NISSAN X-TRAIL 2003 2.5 SVE AUTO 48000 miles - LPG CONVERSION

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Tue 29 Mar 2011 23:34
NISSAN X-TRAIL 2003 2.5 SVE AUTO 48000 miles - LPG CONVERSION - Tonee

Hi.I am considering getting my X-Trail converted to LPG as i only get 29mpg.However i am getting conflicting views when asking for quotes online.One garage has said that the car has "severe valve seat recession"and that it will last 8-10000 miles even with oil injection(like flashlube)and then a £1500 repair bill for new exhaust valves and seats !The others have given me quotes from £970 to £1600. Has anyone with the same motor or similar had problems with their conversion as i now have grave doubts as to wether to go ahead.Many thanks,Tony.

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Wed 30 Mar 2011 10:55
NISSAN X-TRAIL 2003 2.5 SVE AUTO 48000 miles - LPG CONVERSION - Ethan Edwards

Yes I have a 2003 Xtrail SVE Auto with an LPG conversion that has covered 46K miles from new with 25,000 of them on LPG. I had mine converted over four years ago (1600 quid) .Since I haven't been running any flashlube, until now ( I recently had it installed), I therefore had a compression test done first. Which found no issues at all.

I suggest you get a compression test first before you do anything else. For comparison I had three cylinders on 165psi and one on 160. VSR is a symptom of possible (and I stress worst case possible) problems for the 2.5 AFTER many miles on LPG conversion NOT before. So your post is quite puzzling to me.

The symptoms of VSR are mostly very poor idling, stalling when cold etc. Now those symptoms can also be other things. The 2.5 engine has had a recall in the US (on a Sentra) for a faulty crankshaft sensor which yep you got it causes EXACTLY the same symptoms. There's also some butterfly valves in the intake which also cause exactly the same symptoms. So it's not an obvious VSR problem, which is why you need a compression test. If your compression is less than 120psi then yes you need to have the head off.

Turned out my issues were simply duff sparkplugs and the throttle body needed a good clean. Phew! Nissan main dealer toomeys, southend were great! If you go LPG I recommend irridium sparkplugs.

Conversion. I have the usual toroidal tank in the spare wheel space 55 litres I think which gives me 160m plus or minus on LPG in addition to the existing petrol. Good news is that one tank of petrol lasts me months and months. Conversion costs..depends where you are. These days around £1100 sounds ok. We're lucky in that it's only a 4cyl engine. The LPG kit I have is an Egas kit. You would get the petrol equivalent of 40mpg out of the old bus. That 'aint bad is it.

Incidentally mines in Zinc metallic with the cream leather interior.

Cheers,

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Thu 31 Mar 2011 00:35
NISSAN X-TRAIL 2003 2.5 SVE AUTO 48000 miles - LPG CONVERSION - Tonee

Hi Ethan and thanks for the info.Sounds like i neednt have worried so much and i will get the compression checked.I have not however had any problems with the motor so far although i only bought the car 3 months ago during the horrendous weather we had to get me to work !To be honest my knowledge of a motor is well poor.Im not even sure if the engine is a 2.5 or 2.5i so maybe you can help me there as it will affect quotes i get ?It was registered 1/9/2003.40 mpg sounds like a good return for a motor so versatile with a touch of luxury with the automatic.Also i reckon that the conversion puts money on the car so your return comes quicker.I am now seriously thinking of getting a conversion done,although it would be great if i received some more positive feedback on this forum.Thanks again mate.

Incidentally mine is Cyclone metallic(fern green)with the cream interior.

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Thu 31 Mar 2011 01:07
NISSAN X-TRAIL 2003 2.5 SVE AUTO 48000 miles - LPG CONVERSION - SteveLee

As previously mentioned valve seat recession is usually only a problem post LPG conversion, and only then if the LPG fuelling has been set incorrectly. Unfortunately the LPG/air ratio can be quite a way out before drivability issues are apparent, this is why the conversion should be done by an expert with a long track history in LPG conversions.

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Thu 31 Mar 2011 01:10
NISSAN X-TRAIL 2003 2.5 SVE AUTO 48000 miles - LPG CONVERSION - SteveLee

PS going by the mileage/age of the car - if you're only travelling 8,000 miles per year, it'll take a long time to see profit in your LPG conversion.

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Thu 31 Mar 2011 10:24
NISSAN X-TRAIL 2003 2.5 SVE AUTO 48000 miles - LPG CONVERSION - Ethan Edwards

Steve Lee - yes your right good point but most find as the running cost fall's they tend to use the vehicle a little more often.

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Thu 31 Mar 2011 17:37
NISSAN X-TRAIL 2003 2.5 SVE AUTO 48000 miles - LPG CONVERSION - Tonee

Hi Steve and thanks for your input.I live in the North East and there are a couple of Garages that are part of groups specialising in Conversions.One is Autogas and the other BRC.both have quoted around about £1600,which your right would take a while to pay back.Estimations quote approx £460 per year saving at 8000 miles but i reckon you would put at least £500 on the car itself.I was hoping to pay around £1100 but its finding a reliable one that will guarantee it for at least 2 years.Wonder if anyone can direct me to a North East/North Yorkshire Garage that will charge around this figure that has a good long track record ?

Incidentally the Development Manager from BRC has emailed me wanting to discuss the VSR issue/not on the X-Trail so ill post the result after ive had a chat with him.Thanks again,Tony.

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Thu 31 Mar 2011 23:18
NISSAN X-TRAIL 2003 2.5 SVE AUTO 48000 miles - LPG CONVERSION - Big John


Autogas 2000 in Thirsk, North Yorkshire is a long standing LPG converter



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Sat 2 Apr 2011 16:20
NISSAN X-TRAIL 2003 2.5 SVE AUTO 48000 miles - LPG CONVERSION - Tonee

Hello mate and thanks for that.Coincidently ive just come on to the forum to put on the reply from Autogas 2000 below :-

Subject: RE: AUTOGAS - Autogas Conversion

Thanks for the mail,

To give you a guide.

Using the latest sequential gas injection with the following benefits.

Two years warranty on the product

Including additional vehicle breakdown warranty (OEM or dealer warranty will opt out of anything the gas touches) Multi-hole quick fill LPG tank UK filling connection with option for continental filling adapters Latest software direct from manufacturer.

Automatic change over back to petrol when run out of LPG with audible indication Dealer Log of hours of running on LPG for service intervals.

LPGA certificate for insurance

Owner "Autogas 2000 wallet" which includes user manual with service instructions, warranty forms etc

Sample price for a Nissan Xtrail using a ring tank in place of the spare wheel of about 70 ltr (12.3 gallons of useable LPG fuel) fitted including the above documentation. £1524.66 inc VAT (Qote A2K12870).

Please note: The vehicle you have enquired about is listed as having an engine valve wear when running on LPG.

This basicly means that the engine valves show signs of degradation over a period of miles and the engine may over time become difficult to start. In motorway driving the problem can be exaggerated and in some case valve wear can occur and be noticed at around twenty thousand miles. If the car is used as a second car (shopping and non motorway driving) then the problem is less pronounced and in some cases rarely never seen.

We can install a valve lubrication system that leaks an additive into the engine to slow down the valve degradation, this product works very well and we would always recommend this on this type of vehicle. The valve lubrication system is £38.79 (+ Vat) extra and can be fitted during the conversion including in the conversion fitting price.

UKLPG has since July 2010 agreed with insurance underwriters to have an accessible database for the insurance companies to check the vehicle conversion against. The vehicle can only be placed on the vehicle register by ourselves or by another UKLPG approved installer and a simple page receipt will be given to the end user driver as proof of this. For further details of this scheme please have a look at the following website:

<*********="2" color="#0000ff">www.drivelpg.co.uk <*********="2">

Sample excel calculation.

Vehicle converted doing 25K a year at 20 MPG Petrol price £1.30 (current price) Gas price £0.75 (current price) MPG reduction of 20% on LPG (due to lower calorific value) Saving for the years running £2057.19 Equivalent MPG 28mpg

Sadly the warning re the X-trail raises it head again ! Have talked to the BRC Manager as mentioned earlier and he insists that they have done lots of conversions on the same car without any problems or come backs("over a hundred")Talked to the local BRC stockist,CLS Dual Fuel in Durham,and the guy confirms theve had no come backs with the X-Trail but admits that all Japanese cars are know for having "soft valves"and that the oil injection is vital for them.His view is more like 30-40000miles rather than the 8-10 or 20000 before issues may occur depending on type of driving/use etc.He suggested that i could have the valves replaced with "hard valves"for around £700 first and then there is no longer an issue so im working on figures against overall cost/miles/years/resale etc.This makes the £1200 fitting price even more attractive if i can find it if i am to pay another £700 for hard valves.What do you guys think ?

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Sun 3 Apr 2011 23:24
NISSAN X-TRAIL 2003 2.5 SVE AUTO 48000 miles - LPG CONVERSION - Ethan Edwards

Your worrying excesively over nothing. Have the conversion done and get Flash lube fitted. Job done. Your extra £700 is fixing a problem before it MIGHT happen. So logically it's like buying four new tyres every week just in case you gat a puncture.

Cheers,

Edited by Ethan Edwards on 03/04/2011 at 23:24

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Thu 31 Mar 2011 10:40
NISSAN X-TRAIL 2003 2.5 SVE AUTO 48000 miles - LPG CONVERSION - Ethan Edwards

Tonee - it's a 2.5 litre 16v -same thing. Don't worry, when you tell the insurers it's petrol and a SVE it can only be the one engine. Ironically from the owners club, a lot of owners claim that the 2 litre is actually better at withstanding VSR than the 2.5. Which I find odd as essentially they are the same engine with just a longer piston stroke to up the capacity from 2 to 2.5 litres.

LPG conversion quotes are always based on the number of cylinders. Depending on your location I know two very good installers that I have used one in the south of Hertfordshire and another (a bit more expensive) near Southend on Sea.

My 2p would do be to just do it. You have nothing to lose but your fuel bills. VED is 245 once you have converted it. Additional insurance costs are ...zero. When unleaded inevitably climbs to £1.50 a litre you'll look back on this and chuckle.

Incidentally that cream interior we have is pretty rare as it was only offered for a couple of years.

I run both my cars on LPG, which is great until / unless the chancellor decides to start ripping us lot off too. :)

Edited by Ethan Edwards on 31/03/2011 at 10:43

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Thu 31 Mar 2011 17:51
NISSAN X-TRAIL 2003 2.5 SVE AUTO 48000 miles - LPG CONVERSION - Tonee

Hello again Ethan and thanks for extra info.Some of the quotes ive had said that the LPG price is protected until 2014.We all know about the poor deisel driver who it trying to reduce his fuel bills and maybe help the environment etc and were talking 7/8p a litre more now which is clearly a rip off unless you do lots and lots of miles a year.I think LPG prices will creep up with petrol but keep the gap it is now so its still make sense,especially if i can keep the price down to around £1100 from a reputable garage along with a decent warranty.I live in the North East/North Yorshire Area and have asked for recommendations so ill see if any appear on this forum.

The Cream/Biege interior is soo light and airey.Bought a nice light beige leather wheel cover for it that sets it off and fitted the boot with a ruby red carpet remnant that contrasts really well :)

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Thu 31 Mar 2011 18:09
NISSAN X-TRAIL 2003 2.5 SVE AUTO 48000 miles - LPG CONVERSION - Ethan Edwards

Yorkshire hmmmm -I have recommended this one to HJ ..if you fancy a trip down south, I guess you'd need an overnight stay....

http://www.honestjohn.co.uk/faq/lpg-and-cng/

pjcars right at the bottom of the page.

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