[maglev]

I finally got my Humble Ritz LXI converted into CNG on Wednesday, 16-May-2010.
Since I was not able to find a similar thread, I thought I should rather create one on my own.


Basic Information about the Vehicle, CNG Kit + Installer & Why CNG.



The Vehicle:

Its a Maruti Suzuki Ritz LXI in the Superior White shade. Its a joy to drive in the city. She has been giving a consistent mileage of around 11-12 kmpl with 100% A/C & 100% City, most of which has been bumper to bumper Delhi traffic.

The car had run 4366kms on the day of the install.



The CNG Kit + Installer

Since the Ritz sports a K-Series engine, tuning it to perform on CNG is a bit of a headache as pretty much everything is computer controlled and not much can be adjusted manually. This is the reason I chose this particular installer as he himself owns a Ritz LXI.

The Kit is a GNC (Argentina) Kit, with a lambda. The kit cost me Rs: 26,000/- in total without RC endorsement as I plan to get it done on my own. The Kit comes with a 1 year warranty on all the components.

The Installer Mr. Sunil Dutt is a very helpful and cheerful guy. He knows CNG kits inside-out and has been in the CNG business for almost a decade.
The company is known by the name of Tara Dutt and the details are as follows:

Tara Dutt Automobiles
301/5, Sukhdev Market, Opposite Defence Colony,
Kotla Mubarakpur, New Delhi, Delhi 110003, India.

+911124619814‎
+911124634392
+919891311148



Why CNG

This is a very pertinent question, I went ahead with CNG as it actually works out far cheaper in comparison to Diesel. The main reasons for not buying diesel are:

01. Diesel costs Rs 38 per liter & CNG costs Rs 27.5/- per kilogram. Unfortunately the price of CNG increased from Rs 22 to Rs 27.5 on the midnight of the day of the conversion.

02. Price difference between LXI & LDI is Rs. 90,000/-, Cost of CNG kit Rs 26,000 + 1000 for RC endorsement. It still works out cheaper by Rs 63,000/-.

03. They both give roughly the same mileage.

04. Widespread availability of CNG in the NCR region, this is where my Ritz will spend more than 95% of its lifetime. There are 3 CNG stations within a 3-4 km radius of my house.

05. I have had a good experience with CNG in the past, this one would be my 5th car on CNG.

06. The new CNG kits come with an additional module called 'Advancer', which basically ensures that there is only a negligible performance difference between Petrol & CNG.

07. For just in case situations, the ability to switch over to petrol from CNG. In fact it can be done on the fly.

08. CNG has an Octane Rating of around 130, whereas normal petrol has an octane rating of 87.

09. Its much better for the environment in comparison to both petrol & diesel.

10. Contrary to popular belief CNG actually increases Engine Life and reduces wear & tear in the long run. This happens because the use of CNG serves to extend the life of the lubricating oil, as CNG will not contaminate or dilute crankcase oil.

Fouling of plugs is eliminated and plug life is enhanced as CNG does not contain any lead.

CNG enters the engine as gas while petrol comes in as spray or mist which washes down the lubricating oil from the piston ring area to raise the rate of engine depreciation.

All of this reduces maintenance costs and as a result engine life goes up.

[PAVAN KADAM]

Good to know you got it done from some reputed company.

Let us know about your newfound Fuel Efficiency now

Good otherwise, your car is now more eco-friendly

[maglev]

The installation pictures (1):

[maglev]

The installation pictures (2):

[nick17s]

where did the spare tire go? and will the cng cylinder not create a problem in case of a tire puncture ??

[maglev]

The installation pictures (3):

[maglev]

The installation pictures (4):

[maglev]

The installation pictures (5):

[maglev]

The installation pictures (6):

[maglev]

Originally Posted by PAVAN KADAM

Good to know you got it done from some reputed company.

Let us know about your newfound Fuel Efficiency now

Good otherwise, your car is now more eco-friendly

Thanks, I am getting a mileage of about 15 km per kilo of CNG as against the 11-12 kmpl for petrol. (Both figures 100% & 100% city)

The mileage on CNG will improve further, after a few hundred kilometers as it takes a while for the engine to adjust to CNG.

Originally Posted by nick17s

where did the spare tire go? and will the cng cylinder not create a problem in case of a tire puncture ??

I hope that the pictures answer your question.

[dhanushs]

Hey magley, looks like you got yourself a pretty neat installation. Congrats!..

Originally Posted by maglev

The Kit is a GNC (Argentina) Kit, with a lambda. The kit cost me Rs: 26,000/- in total without RC endorsement as I plan to get it done on my own. The Kit comes with a 1 year warranty on all the components.

isnt this a bit too pricey??..

Originally Posted by maglev

Why CNG

03. They both give roughly the same mileage.

Hey, I'v heard diesel Ritz give out mileage of about 22-24kmpl.. Does CNG give you that much mileage per KG?

Originally Posted by maglev

Widespread availability of CNG in the NCR region, this is where my Ritz will spend more than 95% of its lifetime. There are 3 CNG stations within a 3-4 km radius of my house.

This is actually a very important point to consider. Nice to see that you've considered the availability. We were also into LPG(not CNG) about 8-10years back(those old LPG kit + cooking gas cylinder days) but then the lack of proper and safe LPG stations in our area made us turn into regular petrol.

Originally Posted by maglev

09. Its much better for the environment in comparison to both petrol & diesel.

Very true!!..

Originally Posted by maglev

10. Contrary to popular belief CNG actually increases Engine Life and reduces wear & tear in the long run. This happens because the use of CNG serves to extend the life of the lubricating oil, as CNG will not contaminate or dilute crankcase oil.

Fouling of plugs is eliminated and plug life is enhanced as CNG does not contain any lead.

CNG enters the engine as gas while petrol comes in as spray or mist which washes down the lubricating oil from the piston ring area to raise the rate of engine depreciation.

All of this reduces maintenance costs and as a result engine life goes up.

I doubt this, as i'v heard that the operating temperature of the engine goes much higher up, which causes engine fatigue sooner, than the quoted advantages prolong engine life. (I'm not sure about this)

Our OMNI's (2 nos) which were running on LPG needed engine overhauling at just 1-1.5 lac kms, were our regular OMNI was fine even till 2lac kms.

Congrats on your new installation!

[dhanushs]

Well, there is one advantage for a diesel RItz though, and it is that you can have loads more bootspace than the CNG one.

[maglev]

Originally Posted by dhanushs

Hey magley, looks like you got yourself a pretty neat installation. Congrats!..

isnt this a bit too pricey??..

Hey, I'v heard diesel Ritz give out mileage of about 22-24kmpl.. Does CNG give you that much mileage per KG?

This is actually a very important point to consider. Nice to see that you've considered the availability. We were also into LPG(not CNG) about 8-10years back(those old LPG kit + cooking gas cylinder days) but then the lack of proper and safe LPG stations in our area made us turn into regular petrol.

Very true!!..

I doubt this, as i'v heard that the operating temperature of the engine goes much higher up, which causes engine fatigue sooner, than the quoted advantages prolong engine life. (I'm not sure about this)

Our OMNI's (2 nos) which were running on LPG needed engine overhauling at just 1-1.5 lac kms, were our regular OMNI was fine even till 2lac kms.

Well, there is one advantage for a diesel RItz though, and it is that you can have loads more bootspace than the CNG one.

Congrats on your new installation!

Thanks Dhanushs,

The price of the kit is slightly on the higher side by about 2-3K but the quality of the install and the professionalism is what I was looking for and the best part is that my car is running perfectly on both petrol and CNG.

The Ritz Diesel gives 14.6kmpl, The Ritz Petrol gives 11.8kmpl both in the city cycle as per AutoCar India June 2010.
My CNG powered Ritz is giving a little above 14.9 kilometers per kilo of CNG 100% a/c & 100% city.

We sold our CNG powered Esteem after 5 yeras of use & abuse. The car had been converted into CNG even before its first service, It was running smooth even after 2 Lac kms. My brother has an accent running on the original unopened engine currently at 1.7 lac kms. My own Accent is at 1.5 lac at the moment and running smooth

The Boot Space is definitely one area where a diesel totally beats CNG. Luckily since my CNG cylinder 'stand' sits at the bottom of the boot's floor with hardly an inch of elevation. I can use this space above the cylinder for shopping bags and smaller stuff.
But then for those occasional heavy Luggage trips I have the SX4 or my dad's Octavia.

[rnidumolu]

Dude, what about the engine warranty? It is void now

[sportz_kruzer]

Originally Posted by dhanushs

Hey magley, looks like you got yourself a pretty neat installation. Congrats!..



isnt this a bit too pricey??..



Hey, I'v heard diesel Ritz give out mileage of about 22-24kmpl.. Does CNG give you that much mileage per KG?



This is actually a very important point to consider. Nice to see that you've considered the availability. We were also into LPG(not CNG) about 8-10years back(those old LPG kit + cooking gas cylinder days) but then the lack of proper and safe LPG stations in our area made us turn into regular petrol.



Very true!!..



I doubt this, as i'v heard that the operating temperature of the engine goes much higher up, which causes engine fatigue sooner, than the quoted advantages prolong engine life. (I'm not sure about this)

Our OMNI's (2 nos) which were running on LPG needed engine overhauling at just 1-1.5 lac kms, were our regular OMNI was fine even till 2lac kms.

Congrats on your new installation!

The operating temp does go up as the cooling effect of a rich petrol mixture is absent in case of cng. This is tough on the valves. However the calorific value of cng is lesser than petrol. Also, valves (and seats) are basically designed to work with carbon formation, which cng erodes out so its mandatory to drive on petrol for atleast 2-3 kms everyday. This keeps the engine happy or else the valves may get fried.

BTW 11-12 kmpl on petrol didnt gel with me. I feel its too less. My friends optra 1.6 LT gives the same figures in city. Suggest you get it checked.

quality of install is really good!