Ford is now offering for sale only to fleets two models powered by propane. The Granada, from Ford, and the Cougar, from the Lincoln- Mercury division of the company, are both available to fleet buyers as propane-powered vehicles, the first time an American vehicle has been offered from a major factory with propane power in passenger car form.

Prices of the cars will average about $700 above the current bottom line, according to Ford and L-M fleet up­ date bulletins, and order forms were made available to fleet administrators in the early part of January. It is still too early to gauge fleet buyer's reaction to the offer, however, Ford of Canada, which introduced the cars in the Fall of 1981, has reported a number of purchases, with more than 50 cars going to Xerox Corporation in Canada.

According to Joe Pim, alternate fuels coordinator for Ford of Canada, "The Federal government has been our largest bulk purchaser so far, with a total of about 116 orders. We are starting to get cars on the road now, and we have orders in total for just under 400.

"We expect to sell about 1500 vehicles in 1982," Pim related, "and right now we are making a lot of sales in the sixes and sevens. Many fleets are just acquiring individual units, and they seem wary at first that a 4 cylinder car powered by propane can have adequate performance. We are making believers out of them, however."

Ford found early response in Canada favorable because the government offers a $400 rebate on every purchase of a propane-powered vehicle to en­ courage gasoline savings and use of "home-grown" propulsive power. Ford of Canada will also be selling cars to the retail buyers this year.

The Ford system was developed by Impco Carburetion of Cerritos, California, and is installed on the assembly line. The propane fuel tanks are installed after the cars are off the line, at an outside company. Ford, traditionally an "in-house" manufacturer, is planning to produce 10,000 of the cars this year, and by next year the full conversion could be taking place in their own plants.

Propane cars will be available to American retail buyers in 1982 as well, but buyers in this country are not offered the same benefits as their Canadian cousins.

Propane has been found to be helpful to small as well as large fleets. Most small truck and automotive propane operations in this country have been on a small scale, and AUTOMOTIVE FLEET presents the stories of three small-to-medium fleets in Texas which have been using propane for a number of years.

Case in Point

G.L. "Gip" Brownfield, owner of Ranch Butane Company, Corpus Christi, Texas, has made a specialty of propane carburetion conversion of gasoline engines for vehicles in small fleets for more than 30 years.

He points out that while conversion to propane fuel makes sense for even a single truck or car, it is the small fleet operator that truly benefits. "Probably more than any other group, those running from three to 15 or 20 vehicles come off best," Brownfield said.

"Some people have the idea, and it's a misconception, that they have to operate large fleets before they'll see a pay-back from converting," he said, "and that isn't the case at all. Anyone operating even three pickups should look at the economics. Depending on circumstances, a firm converting its cars and trucks either to straight propane motor fuel or dual-fuel (LP- gas and gasoline) can save a great deal of money as well as assure its source of fuel supply."

Brownfield, immediate past president of the Texas LP-Gas Association, converted his first vehicle engines to liquified petroleum gas in 1950, almost a decade ahead of breaking away from working for others and starting his own business.

"I waited for the opportunity to go into business for myself," he said, "and it came along in '59. I've built my business and my reputation on two things: good service and LP- gas carburetion."

According to Brownfield, hundreds of drivers are reaping benefits from the move to carburetion. Ninety-eight per­ cent of Ranch Butane's sales come from converting vehicle engines and fully 90 percent of the carburetion work is for small fleet operators.

Who are they? "Anyone involved in building," he said. "The electrician, the concrete man, the plumber, the roofer, the air conditioning service contractor are good bets. A vending machine operator, a coffee service, an office snack service, a repair firm, to mention a few, all have unlimited potential," he continued.

In Corpus Christi alone, Ranch Butane has converted vehicles for all of these types of fleet operators, as well as those involved in oil field work, air and pump compressor service, supply companies, service station installation contractors and others.

Pay-back on a fleet conversion is directly related to the number of miles driven, Brownfield says. Since the cost of LP-gas currently is anywhere from thirty-five to sixty cents per gallon lower than gasoline, it's easy to understand that the equipment will soon pay for itself, then begin saving an operator money.

In addition to its lower price, propane offers other advantages: cleaner engine operation, lower maintenance costs, fewer oil drains and spark plug changes. Reduced vehicle downtime means more profitable hours of operation. However, propane conversion can cut an engine's mpg average by as much as 15 to 20 percent.

According to many Ranch Butane Company customers, vehicles run better. Because they also save money, they increase their owners' potential to buy fuel. Here are examples which illustrate operator benefits.

Ray's Mobile Home Service

Ray Harshberger owns and operates a heating and air conditioning service for mobile home owners. For the past seven years, he and his employees, based in Corpus Christi, have made daily trips to Laredo and McAllen (both 150 miles away) or to towns 60 to 80 miles to the north.

"Our vehicles average between 50,000 and 70,000 miles per year," Harshberger said. "We run those trucks every day and we run them hard, so they have to be in good condition all the time. We can't afford to have them down."

His fleet consists of three identical 1981 Chevy Silverado pickup trucks, and a 1978 dual-fuel-equipped truck that has 170,000 miles on it, "and it's never been touched," Harshberger says. "I've had it tuned up three times-that's all."

The identical blue Silverados all have been converted to dual fuel, utilizing Impco Model 200A-50 mixers. Each has an 83-gallon fuel tank in its Koenig bed. "They are equipped with 454 V-8 engines," he explained, "with 400 transmissions, and 3.73 rear end gear ratios.

"When we first considered converting the fleet to dual-fuel, a few years ago, Gip assured me we'd lose two miles per gallon on propane," Harshberger said, "but we gained four.

"The reason for the mileage in­ crease," he explained, "is that we bought the big engine. It got terrible gasoline mileage. All our trucks are equipped with highway gears. Most of our miles are on the highway. All we need to do is match the gear and horsepower to the job, then set the cruise control and sit back."

Before converting the fleet to dual- fuel, Harshberger averaged 7 to 8 miles to the gallon on gasoline. "We're get*** ting 11 to 12 on propane. The only thing you can't do," he said, "is take off real fast from a dead stop. But the gradual pick-up is just fine with me. That way we don't tear up the equipment." Harshberger is not alone in his complaints about propane's lack of performance ... a drawback of the conversion. .

As far as Harshberger and his mobile home service employees are concerned, propane is a preferred fuel. "The boys don't like to run on gasoline anymore. And I don't like the way the gasoline carburetors dry up. The tailpipes are so clean they're spotless. My mechanic can't believe what we get out of these trucks.

"We been refueling at Ranch Butane every day, but we're having our own service station installed. The 1,000-gallon tank will be about a mile from our shop, on the way to the warehouse, which will be convenient." Ranch Butane is installing the fueling facility and will continue to supply Ray's Mobile Home Service with propane.

"Our fuel consumption averages 1,100 gallons a week," Harshberger said, "which comes to 57,200 gallons per year. I can pay two employees' salaries with the difference between the cost of propane and gasoline. I'm averaging a monthly savings of $2,700."

A sharp operator checks all the options, and Harshberger looked into alternatives, including diesel. "Why should I pay $2,700 more for a vehicle that runs on diesel to get 30 miles to the gallon, when as soon as I hook on the trailer and load tools, I'm down to 12? What have I saved? For a small businessman," he added, "diesel will never work out."

Tony's Pizza

Bob Floyd, sales manager for the South Texas region of Tony's Pizza, explained his warehouse operation.

"We have seven employees operating out of this warehouse, serving two separate markets. We stock grocery stores with frozen pizzas, and we run a frozen foods home delivery service."

In 1978, Tony's corporate management published its intention to convert its entire fleet of 2,000 vehicles. While that hardly qualifies as a small fleet, the corporation told each opera­ tor to find a qualified local mechanic to do those conversions. Tony's Pizza operations all over the country recent]y converted numbers of trucks. Ranch Butane Company found itself in on the action in Corpus Christi.

Of the seven vehicles operating out of Corpus Christi, five, so far, have been converted. All arc on straight propane, and use 425 carburetors and Model EB regulators from Impco Carburetion. Some of the trucks are Internationals, some CMC's. All are two-ton.

In Bob Floyd's case, mileage has been no problem. "We come pretty close to getting exactly the same mileage on propane as gasoline," he said. "We average 4.5 miles to the gallon on either fuel." The savings based wholly on the fuel price "spread" has been remarkable, His vehicles average about 50,000 miles per year.

Due to the nature of the business, many of Floyd's trucks don't return to the shop until late at night. To save additional time and money, Ranch Butane installed a 1,000- gallon service station at the Tony's Pizza warehouse.

"We pay an extra 2 cents per gallon toward the purchase of the lank," Floyd said, "and it saves having to drive over to Ranch Butane to refill. When a driver comes in at 10 or 11 o'clock at night, having our own bulk tank is helpful."

Floyd's warehouse manager is the only employee authorized to fill vehicles. "Every night when the trucks are refueled, he checks the oil and the tires and makes sure everything is okay."

The only propane-related problem Floyd mentiones is not knowing where to buy fuel if his trucks were out on an overnight route. However, a copy of the National LP-Gas Association's Refueling Directory helped solve that problem.

"Since our warehouse is just one of many Tony's Pizza operations, it's hard to say exactly how much propane carburetion has saved the company. I feel it's cut my fuel costs by half. All 1 know is our vehicles are running well. We check the mileage every two months. It's saved the company a bundle of money!"

Pump Company

Charlie Brown, president, C.C. Pump Company, explained his firm sells, installs, and services gasoline service station equipment. Territory covered is "anything south of San Antonio."

His father started the business in 1945. Charlie, his two brothers and a brother-in-law took over its management in the late '60s.

"Gip converted my 1973 Ford pickup," Brown said. "Gasoline was going up. The whole system, including the installation, paid for itself within 14 months, and from then on, I started making money on it."

The lmpco 300A mixer and FX regulator have been used on four different vehicles since 1973, and are still on one of C.C. Pump Company's trucks today.

Brown's primary responsibility is estimating jobs. In order to estimate construction costs, he must inspect sites. When work is underway he checks the job, and reviews it again after completion. His average annual travel is 50,000 miles.

"A year and a half ago we converted 11 more of our 14 vehicles to dual- fuel," he said. "Half of them arc Ford 1/2-ton trucks, and the others are Ford 3/4-ton. Engines range from 350 to 400 cubic inches."

Many of the trucks have Koenig beds, others have side tool boxes. They are equipped with 83-gallon tanks. Two trucks have 114-gallon tanks.

The fleet travel average, he said, is between 30,000 and 50,000 miles per year. And, each vehicle is usually refueled twice a week at Ranch Butane.

Fuel purchases for August, September, and October of 1981 were 2,800, 2,800, and 2,200 gallons, for an average annual consumption of 30,800 gallons.

Regular gasoline was selling for around $1.15 in Corpus Christi at that time; propane for $.70, including the 4-cent-per-gallon federal tax. "My annual saving on fuel, figured after the conversion pay-back, is $14,000."

That savings takes into account a slight propane mileage loss. "We lose between one and two miles to the gallon," Brown said. "We previously got around 1.3 on gasoline, and we're averaging 12 on propane. We don't have much of a comparative loss because our vehicles are fully loaded, so we got low mileage even when we were on gasoline."

In addition to saving on fuel costs, "We've saved a lot on engine overhauls," he continued. "We've only

had one or two trucks that needed service, and the problems had to do with timing or ignition. I don't ever remember anyone saying one of the trucks wouldn't run on propane. It's usually the other way around. In fact, I just put mine in the shop to try to increase the mileage on gasoline."

How to Go About It

According to Brownfield, to determine how much propane motor fuel can save your business, get quotes from your local LP-gas bulk plant, and compare the figures with local gasoline prices. Just as the cost of gasoline varies from station to station, costs of both propane motor fuel and conversion equipment may be different depending on the supplier.

"Once you've ascertained costs, build-in an estimated 10-percent loss in miles per gallon using propane," he said. "Although propane has a higher octane rating without additives (110) than gasoline, it has a lower Btu content per gallon, usually resulting in a mileage loss."

Brown field said he felt more comfortable taking a conservative approach to figuring fuel cost savings, even though some of his customers experienced an increase in mileage.

"And one thing I'd like to stress," he said "is that propane is a pressurized product, and certain safety considerations must be incorporated into an engine fuel conversion."

The National LP-Gas Association, together with state associations, urge fleet operators to have a licensed, experienced LP-gas dealer perform the conversion work. It's not. a do-it-yourself project. There is no reason to be unsafe, he added.

There are good, professionally qualified dealers all over the country who are happy to work with fleet operators, no matter how small, to do safe conversions.

If it is difficult to locate a conversion center in a particular area, Brown- field suggests a fleet operator contact the Engine Power Section of the National LP-Gas Association, or his state LP-Gas Association. Either group will make suggestions and help fleets understand propane engine fuel.

He also said dealers will help operators determine whether straight propane or dual-fuel carburetion will better serve their needs.

The 10,000 Ford products being prepared for delivery to fleets and eventually private buyers in the United States and Canada are all equipped with 25 gallon fuel tanks, a vacuum filter and lock to control fuel flow, a converter-regulator that allows the liquid fuel to expand to a vapor, and a special propane carburetor that has

been optimized for economy and performance. The fuel pump and virtually all emission control equipment has been eliminated. The engine has a 10:1 compression ratio, high for these models, unique piston rings designed for propane use, a redesigned intake manifold gasket and a recalibrated distributor curve.

There are nearly 5000 propane out­ lets in the United States. Propane is pumped into the vehicle as a liquid and is sold by the gallon like conventional fuels. Commonly referred to as LPG, or liquified petroleum gas, propane costs about 50 cents less per gallon than gasoline. 

A January, 1982 paper issued by Runzheimer Reports on Transportation indicates many fleet administrations would be apt to buy or lease alternate fuel powered vehicles if the vehicles were readily available and the fuel to power them was plentiful and easily acquired.

There was an almost even split between fleets considering and not considering alternate fuels, indicating a great rise in administrators searching for fuel systems not involving gasoline. The alternate fuels mentioned by those interested fleets included, in order of interest, diesel fuel, propane and natural gas. Several firms are actively considering utilizing more than one alternate fuel in their fleet vehicles.

Almost half of the fleet executives said the reason they are using or are considering use of alternate fuels is lower operational costs, as well as perceived lower engine repair costs. jRunzhcimer also found that half the companies contacted aren't sure if they will expand their use of alternate fuels already in fleets, while fully one-third indicated they have no plans at this time to power more of their vehicles with alternate fuels.

it was also discovered that most alternate fuel decisions came from upper management. In fact, 33 percent of the administrators were ordered to test alternate systems, while only 17 percent of the responding administrators made that decision on their own.

Half the companies using alternate fuels arc not sure whether or not they are saving money as yet, because cither the testing time has not yet been completed, or the number of vehicles involved is too small to really have an impact on the overall fleet. However, 25 percent of the respondees indicated a definite money savings, while 17 percent noticed no savings.

The cost of conversion for vehicles ranged from $580 to $1500, with an average of $1 100, for the more exotic fuels. Some 42 percent of the fleets reported no conversion costs because of their use of diesel fuel.

Some 33 percent of the respondents stated that at disposal time, they would reconvert the vehicles to run on gasoline before selling outright, trading to dealers, or returning the vehicles to lessors.

Fully 20 percent of the fleets said they aren't using alternate fuels because either they did not have enough information on the new sources or they felt availability of alternate fuels isn't as high as gasoline. Some 12 percent of the respondents indicated a concern with future availability of alternate fuel sources.

The most telling statistic from Runzheimer's January report, however, is that 40 percent of the fleet administrators surveyed said they would buy or lease alternate or dual-fuel vehicles if readily available, and if fuel were easily accessed. Also, 42 percent said they would use electric vehicles if applicable to their situation.

 

 

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