Veg Oil Van

[pembrokestephen]

Is it legal to run a diesel on veg oil?

I thought you got a massive fine

You have to register with the Costumes & Exercise people, and pay 'em the marginal duty on each litre of veg oil you use.

Thing is, if you've got a van that runs on both, I can't see what stops you paying them duty on (say) 100 litres of veg oil, keeping random receipts for diesel to suggest a pattern of buying it, and running the van on much more than 100 litres.

I can't see how the customs are going to catch you out...


ETA: various stuff here

 

[Part 2]

On a Merc forum I've been told I could run my Vito on Veg Oil. No engine mods required just needs some additives and blend it with a bit of diesel. The bloke seems to know his stuff and has been writing to Gordon Brown for the past 2 years telling him to drop the duty on biofuels. He reckons he's had confirmation from C+E that it's okay to use up to 2500 litres of veg oil a year, although the website has yet to be updated.

I've been on Biodiesel for about 5 months with no problem except spilling it all over myself when I fill up.

 

[stuff_it]

sounds ace, BUT - when we were in the market for a van, the single thing that everyone we asked for advice agreed about was "Never buy an LDV".

they have a really bad rep, it seems..

sorry that's not more positive, and I'm not au fait with vehicles enough to know quite why they're so disliked, but it might be worth asking around.

They are dead cheap and easy to mend though, like transist used to be.

The only thing affected by the veg oit is the fuel lines, rubber seals in the engine and so on, and the injector pump. Bosch injector pump os best like on a Merc or something.

Wronk kind will pack up a lot faster, and rubber seals will rot as well- remember the warnings on condoms?

I didn't know you neede a fancypants conversion....

Non-Bosch injector pump- 50:50 veg oil:diesel

Bosch injector pump- 75:25 veg oil:diesel

I'f you're being really kind to the engine you will even mix it beforehand instead of just pouring it all in the tank and hoping for the best..


That said, I'n winter you need more diesel in the mix or you will be sluggish for ages when you start up. In fact I thought this was the point of the 2 tanks, so you can start on diesel and then switch.


And btw, is totally legal as long as you claim you are keeping your reciepts to declare at the end of the tax year (At least that's what you tell the rozzers, not sure if true or not but neither are they! Result!)

 

[BingoBongoBango]

They are dead cheap and easy to mend though, like transist used to be.

The only thing affected by the veg oit is the fuel lines, rubber seals in the engine and so on, and the injector pump. Bosch injector pump os best like on a Merc or something.

Prima engine was same as in Montego/Maestro cars and was apparently very good for miles and reliability. I had a Pug engined LDV and it was reliable but parts were a bit expensive on the main vehicle (but not the engine).

 

[stuff_it]

Prima engine was same as in Montego/Maestro cars and was apparently very good for miles and reliability. I had a Pug engined LDV and it was reliable but parts were a bit expensive on the main vehicle (but not the engine).

Isn't the engine main?

If it's not, then what do you count as main.......

 

[pembrokestephen]

And btw, is totally legal as long as you claim you are keeping your reciepts to declare at the end of the tax year (At least that's what you tell the rozzers, not sure if true or not but neither are they! Result!)

There were tales of the Revenue lurking around Swansea and pulling over vehicles with a good chip-shoppy niff to them. I think you have to actually register with them in advance, or the consequences could be...unwelcome.

 

[Backatcha Bandit]

He reckons he's had confirmation from C+E that it's okay to use up to 2500 litres of veg oil a year, although the website has yet to be updated.

I heard that the amount it cost them to collect the revenue was several times the revenue collected, so the bean-counters have decided not to chase it anymore.

HMRC (the UK Customs office) has announced that users of less than 2,500 litres (around 660 galons) of Pure Plant Oil (PPO or SVO in America) will no longer have to pay road fuel duty. This saves a lot of the price of fuel in the UK and makes PPO available at 52p/liter (with the other taxes included). Quite a difference, since prices for diesel are slightly above 1 pound/liter. Previously, SVO users had to declare their use and pay for the tax accordingly.

http://www.autobloggreen.com/2007/0...e-oil-for-vehicles-makes-it-50-percent-cheap/

If you use/produce less than 2500 litres of vegetable oil per year, then you should not need to register with HMRC or pay any duty on the oil, but you will need to keep some records: You should record the date of production and quantity produced in litres.

http://www.blogger.com/feeds/8756707208130596503/posts/default

And from the horses mouth itself:

We are looking to ease the burdens of the biofuels regime on non-commercial producers and on HMRC. It is no longer cost-effective to maintain on the register the steadily growing numbers of very small and often inactive home-based producers, all of whom currently have to register. We therefore wish to introduce a de minimis production level of 2,500 litres per annum below which they do not need to enter premises or submit returns.

http://customs.hmrc.gov.uk/channels...nt&id=HMCE_PROD1_026553&propertyType=document

They don't appear to be shouting about it, though.

 

[stuff_it]

There were tales of the Revenue lurking around Swansea and pulling over vehicles with a good chip-shoppy niff to them. I think you have to actually register with them in advance, or the consequences could be...unwelcome.

I've vever ehard of that, and when I've been pulled most coppers fall for the blag I stated, one was even going 'so I could do this then, not that I would, now what was that ratio again?'

 

[pembrokestephen]

I've vever ehard of that, and when I've been pulled most coppers fall for the blag I stated, one was even going 'so I could do this then, not that I would, now what was that ratio again?'

Wind your windows down in a Swansea traffic jam last spring, the rumour went, and the chances were you would think someone was having a barbecue. The local joke was that the whiff was particularly prevalent around the DVLC, the government's national car-licensing department, which is headquartered in the city. It was a nice irony, because, as the cooking-oil driver discovered when he was fined £500 and had his car impounded, the government is not amused by cheap alternative fuel. Diesel is relatively pricey because a large chunk of the cost is made up by duty. Cooking oil carries no such tax. But if it is put to use in a petrol tank, duty is due.

Also http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/2310095.stm

Though I see that these stories are now 3-4 years old...