anyone ever convert a carbed atv into a propane one?
I heard these guys will do a kit for any off road carbed motor-

http://www.gotpropane.com/p11.html#4

they are saying they can run a rock crawling V8 truck all day on 4-5 gallons of LP.

I'm just thinking - quierer, cleaner, closed intake system (waterproof), no more bad gas issues- higher octane burn...

I've never seen an LP ATV...

 

Maybe that's a good thing.

 

I saw a propane powered jeep rock crawler last year during my annual haspin acres trip. Pretty cool set-up. The guy claimed it ran cleaner, more power, and pretty decent mileage. He had a 80 lb. tank mounted in the cargo area which he claimed would run him all weekend without a problem. If you search the archives of the show TRUCKS on horsepower TV they did a episode on a F-150 propane conversion kit. Pretty interesting. If you pay attention you may notice a few of your local delivery trucks are running propane. At least around my area.

 

Very interesting. I would like to know where you want to put LP tank? On front rack or rear one?

It is definitely clean combustion. I don't think, there is more power.
However, unnecessary expensive.

In Europe, A LOT of cars run on LP. But again, tank is biting huge part of your trunk.

 

ya- but those cars fill up once or twice per month- unless you ride your atv everyday all month long, you wont need those big tanks.


not at all- you'd only need 2 or 3 lbs of LP for a days worth of riding- tank would take up less area then your current 5 gallon gas tank (which would be removed.) Also- you'd simply have to carry 1 or 2 additional Coleman propane cans with you for a full weekend- instead of lugging around separate one or two gallon gas cans strapped to your racks.
I'm not certain on this, but I believe LP has the potential for more HP then gasoline.

I think the pro's far outweigh the cons... cleaner, quieter and more convenient.

 

It is definitely clean alternative fuel. When gasoline hits $4 - $5 it makes sense.

How about ATV's with injection?????

 

Not sure how it would work with efi- but carb conversion is easy.

makes me want to go buy a cheap chinese 4 stroke atv and try to convert it- see what happens...

 

One of many gas to LP conversion kits available: Carburetor Conversion Pictures and Specifications
That is easy part.
Hard part is a LP tank. Must withstand vibrations, impacts etc. Must be safe under any condition. Ride, accident, temperature....
Otherwise you can fly, not ride.

 

Forget propane, lets just go to a biodesiel. We can run around to all the Mcdonalds and collect their grease. Wouldn't want to ride behind you though...get too hungry with the fry smell. But man...that would cause quite a conundrum for the tree huggers. It would be the most environmentally friendly way to be environmentally unfriendly.

Actually saw a survivor show where some guy converted his old Ford pickup to run on horse manure. Suppose it could work with any kind of animal manure...now that would be handy!

After a quick google search (yes, I'm bored), it seems its relatively popular for people building rock crawlers. Aside from the fuel price advantage is there a benefit they see that I'm missing?

 

Ha- You’re just looking for excuses to go to mcdonalds-

as far as advantages go- aside from what I mentioned above, in addition to- less maintenance, no BS ethanol issues with the carbs, LP is higher octane- cleaner burn, you can store it without worrying about it going stale or ruining gas lines... also, no roll over issues with atv’s like you have with gas (which is probably why the rock crawlers use it)- and no gas spills.
I know a lot of back-up generators us LP because it’s more stable then gasoline. If anything- it's safer then gasoline-

Where to put the tank really wouldn’t be an issue- you could build a removable / refillable LP tank where the gas tank is- when it’s time to refill, just pop it off and hit the station (most gas stations, Wal-Mart, BJ’s & Costco sells / refills LP) I’d have to do more research, but I’m almost positive you’ll get a lot further on say, 15lbs of LP then you would on 5 gallons of gas @ $3.50 gallon- hell- I can fill a 35lb LP grill tank at BJ’s for $12!

I dunno- Time for some "indepth" research, a business plan and a pocket full of capital