Frequently Asked Questions

Why use natural gas as a fuel? How do natural gas vehicles work?
What sort of vehicles use natural gas?
How do you fuel a natural gas vehicle?
Are natural gas vehicles safe?
Where do I fuel up an NGV?
Won't hydrogen fuel cell vehicles solve all the problems with todays vehicles?
Where do I find an NGV?
How does FMVSS 303 apply to alternative fuel conversions?

How do natural gas vehicles work?
A reciprocating internal combustion engine (like those in almost all today's cars and trucks) can burn natural gas in place of gasoline or diesel. The mixture is normally ignited by a spark plug.

Natural gas is normally a gas, not a liquid. It is stored by being compressed to 3600 psi or liquefied at -260º F. Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) or Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) fuel containers weigh more and take up more space than gasoline or diesel containers.

What sort of vehicles use natural gas?
Any sort of vehicle can use natural gas as a fuel. Vehicles can use only natural gas (dedicated) or run on either gasoline or natural gas (bi-fuel). There are about 92,000 natural gas vehicles in the US and about seven million worldwide. 25% of new transit buses are fueled by clean-burning natural gas. Taxicabs, garbage trucks, and school buses are often fueled with natural gas.

How do you fuel a natural gas vehicle?
Pretty much like you fuel a car or truck. The fueling station and dispenser looks about the same as a "normal" station. The nozzle and receptacle are a bit different but an NGV is just as easy to fuel and fuels up in about the same amount of time.

Are natural gas vehicles safe?
Absolutely! In the US there has been only one motor vehicle fatality attributed to a failure in the natural gas fueling system.

Where do I fuel up an NGV?
There are about 1100 natural gas fueling facilities in the US, but that doesn't mean natural gas is available on every corner. See the website links on the right for a list of fueling stations and call ahead to be sure a station is open to the public. OR, you can put a home refueling device in your garage and refuel at home. See the link to FuelMaker.

Won't hydrogen fuel cell vehicles solve all the problems with today's vehicles?
Perhaps, but it will be 20 or 30 years, at least, before those vehicles are widely available. And there are lots of problems to solve if hydrogen fuel cell vehicles are ever to become commercial. Natural gas vehicles operate on a fuel similar to hydrogen, so many have viewed NGVs as the "pathway to hydrogen."

Where do I find an NGV?
Honda sells new light-duty NGVs in the US (see) Heavy duty buses are available from New Flyer, Orion, NABI and others and heavy trucks are built by a number of manufacturers. OR you can get an "up-fitted" new or used vehicle from a number of converters meeting all government safety and emissions requirements (see).

How does FMVSS 303 apply to alternative fuel conversions?
Vehicle fuel system conversions are addressed in certain NHTSA provisions, whose application depends on when the work is done and who does the conversion. Under the statute and NHTSA's regulations, the first consumer purchase is the critical event by which certain responsibilities are specified. If your conversion system were installed as original equipment on a new vehicle, the vehicle manufacturer would be required by our certification regulations to certify that the entire vehicle (with your product installed) satisfies the requirements of all applicable FMVSS's, including the CNG fuel system standard once that FMVSS takes effect. If your conversion system were added to a new, previously-certified vehicle (e.g., a new completed school bus), the person who adds the system would be required to certify that, as altered, the vehicle continues to comply with all of the safety standards affected by the alteration. This means that if you convert a school bus prior to the first consumer purchase, then you would be responsible for certifying that the school bus as manufactured conforms to all applicable FMVSS, including FMVSS No. 301 and, once FMVSS No. 303 and 304 take effect, those standards as well. (continue)

For more information, contact John Dimmick, CVEF's Director of Technology, at JDimmick@cleanvehicle.org or 262-549-1894.