Wagon R Duo - run on LPG not economical

Recently i purchased WagonR Duo from True value. I have run of around 80km/per day and thought duo would be ideal choice as i will not have to compromise with Power and in parallel will have economical run. I hit the reality on third day, i realized that running the Duo on LPG is not at all economical. As of now it turns out to be 2.5 Rs/KM.

I am suspecting some LPG leakage issue as often i smell it whenever i switch on the A/C or turn the ignition on red light.

I am planning to take my car to True value dealer [GT karnal road - near delhi bypass] for leak check. In case they don't rectify the issue, i will take the LPG kit off my car and install CNG. I am still not sure what could be repercussion, will my insurance and 1 yr warranty offer be valid etc. Please advice me on this. [i will be discuss it with Maruti people also]

As far the car is concerned its run is smooth. I have few complains about the gear shift but i think i will have to live with it.

No, I don't think it will void the warranty - like in case of retrofitment.  You will have to intimate RTO concerned & the Insurance Company about the removal of the kit.

Thanks for your reply Pankaj but in addition to LPG kit removal, i wish to install CNG kit, i think you missed reading it

I went to Maruti Service center and got my Duo checked for Gas leak. They corrected the problem and replaced faulty part with a new one. Total cost came out to be 2200/- + but it was paid by True Value and not me

LPG smell is now gone. I will check if there is any improvement w.r.t to mileage on LPG and update.

I also checked with one of the supervisor engineer for warranty. As per him warranty will go off if i made any changes. I tried to capture more details but nobody had clear cut answer to my query. I will now be writting to Maruti customer care for my queries. Let us see if they have answers ;)

thanks again.

Oh, I'm sorry I missed out that.

Warranty will be void, as is in all subsequent retrofitments.  Anyway, do share with us the opinion you recieve from Customer Care. Thanks.

I checked the mileage after Gas leak correction. As per my calculation it is turning out to be 14+km/lt - pretty impressive  as compared to earlier 9km/lt.

I will continue to monitor the mileage for one more week. Not to mentioned i drove patiently between 50-70Km/hr with just 5-10% A/C.

I am yet to contact Maruti customer care for my query. Does anyone has their email id?

thanks in advance,

Pritpal Singh

Oh that's a great improvement in mileage.  I guess it would give 12 on AC (100%).

Glad to hear that your problem is solved and you are happy and satisfied.  FE of 14Km on LPG is really good.  What is your cost per km now with LPG and petrol?   You have to repeat many  times to get FE with LPG.

As my pockets are not very deep, I keep a close watch on the fuel efficiency. In little over 2 weeks i have clocked over 1000kms and I have tried calculating the fuel efficiency thrice. My reading goes like this:

1. It came out around 9+ km/ltr [Pre-LPG leak repair]

2. It came out around 14+ km/ltr on LPG

3. It came out around 14+ km/ltr on LPG

I do second your opinion of repeating the checks for true FE.

I am yet to check FE on petrol. I usually start my car on Petrol [prefer manual switch in morning], run it for a km or more [so that engine get heated up] and then switch to LPG.

Going by my experience i would say that I am satisfied with my Wagon R Duo. I do miss the economical run that i use to have with my zen [on CNG] but certainly enjoy the driving pleasure of Duo.

You are welcome to share your experience of Zen CNG because we are short on CNG practical experience.  Was CNG fiited by vendor or dealer, detail of CNG components, e.g., TAP and Lambda, emulator etc.  CNG FE, compared to Zen petrol, maintenance comparison as well and any other problem and issues, like air-filter, spark plug etc., price of petrol, CNG and LPG in your area etc.

My first car was/is [haven't sold it yet] ZEN - 1996 make - YELLOW in color . I purchase this car to learn driving but with time i realized that car got good engine so i planned to keep for some time. I got my car inspected for CNG installation from National CNG - south patel nagar and got it installed - without Lambda/TAP etc.

Zen never troubled me as i was very perticular about getting it serviced every 5000km - with oil change and top up for coolent, break oil etc. I never ignored even the smallest of the issue and use to get it rectified then and there [other than the dent, my zen got a lot of them ].

FE of Zen on petrol was some where around 12+Km/ltr
While on CNG - it was 20Km/Kg with 100% AC

I used my zen for around 2 yrs on CNG without any major issues. I used to get my air filter changed in every 3-4 months. My CNG mechanic did recommended that i should use different make of spark plugs RML? and not MICO but as MICO was doing fine for me, i never changed the spark plugs.

I use to start my car on Gas and for almost 1 year didn't used petrol. This was bad, as it damanged my engine to some extent. My car started demanding more self at start up and lack power on flyovers.

My advise for all CNG users would be to start your car on petrol and run it for min 1 km on petrol before switching it to CNG. Engine does need some amount of lubrication.

My mechanic [local] also suggested that i should put some mobiloil in my car [around 0.2%] for better lubrication as my run on petrol was real low but i never followed. I am not sure if that is recommended? Any ways in past two years i got my CNG kit serviced just once.

As far as availability of CNG/LPG or Petrol is concerned, i would say that i am fortunate. I live in Delhi [Tilak Nagar] and nearby area has many CNG filling station [4-5 in 5km radius]. Biggest one is just opp Tihar Jail with almost 12-16 fill-in points; it use to take me 10-15min max for refueling. I usually visit LPG auto gas station at Moti Bagh as its on my way to office and it too has 8 fill-in point but they operate max 4.