is propane street legal in NC?

hairy bean bag

Active Member
Joined
Mar 25, 2005
Location
Monroe NC
might be a repost but i was wondering if propane is legal to run and inspect in NC?the reason im asking is im wanting to do propane on my 83 or go to a 22re.
i ve done some searching on this and their are to many gray areas.ive even asked an inspection station in town and he could not tell me.
ive also wasted 20$ in phone calls to the DMV in Raleigh.

Chris
 
Chris, to answer your question in a word, yes! Very legal. Not only is it legal, but if you register your car or truck that is running propane, you can get a tax break! WHy, because it is a very clean burning fuel. You can pass any emissions test as long as you aren't pumping oil. Now, the kicker is,...... you have to find a fueling station that will charge the road useage tax, just like on gasoline. that is, in order to get your tax break. I have propane on my Jeep, and have sold 5 other units. LEt me know if you have further questions
Chip
 
i am also interested in the pane. any good jeep specific write up links? tax break sounds good too.

kevin
 
That road tax stuff worries me... it's no different than running off-highway diesel on the street. The likelihood of getting caught is... doubtful... but damn the fines and PITA if you do.
 
You should also check out JP Magazine from a few months ago. There was an article about some guy who converted an AMC 360 to run on 'pane.

Rumor has it, that motor started barfing innards recently :flipoff2:
 
kilby said:
Easier & cheaper than converting a carb into EFI.
Click to expand...

And it's a simple, simple system.

You now watch your oil pressure gauge as a sign to shut down.
 
kilby said:
You should also check out JP Magazine from a few months ago. There was an article about some guy who converted an AMC 360 to run on 'pane.

Rumor has it, that motor started barfing innards recently :flipoff2:
Click to expand...

I wonder who that asshat is? Wait to you see it now, bling bling. Can you say 397 stroker?

Heres a writeup kilby and I did on my 360:
http://www.flexedout.com/tech/propane.html

road tax, thats the least of anything to worry about with LPG. The pump stations that sell LPG sell it pretaxed just like gasoline. There is no way to tell if you filled it from a pump station tank or you filled it from your bbq tank.

One good thing that I have noticed since I started tinkering with pane about 2 years ago, I have seen alot more fill stations popping up - and some very conveniant to me as well ;)
 
madmonk said:
its $14 for my 40lb tank at the campground by my house, approx $1.75 a gal and holding steady.
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thats a good price. There is a little mom&pop pane station near me here, he charges $16 for my 33# tanks.
 
Pathmaker said:
do the fuel mileages work the same as with gas?
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From what I know, expect ~15% less than gas, unless the motor is built for 'pane (high compression, timing curves set, etc..)
 
its a little less like Rich said but you do have to figure you now only have 10 gallons gas equivalent from a 33# cylinder. I can get a good 2 days of wheeling on my 33# tank with the 4 barrells, or 3 days pussy footin it.

Its easily made more efficient with the right components. This new engine I am building will have pretty high compression which should be more fuel efficient....until the secondaries open up ;)

A good fix is get a cam with a longer lift/duration for the exhaust. Or a good ole cheap fix go a size up on your rockers, 1.6 or if your valve springs can handle it 1.7.
 
StudNuts said:
you now only have 10 gallons gas equivalent from a 33# cylinder.
Click to expand...

Actually, (just to be correct), it's a tad under 8 gallons, and a bit over 7 usable..

LPG is ~4 1/4 lbs. per gallon ;)
 
Punkskalar said:
LPG is really hard on valve seats and exuast valves as well... Stock gas motor, no mods and throwing LPG on it will eventually damage something in the head...
Click to expand...

Stainless valves are not too exspensive, and I will install as soon as mine go kaput, anything that originally had a catlytic converter originally, already has hardened exaust seats anyway


I filled 6 tanks, all were completly empty, 46.6 gallons ,...7.7666666 gallons each
 
i plan on building a 351 to run propane but that was after i was done with most everything and i can afford a rebuild. to yall would it be worth it to go ahead and throw a propane system on my 302 and just fiddle with the timing to get it to run right, and then later on build my 351 to run it?

sorry 'bout the thread hi-jacking btw. i didnt think this question was worth starting a new one.
 
is their a special gas mixture that can be used to make up for the small power loss?and how do i go about inspection just the same as useuall?pm me about a kit for a toyota if you dont mind w/or without cylinder.
 
OK, as far as the toy kit, I don't have. I would check with www.propaneguy.com
I hear he is a nice guy and willing to help. The only kits I have been messing with are for V-8's The smog pump and the Cat converter are useless with propane. But I do not know the legalities of removing them. Propane does not need them as it is 100% emissions friendly. As long as you are not burning oil, it will pass any emissions test. Even raw, unburnt propane is not a threat to the enviroment.

As far a power loss, unless you have a real good FI or perfectly tuned carb, I doubt you will feel any loss. Any loss of power will be at the higher RPM scale.
 
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