Does anyone have car converted to work on vegetable oil?

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Apologies for digging up an old thread, but I've worked on several Mercedes biodiesels and would love to chime in. Best model to get would be the early to mid-eighties five cylinder turbodiesel models... Either the w123 chassis 300D (comparable to today's E class) or the w126 300SD (S class). If you want some real style, look into mid 70's w115's... 300D, 240D. These engines are extremely reliable and are known to be able to go 500,000 miles before needing a rebuild. I've seen several with over a million miles myself. The power isn't all that bad either, but it will take some getting used to if you are accustomed to fast cars. They are very efficient, as diesel engines are known to be.

There really isn't much to "converting" the car... however you will definetly have to replace your fuel filters several times when you first start out. The biodiesel (or waste vegetable oil) will clean out all the junk in your fuel tank, clogging the filters until it's completely clean. Same goes for the rubber fuel lines, they will need to be replaced with Viton lined fuel hoses, as the biodiesel won't degrade them.

This is really all you need to do if you live in a warm climate such as Southern California. If you live in a colder climate, however, the biodiesel has a tendency to gel up. You can add a heat exchanger in the fuel tank (uses hot coolant from engine to keep fuel warm), but you'll have to either install an electric block heater on the fuel tank or add a secondary fuel tank for regular diesel fuel (switching over when the biodiesel is hot enough). You can also mix regular diesel with biodiesel for better starting results. For added heating, you can wrap wire heaters around the fuel lines all the way up to the injectors... biodiesel is very hard to ignite at atmospheric pressure and has a flash point of over 300 degrees. It's very safe to handle. A fun way to scare your friends is to toss a lit match into a container of biodiesel. That always gets them.

You'll want to make sure everything is up to snuff on the car... injector pump timing is correct, glow plugs are working correctly, and you don't have any vacuum leaks. But these are common problems with diesel engines that will result from neglect, nothing specific with biodiesel use. In fact, due to the higher content of solvents in the biodiesel, the interior of the engine and injection pump will be spotless.

Here is a good link: http://mercedesshop.com/shopforum/showt ... p?t=111689

That forum is an excellent place to ask more detailed questions.


Anyway, good luck with this project, the world needs more people who are willing to take initiatives for themselves rather than waiting for some company to do so.

bio-diesel works great as a furnace fuel-oil. Here in the mid-atlantic, many homes are heated with fuel oil, which is pretty much the same stuff as diesel fuel. Some of the oil companies have bio-fuel options. A friend of mine buys 85 biofuel meaning the fuel is 85 percent bio fuel, and 15 percent petroleum fuel. His furnace stays cleaner, and the smell of the fuel is much more pleasing.

Many of the older diesels like the 300D you mention don't need any modifications to burn bio-diesel fuel. The cooking grease however has to be filtered so solid particles do not make it into the injection system. Diesel engines have high pressure fuel injection systems, and even the tiniest particles of debris can clog them! Water in the fuel can also damage the injection system. In fact, the lack of fuel-water separators is what gave the GM diesel engines in the 80's such a bad reputation. I imagine the biggest expense is for the filtration systems designed to make sure no damaging materials make it to the engine.

Why do you have to pay for oil from restaurants? In my city, we never have to pay. Restaurants pay others to get rid of their oil, so they are happy to give it away for free to people who want to make biodisel.

Moo!

Moo is my mating call.

I too have been looking into a bio diesel conversion. We've got several 5cyl diesels laying around from 300d and SD benzes, so it should be interesting. However, I've been looking into an adjustable wastegate of some sort, as well as a larger injector pump, intercooling (if possible) and maybe propane as a way to perk the diesel up. the 120hp it normally provides is a bit low for my tastes. 150-180hp would nicely move the car along with those can be had with decent modifications. Oh yea, this motor is going into a pickup truck.

I'm going to have one up soon hopefully. Pretty easy to do yourself if ya don't mind getting dirty, and wayyyyy cheaper too. Just remember that the VO needs to be filtered a dewatered within an inch of it's life, as well as preheated in order to match the viscosity of diesel No.2, although cars with VE type pumps may see a benefit from slightly higher viscosity due to lower than stock internal pump pressure from wear. So... If the VO won't get hot enough to use for the majority of driving, there's really no incentive to use it. Also, depending on where you are, and how many miles you drive per year, it may be cheaper getting a smaller/more efficient auto. PM if ya want any more info.

I've heard about this process, but my car isn't converted.

Tim

Unfortunately it can only be done to diesel engines. Otherwise, I would be doing this to my car.