[Greenbuilding] Off Topic: What car do you suggest?

[RONALD CASCIO]

Rueben,

One of our TDIs has 100K on it with B100 and B80 winter blend, the other has 70K. Both have been running this commercial grade fuel for 7 years. I can tell you there are many more out there doing the same, and more, without injector pump failures. Does it happen with biodiesel? Yes it does, likely with poorly made fuel. It also happens with petrodiesel. Fuel quality, no matter the type, is the issue with IP failures. 

I can't count for you the stories of folks taking their problemed diesels into a mechanic and the first thing they diagnose is that the issue is with the biodiesel. When told they have to replace their IP for $700-$1500 they head for another opinion, only to find the mechanic was too quick to blame the problem on something he knows nothing about. It happens more than seems possible. I'd say it's lazy mechanics responsible for the urban myth.

Most manufacturers phased in Viton or related products in the fuel systems around the mid '90s, when LSD (Low Sulfur Diesel) came on the market, which has a similar effect on natural rubber products.

Here is the best source of information on burning alternative fuels in a VW TDI;

http://forums.tdiclub.com/forumdisplay.php?f=52

Hope this is heplful.


Ron

  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Reuben Deumling 
  To: RONALD CASCIO 
  Cc: Jason Holstine ; greenbuilding at listserv.repp.org 
  Sent: Friday, May 02, 2008 1:45 PM
  Subject: Re: [Greenbuilding] Off Topic: What car do you suggest?





  On Fri, May 2, 2008 at 10:37 AM, RONALD CASCIO <roncascio at verizon.net> wrote:

    There are many of us out here burning high quality B100 in TDIs without injector pump failures Reuben. Again, I believe it to be a mistake to suggest that anyone burning B100 in a TDI has a looming injector pump repair in their future. It's just not the case, or I'd have know about it long ago. Don't buy into yet another urban myth.

    Ron 

  I'd be pleased to learn that this is an urban myth. The source in my case was the mechanic who did the repair. Since there are rubber seals in the injector pump and since we know that methanol is very aggressive on almost all rubbers and plastics but Viton it seemed a reasonable warning. 

  If you know of folks who've put more than 60,000 miles (to pick a number) on their TDIs using B100 the whole time and who have not had this problem I'd be curious to hear about it. Alternately if VW is using Viton or some equivalent material in the seals of their injector pumps I'd be curious to know when that was phased in.

  Thanks.

  Reuben Deumling



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