For many years, versions of LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) have been marketed in Europe, also known as GPL, LPG or Autogas for individuals. In fact, the roads of the Old Continent circulate more than 10 000 000 vehicles and 2.6 million of them do it in Poland, where the important fiscal advantages of this fuel and the purchase contribute to make it even more interesting. . Currently, there are more than 35,000 service stations that supply LPG in Europe, although bottling for refueling is not standardized among all suppliers. Repsol is betting on this fuel in Spain, where it currently has 24 stations with autogas supply (its commercial name) and plans to add this service in another 20 centers in the same year. In Madrid, it has three Autogas points of sale and announces 14 for next year. To facilitate the operations of the fleets, Repsol offers small drag tanks (1,000 liters) that allow individual supply at a better price in the customer's own facilities. Although its name indicates that it is liquefied petroleum gas, 65% does not come from oil but from natural gas. It is a mixture of butane gas (approximately 70%) and propane gas (approximately 30%) to avoid freezing, because butane freezes very easily. Its application is relatively simple in gasoline engines and among its advantages is that the engine is more resistant than conventional gasoline, has reinforced components, practically does not emit particles, reduces noise levels by about half compared to engines diesel, its price is 50 percent cheaper than diesel, it offers a subsidy of up to 2,000 euros (it is administered by the autonomous communities) and, in some cases, allows tax exemption, as is the case Models Matiz and Aveo . As environmental benefits, it reduces CO2 emissions by 5 to 12%. For the car to work with LPG, it is necessary to adapt the mechanics. First, the valves, valve seats and intake manifold are reinforced directly from the factory. Once the car arrives in Santander, the installation kit assembles a toroidal safety deposit (instead of the spare wheel, but it is the separate delivery customer), a power recharge and adapter service stations. It also has a safety valve, a gas / gas switching valve, an additional control unit for LPG operation, a gasifier unit (liquefied LPG gas switch), a filter and a corresponding sensor pen nozzle. . Inside, the only difference with the "unique" versions of gasoline, is a small switch that serves as status indicator and fuel level gauge: by a red light indicates that the car is working with fuel. gasoline, while if it is green indicates the operation of the gas. At the bottom, it has four LED indicators, which show the four quarters of the deposit level. Fuel savings are between 40 and 50 percent compared to a gasoline model and between 10 and 20 percent compared to a diesel The passage from one fuel to another (remember that the original fuel system of the car remains intact) is achieved by simply pressing the internal control of the fuel selector and can be carried out at any speed Of course, the engine always starts in gasoline mode and if the gas operation is selected, it will turn off automatically in a few seconds. Thanks to the bicarburation operation (gas and gas) the autonomy reaches very favorable values, around 1200 km for the Chevrolet Aveo and, due to the low density of this fuel (0.5), the weight gain with complete deposits is not significant.

The ability to adapt the engine to LPG consumption will always be available, as well as the awareness of taking another step towards the preservation of the planet.

No, not at all. The LPG is located in a tank, in the specific space of the spare wheel and only allows it to be filled up to 80% of its capacity, as a safety measure. In safety testing, one unit was intentionally burned and had no more significant consequences than a conventional model. The car works exactly as if we were running in gasoline mode, except for a slight power loss (around 2 kW, 2.7 hp) in the Aveo, although in other models the power reduction is less. The only thing different in this range powered by LPG is the refueling. Firstly, because you have to go to a specific service station and, second, because you have to install a small threaded adapter in the car's outlet to perform the supply. Everyone can do it easily