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The guys from Garage 54 did it again. Last time, they turned a bunch of office chair supports into an adjustable suspension system and it worked surprisingly well. This time, they have a more ambitious project, and that is building engines that run on both gas and diesel fuel. More specifically, half of it is unleaded and the other half is diesel.
The idea of dual-fuel vehicles is not new. The most common mixes are LPG and CNG, but no production vehicle has ever combined diesel and gas, and for good reason. These fuels have different ways of burning, which is why the two don’t mix. Gasoline relies on spark ignition, while diesel uses compression to generate power. But this is Garage 54 we’re talking about, and Vlad and his team won’t let that hurdle get in the way.
Garage 54 has done some fuel conversion work in the past. Russian mechanics are already making Toyota diesel engines run on gasoline. But getting Lada’s four-cylinder engine to run on both is tough. The solution is to have two carburetors, one for diesel and one for gas.
Surprisingly, the engine started, and it was smooth at the start. But as soon as the diesel gets into the fuel lines, the car starts to run rough. The engine started knocking, and blue smoke started coming out of the exhaust. Finally, the engine has had enough and will no longer provide full power.
The engine wasn’t happy, but the odd arrangement still managed to propel the applauding Lada from a considerable distance. Vlad concluded that the difference in the compression ratio resulted in the diesel fuel not igniting as it should. Fuel contamination is also likely the reason why the car accelerated towards the end. Even so, the crew of Garage 54 called the experiment a success. If the team finds a way to increase compression in the two cylinders, the engine may run smoother than before.
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