fuel reserve FIAT GRANDE PUNTO 2008 199 / 1.G Natural Power Manual

3
FIAT PUNTO NATURAL POWER
INTRODUCTION
The Fiat Punto Natural Power version fea-
tures two fuel systems, one for petrol and
one for natural gas (methane).
The two systems are independent of one
another and the methane one is the
phased, sequential, multipoint type.
The starting system runs on petrol and is
the only one.
What is natural gas?
Natural gas is a mixture of gas used as a
main source of energy.
Its main component is methane so for this
reason it is usually known as methane in
Italy but it contains small amounts of oth-
er hydrocarbons and inert gases.
It is extracted in a gaseous stage and trans-
ported to where it is used via gas pipelines;
world reserves are plentiful and evenly dis-
tributed. Methane is fuel with a low impact
on the environment because it significantly
reduces the contribution of the exhaust
gases to the greenhouse effect and creat-
ing pollution.The methane multipoint injection
system
It is an original product from Fiat’s re-
search in the field of alternative fuels that
comes from close co-operation with im-
portant suppliers in the methane sector.
By adapting the sophisticated electronic
control technology of petrol engines to
meet the specifications of methane, it has
been possible to achieve important results
in terms of driveability, exhaust emissions
and consumption.
Using the methane multipoint injection
system the engine offers the same driving
conditions as running on petrol.
It should be borne in mind that, in all dri-
ving conditions, methane operation gives
engine power and torque specifications
that are 10% lower than petrol operation.
Petrol operation is therefore rec-
ommended if a lot of power is re-
quired (e.g. driving uphill with a
laden car, setting off on a steep in-
cline).
Selecting the type of fuel supply
The Fiat Punto Natural Power version is
configured to normally run on methane.When the methane is running out and the
pressure in the canister is close to the cor-
rect operating limit, the system automat-
ically switches to petrol operation.
The engine is always started up using
petrol (to keep this fuel supply system ef-
ficient) and, if the engine was running on
petrol before being switched off, when it
is started up again switching to methane
operation will need to be requested man-
ually.
For this reason there always needs
to be petrol in the tank.
The petrol/methane switch A-Fig. 1,
amongst the controls in the dashboard,
makes it possible to select petrol opera-
tion. The system does not switch auto-
matically to methane operation if the
petrol runs out.
fig. 1F0M0450m
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9
FIAT PUNTO NATURAL POWER
The four vertical bars near the letters
CNG in the instrument panel display Figs.
12a-12bindicate the level of methane in
the canisters.
When the residual amount of methane
goes below 1/5 of the capacity of the can-
isters, the CNG logo and the lowest lev-
el Fig. 13flash to indicate the reserve and
notify the need to refuel.
If the methane has run out, switching to
petrol takes place automatically: the Kin-
dicator near the CNG symbol Figs. 12a-
12blights up in the instrument panel dis-
play.
If you particularly want the car to run on
petrol, press button A - Fig. 11located
between the controls in the dashboard.
The LED in the button coming on means
that the request to switch has taken place
correctly.
fig. 11F0M0460m
fig. 12bF0M0471m
fig. 13F0M0462m
fig. 12aF0M0461m
If the last fuel system in use
was petrol, when starting the
switch to methane should be
requested manually by the
customer.
The actual change to the chosen fuel sys-
tem takes place depending on the vehicle
usage conditions to guarantee switching in
absolute safety and will be confirmed by
the Kwarning light in the instrument pan-
el display coming on/going off.
The manual selection of the op-
erating mode from petrol to
methane and viceversa is only ac-
tivated if the engine speed is be-
low 2000 rpm.
At the time of the switching
request there will be a metal-
lic noise coming from the valves to
pressurize the circuit (more obvious
with the ignition in the MAR position).
As a result of the switching logics de-
scribed above, it is entirely normal for
there to be a delay between the tick-
ing of the valve and the switching off
at the instrument panel.
WARNING
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FIAT PUNTO NATURAL POWER
CAPACITIES
Petrol
Petrol . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . litres 45
- including a reserve of . . . . litres 5-7
Methane
– Methane (*). . . . . . . . . kg (approx) 13
(*) The amount of methane depends on
the outside temperature, the supply pres-
sure, the quality of the gas and the type
of refuelling system. The total volume of
the canisters is about 84 litres.
IMPORTANT It should be remembered
that when using a fuel such as methane the
range is very variable because as well as
the driving conditions and car maintenance
it also depends on the temperature of the
gas in the canister.
The methane actually heats up during the
refuelling and cools down whilst driving,
undergoing variations in pressure that re-
duce the quantity that can be used.
It should also be pointed out that whilst
the vehicle is being run in (up to around
3000 km) the fuel consumption may be
higher than the figures given.
ENGINE OIL
The engine oil used is SELENIA K P.E.
(Contractual Technical Reference
N° F603.C07): SAE 5W-40 ACEA C3
grade synthetic base lubricant, FIAT
9.55535-S2 certification.
CO2EMISSIONS
The CO2emission figures in the table be-
low refer to combined fuel consumption.
CO2emissions according to 2004/3/
EC Directive (g/km)
Methane . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
Petrol . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149
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