DIY LPG repair

Gas equipment (LPG) has been installed on cars for a long time. This is largely due to the desire for savings, since at almost the same consumption compared to conventional fuel, the cost of gas is much lower. Working on gas, cars emit various harmful substances into the atmosphere much less.

Methane or a propane-butane mixture is used as fuel for automobile engines. Currently, HBO is used on a car in several options:

• second generation - for installation on old carburetor cars;
• third generation - transitional system;
• fourth generation and newer - for installation on modern cars equipped with injection engines with a microprocessor control system.

Second-generation equipment has the required minimum of devices and manual switching of types of fuel. The latest generation of gas equipment automatically switches to another fuel when the operating mode of the car's engine changes, depending on the software setting of the control unit.

Consider the most common HBO breakdowns on a car and do-it-yourself repairs.

The most common causes of gas equipment breakdowns in vehicles are damage to joints in gas pipelines, seals and gaskets in gas valves and switchgears.

By the nature of the car's behavior when running on gas, one can judge the location of the damage to the equipment. If the filter is clogged or the gearbox malfunctions, the engine will have unstable idling and dips during sudden acceleration (pressing the gas pedal).

Video (click to play).

If the equipment connections or gaskets are damaged, you can smell gas. You need to turn off the car immediately and start troubleshooting and repairing.

The location of the gas leak can be determined using a soap solution, which is applied to the sections of the gas pipeline to be checked with a brush or sponge. The fluid will bubble at the leak.

When refueling with low-quality gas, the gas filter may become clogged. It is not necessary to change the filter to auto. It is enough to disassemble it and rinse it in any solvent.

Replacing diaphragms and gaskets in a gas equipment reducer on a car is an easy procedure to do with your own hands. Such HBO repair is performed every 2 or 2.5 years. To replace the gaskets, the dismantled gearbox must be disassembled. After cleaning the inner surface with a solvent, new gaskets and diaphragms are installed, and the gearbox is assembled by hand in the reverse order.

After the car gearbox has been repaired, it needs to be adjusted, which may differ slightly for different models. For self-adjustment, there are two screws on the gearbox - for adjusting the idle speed and a sensitivity screw (amount of gas).

To adjust the LPG gas reducer, start the car engine on regular fuel - gasoline - and wait until it warms up to operating temperature. The dispenser on the cylinder should be fully open, the sensitivity screw is fully tightened, and the idle speed screw is unscrewed five turns.

Switch the car engine to HBO operation. Maintaining the speed with the gas pedal or the choke knob so that the engine does not stall, turn the adjustment screw from idle to achieve maximum speed. Now, tightening the screw, you need to set the engine speed as when running on gasoline.

Next, unscrew the sensitivity adjustment screw until the idle speed begins to change. From the found position, the screw must be returned back by 3/4 - 1.5 turns.

The engine should react almost instantly to pressing the gas pedal. To fine-tune the gearbox, you need to rotate the sensitivity screw a small angle in both directions, checking the response of the motor. After achieving the desired result, the equipment repair is completed.

All adjustment procedures after do-it-yourself repairs must be carried out slowly, since the engine's response to adjustment is slowed down by a few seconds.

There is not so much perfect in this world, and maybe not at all, so when something, at first glance, very thoughtful and perfect fails, you should not be surprised, you should accept it as inevitability.

Gas equipment is also susceptible to breakdowns and malfunctions. Today we will talk about the malfunctions of HBO 4 generations, we will try to suggest the cause of the breakdown (inoperability) by the characteristic symptoms.

To begin with, a few words about what leads to a malfunction of the fourth generation HBO.

1. Most often, gas equipment fails due to the fault of the motorists themselves. Not a desire to delve into the essence of the HBO device and perform the slightest maintenance thereof.
2. The wear of parts also occurs due to poor quality gas, pollution, as well as violation of operating rules and mistakes made when installing gas equipment on a car.

Disruptions in the operation of the internal combustion engine can be the result of problems with gas equipment and not only, therefore, in search of a breakdown, you should be objective and pay attention to all components, and not only LPG gasoline.

• Problem with spark plugs, ignition.
• Insufficient compression in the engine.
• Valve adjustment required.
• The lambda probe dies or is completely defective.
• Incorrectly adjusted gas injection or gas injectors, injectors forgotten.
• Interruptions in engine timing.

• Gas injectors not working properly or misaligned.
• The gas pressure regulator cannot create the optimum pressure for correct operation. Poor heating of the gas reducer.
• Defective lambda probe.
• Filter problem (gas filter clogged, gas fine filter clogged).
• Gas lines blocked.

• The gas temperature sensor in the reducer or the gas temperature sensor is defective.
• The gas pressure sensor is out of order.
• The voltage in the battery is less than 9 volts.
• There is no signal from the tachometer.
• The reducer is not heated, or air has entered the heating system.

• Reducer defective or too low pressure.
• Clogged air filter.
• The ignition system is not working correctly.
• The gearbox does not warm up.
• Gas injectors or injection system are not working properly.
• The gas reducer is out of alignment.
• Reduced compression in the engine.
• The calibration nipples of the injectors are not matched exactly.
• The lambda probe does not work or does not work correctly.

• The gas injectors are not calibrated correctly.
• Gas filter clogged.
• The gas pressure in the reducer is insufficient.
• Problem with gas lines.

If, when switching to the engine, it starts to "junk", most likely the problem is precisely in faulty HBO, in this case, switch back to gasoline and continue driving until the reasons for the interruptions in the operation of the internal combustion engine are established. Do-it-yourself HBO repair is extremely undesirable, except for those cases when you are well versed in gas equipment and have all the necessary equipment to carry out repair work. In all other cases, we recommend that you contact the specialists or the service station that installed this HBO.

Thank you for your attention, until we meet again at the GBOshnik. Till!

Car owners who are trying to choose reliable and safe equipment, adapted to different quality characteristics of fuel, pay attention to LPG Alpha. This equipment can be easily installed on cars with gas injection into the cylinders, has quality certificates for all elements of gas cylinder equipment.

HBO Alpha is one of the most demanded systems of this class from a domestic manufacturer.

The first batch of a LPG kit for cars with injectors, released in 2006. The equipment was gradually improved, the design improved, the components of the latest generations of LPG were introduced, and the alpha gas components became more reliable.

HBO Alfa products are divided into different lines, schemes differ in configuration and price. There are economy versions of Alpha s-4, standard, business and premium class.

HBO Alpha d is connected to a car with engines equipped with a supercharger, a turbine and with a pressure of up to one and a half atmospheres, unit power up to 400 hp.

• in 2013, the electronic part of all equipment options was updated. This increased the confidence of car owners and the reliability of equipment operation;
• in 2015, new software was released, which made it possible to significantly improve system performance and engine operation on gas;
• in 2016, in active cooperation with TEGAS engeneering, the line of gas equipment - Alpha PM was released;
• In 2017, an agreement was signed with the Italian manufacturer AEB Alternative Fuel Electronics, which marked the beginning of the release of the Alpha Aeb line.

Programs for the electronic control unit of the LPG Alpha are developed by Russian programmers. Detailed installation and configuration instructions allow you to quickly adjust the parameters of the automatic gas supply.

For convenient installation of the Alpha s-4 electronic system, ten types of wires are provided for connecting to injectors.

Alpha d mini kits are installed on cars with 4,5,6,7,8 cylinder engines up to 340 hp.

The main elements of LPG have the same purpose in all generations and from different manufacturers. The difference between systems in the performance of components, quality and methods of their connection and control. The electronic controller builds up its parameters according to the signal from the sensors, or all settings are carried out mechanically, manually.

The 4th generation alpha LPG with multipoint gas injection system is in the highest demand. Alpha gas equipment is used to operate on propane-butane and methane. The system is controlled electronically, the program is built into the power unit. When refueling at a gas station, the fuel must pass through an external refueling device (OCD). For HBO of foreign origin, a separate adapter is needed, this is the advantage of domestic equipment.

The ball valve prevents the gas from flowing back. Gas fuel is pumped into an all-welded steel tank for storing liquefied gas under high pressure (16-18 atmospheres). Reservoirs are cylindrical and toroidal. This is the largest and heaviest component of HBO, the volume of the container can reach 230 liters. In accordance with the operation manual, once every two years, it is necessary to undergo an examination of the gas cylinder for safe use.

An electromagnetic multivalve controls the gas filling level. The tank is filled with fuel no more than 80%. There is room for thermal expansion of the fuel. The balloon multivalve consists of a set of electronically controlled valves. This is the point of departure of the gas supply to the engine, here possible deviations in the system, the tightness of the cylinder, the air intake, the pipeline are calculated.

At the signal of the program of the electronic unit, the solenoid valve is triggered, the gas rushes through the fuel line into the reducer-evaporator. On the way, it passes through a valve with a filter.

The gas reducer is heated from the engine cooling system to maintain the required housing temperature.The mixer injects the gas-air mixture into the engine through the manifold. The speed of movement of the gas mixture depends on the performance level of the nozzles, the section of the gas pressure hose, and other indicators.

The location of the fuel switching button allows you to connect to the gas system with one movement of the hand. The system console can be located in any convenient place for the driver.

When installing HBO, the Alpha circuit itself performs a general monitoring of the condition of the equipment and selects the optimal operating mode when starting the engine.

Gas equipment requires regular maintenance. It is necessary to do a daily inspection of the line in order to exclude a gas leak, clean it in time, change filters, and carry out preventive cleaning of the gas reducer. Do preventive cleaning, calibration of gas injectors. It is strictly forbidden to start up the system when you smell gas.

At many car services, masters do not recommend the installation of gas equipment without a variator, arguing that the valves burn out quickly.

The innovative IV generation LPG injection systems Alfa have a wide range of options, which have the following advantages:

Many car owners note another advantage of the domestic LPG system: the Alpha-M gas cylinder system can be configured normally without a standard lambda probe, using a gas analyzer.

The main problem that can arise in the Aeb gas equipment is errors in the control and in the operation of the system. Symptoms of malfunctions can be as follows:

• uneven engine operation at floating speeds;
• loss of power of the power plant;
• difficulties with automatic switching of the type of fuel;
• increased consumption of gas fuel;
• the indication on the panel does not work;
• the appearance of dips during sharp re-gasification.

Most often, the cause of the malfunction may be the wrong pinout of the ECU unit, improper maintenance of LPG, low-quality fuel, or the components turned out to be fakes.

The quality and reliability of the electrical part of the Alpha LPG equipment have been tested by time. The driving characteristics of the car directly depend on this.

Alfa HBO electronics are configured using a special computer program or manually. It is better to trust the installation and adjustment of the system to trusted masters in service centers that specialize in the installation and maintenance of gas equipment.

Gas equipment (LPG) has been installed on cars for a long time. This is largely due to the desire for savings, since at almost the same consumption compared to conventional fuel, the cost of gas is much lower. Working on gas, cars emit various harmful substances into the atmosphere much less.

Methane or a propane-butane mixture is used as fuel for automobile engines. Currently, HBO is used on a car in several options:

• second generation - for installation on old carburetor cars;
• third generation - transitional system;
• fourth generation and newer - for installation on modern cars equipped with injection engines with a microprocessor control system.

Second-generation equipment has the required minimum of devices and manual switching of types of fuel. The latest generation of gas equipment automatically switches to another fuel when the operating mode of the car's engine changes, depending on the software setting of the control unit.

Consider the most common HBO breakdowns on a car and do-it-yourself repairs.

The most common causes of gas equipment breakdowns in vehicles are damage to joints in gas pipelines, seals and gaskets in gas valves and switchgears.

By the nature of the car's behavior when running on gas, one can judge the location of the damage to the equipment.If the filter is clogged or the gearbox malfunctions, the engine will have unstable idling and dips during sudden acceleration (pressing the gas pedal).

If the equipment connections or gaskets are damaged, you can smell gas. You need to turn off the car immediately and start troubleshooting and repairing.

The location of the gas leak can be determined using a soap solution, which is applied to the sections of the gas pipeline to be checked with a brush or sponge. The fluid will bubble at the leak.

When refueling with low-quality gas, the gas filter may become clogged. It is not necessary to change the filter to auto. It is enough to disassemble it and rinse it in any solvent.

Replacing diaphragms and gaskets in a gas equipment reducer on a car is an easy procedure to do with your own hands. Such HBO repair is performed every 2 or 2.5 years. To replace the gaskets, the dismantled gearbox must be disassembled. After cleaning the inner surface with a solvent, new gaskets and diaphragms are installed, and the gearbox is assembled by hand in the reverse order.