tess Posted January 16, 2010 Share Posted January 16, 2010 has anyone had an LPG conversion done on a 1988 Talbot Express Auto-sleeper Talisman II ? just woundering if it is worth while doing? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spospe Posted January 16, 2010 Share Posted January 16, 2010 I know someone who does LPG conversions for all sorts of vehicles and he has told me: a) It will cost about £1500 if it is possible to fit everything in the space available. b) A big problem can be the location / size of the LPG tank, as there may not be enough room under your van to fit one of a decent size. c) This assumes that your vehicle is petrol powered, if it is diesel, forget it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tess Posted January 16, 2010 Author Share Posted January 16, 2010 thanks for the info, ours is a 2.ltr petrol, i believe there is room for the tanks as i have seen some newer ones for sale that have been converted, my bigest concern would be if the savings in fuel would be worth the outlay? Cheers! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spospe Posted January 16, 2010 Share Posted January 16, 2010 tess The savings in LPG at this time mean that your fuel costs will be (roughly) halved. The fuel consumption using LPG is somewhat worse than using petrol, but the lower cost per litre of gas helps to balance the loss. One effect of the worse fuel consumption is that you need quite a large tank and this is often a major problem. The relative paucity of filling stations also means that you will still need to retain (and use) your petrol tank. The normal process with an LPG conversion is to start the engine and let it warm-up on petrol and then switch to LPG, this ensures that both systems are tested regularly and are working properly. The changeover is done automatically; you don't need to do anything. A most important point is to tell your insurer and they will insist that the work has been done professionally. Unless you are planning on doing a large annual mileage, I doubt it is worth the cost. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rayjsj Posted January 16, 2010 Share Posted January 16, 2010 Tess, I have Exactly the same Model and year van as you, and have also considered having it converted, So far I havn't , main reason being cost and time/miles use to make it worth while. Obviously if petrol prices continue to rise (as they are predicted to) I might have to look at it again. Have a look at this very good website for 'Our Vans' which includes a lot about LPG conversion on these models. http://www.jktowers.fsnet.co.uk/motorhome/ Good Luck and welcome to the forum Regards Ray Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevin hawkins Posted January 16, 2010 Share Posted January 16, 2010 I had a conversion done on a transit autosleeper 4 years ago it runs great is cheap to run cost 900 pound but alas the down side is the lose of power if i had my time again i would buy a diesel engine from a scrap yard and take it to a engine repairers have it reconditioned and get my local garage to install it for me kind regards kevin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tess Posted January 16, 2010 Author Share Posted January 16, 2010 thanks for the info, that real food for thought, i have only just got the MH a few months ago, so lots to learn as its our first. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davenewellhome Posted January 16, 2010 Share Posted January 16, 2010 There are two issues to consider here, time to recover the cost of conversion and the reduction in power. How long it will take you to recover the cost of conversion will depend on A) how much it actually costs you (for a carburettored engine such as yours it should be possible for around £800 to £1200) and B) how many miles you do per year, a lot of motorhomes only do around 5000 miles a year. These are very rough figures to illustrate how to work it out for yourself. Petrol is currently around £5 a gallon and LPG around half that. Lets say your motorhome does 23MPG on petrol ( about right for this motor). 5000/23 is 217.39 gallons of petrol per year @ £5 a gallon is a total fuel outlay of £1304.35 per year. LPG is currently around £2.50 a gallon but your motorhome will likely only give 20MPG on LPG. 5000/20 is 250 gallons @ £2.50 is a total fuel outlay of £625 per year. A saving of £679.35 per year. So if you do around 5k per year and run exclusively on LPG and the fuel cost differential doesn't change it could pay for itself in as little as two years. The other downside of LPG is a drop of around 10% of power. Your motor left the factory many years ago with only 84BHP, do you really want to give up 10% of that and drive a 3 tonne plus motorhome with only 75 (ish)BHP? D. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tess Posted January 16, 2010 Author Share Posted January 16, 2010 Thanks for the feedback, i will probably put off having any conversion done until we have done our first year traveling to see what kind of milage we do. Cheers for all the help and advice Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mel B Posted January 16, 2010 Share Posted January 16, 2010 Hi Tess Welcome to the mad house. One other thing to bear in mind - if you intend to travel abroad and use the Chunnel forget it - they won't allow LPG powered vehicles on there, so you'd be stuck with the ferry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tess Posted January 16, 2010 Author Share Posted January 16, 2010 Had'nt thought of that, Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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