Greasel
Yes, you can run your diesel on Straight Vegetable Oil (SVO), even Waste Vegetable Oil (WVO). Beg some used deep-fryer grease from any greasy spoon, strain it, dump it in your tank, and away you go. Well, almost.
The only problem is that WVO is solid, or at least thick, at room temperature. So you have to modify your fuel supply so that the grease is heated. You do that by tapping into your coolant lines and running hot coolant through pipes in your grease tank and alongside or around your fuel lines. You can also add a heated filter.
No modifications to the engine itself are necessary. Dr. Diesel designed the original diesel to run on peanut oil. Performance on WVO is similar to diesel, and it's actually easier on your injector pump than regular diesel fuel. And, last but not least: Guess what your exhaust smells like?
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- A compendium, updated daily, of all the diesels for sale in North America on craigslist.org.
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- Sells parts and complete kits for conversions. (Horrible Web site, though!)
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- Sells conversion kits. Has a classified section of cars for sale, some of which are grease-powered.
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- I find Mr. Tickell's self-promotion a little too forward—that predatory grin makes me nervous—but I will say this: He has written a very good book. Chapter 9, which details a do-it-yourself conversion from straight diesel to dual tank diesel/greasel, is so clear that you can actually follow it on the first reading. How many other do-it-yourself books can match that? Includes a complete parts list, as well as chapters on how a diesel engine works, running on biodiesel (an alternative to straight vegetable oil that needs no engine mods), making your own biodiesel from waste vegetable oil, and more. No, I am not associated with the man or the book in any way: I just want you to know that if you are looking to educate yourself on the subject, this book, in spite of its cheesy cover, will tell you just about everything you need to know.