W124 300TE-24 rear seat space

[zaphod_b]

I am thinking of buying the above car, but how long I keep it for depends on how much space there is in the recess for the rear set of seats. The reason is I am very rarely ever likely to use them, and to justify keeping the car it would have to be run on LPG the spare wheel tanks that would be usable are too costly to even consider, and would mean no spare, however if I can get a tank in where the rear seats would have been and then put a plywood cover over the hole than that would be ideal, as no loss of boot or spare

 

[OneCarefulOwner]

The space under the rear seats is far too shallow for even the thinnest LPG tanks I've ever seen on open sale; you might get some custom ones made but you'd be limited to maybe 30 litres? A tank in the spare wheel well is a far more sensible option but even then you'd still be limited to 40 litres or so.

 

[dinoy]

i have seen converted ones with lpg tank where the 7th seat sits, but why go for 24v, and why not look for one with LPG installed they do come regularly on ebay and some with cert and log book changed as well cheaper than installing it yourself

 

[zaphod_b]

The space under the rear seats is far too shallow for even the thinnest LPG tanks I've ever seen on open sale; you might get some custom ones made but you'd be limited to maybe 30 litres? A tank in the spare wheel well is a far more sensible option but even then you'd still be limited to 40 litres or so.

unfortunatly those upright torodial tanks are almost as costly as buying the whole car, so instantly makes it a non starter

 

[zaphod_b]

i have seen converted ones with lpg tank where the 7th seat sits, but why go for 24v, and why not look for one with LPG installed they do come regularly on ebay and some with cert and log book changed as well cheaper than installing it yourself

Ah why a 24v? simple its been offerd to me as a swap for my '97 Rover Vitesse Coupé whihc had become a bit of a monument on the drive, so I figure worst case it will be easier to sell!, but having had a 3 W123s (200, 200T and a 280CE) the thought occoured to keep it, if fuel costs can be reduced to somthing sensible (bear in mind I do 100 miles a day). As for the LPGA cert it's worthelss IMHO.. I've found so many faults on 'certified' cars I'd rather do it myself! saves me a lot of time, and I find 'professional' conversions seldom anything of the sort, butchered looms, and bodywork (I never ever ever cut holes in the body.. Tow bar mountings are very good for filling points and more than strong enough, and there are normally enough holes to avoid any extra ones for pipes/wires) I should add I already have most of the parts to convert the car

 

[OneCarefulOwner]

All LPG conversions are expensive, so why not pay that little more and get a decent sized tank in the right place? With you needing to do 100 miles a day, you'd have to fill up daily (or at best every other day) with any tanks that might fit under the floor and you'd need multiple torpedo tanks if you didn't want to pay for a decent toroid or filled toroid, so you'd end up paying the same or more in the end.

 

[zaphod_b]

Because I already have the parts and as you have mentioned they are not cheap as a conversion is perversly seen as not adding any value to a car when it's sold I take it off!, I have been running on LPG for nearly 18 years now, and done the conversion on all my own cars with one exception my '92 Range rover classic as it came with one, which then needed sorting out properly.

I currently have, 1 90litre cylinder, 2 60 litre toridials (not capable of being mounted upright) a complete tatarini 6 cyl SGi injection system, a tatratini single point system, an OMVL SGi system all sitting on the shelf ready to be used and the software/leads to set them up.. so i really don't want to spend anything I don't have to, which as I see it I don't so won't be. My current thoughts are to take the rear seats out, as I am unlikley to use them, ever. Put the 90 litre in the recesse, while I accept this will be proud of the floor, if its low enough it won't be as bad as had it been placed above the floor, then make a ply floor with a hole cut to shape for the tank to stick out of. This I can then trim some carpet to suit, hopfully it will not protrude that much, leaving me with most of the load space and a spare wheel. If I am really luck I can use the seat mountings to attach the tank straps (given my tendancy to remove the kit prior to selling cars I do like to reduce the hole cutting to a minimum)

 

[zaphod_b]

i have seen converted ones with lpg tank where the 7th seat sits, but why go for 24v

I would also add.. Why not convert a 24v?

 

[OneCarefulOwner]

My current thoughts are to take the rear seats out, as I am unlikley to use them, ever. Put the 90 litre in the recesse, while I accept this will be proud of the floor, if its low enough it won't be as bad as had it been placed above the floor, then make a ply floor with a hole cut to shape for the tank to stick out of. This I can then trim some carpet to suit, hopfully it will not protrude that much, leaving me with most of the load space and a spare wheel. If I am really luck I can use the seat mountings to attach the tank straps (given my tendancy to remove the kit prior to selling cars I do like to reduce the hole cutting to a minimum)

The recess is 4-6 inches deep at the rear of the boot, and less than 3 inches at the front, when measured from the top of the boot floor; it's about big enough to fit the jump seat's cushions, with the rear cubby leaving just enough room for your manual and a half-decent toolkit. Most 90litre tanks I can find online are 360mm diameter, which would leave more than half of the tank standing proud of the floor... There's really not much space there, it's all filled up with suspension, differential, petrol tank and exhaust.

 

[bolide]

There's no room under the floor. The spare wheel recess is your best bet - the underfloor seat recess is very shallow and the exhaust box is under it so you can't gain any depth by cutting the floor out

I've seen estates with a mahoosive tank behind the rear seats. Great idea - except it's not an estate any more

Nick Froome

 

[zaphod_b]

As said before the spare wheel option is soo hidiously expesnive it's not an option. While horizinatlly mounted toridials are not that expensive a proper correct vertial one with the correct mutivalve is a horendous price for a tiny pointless tank

I did look at a face lift s124 in the scrapyard though which had the rear seats, once all the carpet is remorved there is fair amount of space, almost half the depth of the 80l cylinder tank that is in my range rover which in that car give me a range of 200 - 220 miles and from rough measurements looks like only half of it would be proud of the floor if fitted in the rear seat recess. So I may put the 90 litre in the rangie and use the 80litre tank The rest of the system is an old Tatarini EtaGas injection system, which is in keeping being an LPG CIS system... unfotunatly the modern sequential injection LPG systems pigyback of the petrol system and use the injector pulses form the orginal engine management to fire the lpg injectors, after applying a modifier to take into account the differance in the fuel flow rates/quantities, and so is a non stater with the 300TE-24

 

[zaphod_b]

Out of interest what is the MPG for a sensibly driven S124 300TE-24? as opinion varies wildly!