Waste Vegetable Oil Conversion of Mazda 1990 2.

0L diesel station wagon

By Tony Clark

As the owner of a diesel vehicle, the article on biodiesel and the Vegie powered tractor in ReNew #69, gave me
the opportunity to do my bit for the environment.

I purchased the book " From the Fryer to the Fuel Tank", by Joshua Ticknell, and read with interest, the pages
on biodiesel, and vegetable oil conversions. Having no chemistry knowledge, I consulted safety material at
work, and only managed to convince myself, that I didn’t wish to mess with these dangerous chemicals.

My brother in law John and I decided that the best way to go was to build a separate fuel tank and convert the
car to run on Vegetable Oil. Most of you will know that in the engine bay on a front wheel drive car these days
there is very little available space to fit anything, but we managed to build a heated 17 litre tank, which we
shoe-horned under and alongside the battery, between the battery and engine. This necessitated relocating the
vacuum pipe for the brakes and other fittings, but we did it.

We sourced a 3 port solenoid valve to allow us to control the fuel source to the engine. A truck oil filter (CAV
type) completed the conversion. Now to find some oil. A local fast food outlet kindly let me have some to try,
but before I could fill my tank, I had to get it out of the drum, it was solid. After it sat 2 hours in the sun, I
managed to filter the oil into the new tank. I bled the Veg oil fuel system by connecting the outlet pipes from
the diesel to the Veg oil, and pumped the diesel until the bubbles stopped in the Veg oil tank.

We went for the test drive, when the Veg oil temperature LED came on, we changed over to oil. After about 10
km, we stopped and checked, we hadn’t noticed any change in performance or engine beat, and found that the
exhaust now smelt remarkably like a barbecue. We were elated. On the drive home, we drove up a hill that we
used regularly and found no noticeable difference in performance. Knowing that the oil solidified when cool,
we idled the car for 10 minutes, to ensure that there was diesel in the injector pump and lines so that we were
sure that the car would start in the morning.

The following week, the whole family were going on holidays to Manjimup, about 350km south of Perth. With
40 L of Veg oil in the back, amongst clothing, bedding and holiday items, we were off. 20 minutes into the
journey, the veg-oil temperature LED came on and we changed over to veg-oil. As the oil tank has no guage,
we stopped at Bunbury and refilled the tank of oil. No problems so far, and about 150 km to go. The weather in
Perth had been warm, and as we travelled southeast from Bunbury, it started to cool. After about 100 km, we
stopped to check the oil level, and found that half of the tank was still solid. After filling the tank again we
placed newspaper around the tank, everywhere that we could jam it in, and be confident that it would stay there.

We arrived in Manjimup, and found our accommodation (an old timber mill town 40 km out of town). The
following day we couldn’t get the oil warm enough to melt, while driving around, so we ran on diesel. The only
day when we were able to run on oil, the temperature was about 20 C, We did about 400 km on Veg oil, and 50
km on diesel, that day,

On the way home, we managed to get the oil melted, by prolonged idling, and set off home. After about 100
km, the car suffered a loss of power, affecting the higher speeds and gradually reducing the top speed of the car.
By switching from oil to diesel and back again, we were able to continue at legal speeds, although my switch
hand had cramp by the time we got home.

On the trip , we covered 1700 km, and only used 70 L of diesel. As I have no means of conveniently measuring
the oil usage, I calculated back from the diesel usage.
I normally get about 14.5 km/L on diesel. The 70 L of diesel I used should have taken me about 1000 km. The
other 700 km was on oil.

Since then, I have trialled heating the Veg oil filter and fitting a heated fuel line. In my first attempt at heating
the fuel line, I used PVC fittings, but soon realised that, although the principle worked, the fittings would let me
down soon. These fittings were replaced with brass fittings and now give no leaks.

The fuel filter clogging continued to plague me, with longer journeys (higher oil temperatures, for longer)
causing filter change intervals to fall to 200 km. I have heard reports that the wax coating of the paper filter
element in this type of filter may be a contributing factor to this clogging.

I recently cut up a Holden oil pump, to use the oil filter connection, and have fitted this with a glow plug,
thermostatically controlled to 60 C. As the filter is mounted with the opening at the bottom, I had expected the
need to drill a hole in the top of the filter, to bleed the system, but in practice I have found that the system is
virtually self bleeding, with only a few flicks of the oil switch during about 5 minutes running. The injection
system seems to be very tolerant of a small amount of air in the fuel. I have located the Veg Oil temperature
thermostat (50 C) on the modified housing also.

Enquiries of many fast food outlets in my area revealed one using Canola oil. They now supply me with 40 L
per week of relatively clean oil, which is liquid at room temperatures.

Since changing the Oil filter type, adding the glow plug and using Canola, I have eliminated the delay before
changing to oil. Immediately after starting, I change over to oil and there are no obvious negative effects. I have
travelled 1000 km since filling the diesel tank and my diesel fuel gauge has just dropped below the Full mark.
The oil filter is still the one I installed at the time I changed to Canola oil, so it seems that the combination of
changing the filter type and changing to Canola oil has, at least, reduced the filter clogging problems.

I have since learned that the galvanised sheet metal, which we used to construct the tank, reacts with the
vegetable oil resulting in globules, which clog the filter, being formed.

Since I have emptied the tank, washed it out with acid to remove the zinc and rinsed to remove the acid, the
problem has been eliminated.

DO NOT MAKE FUEL TANKS FROM GALVANISED STEEL!

Since our first test run on oil, the car has done about 12 000 km, with the only problems being due to allowing
oil to cool in the injector pump. (Recovering from this requires the kettle to be boiled and the hot water poured
over the injectors, plumbing and pump several times) To overcome the problem, I modified a "Jaycar Turbo
Timer" to give me a range of 5 – 10 minutes run–on, after turning off the oil. An override switch allows the
motor to be stopped for short periods, without changing back to diesel. Using glow plugs, the engine starts well
on the hot oil. If the weather is cool I change back to diesel if I am turning off for more than an hour (longer in
hot conditions). To reduce the waste of diesel idling with the run-on timer, I usually turn back to diesel about 5
minutes from home. I now use biodiesel instead of diesel to start & shutdown.

A concern I have with using Canola oil, is that I have been advised that a build up of carbon at the top of the
piston will occur, resulting in increased engine wear. A future project is to install some form of water injection
(as used in large marine diesel engines, fuelled by bunker oil) to combat the carbon build up.

 
A further improvement will be to replace the 3 port solenoid valve, with a 6 port unit, to allow the fuel return
line to be directed to the fuel tank in use, instead of being connected to the injector pump suction line. This will
enable shorter shutdown times, as there will be little mixing of the return line fuel with the fuel from the tank in
use, allowing more reliable operation and reduced biodiesel consumption. At present, the return line fuel is
gradually diluted with biodiesel, as the run on time proceeds, hopefully being >90% biodiesel at the end of the
run on time. This will ensure that the fuel is 100% biodiesel at the end of a short (~1 minute) run on time.

 See Plant Drive

http://plantdrive.com

VEGETABLE OIL Cars and Converting Your Car to VEGETABLE OIL

http://plantdrive.com
http://www.greasecar.com
http://www.vegpoweredsystems.com
http://www.goldenfuelsystems.com
http://www.goodgrease.com
http://www.vegpower.com
http://www.elsbett.com
http://biocar.de
http://www.enviofuel.com
http://www.frybrid.com
http://www.vegiecars.com
http://www.theorganicmechanic.org
http://www.fattywagons.com
http://greasebenz.com

http://www.vtvegcar.com

http://www.vegengine.blogspot.com

http://www.greenconversion.net

http://www.alaskavegoil.org

http://www.ehow.com/how_2004136_vegetable-oil-fuel.html

http://www.vegdvw.com

http://www.greendiesel1.com

http://vegwerks.wordpress.com

http://www.vegiecars.com

http://vegetablepowersystems.com

http://danalinscott.netfirms.com

http://www.bebioenergy.com

http://www.instructables.com/id/Biotour.org-Waste-Vegetable-Oil-Conversion-Diesel-/
DVD LIQUID GOLD 2
Learn the Do’s and Don’t's of Gathering and using Waste Vegetable oil as a fuel. Perfect for anyone who is currently
using, or planning on using SVO (Straight Vegetable Oil) or Bio Diesel as a fuel!

These questions and more are answered on this DVD:

• The legality of collecting waste vegetable oil and burning it as a fuel.

• Overview of how diesel engines burn waste vegetable oil as fuel.
• How to identify good waste vegetable oil.
• How to identify bad waste vegetable oil.
• How to ask a restaurant for their waste vegetable oil.
• How to fuel up on the fly with the automated One Shot Filtration Unit.
• How to setup your own waste vegetable oil accounts.
• How to collect large quantities of oil for later filtration at home.
• How to filter waste vegetable oil using filter bags.
• How does salt, sugar and animal fats affect waste vegetable oil for fuel?
• How to tell if there’s water in the oil?
• How to filter the oil once it’s been gathered.
• Cold Weather gathering techniques and tips.

http://www.goldenfuelsystems.com

DVD S.V.O. Seminar 2006

Lately there's been a lot of talk about the effects of Global warming due to our love of gas guzzling vehicles and our
dependency on foreign oil. Scientists and entrepreneurs around the world are busy developing what they hope will be
our answer to cleaner burning vehicles. What many people don't realize is that this technology already exists and it's
been around for quite some time now.

This DVD was Shot during a seminar on Straight Vegetable Oil at Ecoversity in Santa Fe, New Mexico and is packed with
2.5 hours of valuable information. Listen along while many of the most frequently asked questions about this technology
are discussed and answered.

These questions and more are answered on this DVD:

• The History of Straight Vegetable Oil

• Different Alternative Fuels
• Straight Vegetable vs. Biodiesel
• Straight Vegetable Oil Facts and Fiction
• Diesel Engines vs. Gasoline Engines
• How a Straight Vegetable Oil System Works
• The Importance of a Vehicles Air Filter
• Increase Power and Economy/Computer Mods
• Oil Gathering 101
• Filtering on the Fly with the One Shot
• Using Filter Bags
• What to do with leftover Nasty Oil
• Diesels Available in the USA

http://www.goldenfuelsystems.com
DVD GREASY RIDER

Picture a cross-country road trip powered by vegetable oil in a 1981 Mercedes-Benz. Greasy Rider follows the two
filmmakers, Joey Carey and JJ Beck, as they meet with fellow Greasecar drivers, friends, and critics. Traveling as far south
as New Orleans and as far north as Seattle, the car is fueled by used cooking grease collected at restaurants along the
way.

Interviews include Morgan Freeman who is opening up a Biodiesel plant in Mississippi. Political analyst Noam Chomsky,
“You're supposed to believe we would have liberated Iraq even if its main product was pickles,” appears along side Yoko
Ono, “This whole world is now ruled by corporations and their greed,” and Tommy Chong, “You guys figured it out. You
got your little bio-car, and there you go.” Additional interviews include the founders of the four major vegetable oil
conversion kit companies, Greasecar, Greasel, Neoteric, and Frybrid, as they discuss the reality of vegetable oil as a fuel.

The heat is felt in this political documentary as America's energy consumption continues to grow. With gas prices on the
rise and the reality of global warming setting in, Greasy Rider points to vegetable oil as one part of the solution to our
energy problems.

http://www.goldenfuelsystems.com

JOURNEY to FOREVER
http://www.journeytoforever.org

The Film:   FUEL

http://thefuelfilm.com

FUEL is an insightful portrait of America’s addiction to oil and an uplifting testament to the immediacy of new energy
solutions. Director, Josh Tickell, a young activist, shuttles us on a whirlwind journey to track the rising domination of the
petrochemical industry — from Rockefeller’s strategy to halt Ford’s first ethanol cars to Vice President Cheney's
petrochemical company sponsored energy legislation — and reveals a gamut of available solutions to "repower
America" — from vertical farms that occupy skyscrapers to algae facilities that turn wastewater into fuel.

Tickell and a surprising array of environmentalists, policy makers, and entertainment notables take us through America’s
complicated, often ignominious energy past and illuminate a hopeful, achievable future, where decentralized,
sustainable living is not only possible, it’s imperative.

DVD :   Biodiesel #2

Filmed at the National Biodiesel Board Conference and Expo in Palm Springs, CA, this 45 minute video helps qualify the
emissions benefits of biodiesel and illustrates how biodiesel can reduce cancerous diesel emissions.

http://fryertofuel.com

DVD:   Biodiesel 101

In this 45-minute presentation, biodiesel author Josh Tickell provides an economic, social and practical context for
biodiesel. "Biodiesel 101" goes deep into the technical world of the biodiesel production, showing how the fuel is
chemically formed. This video also examines current data and trends within the biodiesel industry to illustrate growth
patterns and future potential.

http://fryertofuel.com

Convert GAS Cars to Plug-In ELECTRIC Autos

http://www.electroauto.com http://www.kta-ev.com http://www.nedra.com http://www.evparts.com
http://www.sourceguides.com/energy
book: Convert It; by Michael Brown and Shari Prange
DVD: Convert It http://www.electroauto.com

`
Convert HYBRID Cars to Plug-In ELECTRIC Autos
http://www.calcars.org http://www.hybrids-plus.com http://www.rqriley.com/xr3.htm http://www.eaa-
phev.org/wiki/PriusPlus http://www.hybridplugs.com http://www.hybridconceptcars.com
http://www.afstrinity.com http://www.a123systems.com/hymotion http://www.hybridconsortium.org
http://www.energycs.com

LOCAL Groups Supporting ELECTRIC AUTOmobiles

http://www.nicecarcompany.co.uk http://www.greenvehicles.com
http://www.zapworld.com
http://www.sourceguides.com/energy
http://www.green-car-guide.com

Electric MOTORCYCLES
http://www.solarmobil.net
http://www.e-max-ltd.com
http://www.topmotorx.com
http://www.patente-erfindungen.de/erfindungen_fahrraeder.htm
http://www.zeromotorcycles.com
http://www.sourceguides.com/energy

Electric BICYCLES
http://nycewheels.com
http://www.myebike.com
http://www.cyclone-tw.com
http://www.powacycle.co.uk
http://www.electricbikesales.co.uk
http://egovehicles.com
http://www.electricbicycle.com.au
http://www.evehicle.com.au
http://www.electric-bicycle.cn
http://www.greenspeed.us
http://www.sourceguides.com/energy

TAX CREDITS
http://www.dsireusa.org

HOME POWER
http://www.homepower.com

SOLAR TODAY
http://solartoday.org

Solar Industry NEWS

http://www.seia.org
http://www.solarbuzz.com

Solar Industry MAGAZINE

http://www.solarindustrymag.com

Recharge your Electric Auto with RENEWABLE ENERGY

http://www.bergey.com http://www.bwea.com http://www.vestas.com http://www.awea.com
http://solarenergy.org http://greendragonenergy.co.uk http://www.lowimpact.org
http://www.scoraigwind.com http://www.greenempowerment.org http://www.grupofenix.org
http://www.solarliving.org http://www.arthaonline.com http://www.the-mrea.org http://www.txses.org
http://www.irenew.org http://www.nmsea.org http://www.azsolarcenter.com
http://www.microhydropower.com http://www.newenergycorp.ca http://www.canyonhydro.com
http://wattsun.com http://www.lorentz.de http://www.etsolar.de
http://www.solargenix.com http://solar.sharpusa.com http://solren.com http://www.spirecorp.com
http://www.windpower.org
http://www.sourceguides.com/energy
http://www.i2p.org
http://www.ises.org http://www.firstsolar.com
http://www.rmi.org
http://www.sourceguides.com/energy

Do not bend over and allow Big Oil to molest your Family, Friends and Community
VOTE SOLAR

VOTE SOLAR
http://votesolar.org
http://www.seia.org
http://www.blackboxvoting.org
http://valparaiso.indymedia.org/news/2006/09/8723.php
DVD: Uncounted; Director: David Earnhardt
DVD: Hacking Democracy; Director: Simon Ardizzone
book: What Went Wrong In Ohio; by Congressman John Conyers
book: What Happened in Ohio; by Bob Fitrakis

IS YOUR CONGRESSMAN IN BED with BIG OIL?

How much bribes (campaign contributions) did your congressman take from the sleazy OIL Companies?

CAMPAIGN FINANCE INFORMATION CENTER

Where does the money come from?
http://www.campaignfinance.org/states

CENTER FOR PUBLIC INTEGRITY

stop the Fat Cats from BRIBING your politicians
http://www.publicintegrity.org

POLLUTION and RACISM, INJUSTICE

book: Confronting Environmental Racism; by Robert Bullard
book: Environmental Injustices; by David Camacho
book: Environmentalism and Economic Justice; by Laura Pulido
book: Pollution and the Death of Man; by Francis Schaeffer
book: From the Ground Up, Environmental Racism; by Luke Cole
book: Struggle for Ecological Democracy; by Daniel Faber
book: No Safe Place, Toxic Waste and Community Action; by Phil Brown

FREE eBook on Oil Spills: Not One Drop

http://www.scribd.com/doc/31483843/Not-One-Drop

Big Oil’s Dirty Secrets

http://bigoil101.insanejournal.com