Diesel vs. Natural Gas

My primary concern would be weight. I drag a flat, and a lot of my carrier's customers pay on a hundred weight basis. So need to keep my equipment as light as I can. Does the CNG conversion add weight to my equipment? It must, since I don't see a lot of flats running it.

Another concern has already been stated. ROI. CNG/LNG is still fairly untried technology here in the US. Not a lot of properly trained techs available to deal with breakdown issues leads to more downtime on the truck, which leads to less productive time and less revenue generated.

As things stand today, I'll stick with proven reliability and readily available repair service of diesel, thanks.

 

Diesel: Safer to use, proven dependability over the long term and a huge network of fueling stations.
Also, If you run out, it can be carried in a jug!

I say a BIG NO to any CNG or LNG in a semi truck.

My friend at UPS also informs me their LNG trucks have been a TOTAL Disaster for them. Constant breakdowns and fuel related issues.

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All of the above answers and reasons are spot on, since we run light (under 54,000) I had seriously considered it when Diesel spiked to 5.00 pg, but the more I read into it and the more I heard about it, for a long haul operation, I just don't think it can compare.

One other note I will throw out there that no one else has mentioned, and that is taxes, as of right now there are a lot of reason that soften the switchover, even with all of that it is breakeven at best.

But my biggest concern is what happens down the road, yes, fuel tax on diesel may go up in the future, but at least we have had 30 years or more of a steady Federal tax price to figure off of, who is to say that IF even 50% of the OTR trucks converted that the Government, in their infinite wisdom, doesn't pull all the rebate and tax incentives and then skyrocket the tax paid on NG?

If you don't think that is a possibility, just ask electric car owners who ARE going to be paying additional taxes, be it a surcharge, a registration tax, or a mileage tax, the bottom line is, the money has to come from somewhere.

In the case of Schwan's I can see how it pays, they idle A LOT, they are all short runs, they are back at the same terminal every night, and they have there own shops, and they are the nations largest purchaser of NG, so they get tremendous pricing.

 

I worked for raven there whole or fleet will be natural gas in the next year or so currently a third is now there really nice trucks and run really quite and had no issues with the weight that others mentioned and they are also very safe they had a truck get hit directly in one of the tanks didn't even dent it lol was still full when it got back to the yard

 

I had some curiosity in LPG (LNG, whatever), and thought it might be a good way to beat the whole DPF debacle, so I checked with the shop that does the work for a local company with about 60 Kenworths with converted Cummins ISX motors running LNG. They seem to have very similar problems to DPF engines: weird error codes that neither the shop nor the manufacturer can't figure out how to fix.

The second concern I have is range. Takes a big, big tank to replace twin 150's on my truck.

The third concern I have is that certain places (some tunnels, for example) get antsy around LNG.

In theory, I'm all for it. Right now, not ready for prime time yet.

 

Jim, don't concern yourself with "every one will convert." There are millions of trucks operating every day, so all you need concern yourself with is a sufficient percentage to reach your profit goals, growth should be good if the numbers bear out.

Smooth Operator asked "if CNG offers comparable power." Does it? Power is a major concern for a lot of O/O drivers. Mega's will like it if it offers a lower cost per mile, per gallon run. In cold climate engines, they run longer on CNG, start and run better in cold weather.

Power, engine life, emission controls, hot weather operations, availability (More stations are being equipped, I know) are questions I am asking. I might go with CNG, lower cost per mile, cleaner emissions (right?) with CNG. And, cost of trucks.

 

The power and efficiency will never be on par with diesel fuel. It's not even possible. Diesel fuel is the most efficient fuel for internal combustion engines there is. When the bugs are worked out and the return is there people will surely jump on board. Not going to be a quick, easy, or sure thing from the sounds of it though. At this point it seems more of a trendy, touchy, feel good eco thing than any serious kind of fueling option.

 

sorry to highjack the thread , but have you heard guy , volvo working on new motor using new gaz ?

 

Why not make one truck run like a locomotive ? The engine will idle on 1000 rpm and connected to a big alternator producing power to electric motors mounted on the axles. Eliminate the transmission or make it very small. I like this setup better, but somebody must make it right.

 

I think we scared the OP off. Lol