V8 lpg Vs TDI

[merlin617]

Hi all,

A pal and I are having what could be termed a debate or a ruddy good argument over the relative merits of a V8 fitted with LPG against the fitment of a 200 TDI. I have just fitted a tdi to my truck and am delighted with the results, but I have also had a V8 and loved that as well. My pal is looking to change the Turbo diesel in his motor and is being seduced by the sexiness of the V8, strumpet that he is. So what do you chaps think, the beauty from Buick or the rather plain but good in the kitchen TDI.

Over to you. :-k

[Tommo]

V8. its much nicer to drive. better power delivery etc. and with LPG probably cheaper to run.

[Lord Shagg-Pyle]

V8. its much nicer to drive. better power delivery etc. and with LPG probably cheaper to run.

Cheaper to run at the moment, until Gollum and his cronies realise they are missing out on a good thing and tax LPG to hell and back!

[v8kenny]

Got to be the V8 !  :D
I thought LPG was already taxed at the same ratio as petrol/diesel - just that it is cheaper to produce, being a by product of petrol/diesel refining ?
I stand to be corrected though

[davidjmiller]

oh, ho. here we go again. I've not really contributed to these debates before but I've owned an old Td (19J) 110, a V8 110 (LPG) and now I'm on a 300Tdi Disco. Here's my twopenneth....

Do you want a vehicle that is a beaut to drive and sounds so nice that all the local kids turn round and watch you drive down the street, or do you want the most practical finctional vehicle around?

My V8 was nice, i really loved owning it. The LPG system regularly went out of sync with petrol so it needed regular attention. I could never get it waterproof and I tried most of the tricks in the book. It was a slow starter and occasionally did not bother at all. It burbled away beautifully and I considered putting a SS exhaust on it. As an old V8 it was getting less than 10 mpg on gas (presumably a little more on petrol but I could n't afford to find out!!).

My 300Tdi is rock solid, it starts on the button everytime, I never even consider that it might not (I always wondered if the V8 would start as I popped the key in). it does not sound great but I'm used to it now (it's the sound of reliability!!). I have heard of people putting straight through boxes and making them sound really nice.
it does n't give a s**t about water, to a point of course, whereas I'm sure the V8 saw it coming and started to cough and splutter (I think others on here have had better experiences than me). It gets atleast 25 mpg (nearer 30 on a run; it's an auto). I've owned it for 7-8 months now and I had put a new temp guage in which cost £7 and I did myself (and I'm clueless) and when the exhaust dropped off the other week i just threw it in the back and carried on driving. It did n't seem to affect the sound!!!!!

Inspite of what I reputedly might have said last year there's no way I would go back to petrol unless it was a real road car, a RR sport or some kind of supercar - that's where the V8 belongs, IMHO.

Hope that helps but it might actually stir things up a bit.

Who's next??

David

[v8kenny]

I don't think you are stirring things up David, as you rightly imply this argument has been done to death many times and still people disagree !
Each to their own and that's fine by me  :)
What the OP's mate decides may be more down to what he is likely to use the motor for - is it going to be a weekend toy or everyday transport ?
If it's a toy then it's a no-brainer, V8 every time...................................daily driver ?....................................... I'm afraid I would still pick a V8  :lol: - especially on gas
If the gap in prices between diesel fuel and petrol continues to grow then running a V8 isn't that far behind ! 

[Disco Matt]

To be honest, if I was looking to buy now or replace a blown engine I'd go for the V8 and LPG. I love my TDI, but diesel prices are now such that a V8 would be cheaper to run, sound gorgeous and go like a rocket. The only problem is waterproofing it.

[merlin617]

I am beginning to get a sneaking suspicion that this has all been said before. So sorry about that, but I wasn't a member of any forums then so humour me. Thanks.

[skip]

I have a disco V8 with LPG, I get around 14mpg on gas and about 18 on petrol. I'll let you work out the cost differential ;)

From my point of view the V8 is a great engine and a truly awful one at the same time. It has more than it's fair share of problems. Porus blocks, premature valve train wear and cylinder liners that tend to move etc. On the upside the noise is just GURT LUSH!!!  :D  and given the choice again it would be another one with gas.

The 200tdi is a great engine and is far better suited to the rigors of off road use were water is concerned, In fact the only engine I would swap the V8 for is the ford transit engine fitted in my 6 month old works defender. That is a real peach!

[SEDDEY]

Got to be the V8 !  :D
I thought LPG was already taxed at the same ratio as petrol/diesel - just that it is cheaper to produce, being a by product of petrol/diesel refining ?
I stand to be corrected though

I thought that deisel was the bit left at the bottom as well, couldn't do much with it, sell it off cheap! Until it became popular! If you could get your car to run on pee they'd fit a meter to your fly!

[v8kenny]

Well my V8 CAN run on pee - but only if I've been on the Jack Daniels the night before !  :D

[Tommo]

V8. its much nicer to drive. better power delivery etc. and with LPG probably cheaper to run.

Cheaper to run at the moment, until Gollum and his cronies realise they are missing out on a good thing and tax LPG to hell and back!

christ almighty some people are fully on the downer all the time! people have been saying this for the last 10 years. The government signed an EU treaty limiting them to increasing tax by more than 1p per year. this is up for review at 2010 IIRC.

Thats all people ever say about LPG. "oooo the government are gonna get ya!" this country now lives in fear of being taxed.

[JumboBeef]

Tax on LPG can only go up by 1p more than petrol for the next three years (and that is a rolling three years).

I own a Disco V8 on LPG.  Always starts, never had any problems with it.  I've now covered faultless 16,000 miles since I've had it (nearly 12 months now). 

I also own a 110 200Tdi.  A great engine, runs no matter what you do it to, but it costs more to run than the LPG and sounds like a tractor.

Unless you are going to spend every day up to your wipers in water and mud, I would go for a V8 on LPG every day.

[Wireless]

I've done 90,000 miles on LPG in my V8 over the last 9 years, and every time I've ever mentioned running on LPG to anyone, they've said the government will tax it to death.

I have to admit I've agreed with them every time, not because I think it will happen, but because if they are reassured they are right, then LPG won't become a popular choice of fuel, and will not be taxed to death, and stays cheap.

My next car will be a Range Rover Vogue 4.4, in about two years time, when the bottom drops out of the second-hand 4x4 market altogether.

 :dance: