Landi Renzo USA, a subsidiary of Landi Renzo Group, a company that specializes in eco-fuel systems for the automotive industry, says it was funded $600,000 for the development of natural gas engines.
$300,000 of the funding came from the South Coast Air Quality Management District’s (AQMD) Clean Fuel Funds, and the other $300,000 in funding came from the Southern California Gas Company (SoCalGas). The funds were used for the development of Landi Renzo’s 7.3L Near Zero natural gas engine program, which covers Class 4-7 vehicles.
This collaboration will modify the recently introduced Ford 7.3-liter gasoline engine and demonstrate a 0.02 g/bhp-hr NOx California Air Resources Board (CARB) and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) certified engine for commercial vehicle applications.
The project is well underway, with expected completion by the second quarter of 2020.
The Ford base engine will offer fleets a near-zero natural gas engine for the F-450, F-550, F-650, F-750, F-53, F-59 and E-450 applications. The engine is packaged for shuttle buses, box trucks, tow trucks, service body trucks, large package trucks and a host of other vocational offerings. Many of these vehicles will be able to take advantage of various grant funding opportunities.
“We are excited that Landi Renzo USA is driving clean technology for the automotive sector. They’ve done this on a global scale and now are bringing their advanced technology to the U.S. market,” says Michael Lee, project manager of research and development at SoCalGas.
In addition to operating on compressed natural gas (CNG), the engine will also be able to utilize renewable natural gas (RNG). RNG fuel is organic-based and is carbon net-negative when used by natural gas trucks. RNG provides a 70% reduction in greenhouse gases versus gasoline or diesel.
The natural gas vehicles come directly from the Ford manufacturing plant to Landi Renzo USA’s facility in Torrance, Calif., where they are converted with Landi Renzo’s CNG system.
Landi Renzo USA is a Ford QVM (Qualified Vehicle Modifier) developer and installer. As an OEM-approved system under Ford’s QVM program, the original warranty remains fully in place post-conversion.
Photo: Landi Renzo’s 7.3L Near Zero natural gas engine
