[ManasN95]

Hello everyone, I'm contemplating installing a CNG kit in my Honda City i-Vtec AT 2012 year model

She was bought pre-owned last year and has 24,000 KMs on the odometer.

Due to the eye watering fuel prices and the City returning just 8-9 KMPL in the urban conditions, I'm close to being bankrupt as most of the time it acts as a cargo carrier.

Please point me in the right direction, type of kit, installer suggestions and the brand too.

Primary focus is of course the fuel economy, and reliability. Performance can be sacrificed a little bit.

[BikerKeeda]

Originally Posted by ManasN95

Hello everyone, I'm contemplating installing a CNG kit in my Honda City i-Vtec AT 2012 year model

Hi, I own Alto k10, 2013 which I want to convert to CNG, my friend owns 2010 Honda City, with 1.3L kms on odo and we will be getting his car converted to CNG too. After research we finalized with Lovato OBD2 kit with Advancer.

Note: we are getting it installed in Pune. I contacted Lovato officials to provide me with the list of authorized installers/ dealers in Pune but they did not provide me the same because Lovato has many first copies in the market. Dealer we finalised is offering us the kit at 54L however there are people offering Lovato at 40k as well. So be aware.

[coldice4u]

Originally Posted by Herschey

We have recently replaced our Swift with a NIOS CNG and would soon be getting a replacement for the Santro as well. I haven't driven the NIOS much but whatever little I drove (about 20 odd kms or so), it's a smooth engine with ample performance to chug one around in reasonable comfort through all the speedcams and the 50/60 kmph speed limit in Delhi.

Hi Hershey

Can you provide a brief glimpse of how has been your experience with the Nios CNG. Any cons? This is a car that i have my eyes on once WFH goes away as my daily running might be close to 80kms.

Also are you aware if factory fitted Hyundai CNG vehicles come with the filters mentioned in the opening post? I checked the manual but i could not see any references to filter replacements which makes me worried!

[Herschey]

Originally Posted by coldice4u

Hi Hershey

Can you provide a brief glimpse of how has been your experience with the Nios CNG. Any cons?

Hi coldice4u,

I have taken the car on city roads through crawling traffic jams and on wide open highways. Here are my observations in BRIEF :

PROS

1) The CNG kit comes factory fitted and the fit and finish is much better than what one would find on MSIL cars. It's fitted so well that one would find it hard to identify the additional wiring and CNG injector bits in the engine bay. One can switch from CNG to Petrol and vice versa while on the move and at the push of a button. It's like having twin power modes, only that it really saves you a LOT in fuel costs in its implementation here.

2) The gas filler nozzle is fitted alongside the petrol fuel cap due to which one doesn't have to lift up the entire bonnet at every gas refill. When I look at all the cars getting refilled at the gas station with their hoods wide open, only then do I truly realise what an added convenience it really is.

3) The panel gaps are consistent and line up evenly. This adds to the visual appeal of the car as it looks well put together.

4) The engine is one of the smoothest and quietest in business. Its the same reliable 1.2 kappa engine that does duty on the i20, Venue, and Kia Sonet in different states of tune. While this isn't as peppy and rev happy as the Swift's petrol motor, it works very well on CNG fuel as the power drop is barely noticeable even while approaching inclines with the aircon on.

5) The manual gearbox is the old tried and tested workhorse; not as slick as the one on the Swift but the slightly taller gear ratios sync reasonably well with the engine's power delivery. I just love the one on the Swift though and I think it's the best in business.

6) The suspension is tuned a bit on the stiffer side and the ride is planted, both on city streets and on highways.

7) I replaced stock alloys and tyres on the same day I took delivery. The car now sports 185/55R15 Michelins. This is the biggest profile that the wheel well can take without scraping the tyre's interior sidewalls in a lock to lock turn. The lighter alloys along with wider tyre track has improved both handling and braking performance significantly along with making the ride a lot more silent inside the cabin.

8) The automatic climate control works well in cooling up the cabin quickly and the rear vents do help. A minor drop in performance is felt when the AC is switched on, a typical characteristic of most small normally aspirated petrol engines. The NIOS CNG or even the NIOS is no exception.

9) The touchscreen infotainment system sports a reasonably good screen resolution and the touch response is good. It supports both Android Auto and Apple Carplay along with A2DP over Bluetooth. Google Maps work seamlessly as does Google Assistant. Buttons feel sturdy and the steering mounted controls add to the convenience. The front speakers are loud enough and sound decent while the ones on the rear doors don't match up. Overall, the stock ICE setup is above average. I plan on replacing all 4 together in some time and plan on plonking a better aftermarket setup.

10) Though not as big as on the Swift, the seats are comfortable with good under-thigh support, both at front and back. I got Autoform bucket seat covers installed and the seat comfort has gotten even better.

11) Overall visibility from the driver's seat is excellent. Steering is adjustable for rake and only the driver seat can be adjusted for height.

12) The interior styling, fit, and finish can put much pricier cars to shame. I find the exterior styling too and the car looks it's part in all paint schemes. I liked and bought one in Aqua Teal shade and I think it looks the best among the lot.

13) I am getting a mileage of around 17 kmpl on petrol and almost 22 kms/kg of gas as of now. Going by these figures at current Delhi fuel prices, the extra 70k spent initially on getting the CNG variant would be recovered in 18k kilometres and real savings in terms of fuel costs would only start post that. Going to a fuel station and not having to spend thousands on every refill or getting stuck in a traffic jam only burning fuel and not moving an inch, these are some of the situations which would plant a big smile on your face.

14) The CNG cylinder eats up most of the space in the boot so if you plan on using the boot very often, the Aura CNG would be a much better option.

15) If I compare the NIOS CNG with cars in it's segment, only the current Swift stands as its competition and when I look overall, I find the NIOS CNG to be the better car. It's more stylish, more spacious, better built both inside and out, has more features, equally reliable, much more economical, and is priced lower than the Swift.

CONS

1) While the exterior panels feel decently solid in comparison to it's prime competitor Swift, they are nowhere close to the ones on Tata's hatchbacks.

2) The single horn while being loud enough, lacks the low pitch of a dual horn setup.

3) The paint quality should have been better and a thicker coat should have been used. Make sure to get a ceramic coating done to protect from minor scratches.

4) The car should have come with better and wider tyres if not lighter alloys.

5) The quality of rear parcel tray is flimsy and would break in case anything heavy is put on top.

6) The headlamp performance at both high beam and low beam is a joke and the use of H19 headlight bulbs only makes the job of putting a better replacement extremely difficult. If anyone knows from where to source H19 LED bulbs, please share. The plastic headlamp mounts and bulb holder look flimsy and should have been better built.

7) The tail-lamp assembly looks very similar to the one on Tiago. Not necessarily a con but it could have been styled a bit uniquely, perhaps with an all LED setup.

8) Adjustable headrests should have been provided, at least for the front seats.

9) A front central armrest is grossly missed as are all 4 back-lit power windows' switches.

These are some of my observations about a car you'd not regret buying in a world moving away from diesel fuel (whose price itself is ironically moving closer to petrol). Do let know in case you would like to inquire something specific about the car and I would be happy to help. Make sure to take an extensive test drive before you finalise upon the car of your choice.

Happy Shopping!

[Mr. Nobody]

Originally Posted by Herschey

Hi coldice4u,

I have taken the car on city roads through crawling traffic jams and on wide open highways. Here are my observations in BRIEF :

PROS

1) The CNG kit comes factory fitted and the fit and finish is much better than what one would find on MSIL cars. It's fitted so well that one would find it hard to identify the additional wiring and CNG injector bits in the engine bay. One can switch from CNG to Petrol and vice versa while on the move and at the push of a button. It's like having twin power modes, only that it really saves you a LOT in fuel costs in its implementation here.

Are you sure Hyundai kits are factory fitted ? I was informed they are fitted by CEV engineering which is a vendor and same is mentioned on the CNG plate which states the same. Twin fuel mode is on all cars. The implementation in MSIL cars is much better with electronic gas cutoffs unlike hyundai, steel piping for gas and integrated wiring too. For Hyundai even servicing CNG is much more limited in NCR.

[Herschey]

Originally Posted by Mr. Nobody

Are you sure Hyundai kits are factory fitted?

Who informed you about the kit's installation at the dealership level? Hope it's not one of those pretentious Youtubers.

Yes, the CNG kit on the Grand i10 NIOS is factory fitted at a dedicated section within the assembly line. The kits are supplied and installed by the vendor whose name is inscribed on the CNG registration plate. It isn't a dealer level fitment as all BS6 vehicles and vehicles with an engine size exceeding a certain cubic capacity (I think it's 1800cc) cannot be legally retrofitted and registration endorsed with alternate bi-fuel systems like CNG. The reducer and low pressure cartridge form an essential part of the kit and are a must have for CNG vehicle's registration/ endorsement. I disagree that servicing a Hyundai CNG vehicle is difficult than a MSIL car in the NCR region. In fact, I found the experience to be quite indistinguishable while comparing the two OEMs and I have owned products from both for ages.

Features like steel piping, automatic fuel changeover, integrated wiring harness, electronic gas cutoff are the very basic specifications and have been present on all approved venturi and sequential kits for ages. These specifications also form a part of the initial kit homologation process. MSIL didn't do anything new other than give a really clean installation and tuning the engine really well (which is where all the magic lies) and I have seen aftermarket installers who are even better than the factory fitted option.

[Mr. Nobody]

Originally Posted by Herschey

Who informed you about the kit's installation at the dealership level? Hope it's not one of those pretentious Youtubers.

Yes, the CNG kit on the Grand i10 NIOS is factory fitted at a dedicated section within the assembly line. The kits are supplied and installed by the vendor whose name is inscribed on the CNG registration plate. It isn't a dealer level fitment as all BS6 vehicles and vehicles with an engine size exceeding a certain cubic capacity (I think it's 1800cc) cannot be legally retrofitted and registration endorsed with alternate bi-fuel systems like CNG. The reducer and low pressure cartridge form an essential part of the kit and are a must have for CNG vehicle's registration/ endorsement. I disagree that servicing a Hyundai CNG vehicle is difficult than a MSIL car in the NCR region. In fact, I found the experience to be quite indistinguishable while comparing the two OEMs and I have owned products from both for ages.

Features like steel piping, automatic fuel changeover, integrated wiring harness, electronic gas cutoff are the very basic specifications and have been present on all approved venturi and sequential kits for ages. These specifications also form a part of the initial kit homologation process. MSIL didn't do anything new other than give a really clean installation and tuning the engine really well (which is where all the magic lies) and I have seen aftermarket installers who are even better than the factory fitted option.

Buddy Maruti CNG cars have fitted by maruti written on them on the plate. On Hyndai its CEV, that itself shows its fitted by a different entity that is NOT Hyundai. Reducers and low pressure cartridge are there in all kits. So how is implementation in Hyundai better than Maruti which was your original claim?

[Herschey]

Originally Posted by Mr. Nobody

Buddy Maruti CNG cars have fitted by maruti written on them on the plate. On Hyndai its CEV, that itself shows its fitted by a different entity that is NOT Hyundai. Reducers and low pressure cartridge are there in all kits. So how is implementation in Hyundai better than Maruti which was your original claim?

Pardon me for saying this but your comments sound typical of a Maruti-Suzuki fanboy. As for the 'implementation' bit, I urge you to comprehend whats been written and get the context before you start commenting.

I wrote 'implementation' in the context of the feature to shift from petrol to CNG on the fly being similar to having two power modes in a car; while one would give a sportier drive but would cost more, the other would save a lot of money while compromising a bit on power.

Maruti doesn't manufacture CNG kits and neither does Hyundai. The difference is that in case of Maruti, its their own staff at the assembly line which does the installation and tuning whereas in case of Hyundai, it's CEV Engineering's staff that does the installation and tuning at the assembly line on the factory floor itself.

[Mr. Nobody]

Originally Posted by Herschey

Pardon me for saying this but your comments sound typical of a Maruti-Suzuki fanboy. As for the 'implementation' bit, I urge you to comprehend whats been written and get the context before you start commenting.

I wrote 'implementation' in the context of the feature to shift from petrol to CNG on the fly being similar to having two power modes in a car; while one would give a sportier drive but would cost more, the other would save a lot of money while compromising a bit on power.

Maruti doesn't manufacture CNG kits and neither does Hyundai. The difference is that in case of Maruti, its their own staff at the assembly line which does the installation and tuning whereas in case of Hyundai, it's CEV Engineering's staff that does the installation and tuning at the assembly line on the factory floor itself.

Well not sure why are calling me a fanboi when all I want to know is how cng is better implemented by Hyundai as you say. You say implementation of cng is better in Hyundai yet still haven't mentioned one way its better than say msil. Dual fuel mode is there in all cng kits with a button, nothing different done in the nios.

[Herschey]

Originally Posted by Mr. Nobody

Well not sure why are calling me a fanboi when all I want to know is how cng is better implemented by Hyundai as you say. You say implementation of cng is better in Hyundai yet still haven't mentioned one way its better than say msil. Dual fuel mode is there in all cng kits with a button, nothing different done in the nios.

Yes, Hyundai has done a better job at integrating the bi-fuel system on the NIOS than MSIL has on any of its present day BS6 cars available with factory CNG kit. The simple fact that all necessary data regarding alternate fuel in available on the central MID itself rather than on some fuel conversion switch (much like any aftermarket fitted CNG kit does) proves how much better integrated Hyundai's system is with the car's primary controller network and associated devices.

I do hope though that MSIL comes out with an equally good implementation. They may currently be looking out for a solution compatible with the dual-jet engine which may require an altogether new control unit and emulator, a different injector rail, new wiring harness and switches, etc.

[daspranab]

Originally Posted by WanderinNomad

Since you have a lot of experience in CNG, I would advise you to meet either of the above two people before deciding that your Jazz automatic should not be converted to CNG.

A wealth of information: can someone provide similar knowledgeable people in or around Hyderabad?

[justadiz]

So, to give the basic rundown, my family owns a Hyundai Santro 2012, i believe its the 2nd generation Santro, and its been with our family for 11 years, and to date it has clocked around 93,212 KMs on its Odometer

Throughout the years, its maintenance routine was religiously followed, however its a cosmetic nightmare, covered in scratches from the years of city driving

Thanks to all sorts of things, fuel prices hit a cut throat rate of 109.72INR/Litre, due to which our car usage has to be restricted severely.

We eventually played around with the idea of selling the old girl and getting a new car, an idea that was quickly discarded when we realized the current automotive environment and a possible shift of technology.

So, we started looking at alternative options, that's when we came across CNG/LPG, however this arised safety concerns among my family, due to which LPG was discarded, along with the shrinking number of Autogas filling bunks near our area, leaving us with CNG

After some enquiry, dealers near us are offering Lovato Sequential Kit for 65K, and Lovato Conventional Kit(Open Loop) for 38K, both of the option comes with RTO approval, so that clears up the legal side

However , after detailed research on the kind of kits, technologies used, i came to a conclusion that Sequential kit is the best for our car, but this raised another concern. Considering the age of the car, our family may sell it in the next 5 or so years, and i am not sure if it would have run enough to recover the costs invested in the Sequential CNG Retrofit which made me incline towards Conventional kit, however searching here, i only found one post by Mr. @ank.nsit who CNGed his Santro almost a decade ago.

Have any other gentlemen who have CNGed their Santro or similar MPFI Engine cars, what are your experiences?

(sorry moderators if i posted in the wrong section, im new here)

[Mr.Boss]

Originally Posted by justadiz

i am not sure if it would have run enough to recover the costs invested in the Sequential CNG Retrofit which made me incline

Try this link. It should give you a rough idea on payback.
https://www.mgautogas.in/petrol-cng-calculator.php

[justadiz]

Originally Posted by Mr.Boss

Try this link. It should give you a rough idea on payback.
https://www.mgautogas.in/petrol-cng-calculator.php

Thanks a lot for tagging me with this site, with it, i was able to know that it would take atleast a year to recover the costs.

Have you ever did CNG conversion in any of your cars, if you did, what kind of kit did you went for and what was your overall experience.

[Mr.Boss]

Originally Posted by justadiz

Have you ever did CNG conversion in any of your cars, if you did, what kind of kit did you went for and what was your overall experience.

Nope.
I have hands on experience with LPG for over 2 decades but not with CNG.