Has anyone ever ran this? I have heard some positive feedback, but want tot see if anyone has had negative effects. Any input would be great!

 

The only thing I know about it is you dont even think about hitting the propane unless your making some good boost numbers, and its kinda like nitros.

 

i have been considering this myself..from what i have read, the propane works off boost..it needs 10psi to activate and climbs with the boost...down side, after speaking with several people about,it is a good way to melt the motor and needs to be monitered very closely...i believe i have decided to back away

 

There used to be quite a few kits out there but now hardly any. There is a reason. Way too many blown engines.
Some do add just a little sniff to improve fuel economy. The propane acts as a catalist for a more efficient burn. The down side is, what you save on diesel you spend on propane. The kits are not cheap so it's a loose-loose deal.
Water/meth is a little safer power adder.

 

I have LPG inj on one of my trucks. Good power gains. Clears up smoke too. I have the superchips MSD system

 

I also thought I've read how it helps clean the motor and run cooler. I don't have one but there use to be guys on here that did run them. Quadzzila I beleive was one. He liked to race and I believe he did finally blow the motor. Bully dog use to be a big pusher of propane. Be a good place to start.
Chet

 

I actually have a couple of buddies running them. One of them has a 6.0 and the other has a 7.3. I can get the name of the kit they are running.

They have a 5gal tank under the truck bed and as their boost goes up, it increases the amount of propane. The power gains have been good, but the fuel efficiency gains has been amazing. The guy with the 6.0 has a dually and tows a 10k trailer with a 4k camper on the back. He is running an edge, intake, and exhaust. He paper logs his mileage every time and runs roughly 11 to 11.5 mpg loaded going between Seattle and Yakima (about 250 mi). When he put in the propane, he now makes the same trip averaging 14 - 15. He has all of the guages to monitor the engine temp and EGTs and has not had any problems. He does adjust his spray to boost ratio frequently. However, it has been very solid for him and he has been running it for 2 years.

The guy with the 7.3 has pretty much the same guages set up and is running an edge with intake and exhaust. He doesn't tow much, but has seen 23-24 mpg making the same trip to Yakima WA. He has only been running it for about 4 months.

The guy with the camper is a very conservative driver and never pushes his truck. He just goes the speed limit and takes his time. The guy with the 7.3 doesn't hot rod much, but will at some point. He will be a good one to watch to see what happens. Overall, the kits are very nice and you can adjust them to come on as much or as little as you want. They both run about 2 tanks of fuel to every tank of propane. The difference is they are getting another 120 mi a tank (roughly) to every half tank of propane. Here in the PNW, propane is 2.25 gal, so that is roughly $6-$7 for an extra 120 mi. That is pretty cheap.

I am thinking about it, but still waiting to see how my other buddy does with his kit. I think it is the same as using a DP tuner. You can run it on the extreme and push your truck hard and can end up ruining something. However, if you use it responsibly, you should be ok.

 

I personally would never recommend running propane. Sure in small doses most people might never experience a problem. But there is one thing to consider....

it's a fuel

...and it's introduced through the intake. In other words, once a fuel is inside the combustion chamber, you actually have no control over when it detonates. If it pre-detonates too early, your cylinder pressures spike extremely high, and you put additional stress on the rods.

This is why so many trucks with propane kits ended up with holes in the block. This is also why propane kits aren't nearly as popular as they used to be in the diesel world.

 

Propane can be an evil genie, it will give you a few mpgs and up to 100 hp but can put port holes in the block and play pop goes the HG. Basically most propane kits are set up with a Hobbs switch(set at 4-10 psi) to induce flow, propane is not as stable as diesel and you have less control of when it goes BOOM! Hence pre-detonation, which causes spikes in cylinder pressure which, combined with advanced timing, can lead to bent rods or popped head gaskets.

I went to a truck show/race a few years ago and ran into a guy running propane on his 3406 Cat, no Hobbs switch. He was complaining about it bogging when he was at the starting line, I told him he was running way too much propane at low boost and was play with fire.

Few passes later...KABOOM, lifted the head on the truck.

 

Can propane ignite off the pressure/heat in a diesel before the diesel ignites? I always thought the diesel lit the propane after the diesel went bang. My buddy's dad has been running propane on his stroke for like 5 years now. He beats the snot out of that truck and the only problem he has had is with transmissions.

 

Yes, it can. It is not supposed too but if the propane is too rich it can go boom before it is designed to causing HUGE spikes in cylinder pressure.

 

You know I almost went this route years ago. Talked to bullydog and they highly recommended it. It doesn't hurt to call them and see what they say. Propane is dangerous if not done right. Lots of campers on the side of the road burnt down to the ground because of propane. It takes maintinence but if down right it can get you what you want.

Chet

 

Just from a cost analysis basis, the general rule of thumb is that propane is only economical when the cost of the propane is less than the cost of diesel. I don't know how those costs compare at the moment, but they do oscillate back and forth.

In other words, just like has already been stated, that extra mileage that people get does not come without a cost, and the cost of the propane has to be included in the mileage figures to see if the mileage gains offset the cost of the propane AND the dosing system. Otherwise, it's only burning good money.

 

Propane is great for BBQ's... And should stay there.