:read: :read: Before converting your bike away from gasoline, compare the heat values of the fuels. Propane and E85 have 3/4 the heat energy of gasoline. A bike that gets 40mpg on gasoline will drop to about 30mpg on propane or E85.
As a teenager, I drove a heavy oilfield truck that started on gasoline and switched to propane after warmed up. When it switched, it felt like the engine had lost a couple of cylinders. The company used it because propane was much cheaper than gasoline back then.
Forklifts used indoors around people use propane or electricity because they cause far fewer emissions, but the propane cost today is higher than gasoline.
Diesel fuel has about the same heat value as gasoline, but requires much heavier engines to stand up to the vibration. Remember the GM effort in the late 70s to put diesel engines in passenger cars? I test-drove a Chevy station wagon with a 350 diesel that had less than half the power of a 350 gas-powered wagon. The sluggishness, stink, and noise convinced me I didn't want that car.
Am I in favor of trying different propulsion sources? Absolutely!! The transportation industry has spent billions of dollars over the last hundred years trying to develop and use alternative fuels.
Alternative fuels are just that, an alternative to gasoline. To date, gasoline is best because it is more available; operating costs are similar; it contains (and delivers) more energy per unit; and most of all, the Wing was engineered and built to give outstanding performance on gasoline.
No, I don't own oil stocks, but I wish I could afford to.
