For all you Honda Civic GX owners

[Highmarker]

Hey,

I'm just thinking out loud here. Would you Honda Civic GX owners be interested in purchasing (if it was available) a small CNG tank (say about 1-2 GGE) and store it in your trunk for an emergency situation - like when you run out of natural gas and you are stranded? That way, instead of having your vehicle towed to the nearest CNG filling station, you could just use this small CNG tank to put some gas into your car and have enough to make it to a filling station. Let me know what you think.

[Timon]

Re: For all you Honda Civic GX owners

One problem, they are not legal in CA and maybe the entire US.

[c2sox]

Re: For all you Honda Civic GX owners

Funny you should mention that, a few of the guys here at work were discussing that yesterday. I had brought up the issue of running into stations that were inoperable and the what if scenarios. I currently use Power Tank (Co2) to air up my tires when I leave the trails and thought how nice it would be to have something like that for the GX. Sure would come in handy for emergencies, that's something that could be marketed to AAA for CNG vehicles running out of fuel.

[Highmarker]

Re: For all you Honda Civic GX owners

Timon,

They are not available yet...but if they were available, would you purchase one?

I work for a company that specializes in the design, development, and certification of COPVs (Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels). These tanks would have to be certified through the Department of Transportation (because these tanks would be man-portable - like self-contained breathing tanks for firefighters).

[Timon]

Re: For all you Honda Civic GX owners

Maybe but they have to be legal. Right now your not allowed to fill them at a CNG station.

[Highmarker]

Re: For all you Honda Civic GX owners

Timon,

I would design the tank, I would get the tank certified so that it is legal in CA and the rest of the US so you can fill it at a CNG station. Would you purchase one? That is all I am asking.

[utahngv]

Re: For all you Honda Civic GX owners

I'd definitely get one. (Of course if the price is reasonable)

Dan

[cngmike]

Re: For all you Honda Civic GX owners

DOT will not certify this type of tank. DOT Regurding CNG is divided into 2 seperate divisions one for regulating cylinders for on board storage of fuel. The other for the transportation of fuel. Up to this point the only type of cylinder the second division will certify is steel.

NGV II, III (both hoop warped) or IV (full composit) cylinders must be permnetly mounted so they will with stand 5Gs. typicaly that means 2 to 3 inch wide brakets with insalators mounted with grade 1/2" 8 bolts with backing plates. One can mount a 1 gge type IV tank in the trunk plumbed into the existing system that is isolated by a 1/4 turn ball valve.

SCI already makes cylinders like you discribe. the idea of having a lose tank in my trunk like you discribe mkes me nevous for any one around you in an acident.

[Curtis]

Re: For all you Honda Civic GX owners

I actually tried to get AFVTech to build me some. They quoted fire dept regs that made it illegal. It would be great, as I've had a number of people ask for them over the years.

AFVTech does sell a car-to-cat hose that is for transferring the pressure. Problem is that it costs about $2000. There is also a portable system that's about 10gge and sits on something akin to a welding cart. No idea about price but I could have bought one on Ebay a while back for about $100. Some city in Washington state was selling off a bunch of old equipment. I think AFVTech also has something similar. I wonderr why this would be legal and not a "fire extinguisher" style portable system that would strap into the trunk?

2-3 gge would give you a little less than 50% transferred to the vehicle. That's about an ideal setup.

If you can figure out how to make them legally, they'll sell. Price oint would be very important. I suspect that under $500 would be reasonable, considering that AAA Plus is very reasonable.

[cngmike]

Re: For all you Honda Civic GX owners

Lincoln Composites, under the Tuffshell name, makes a NGV IV cyninder that is 9.5" x 24" 27lbs that is 1.2 gge or a 9.5" x 35" 37 lbs that is 2.0 gge.

http://www.lincolncomposites.com/media/LC%20Size_chart.pdf

[cngmike]

Re: For all you Honda Civic GX owners

AFVTech does sell a car-to-cat hose that is for transferring the pressure. Problem is that it costs about $2000. There is also a portable system that's about 10gge and sits on something akin to a welding cart. No idea about price but I could have bought one on Ebay a while back for about $100. Some city in Washington state was selling off a bunch of old equipment. I think AFVTech also has something similar. I wonderr why this would be legal and not a "fire extinguisher" style portable system that would strap into the trunk?

The problem with car to car hoses is that meny cars have more than 1 check valve in there system. in ine the recepitical and one fruther along in the system. also at least ford has a ecxeses flow valve bult into there system so if there is a major high prssuer failuer it shuts off the flow.This would render this product unusable.

As for a portable fuel cart I have made one for our work place and coverted 2 vehicals to act as a portables.

[Curtis]

Re: For all you Honda Civic GX owners

Are these the tanks you are thinking to convert to portable system? These run about $2k don't they?

[Curtis]

Re: For all you Honda Civic GX owners

If it were reasonable, I would be able to sell them here at the dealership to GX buyers that wanted that type of insurance policy. I get asked about them all the time.

[Highmarker]

Re: For all you Honda Civic GX owners

cngmike,

You bring up a good point about "on-board" fuel storage and "transporation" of fuel. Funny how the DOT defines which is which. If there is a significant amount of interest in this type of tank, then we will get serious about going to market.

[Utahbill]

Re: For all you Honda Civic GX owners

I was just thinking about such a tank as I was driving with the fuel light on today. I would cetainly buy one unless the cost was prohibitive.

Bill