Can anyone help me please / Hilux 93 / bio newbie

[James W Biofuels Forum Newbie Find all posts View Profile Close James W]

Hi there, I own a 93 Hilux Surf 3lt turbo diesel. I know next to nothing about engines but am keen on changing over to bio diesel as I'm concerned about the environment. I'd rather not sell my surf If I can help it and was interested in finding out how I could convert my engine if indeed I even need to. Also if I do convert it and something happens to it is it going to be a real pig for a regular mechanic to fix and will I need to know a bio specific mechanic.
Any help anyone can offer will be greatly appreciated,

thank you
James W / Wellington / New Zealand

[zigparacingtadpole Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close zigparacingtadpole]

Re: Can anyone help me please / Hilux 93 / bio newbie

To run on Biodiesel you need make no modifications to your vehicle. Fill it up and away you go. Having said that, keep in mind that Biodiesel has really good scouring (cleaning) properties and until all the crud that has built up in the fuel system over the life of your vehicle is removed you will have to change your fuel filters a bit more regularly. My advice would be to find out where your filter is and learn how to change it, and carry one in the car with you for the first few thousand kilometres. After the first few thousand k's on bio all the crud in the tank and fuel lines will eventually be cleared out and you wont have to worry any more.
Running on waste cooking oil or straight veg oil will require some modifications to your vehicle to heat and deliver the oil to your engine, these mods are not exceptionally hard if you have a small modicum of mechanical aptitude. If you are interested in going this way I suggest you look through the wealth of information in the SVO forum on this site.
Hope that helps

Adam

"Revolution never comes with a warning!"

[James W Biofuels Forum Newbie Find all posts View Profile Close James W]

Re: Can anyone help me please / Hilux 93 / bio newbie

Thank you, I feel like I'm now starting to move in the right direction

[Robert Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close Robert]

Re: Can anyone help me please / Hilux 93 / bio newbie

Hi James and welcome to the forums. Adam is right, the only thing you need to be concerned about is the good clean out that biodiesel will give your system, so be prepared to change a few filters and then you won't have to worry again.
Not sure re availability in Wellington, but if you do find anywhere, make sure you put them on the map, so that others may also find it.
Lastly, just make sure you use good quality, well made biodiesel and you will not have any problems. Cold properties are one consideration you need to look at in your part of the world, so make sure that the biodiesel you use suits the temperature at the time you use it.

[James W Biofuels Forum Newbie Find all posts View Profile Close James W]

Re: Can anyone help me please / Hilux 93 / bio newbie

Thanks for that, I didn't realise about the temperature thing being a factor to consider. At present I have not found anywhere in Wellington that can supply it but I will keep everyone posted when I come across something.

[James W Biofuels Forum Newbie Find all posts View Profile Close James W]

Re: Can anyone help me please / Hilux 93 / bio newbie

Actually while I think of it I have another question maybe someone can help me with,
Just say hyperthetically I'm using bio diesel and I run out and I'm in the middle of nowhere and the only fuel I can get is regular diesel is that going to conflict with the bio diesel that I've been using in the engine or will it be fine ?
I ask this because I don't want to be put in a position where I'm so restricted that I find myself having to take barrels of fuel with me everytime I'm running the length of the country. Sorry if this is a dumb question but I have to ask or I'll never know.

Thanks
James

[tillyfromparadise Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close tillyfromparadise]

Re: Can anyone help me please / Hilux 93 / bio newbie

Hello james

Biodiesel and petro-diesel are mixable in all proportions

[Matt Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Matt]

Re: Can anyone help me please / Hilux 93 / bio newbie

James apart from the clean out it will do the only other things may be the fuel lines, which may go a bit soft over time, months not weeks. The other is your injection pump seals, they will most likely swell a bit but this will not be a problem unless they are in bad nick to start with.

These two things are not life threatening but need to be watched like your filter will need to be! I will be fine otherwise.

Matt

[James W Biofuels Forum Newbie Find all posts View Profile Close James W]

Re: Can anyone help me please / Hilux 93 / bio newbie

Thanks guys,

I think all my fuel lines are synthetic due to the age of the vehicle.

The bio diesel does sound appealing but after a bit of research I have come across a couple of issues :

1: Bio diesel does not seem to be available in Wellington unless I produce it myself......

2: If I do produce it myself the prospect of having a whole load of methanol on my property is a little unnerving to say the least. Am I being paranoid or is it a genuine threat.

I'm still very interested to hear what other people think about the whole methanol risk or if anyone has heard of Bio Diesel suppliers in Wellington.

Thanks for everyone's help so far

I'm off to do a bit more research now but am keen to know why more people don't go with UVO. Is it a problematic road to go down ?

James

[James W Biofuels Forum Newbie Find all posts View Profile Close James W]

Re: Can anyone help me please / Hilux 93 / bio newbie

Sorry I think I meant WVO, I just googled UVO and came up with Ukranian Military Organization ?

Anyhows back to the research..................

[tillyfromparadise Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close tillyfromparadise]

Re: Can anyone help me please / Hilux 93 / bio newbie

Hello James
The normally accepted TLA is either WVO (Waste Vegetable Oil) or UCO (Used Cooking Oil).

Having a drum of methanol sitting around would be as dangerous as having a drum of Petrol sitting around.
The auto ignition temperature of methanol is about 455deg C so a sunny day in Wellington should not be a concern.

Tilly

[Guest Close David]

Re: Can anyone help me please / Hilux 93 / bio newbie

2: If I do produce it myself the prospect of having a whole load of methanol on my property is a little unnerving to say the least.
Am I being paranoid or is it a genuine threat.

James,
There seems to be a lot of paranoia about Methanol and people think it is a lot more dangerous than what it really is. The facts are it is a lot less flammable and explosive than petrol which is a fuel most people have no qualms about and is in many ways a lot safer to handle than petrol.

Most people use meth at the rate of 20% to oil when making bio so it's not like you need to have all that much around. A 200L drum is good for 1000L of bio so even if you have to buy it by the drum, it is not an over the top qty to have around. Stored and handled safely with the same proper precautions you would take with petrol or any other flammable liquid, methanol is nothing to be concerned about.

When making bio and working with the meth, make sure you have good ventilation and handle it sensibly as you should when using any aromatic chemical and you will be safe as houses.

I have just the last couple of days been experimenting with blending 20% unleaded and 80% WVO. So far the results are surprisingly good. The ol girl fired up this morning (admittedly a bit later and warmer than normal) better than ever before and it really does have noticeably better pickup and revs easier. My car is unmodified except for a some largely ineffective heating of the fuel ( which I will try to remedy this week.)

I am very pleased with the performance of this blend so far and will continue to keep testing and see how it goes.

[James W Biofuels Forum Newbie Find all posts View Profile Close James W]

Re: Can anyone help me please / Hilux 93 / bio newbie

Thanks for all your help guys......

[Biofuelnz Biofuels Forum Newbie Find all posts View Profile Close Biofuelnz]

Re: Can anyone help me please / Hilux 93 / bio newbie

Hi James,
Yes I think with the age of your vehicle you will be okay - you can check at
Toyota 4WD Surf Owners :: Index
do a search on BD or just ask a question.

I'd start of with a 5% BD mix and work up to 20% and keep an eye on your seals.

Regards
Mike

[James W Biofuels Forum Newbie Find all posts View Profile Close James W]

Re: Can anyone help me please / Hilux 93 / bio newbie

Thanks for everyone's input. I think at this stage I'm going to go with a company called 'Envirocar' and get a wvo conversion just because they're based in wellington and it's convenient. I want to still try BD but at this stage don't want to produce it myself and there seems to be nowhere in Wellington to obtain it. If anyone is interested I will be happy to keep everyone up to date with how the wvo conversion pans out. They seem like a good company with good morals so I guess from here on in the proof will be in the pudding.
If anyone has any input on this company or anything else relevant to this thread I would be interested to here from them

thank you
James