My Vehicle Conversion - Update

I know many of you have been looking for an update regarding the Hydro Assist Fuel Cell kit and it's installation in my 2001 Oldsmobile Silhouette mini-van. As of today, I have not completed the tuning of the kit in my vehicle. I have been able to recruit a mechanic, Robin, who now runs a hydro conversion business out of St Cloud, Minnesota. He has had great success converting late model cars including Honda, Toyota, Ford and Dodge. It turns out the configuration of my van is a bit more challenging than the others he's worked on. Because of this, both my father's car and mine, which have identical motors, have not been successfully converted. But, that is soon to change...

The key to the HAFC conversions is the tuning, and while the kit comes in one standard configuration, how it is applied and tuned to the vehicle's systems varies from car to car. The HAFC is new technology, and like any new technology, it's still being worked out. All of the other vehicles Robin has converted have seen from 50% to 70% improvements in mileage. I'm fortunate enough to own a car that has shown itself to be stubborn in settling into the right balance, apparently.

Robin just returned from a week-long advanced tuner training in New Jersey at the company headquarters. He earned a Class A Certification, which is the top level certification anyone can earn. He really knows his stuff! In fact, he's now one of the top 10 tuners in the United States for the HAFC system and Dutchman Enterprises. He'll be returning to Dutchman to become a certified trainer in a couple of weeks. Once he's certified for training, we'll have an excellent tuner and trainer right here in the mid-west, so we can increase the number of technicians that can successfully install and tune the system.

Especially exciting for me is the fact that while he was at advanced tuning training last week, he picked up some information and techniques necessary to successfully tune my type of vehicle. He called me today and asked me to deliver my van to him this week so that he can complete the tuning. Maybe by this weekend, I'll finally have some results!

Here are results for some of his recent conversions:

2001 Dodge Grand Caravan - 23 mpg to 39 mpg 69%

2005 Toyota Highlander - 24 mpg to 38 mpg 58%

2005 Honda Accord - 26 mpg to 45 mpg 73%

2001 Oldsmobile Silhouette - 24 mpg to ? Stay tuned....