LPG motorbike conversions.

[sickpup]

So as I slowly recover from having my leg cut open and resealed I've gone back to work and apart from the freezing cold petrol prices seem to have become very silly.

Mid October I was paying 91.9-93.9 per litre and now prices have jumped all the way up to 101.9-109.9 dependant on where you are in the country. So with an average 10%+ price hike and prices only going up I'm looking at buying a new/second hand NT700V and converting it to LPG using two small tanks, assuming I can find some small enough, one in each pannier.

Now this doesn't sound like it could be financially viable but when I finally return to working full time I will be looking at a fuel bill of £150+ a week so with an average saving of 40% (lower MPG as well as cost on LPG) I would be looking at an annual saving on fuel exceeding £3120 a year (assuming I can find LPG fill points) and that's a big saving.

The only problems I can see with this idea is the reduced luggage capacity which I can offset with a large top box and tank bag, the weight which I can live with and filling up although I will retain the petrol fuel tank so in turn have a much larger range between fill ups.

On the plus side I will also have greater comfort and weather protection compared to the ER5 I am using at the moment as well as cheaper running.

Can anyone else see problems that I can't and if so what?

[Itchy]

Funny enough when I went to go look at that NTV600 I thought of you. (twas an LPG and petrol conversion)

twas a white NTV 600 with courier bars and a 17 litre tank on the back but had 88,000 on the clocks , considering the fact that the peg rubbers and the bar rubbers were worn through , there was less paint on it than your donkey, and the guy selling it was a courier I think it was closer to 166000 maybe 266000.



, and it had been sold an hour before I even got there,

From pestering everybody else on the forum:

you get 80-90% the MPG on LPG, also having fuel tanks every where is heavy and ruins the handling, (I planned to put my endurance tanks on it).


Insurance wise the ins company was ok with a single tank (ie the main tank) being LPG , they were a bit iffy about extra tanks on the sides and got back to me a day later with a + £110 ontop of the original quote.

https://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=250186433264


EDIT

is it me or does that bike have a P&H plate?
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Spain 2008France 2007Big one 2009 We all die. The goal isn't to live forever, the goal is to create something that will. In the end, your life will flash before your eyes. Make sure it is worth watching.

[Itchy]

EDIT

Don't forget to claim 100% capital allowances on the conversion , worst that will happen is the tax inspector will disagree and only give you 50% FYI (do the conversion BEFORE April 5th btw) ,

and if you manage it I've give you a few bucks to convert my NTV too! .

Had a quick look, LPG bike conversion is a grey area still 50% min,

but all refueling ancillaries are allowable though.
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Spain 2008France 2007Big one 2009 We all die. The goal isn't to live forever, the goal is to create something that will. In the end, your life will flash before your eyes. Make sure it is worth watching.

[virus]

ive got fuck all knowledge of lpg conversions but if you get on www.ratbike.org/bbs/ and speak to someone called mouse he should be able to help, he has got a dnpr sidecar with a bmw boxer lump converted to LPG

Cheers
John
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own: 81 xs1100g...
owned: 85 rat CG (sold), 91 GS500e (stolen), 84 gsx400f (scrapped), 81 z250 (siezed, siezed, scrapped), 83 cb250rs (sold), 84 gpz750r ratfighter (killed) 84gpz400 (sold), '80 cb650 ratfighter (wrote off) 95gsx6/12f ratfighter (killed) 91 xj900 (sold)
stinkwheel Well I just had my hands up a pigs fanny. Which makes your concerns pale into insignificance.

[sickpup]

Thank you for that link.

I suppose I could also try and fit a kit to an NTV650 in the place of a top box and have side boxes instead and possibly bungee a top box onto the rear seat.

[thefallenange...]

would it be economical to get a small petrol car and convert it?
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Past - CG125 ,KR1S, SV650s, Street Triple R - Current - Duke 390

r.bridge1988@gmail.com

[Polarbear]

If the LPG tank is in the top box I would think the handling would be a bit iffy when it is full.
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[Polarbear]

[Pete.]

I don't see why LPG on a bike would be any more dangerous than a conventionally-fuelled bike. There's just as much chance of a leakage from a petrol tank in an accident (more I'd say even given that the LPG is under pressure) and when it does spill it remains as a liquid. LPG canisters are more robust and if they do leak it quickly disperses as a gas into the atmosphere. I think it's merely the fact that it's an in-conventional fuel for bikes that gets people worried.
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a.k.a 'Geri'

132.9mph off and walked away. Gear is good, gear is good, gear is very very good

[lozzypop1]

[DaveH]

What size tank do you think you'll be able to fit, remembering that they can only be filled to 80% capacity?

Have got an LPG car, that switches over to gas above a certain rpm, but know it is possible to get systems that are LPG only.

Are there kits readily available for bikes? Read somewhere that LPG bikes were a big think in India, more so than over here. Am assuming that they are injections systems, as opposed to the gas carb set up that I have on the Merc.

Failing that wear a scuba tank and put the lpg in it!!
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https://www.timhastingsracing.co.uk/

ZX7R & ER6F

[Itchy]

nah you fall of you break your spine, I was thinking of the one in the ebay link , in that I'd put 2 long thin tanks on the back seat and pile another ontop , with a small l litre petrol tank for starting thus giving me a 99 litre capacity, but alas didn't buy it
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Spain 2008France 2007Big one 2009 We all die. The goal isn't to live forever, the goal is to create something that will. In the end, your life will flash before your eyes. Make sure it is worth watching.

[sickpup]

[DaveH]

Cool

[steeveeweevee]

Hi, Just joined to reply to this post. I bought an ntv 600 on lpg about a year ago - probably the one your talking about.
I'm pretty handy at maintaining my bikes but this one's illuded me. I've never got it to run quite right on lpg - dam cheap though.
Has anyone els done an NTV?
cheers
steve...

[sickpup]

Would this be the white one with some kind of modified Rickman top box affair?

[colin1]

Sounds like more trouble than its worth to me.

The key is going to be getting a light lpg container or two and mounting it as low as possible.
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colin1 is officially faster than god

[sickpup]

[steeveeweevee]

Thats the one, looks like a T.V. with a buttie box glued to the top! I bought it off a chinaman round ormskirk way last year - he'd been using it for deliveries. Handles terrible! I think the only way to improve it would be to mount it on the back seat. You get about 100 miles on the 10 litre tank then its back on petrol or going out of your way for an lpg station. Also It always runs a bit rough on gas - HT leads ark to the frame and it backfires. I replaced the leads, also it came equipped with dyna coils. Tried all sorts but still wont run right, the compression's a bit low so i think thats the problem?
All in all, i couldn't reccomend it, like you said - more trouble than its worth but i've had my fill of fancy bikes for a while and this ones definitely got character.

[Itchy]

[steeveeweevee]

Yes, its got that "well used" look about it. Having said that, like most ntv's you hear about, its still in pretty good order and never let me down. I took all the lpg stuff off it for a while and it went great. I think i paid 500 for it which i didn't think was bad since i was going to buy a tank/regulator/switch etc... for about 300 quid to convert a bike myself.
That stupid looking box is actually really nicely made but everyone hates it!
Has anyone got any ideas why it might be running so well on petrol and so badly on gas? I've tried all sorts of different orifice plates over the carbs, replaced the arking ht leads, the Batterie's good. I might try altering the ignition timing next.

[DaveH]

Have you tried closing the gaps on the plugs slightly?
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ZX7R & ER6F

[steeveeweevee]

Good idea! i haven't tried that one yet. I've been away from home 7 months now spending my redundancy money, i'm in india at the moment but when i get back in a few days i'll give it a go. Its wierd, ticks over ok, then when you roll the throttle on the leads ark everywhere and it backfires, then its ok if you keep the revs up high. Thanks for the advice - will let you know how i get on.

Interestingly you can buy pannier shaped lpg tanks here in india for motorbikes which would be much more practical. However, i doubt they come with the solenoid operated safety cut off valve your supposed to have in europe!

[DaveH]

Are the replacement leads arcing as well? Would say that stopping that happening would need to be addressed as well before it will run cleanly; LPG systems give the ignition side a harder time and it really needs to be in good order.

India! Pff, there goes any sympathy you might have been due
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https://www.timhastingsracing.co.uk/

ZX7R & ER6F

[steeveeweevee]

Uuuuhhhh, don't feel well. I knew i should have just stayed in new zealand!
Sorry I wasn't very clear at first. Yes the new leads(copper cored) ark nearly as much as the old ones. Like you say, closing the plug gaps up might encourage the spark to actually jump where its supposed to. I heard the lpg puts more load on your ignition system but this seems a little exessive. I never had any problems when i done my van last year.
Its two plugs per cylinder on the ntv so i might try using a car ignition coil and just one of the plugs as an experiment.
The only other thing i can think of after that is to try altering the ignition timing.
I can only presume the guy who done the conversion must have gone through all this because why els would you bother fitting dyna coils to such a bike
Uuuhhhhgh i'm fed up with all this travelling, I just wanna fix motorbikes again
cheers for the help man