CNG Vehicle Conversion

[BailJumper]

The wife and I have been considering CNG conversion on at least one of our vehicles because we just refuse to give up our SUV's.

The problem is we keep getting conflicting info.

KOCO did a story where they claim CNG runs $.90 a gallon and a conversion runs $9,000.

Just this morning on FlashPoint, the dufus of a commissioner Jeff Cloud (can't stand him) said it is running $2 a gallon and a conversion runs $2,000.

Anyone have any idea where I can...
1. Find a map of CNG stations available to the public in/around OKC (make sure we can fill up somewhat conveniently and get a price).
2. Find a place that does conversions (to get prices before buying a SUV to convert).
3. Does Oklahoma allow for inhome vehicle fillups if your home has gas already.
4. If yes to #3, anyone know of a place that sells/installs a home station?

KOCO also reported you can get the conversion for 'almost free' because of federal and state tax credits - confirm?


I'm looking at getting a newer used Escape or similar to convert. If it goes well I'll sell one of our SUV's we already drive. If it goes really well, I'll convert another.

[Intrepid]

The wife and I have been considering CNG conversion on at least one of our vehicles because we just refuse to give up our SUV's.

The problem is we keep getting conflicting info.

KOCO did a story where they claim CNG runs $.90 a gallon and a conversion runs $9,000.

Just this morning on FlashPoint, the dufus of a commissioner Jeff Cloud (can't stand him) said it is running $2 a gallon and a conversion runs $2,000.

Anyone have any idea where I can...
1. Find a map of CNG stations available to the public in/around OKC (make sure we can fill up somewhat conveniently and get a price).
2. Find a place that does conversions (to get prices before buying a SUV to convert).
3. Does Oklahoma allow for inhome vehicle fillups if your home has gas already.
4. If yes to #3, anyone know of a place that sells/installs a home station?

KOCO also reported you can get the conversion for 'almost free' because of federal and state tax credits - confirm?


I'm looking at getting a newer used Escape or similar to convert. If it goes well I'll sell one of our SUV's we already drive. If it goes really well, I'll convert another.

It's not a map, but here's a link to a page that lists CNG stations in OKC. I just simply googled it.

CNG Vehicles For Sale - CNG Station Locator

[Karried]

This might answer a few tax incentive questions but it looks like this particular shop has limited kits and is very expensive:

http://www.tulsagastech.com/conversion.html

[Karried]

This place has inventory of converted vehicles and says you can get .90 a gallon.

http://www.gocng.com/Inventoryaltfuel.html

Found this comment on a discussion board, can't verify anything but thought it interesting:

Morris Auto in Morris, OK. They have a website, Home. The get them from various Government agencies; I believe ours was owned by the EPA in Virginia. There is also a place in Tulsa that does the conversions but, again, the kits are very limited and they have a waiting list. We absolutely adore ours; especially now that gas is near $4 a gallon here. We get 25 miles per gallon whether we're on gasoline or cng so I figure we are getting about 100 miles for the cost of one gallon of gasoline. How can we get across to Ford and GM that we want more of these?? We have very limited fill sites here but it's my understanding that Chesapeake Energy is getting ready to put in a bunch more within the next year.

CNG Conversion Kits For Other Vehicles? - CarSpace Automotive Forums

[dalelakin]

Oklahoma should be leading the way with a wealth of info readily available considering the vast amount of natural gas pumped out of the ground each day. And yet I can find more info to answer your questions for several other states that have little to no NG production within their borders. Sad really.

[kevinpate]

hmm, a cng spot near work and another near the nightly pillow ... maybe I oughta give this idea some thought myself.

[BailJumper]

My thought is, if the conversion is cheap/free with a tax rebate, why not spend up to $2,000-$3,500 on a conversion? That's what you'd pay for the overly touted scooters, and I'll be able to keep my air conditioning, heater, rain off and not become road kill.

[bretthexum]

Wow is that cool. I had no idea that was available around here. I'd like to keep the SUV as well...

[windowphobe]

According to a Gazette story this past week, Honda sells a Civic GX that runs on CNG for around $25,000; the Feds rate it at 24 mpg, and a gallon is indeed under a buck - although you'll have to fill up about every 6 gallons or so because of the small tank. Not ideal for the long haul, but perhaps perfect for in-town runs.

[John]

Remember that Chesapeake recently bought the Shell station at the corner of 50th and Western?

Just sayin'...

[icemncmth]

The problem has always been distance....the other is high pressure fill up vs low pressure fill up. High pressure gives you a greater distance but you have a great risk of danger at the pump..

[metro]

Remember that Chesapeake recently bought the Shell station at the corner of 50th and Western?

Just sayin'...

They also demolished it too. If anything, I bet they use it for right of way land for when they finally start remodeling Nichols Hills Plaza. That intersection there is a nightmare and it needs turn lanes, etc.

[metro]

windowphobe, good points. Yes, Honda makes and sells the unadvertised GX model that runs on CNG. The only thing is demand. Currently in Oklahoma the 2008's have been sold out for a long time and there is already a waiting list for the 2009 models but they are still taking deposits. After tax incentives, I believe you're paying slightly over $18,000 for it. CNG in Oklahoma has been around for quite some time, especially in the government sector. I know the City of Edmond is pretty good about alternative fuel vehicles as well as the state is. I'm glad to see more people getting an interest in this, especially the posters above who didn't know this stuff existed.

[sgt. pepper]

They also demolished it too. If anything, I bet they use it for right of way land for when they finally start remodeling Nichols Hills Plaza. That intersection there is a nightmare and it needs turn lanes, etc.

Chesapeake is building a shopping center on classen called classen curve. i heard, can not confirm, that the shops a nhp will be moving to classe curve, so who knows what chesapeake wil do there. again i heard they will build a CNG station. check out the classen curve thread on here if you have'nt all ready.

[metro]

sgt. pepper, I'm familiar with Classen Curve, long before it was announced. I guarantee you all shops will not move from NHP to Classen Curve. Classen Curve is by invite only and will feature many upscale retailers not currently in OKC. NHP will be revitalized in Phases. My odds are on there won't be another gas station built on the demolished Shell station. I bet they will use it as a better entrance to the remodeled NHP. FYI, I was the one that started the Classen Curve thread.

[OKCMallen]

They also demolished it too. If anything, I bet they use it for right of way land for when they finally start remodeling Nichols Hills Plaza. That intersection there is a nightmare and it needs turn lanes, etc.

I live there, and the gas station is still there on the SE corner. Bought beer there this weekend!

[John]

They also demolished it too. If anything, I bet they use it for right of way land for when they finally start remodeling Nichols Hills Plaza. That intersection there is a nightmare and it needs turn lanes, etc.

50th & Western, not 63rd...

[metro]

I was talking about the demolished station on NW 63rd and Western that Chesapeake bought.

[solitude]

Do any of you know about the safety ratings of the cars running on CNG? I'm particularly curious about the difference between a gasoline-powered car versus CNG in what happens in major rollovers, etc. and the explosiveness. We all know what gasoline will do - but what about the CNG? Is there more, or less, of explosive potential?

[sgt. pepper]

I was the one that started the Classen Curve thread

sorry metro

[betts]

Remember that Chesapeake recently bought the Shell station at the corner of 50th and Western?

Just sayin'...

I have heard the station at the corner of 63rd and Western will become a natural gas station. They do have a construction fence around the ground there.

[Toadrax]

Do any of you know about the safety ratings of the cars running on CNG? I'm particularly curious about the difference between a gasoline-powered car versus CNG in what happens in major rollovers, etc. and the explosiveness. We all know what gasoline will do - but what about the CNG? Is there more, or less, of explosive potential?

Neither has much explosive potential. When have you ever seen gasoline explode besides on TV? :P You need a correct air to fuel ration to have an explosion, and in the case of CNG it is almost impossible to get a 1:10 ratio of CNG to air naturally or on accident.

It IS impossible to get a substantial amount of CNG in the proper mix to cause a significant explosion. (Except on purpose.. of course)

[mmonroe]

CNG Honda Civic: Car Fire/Explosion - Dialup Warning, many photos - CleanMPG Forums

[Toadrax]

From the forum above..

The car was a normal honda civic that had been converted to run on CNG. I don't have the installer of the tanks but the car was owned by STITA (Seattle/Tacoma International Taxi Association). It was part of a 160 car fleet that was converted to run on CNG part of a deal to increase the contract with the airport from 5 years to 7.

Obviously it was a faulty conversion.

..and...

First, let's keep in mind that the car was set ablaze by an arsonist.

Who knows what the arsonist did to it..

Usually there is some entity that investigates things like this.. to see if it was from a bad or lacking safety or if the arsonist somehow damaged the safety valve. The information should be out there somewhere, that crap doesn't happen without someone to blame.

[Toadrax]

Which I guess is a good point...

If you buy a car from Honda, it has been crash tested and passed all sorts of regulations...

If you let some shadetree mechanic do a serious modification to your vehicle, it has not been tested at all