The company’s 60-strong nationwide servicing fleet is run entirely on clean-burning Autogas fuel. Compared with petrol-powered vehicles, Autogas fuel reduces harmful exhaust emissions such as CO2 by 15 per cent and costs around half the price of petrol.

Lanier national service manager Andrew Jeffress said that after trialling Ford’s dedicated LPG E-Gas Falcon in 2000 he phased petrol vehicles out of the fleet and he remains convinced it was a shrewd decision.

“I’m certain we did right thing by going all Autogas. I don’t even look at anything else now,” Mr Jeffress said.

“We could see in the testing period that the savings were good, so we increased our LPG fleet exponentially.”

Article continues below…

When asked about the fuel cost savings gained by the company’s fleet conversion to Autogas vehicles, Mr Jeffress said “With petrol priced at $1.40 at the moment compared with 55 cents for gas, there’s a big margin to be had. Our cars do 50,000 kilometres per year, so the savings have really added up for us.”

A fleet manager with over 20 years’ experience, Mr Jeffress said he intended to continue buying dedicated Autogas vehicles.

“I have trialled dual petrol and Autogas vehicles in my time but am convinced dedicated gas is the way to go. The Ford engine is designed to work optimally on gas and it does so admirably.

“We’ve had no problems with the gas systems whatsoever. There is no additional wear and tear on engine components, so servicing is the same.

“The residual values remain higher than petrol equivalents. Everyone is looking to choose Autogas cars now, which makes them easy to sell at the end of their service life.”

Mr Jeffress said he was doubtful other mainstream fuels would outperform Autogas in meeting the company’s future needs.

“While petrol prices remain high – and I’m not expecting that to change – I’m sold on the gas concept. I’m doubtful that even diesel can provide the same value for us as LPG – and then there are the environmental considerations.”

Lanier’s use of Autogas-fuelled vehicles is amongst a range of measures it has instituted to reduce its environmental impact, which also includes an extensive recycling program for toner cartridges.

“Autogas fuel fits well with our company’s environmental philosophy and has been a major initiative, along with recycling all the machine parts, paper and toner cartridges we collect so they don’t end up in landfill,” Mr Jeffress said.

LPG Australia industry development manager, Phil Westlake, said LPG conversions were a simple way for businesses to reduce their environmental impact.

“Motor vehicles are commonly a business’ largest carbon emitters,” Mr Westlake said.

“Autogas conversions are an easy and affordable solution for businesses seeking to significantly downsize their carbon footprint. The beauty of conversions is that they’re self-funding, because over time lower running costs repay the conversion investment.”