The Alternative Fuel -- LPG

With an average 50 centavos increase every week in gasoline, it’s no wonder the drivers of taxis I take going to the office usually rant about higher gasoline prices and lower take-homes. I’m sure a lot of other drivers out there are also feeling the brunt of the fuel increases.

So, it was a bit of a surprise when I realized that the taxi I was riding this morning (a unit of Xavierville Transport) was running on LPG (liquefied petroleum gas – for those unfamiliar with the term). I was surprised because just the other morning, on my way to the office again, the taxi driver who’s taxi I was riding in, was talking about converting his vehicle into LPG-fueled. Then this morning, I was actually riding an LPG-fueled taxi.

I learned that the taxi was LPG-driven when a sticker on the door of the backseat caught my attention. It read “No Smoking. This taxi uses LPG fuel”. So, I asked the driver things about LPG fuel and how LPG-fueled cars behave. Here are some stuff that I learned:

• LPG is way, way cheaper than gasoline. A liter of gasoline costs about Php39 pesos. A liter of LPG costs only Php21! Imagine how much you can load up with Php1,000.

• A liter of gasoline and a liter of LPG will run the same distance. But LPG does not evaporate like gas especially when it’s scorching hot in the streets so in the end you get more out of the fuel you load especially when you drive during the day

• Some branches of Petron now offer LPG refilling. The driver specifically pointed out the Petron branch on the corner of Makati Avenue and Gil Puyat Avenue, and another one in Barrio Ugong in Pasig.

When you have your vehicle converted into LPG, your car can still run on gas. The conversion process makes your vehicle capable of switching from gas to LPG with a flick of a switch. So, imagine running out of LPG in a long travel, you can easily switch to gas and have not to worry until you begin to get low on gas. The driver though cautioned that it is important to make sure that your engine is completely out of fuel before switching into gas. Otherwise, your vehicle will experience barfing (that motion when a car seems to be coughing and unsure as to whether it wants to go or stop).

The conversion process though will cost around Php20,000 but if you think about it, in the long run you’ll be saving money on fuel. And if you think you’ll be putting an LPG tank like the one you use at home in your trunk, think again. It’s a customized tank they’ll put in your trunk with a reinforced shell.

Kudos to the many taxi transport services who have adapted the LPG fuel. It’s actually to their benefit because now taxi drivers can now take home more money because they’ll be spending less on fuel.

LPG still has to become a hit with most of our motorists, especially owners of personal vehicles. But if the government and the oil companies (who espouse LPG as an alternative fuel) work together to inform the riding and driving public about it, I’m sure many will be more than pleased to switch to LPG if only for the savings they’ll get.