Saturday, December 26, 2009

How long can a car run on vegetable oil?

On the tv show Mythbusters all they do is fliter the vegetable oil and then put it in the engine. They didn't do anything else to it. I was wondering how long will that work? Will your cars engine break down if you don't mix all the other stuff with it? Could it work if I did that?How long can a car run on vegetable oil?
Any diesel engine will run on veg oil provided it is filtered to under 3 microns. And the only reason for this is to make sure the oil is pure enough not to foul the injectors. In a modern engine it is not recommended to run more than about 20% Vegetable oil because it produces a small amount of nitric acid that over time will eat the injector pump. Its not a problem with an engine that has had a specific conversion to do this. It's basically a kit that replaces the fuel lines and puts a separator in front of the injector pump to siphon off the tiny amount of nitric acid as well as any water that creeps into the system. Bio Diesel has a similar problem But not as much as the strait veg oil. The problem is not with the veg oil, it's with the engines produced today. Older engines used a plating process to line the inside of the injector pump. Newer engines don't use this process because of cost.How long can a car run on vegetable oil?
Are you crazy? The reason that they always warn viewers to ';not try any of this stuff at home'; is that just because it might not be a myth does not mean that it necessarily works. Running a modern gasoline engine on vegetable oil would be an excellent way to destroy any mechanical integrity in a pretty short time period. No wear additives, no ability to change viscosity in reaction to heat. Again I ask, are you crazy? Even motor oil from the dollar store is going to perform better than vegetable oil
a diesel engine will run fine on straight vegetable oil as long as the outside temperature is relatively warm (above 70掳F) As it gets colder, there is a potential for the oil to solidify and clog the works.





do not try it with a gasoline engine.





Mythbusters used a Mercedes Benz diesel car.
First, your car needs to be diesel powered.


Some minor adjustments will be required, but it can run indefinitely on vegetable oil.
as long as the car can heat the veggie oil hot enough, it will run longer than with diesel

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