almost neat, but in the cold it will clog the fuel filter, so a lot of dilution or heating is required.

Customs and excise do carry out random fuel checks, I know from experience, not that I was using illegal fuel!. Many years ago I was approached by C&E at the Exeter car auction and had my fuel tested, this was even before diesels became generally available, I was in a converted Vauxhall Cresta, How did they know! They were generally checking Land Rovers, as it seems that some farmers had accidently filled them from the wrong pump.
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oil

Post by Bick »

thanks again for the replies chaps.

It just interested me as my mate has been running his transit van ont the stuff for a while now - best let him know about Customs :shock:

If i give it a go i'll let you know how i get on


all the best

bick
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Post by mpr1956 »

Hi there, I used neat veg oil (SVO)during the summer months in both my 1.9d zx and my 1.9tdsx without any mods or apparent damage. But there was a very distinctive smell and I was sure that everyone was looking at me!! Be in no doubt though, if you do get caught by C+E then they do not play by the same rules as the rest of our judicial system. I stopped for that very reason ( I would have had to evade duty for a few years to come out on top) Dig deep and drive with a clear conscience is my advice.. regards Martin
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Post by davethewheel »

yes be very sure that if you are going to use any other fuel that you must pay the duty on it, i'm talking from Experperince and it's costly :wink:
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Post by Bick »

Yes it is a little difficult to explain th C+G why you car smells like a the Happt Fryer! :lol:
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Post by rabenson »

Do NOT use veggie oil if you have a Lucas injector pump as it relies on the lubricating properties of the oil whereas the Bosch pump apparently doesn't so is fine for your mobile chippy!

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Post by JohnTurbo »

rabenson wrote:Do NOT use veggie oil if you have a Lucas injector pump as it relies on the lubricating properties of the oil whereas the Bosch pump apparently doesn't so is fine for your mobile chippy!

Ron
This make be so, but since the veg oil is more viscous, it had a higher lubricity. It should in therory lubricate the pump and engine more effectively, at the cost of a slightly increased friction.
Citroens have more spheres.
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Post by rabenson »

JohnTurbo wrote: This make be so, but since the veg oil is more viscous, it had a higher lubricity. It should in therory lubricate the pump and engine more effectively, at the cost of a slightly increased friction.
This increased viscosity compounds the problem - particularly when the pump is cold and has been known to cause the rotor driveshaft to shear on lucas pumps.

Have a look on the excellent doctordiesel.co.uk site for more info

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Post by Stewart(oily) »

I have found a local supplier of real Biodeisel, tax paid and all above board, the fuel is still quite viscous in the transesterified state but both of my vehicles (BX TZD znd ZX Volcane TD) readily start and run well on it) The main vegoil issue with lucas pumps seems to be natural rubber seals which will be attacked over time, that said a few years ago I tried various mixes up to 85% oil over a year or so without apparent damage on a lucas pumped car, viscosity can be "loosened up" a bit by adding small amounts of unleaded petrol, It is worth properly notifying Customs and Excise to avoid looking over your shoulder,I certainly am happier with a bona fide reciept in the car as the biodeisel still produces a smell remeniscent of a chippy in full flow :)
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