EcoHearth: Come Home to the Earth

I'm not complaining about gas prices. I'm not wagging a finger at our government's oil wars. I'm not debating what automotive technology is going to save our planet. I'm shutting up, taking responsibility and finding out for myself. I've been running alternative fuels for the past five years. And it hasn't been all rainbow exhaust, green trophies and good times, my friends. Did I mention that day I had to pull chicken skin out of my fuel filter? Or how about the time my car powered down on the highway—while in the fast lane? I've laughed, I've cried. But in the end, all that matters is: would I do it again?

No Pain, No Gain
I have to be honest, running my 2001 VW TDI Jetta on waste vegetable oil (WVO) has been more heartache than I had anticipated. Originally, I thought I was just going to go hire someone to convert my car, learn how to collect and filter grease, and then I'd be off saving the world, requiring only my drive and idealism to see me through. Unfortunately, my conversion immediately taught me that if you are going to run WVO, you are going to get dirty. Idealism isn't enough.

I converted my car at Greasel in Missouri and would not recommend their conversion to anyone, I am sorry to say. Greasel custom-welded a second tank for my system and before I had made the road trip home to California, that tank sprung a leak, spilling gallons of diesel fuel all over the road—the exact thing I was trying to avoid by paying a large sum of money to have the tank custom-welded per Greasel's own design. I also experienced immediate electrical problems with my car, repeatedly shorting out the new circuits they had installed for the three electric heating pads and the fuel-selector valve.

Within the first year, I ended up rewiring the entire system and adding relays myself. I've replaced the Pollak fuel-selector valve five times in five years, and the $300 electric-transfer pump Greasel sold me burnt out within a year and half. Basically everything they touched on my car malfunctioned. And, with the exception of the transfer pump, each malfunction stranded me either while parked or driving, rendering my car completely inoperable.

Greasel has since changed names and apparently ownership. They are now called Golden Fuel Systems. Perhaps they have learned more about converting VW TDI Jettas over the past five years. I certainly have.

Electrical Glitches
One thing I’ve learned is that Volkswagon's electrical systems are notoriously fickle and any after-market alterations risk glitches in the finely tuned electronics on which newer TDI's run; even car stereo installation is a risk! The glitches can be as detrimental as air-flow meters going bad repeatedly (I've replaced mine four times). Or as benign as interior lights suddenly not engaging when the door is opened. Or horns intermittently not blowing, then just as suddenly returning to normal. Electric and electronic glitches are enigmatic to troubleshoot and are expensive as heck to diagnose. I have figured out how the fuel-delivery system in my car works, but to this day, I still do not actually understand how the car's electronics work.

Finding a Mechanic
I also learned that because it has not been legal to sell diesels in the state of California for years, there are next to no mechanics who know how to work on them locally. When you do find a real diesel mechanic, they often refuse to work on a car that runs on WVO. I believe this is because troubleshooting takes longer than routine exhaust and brake repairs and therefore eats into profits. It seems that a genuine mechanic is difficult to find anymore. (What has happened to those who genuinely enjoy working on cars and are excited to be the first to know everything about a new system?) I finally was able to locate a real mechanic who is not afraid to work on a more esoteric system, thank goodness.

Other Lessons Along the Way
I learned that one should change his veggie fuel filter at the first sign of a power hiccup. Also that the Pollak fuel-selector valve is not rugged enough to withstand the high temperatures of heated veggie oil (and I have yet to find a replacement). And that igniting one's car on used veggie oil in temperatures under 60 degrees is destructive to the fuel pump and should be avoided.

I have learned how to crack fuel injectors, bleed lines and suck fuel into the carb with my mouth. Most importantly, if I had all the cash in the world to start this exact project over again, this time I would buy a brand new VW Jetta, try the expensive German Elsbett WVO conversion system on a custom two-tank system straight from the get-go, and add in-line heaters myself before it's all over.

WVO vs. OLD
I have run waste vegetable oil for five years and 40,000 miles now. Would I have had to replace my airflow meter four times, my Pollak fuel selector five times and my injector pump once, had I chosen to convert a 1985 Mercedes instead of a 2001 VW? We'll have to read a Mercedes conversion blog to answer that. But one of the questions I have to this day is: compared to a brand-new car of the same make, does running WVO require more or earlier repairs and if so, on what system components? Everyone I know has converted an already old car to run on waste vegetable oil. Mine is a 2001 with 200,000 miles on it. Some of the repairs are surely just old-car repairs. It would be nice to know for sure which ones are which.

Jetta Heart Attack
One breakdown that was not an old-car repair and definitively WVO-related happened this spring. My Jetta would not start (again) and this time, my cool mechanic looked at me like I was driving an alien craft as he related his repair notes. "Tonya, I took seven gallons of the most disgusting gunk out of your fuel tank. I've never seen anything like it." No wonder the car wouldn't start! The lesson I learned from that repair is to never, never, never put even partially hydrogenated oil in your tank—no matter how much filtering and heating you administer. Jetta heart attack!

When running my Jetta for five months on diesel, the car ran wonderfully, started quickly every time, never smoked and had consistent power. The problems came when I started using WVO. Hmmm... So all this sounds a little daunting. And still, would I do it again? I would and I did.

A Tale of Two Vans
I purchased two diesel vans for my company, a Chevy 3500 and a Ford Econoline E350. I converted the Chevy to run on waste vegetable oil using a Grease Car conversion kit, this time installed by a private mechanic. I ran the Ford on biodiesel only.

The WVO Chevy powered down while driving five times within the first 5,000 miles. The biodiesel Ford has had no issues. I did not choose to continue troubleshooting the Chevy van; the way I see it, troubleshooting should be left to personal transportation and never a company vehicle. In the future, I will be doing all my research and development off the clock. When I know I've got my system right, then and only then will I place that vehicle into the work force.

The Bottom Line

The money I’ve saved by obtaining free fuel during the past five years has been balanced out by the cost of repairs. But, I’ve also had the supreme environmental pleasure of not running on fossil fuels. And for all the times I’ve been stranded, I’ve many more times been sitting in LA traffic feeling confident that my fuel is not creating that layer of smog in front of the Hollywood sign. Though not my intention, I have become competent and confident under the hood of a car, which is a skill that not enough women—heck, not enough men—have today. And for all the time and expense we spend on cars, it just makes sense we'd want to know how to keep them running.

Most importantly, though, committing to run on WVO has placed me in a new category of environmentalist, and proven to myself that I am not afraid to go all the way for the things I believe in. You aren't really one of those people until you are one of them. So now I am. Before, I was just a follower, waiting for someone else to do the hard work. My personal environmental integrity has increased three-fold and my enthusiasm to take on other, bigger, experimental green projects has grown. I am free to experiment. Operative word: free.

Do I think there is one alternative-fuel answer that will heal the pollution, the politics and the consumerism of world society? No. But I do believe that alternative fuels in general can.

I encourage everyone out there to experiment and contribute to the diversification of fuel reliance. Research and develop WVO delivery systems, manufacture your own local waste-stock biodiesel, build an electric car that powers off solar panels, forge a way to import the 80 mpg, manual, diesel Smart Car from Europe. And if you want to teach your children about alternatives to petroleum-based transportation, keep those bicycles in excellent repair, and start getting the whole family into shape by riding them to the store together to pick up groceries.

I don't have the answer because there isn't one. There are many. It's time to choose one, two or ten of them and get started.

Read Part 1: Converting Your Car
Read Part 2: How to Select the Oil
Read Part 3: How to Filter the Oil
Read Part 4: Better Oil Filtering

[See a complete list of writing by Tonya Kay on EcoHearth.com or visit her Clean and Green Everyday blog. – Ed.]

Comments (34)

Subscribe to this comment's RSS feed

Write comment