Hmmm, the plot thickens :

Thank you for contacting us.

BP have sold the LPG business in the UK. Please contact FloGas directly on one of the following options:

Enquiries: 0800 574 574
http://www.flogas.co.uk/32/flogas-stockists-1

Thank you for taking the time to bring the matter to our attention and for allowing us the opportunity to respond to your concerns at this time.

Kind regards,



Sofija

Retail Customer Care Team
BP Oil UK Limited a company registered in England and Wales with company number 446915, VAT number GB 243 5105 93 and whose registered office is Chertsey Road, Sunbury on Thames, Middlesex, TW16 7BP

That's the email i've just had back from BP Customer Scare Team, so it would seem BP no longer have any market share of LPG in the UK, even the pumps on so-called BP station forecourts.

_________________
Cheers,
Dave


Somewhere in Suffolk with a Jeep, 2 Rovers and a V6 Volvo

The strange thing is they don't appear to know what they are talking about - the following link found via a quick google suggests its their cylinder business, not the autogas business.

http://www.lpgasmagazine.co.uk/flogas-parent-dcc-buys-bp-gas/

All seems very strange that nothing official has been said in any case by BP and its limited to an email reply only.

Maybe keeping things in perspective, the pumps on Shell forecourts that sell LPG read 'Not a Shell product', others read 'Supplied to you by Calor'... They do sell LPG so no worries!

Over the years, seems there are various high profile company takeovers / mergers etc... take Walmart and Asda for instance... but the customer is hardly affected. I find worst thing about Asda these days is those self service checkouts but that might have happened anyway...

End of the day, what matters to us is the continuance and availability of half price fuel... and during the 10+ years that I've been taking notice,at least, LPG has been around half the price of petrol and available at a growing % of fuel sellers - and this will continue to be the case.

This news won't be any different... A bit of the same-old, just another re-arrangement of the sort we have all become familiar with in one way or another. We will continue to run our vehicles on half price fuel from the same or an increased numbers of LPG forecourts.

Scoob - Not scaremongering I'd hope! On the forum a relative few mins yet see a few words of what might (in some eyes) be considered discouragement and then think we've all be written off? Been said so many times before and always wrong. Duty on LPG increases only 1p against petrol duty every year, been like that many years and will continue to be the same. LPG sells for less than half price petrol. I will be converting vehicles to LPG in 5 years (at least) and the owners will be enjoying half price fuel, same as the last 10 years, same through all the similar scare stories etc... Meanwhile unbelievers and procrastinators will pay twice as much as they ought to for fuel - more fuel (ahem fool) them!

Enquiry type cynical comments - 'If a lot more people convert to LPG, surely the government will raise the price?'. Answer is No! Government have pledged to raise duty on LPG at only 1p/litre per year against duty on petrol. Petrol duty is a lot more sever, so maybe long after you die of old age LPG will be same price as petrol! But really it will never be as expensive as petrol because it is more environmentally friendly and government (with pressure from like the world) want to be more envorimonmentally friendly, so LPG will be cheaper than petrol or diesel until the solar car is invented.... By then any solar car might be pubic transport, oops typo, i.e. it might even be illegal to run your own car, who knows... but a long way off!

Fairly local BP station currently sells petrol at £1.03, LPG at 49.9. But precisely over the road petrol is same price but LPG is only 48.9. Closest (1 mile) Flogas depot sells LPG at 47.9p.. Flogas taking over BP's LPG supply/pumps? Good!

But I'll still be visiting another local forecourt that sell LPG at 46.9p.... And I'm looking forward to petrol prices falling - because LPG prices will fall with petrol prices. So soon, if petrol users are paying 98p/litre, LPG users might be paying 45p/litre. I may soon be paying as much for LPG as I paid for petrol in 1987 = as much as I paid for LPG in 2003 - brilliant!

Petrol and diesel users - If you'd rather pay nearly £1 litre, perhaps in the belief petrol/diesel is a better fuel, you crack on - but you'll be paying in ignorance! Scoob - When this dust settles you'll realise we've been through similar scaries many times, much like a petrol/diesel car owner hearing fuel price/availability stories... but we've always saved 40% on fuel costs and will continue to do the same just like you will...

Simon

_________________
Full time LPG installer
Servicing / Diagnostics / Repairs to all systems / DIY conversion kits supplied with thorough tech support
Mid Yorkshire
2 miles A1, 8 miles M62,
http://www.Lpgc.co.uk
Twitter https://twitter.com/AutogasSimon
07816237240

Not scaremongering at all Simon - that said there is the possibility (probability even!) that my personal worry over the availability in my local area of LPG spilled over into what was intended to be an unbiased post - if so i apologise!

Given that i have one LPG vehicle already and intend to convert both of my other cars, the loss of LPG round my neck of the woods would be a big blow. For example, if i had to drive 30 miles each way out of my route just to fuel up, it would make a big dent in the savings i would be making.

The benefits of LPG are easy to see in the wallet department but not quite so obvious in the engine department. I'm already preaching to the converted i know (every pun intended! ) but the oil stays so much cleaner on LPG which can only be a good thing for the engine and (now i've had an extra tweak on my Jeep to get things spot on) it runs just as smoothly at all rpm on gas as it does petrol, with no loss of power, hesitation or any of the other problems i had.

If i can replicate this on the Rovers and find a reasonably local supply of LPG then i will be a very happy bunny.

As Brian says, the BP website has no mention of it and i haven't looked on Flogas but as long as we have gas widely available, preferably as you suggest Simon even more widely available then that's the best outcome. I suspect you are right re the Asda/Walmart thing and we probably won't notice anything different - perhaps the LPG pimps will still be in the same place on BP sites with a small sticker saying something like "Supplied by FloGas" or something.

I hope they don't go down the self-scan/checkout route for LPG as the very first LPG pump i used was that sort and i had a bad experience with it. As for those self-scan/checkout things in supermarkets, i avoid them like the plague but that's more for other reasons than the simple fact i'm cr@p at doing them!

_________________
Cheers,
Dave


Somewhere in Suffolk with a Jeep, 2 Rovers and a V6 Volvo

Cards down mate - Your early posts on forum had me thinking you were a bit of a nutter and I wasn't the only one Sorry for that.. Anyway since then you've kind of redeemed yourself, maybe still perhaps quick to comment on stuff you don't know much about but with some background knowledge and a bit of lateral thinking - I do like your style and you being around now!

In your shoes I might apply the above, and think - Seems nobody is selling LPG for 30 miles. hmm... I will bet you as much as you like that if you don't, and you're in an area with decent population, someone else will pretty soon! Where are you again mate? My mate knew what I did and, only through that, got involved with a garage in Lincolnshire and put an LPG pump in... He is a plumber by trade but a bit of an entrepreneur!
af



Simon

_________________
Full time LPG installer
Servicing / Diagnostics / Repairs to all systems / DIY conversion kits supplied with thorough tech support
Mid Yorkshire
2 miles A1, 8 miles M62,
http://www.Lpgc.co.uk
Twitter https://twitter.com/AutogasSimon
07816237240

Hes in Brandon (near Thetford) - 6 miles from the bp thats closed, 7 miles from the Harvest station in Thetford assuming its still there, but in an area where availability isn't great (East Anglia seems to be home to a lot of garages that are converted to hand car wash stations from the bits I've seen!). Though since he manages to go 2 weeks between fillups its not that bad really.

The original text of the reply i had from BP is below for what its worth - seems to contradict what reply Scooby received, so either its changed since then, or hes been given the wrong answer (using the term autogas should leave no room for misinterpretation, though its still possible)



Its a viscous circle - I tended to avoid BP as they were much more expensive, hence they don't sell any (example of this - The highest price i've seen locally was 82.9 at BP, The station down the road (was total at the time, now shell supplied by flogas) was 73.9. Thats a hell of a difference, especially over less than 5 miles. The same two are now 61.9 vs 55.9 - Better, but your not getting anything extra or improved by using the bp station, so why use it? (its not like I'm comparing a gas depot or man and tank vs a filling station here either). The above reply shows how clueless BP are generally about the LPG market, I suspect its driven by an assumption that if they stop selling lpg those customers will be buying petrol instead from the same outlet. Its telling though that the stations that are BP branded but not BP owned manage to sell at much more competitive pricing when their Autogas doesn't come from BP, but from Flogas.

The southern half of the London area is very poorly covered now as a result, as most of the stations there were BP ones probably from when you used to get congestion charge exemption for having an eligable lpg vehicle, those days have long since gone hence demand not so high.

Suggest fitting the largest tank/tanks you can manage to do so - be thankful you aren't filling up daily though!

Have you been following me Brian? Good job i managed to lose you 6 miles from home lol! Right direction and good deduction though! I'm actually in Lakenheath, next door to the USAF base, hence my occasional comments about American vehicles round here.

I probably did seem a bit unorthodox when i first started posting Simon but that was possibly down to misdirected enthusiasm - or something like that!

As Brian rightly points out, East Anglia isn't best served for LPG and for some reason, things seem slow to change round here. Given the fact most of the Americans round here run what we would call "gas guzzlers" you'd think they would go more for LPG in their vehicles but they get their fuel subsidized by Uncle Sam so it's more like the $3/gallon that they pay at home so they don't really need to. During my trawling of US websites for Acura Legend (the original Legends were almost identical to Rover 827 models) and Jeep Cherokee bits that i can't track down in the UK i've very rarely found anything to do with LPG or Propane as they call it. If they used LPG more then i'm sure many more stations near me would stock LPG.

Interesting to see the variance in the replies we got Brian - some points are the same, others similar but dressed in different words and others an almost total contradiction! Reading between the lines though, it would seem BP has sold their own LPG processing to FloGas and the BP stations that still stock it are either being phased out or are franchised and the owners keep the LPG pumps as they are obviously still making money. In some ways this could be a good thing that BP themselves are phasing it out as the independents and franchises will almost certainly see an upturn in their LPG sales which should ensure the longevity of supply.

In the Jeep i have a 90L (72L usable) tank and for the Rovers i have toroidal tanks to go in the spare wheel wells, one i think is about 64L (51L usable) and the other 55L (44L usable) so arguably speaking i should have a 300 mile range on all 3 vehicles. For the most part i don't go too far on a daily basis which is why a tankful in the Jeep lasts at least a fortnight - i have had two tanks that lasted 4 weeks and one of those included a trip to London and back! The return journey saw the Jeep loaded to the gunwales with an interior from a Rover 825 coupé inlcuding the seats, carpets, sound deadening, the door window cassettes including the door glass and a few odd bits of trim etc. That was the tankful that lasted 346 miles and took 64 or 65 litres to refill - about 24mpg which isn't bad for an old 4.0 Jeep!

To be honest there isn't the room to fit a bigger tank on the Jeep unless i went for an underslung tank and half size petrol tank. I have considered this as the current position of the cylinder/torpedo tank behind the rear seats defeats the purpose of it being an estate - this is the reason i went for "donut" tanks for the Rovers. Granted i can only put the seats down in the saloon (not the coupé) but installing a torpedo tank behind the rear seats even in the coupé would rob a lot of boot space. The only other option for a bigger tank than the ones i've got would be if i did the same as a friend has done and cut the spare wheel well out, fit a flat false floor in the boot and mount an underslung 105L tank that he retrieved from a Range Rover! He's done a good job of it admittedly but his is a relatively common 820 SLi as opposed to my two comparatively rare beasts.

With my mileage being fairly low, i don't foresee a problem with the size of tanks i've got, i'll just have to replan my journeys to go via the nearest LPG-supplying station. Might be a nuisance at first until i get used to it but once i do, it won't be a problem.

_________________
Cheers,
Dave


Somewhere in Suffolk with a Jeep, 2 Rovers and a V6 Volvo

Maybe thats what i wanted you to think?????

I'm sure you said it somewhere earlier in the thread, though I can't see it now, your signature does give it away somewhat though (My sister lives over a bit further from where you are towards Norwich, plus its an area I know a bit due to work anyway!

I did mention my nearest BP was Brandon (4th post on the first page) and also the new Sheel station at FiveWays was near to me so if you know the area you'll be able to work out within about 6 miles where i am.
That said tomorrow i'll mainly be hunting for my nearest LPG station as the needle on the tank gauge is registering empty, i can hear the float bouncing round a bit and it's been a little hesitant from cold a couple of times.

_________________
Cheers,
Dave


Somewhere in Suffolk with a Jeep, 2 Rovers and a V6 Volvo

Knew you'd mentioned Brandon somewhere - anyway looks like BP have got their just desserts - http://www.theguardian.com/business/2016/jan/31/bp-to-announce-70-collapse-in-profits

Not just BP - Shell seem to be getting hammered too! Maybe the oil industry has held the trump cards too long and the chickens are now coming home to roost?

_________________
Cheers,
Dave


Somewhere in Suffolk with a Jeep, 2 Rovers and a V6 Volvo

Oh no! 'Only' $6.4billion profit for BP in 2015 - Time for them to shut up shop(s) and set up a stall on the market?

I remember Sir Sugar on telly saying he'd thought about giving everything away and starting afresh building a business from 50p by selling groceries on the market... but he didn't.

_________________
Full time LPG installer
Servicing / Diagnostics / Repairs to all systems / DIY conversion kits supplied with thorough tech support
Mid Yorkshire
2 miles A1, 8 miles M62,
http://www.Lpgc.co.uk
Twitter https://twitter.com/AutogasSimon
07816237240

Damn! I wish i was that broke!

_________________
Cheers,
Dave


Somewhere in Suffolk with a Jeep, 2 Rovers and a V6 Volvo

I dunno whats happening to BP stations, but the one @ Walisdown interconnect near Bournemouth seems to have gone from overpriced 69.9p/l to normal 49.9p/l recently. Maybe new owners or somthing. It's probably the cheapest in the southern region south of the 3 cheep Murco' s @ 45.9p/l around the A303

Suspect irs changed ownership. I think it's a malt Hurst one so does the 10p accumulator card now as well.

It's supplied by a reasonable supplier probably flogas rather than bp for Gas.

The BP station I pass every day has been Calor for as long as I've been using it. I told their boss that the Flogas headquarters beside my work was 10p cheaper than them, at 59.9p - a couple of weeks later, they dropped their prices by 10p a litre to match.
Not sure if it was anything to do with my comment, or if Calor dropped their bulk prices, but it's handy for me!

I don't think any of the stations in Northern Ireland were supplied by BP - When I've been over there its all been either Calor or Flogas that I've seen. I think as a lot of the area isn't on mains gas theres more distribution of lpg anyway for domestic use as well, which seems to help a bit.

Its always been about 7-10p a litre more expensive there than over this side of the sea though. Still its much easier to find your side of the border than the other side!.

It is indeed, 60p a litre is about normal now. I just replaced the Output Speed Sensor in the slushbox on my Jeep as it was making it suck gas by the gallon (and bounce off the rev limiter each gearchange!). FllLPG is my saviour!

I could add to this list of Chrysler gearbox issues with personal experiences mate!
Gilbert, was it you who told the story of the Jeep salesman telling the customer that (small engine'd) Jeeps may look like a good tow car but the gearbox isn't up to it? Probably the truest thing he ever told a customer... Not all Chrysler boxes, just some.

I recently bought a Merc ML320 7 seater to pull the caravan on holiday because the A604 box in the Grand Voyager started doing some dodgy shifting behaviour and I noted some bits in the fluid... A fluid flush, speed sensor change, solenoid block change, filter change and addition of an oil cooler did not improve matters and I ran out of time to remove and rebuild the gearbox before going away. The ML was a desperate buy really but no worries about gearbox failure when towing. No time to convert the ML before the holiday so I had to run on petrol ffs but better than breaking down.

Simon

_________________
Full time LPG installer
Servicing / Diagnostics / Repairs to all systems / DIY conversion kits supplied with thorough tech support
Mid Yorkshire
2 miles A1, 8 miles M62,
http://www.Lpgc.co.uk
Twitter https://twitter.com/AutogasSimon
07816237240

Not gearbox but rear diff. Neighbour bought one, a diesel, used it once to tow a smallish caravan and then the diff got noisy. Took the car back to be told that they weren't really up to towing......

_________________
'96 Saab 900XS, AEB Leo, sold
'93 Range Rover 4.2 LSE, Lovato LovEco, sold
'98 Ex-Police Range Rover 4.0, Singlepoint AEB Leo, my daily motor
'97 Range Rover 4.0SE, eGas multipoint, a project.....

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