I’ve been toying with, and looking into, the possibility of converting Alphonse over to CNG (compressed natural gas). CNG runs at between $1.25 and 1.75 a gallon equivalent, making that big boat not only as cost efficient as a 35 MPG car, but also every bit as nice on the environment. The big drawback is that the conversion could cost up to, and maybe beyond, $6000.
Makes this car as efficient and clean as your Prius.
I thought about buying something economical, for that amount of money I could get a decent little car. But I really like the car I have, except for it’s gas mileage, and it’s in excellent running condition. So I did a little bit of calculating, (with CNG at $1.50/gal eq, gas at $3.75/gal and assuming I drive it 10,000 miles a year), and figured out that it would take me just under 2 years to get back my $6,000 investment.
So, I’m going to go out and get some quotes and, barring any serious setbacks, I’m going to have a CNG powered 1978 Mercury Marquis. I will be losing some trunk space to the CNG tank, but I figure if it fits in that VW I can certainly spare the space in my trunk.
