Partially Pimped and running on Biodiesel

September 03, 2011

Partially Pimped and running on Biodiesel

Althea posed at Gustafson's Farm in her new outfit. Gustafson's is famous for their apples and for being one of the most beautiful places in town.

Yay! Finally! And yes I am obsessed! She is finally presentable on the outside at least, and back to being vegetarian!!!!!Thank you Neil from Maaco!!! And Thank You! Kevin from Alplex for the new VW emblem! The interior is still ghetto, but this rig is part plein-air studio, work truck and occasional storage unit. (It’s a real SUV not some noxious, pampered Hummer). I’ll need a grant for the interior decorating phase ! A conversion to the even more sustainable fuel, Waste Vegetable Oil(WVO) is in the future! Any philanthropists out there?

Before the paint transformation

It’s been a long road since I first got my Vanagon diesel in 2004 as an art project/ experiment in alternative fuels. It is an experiment that I couldn’t have done without a lot of hand holding and encouragement from Jim Burke and David Henri. Jim and Dave have been at the forefront of alternative fuels in Connecticut and extremely generous with their time and information. Thank you Jim and Dave! They also were VERY patient! I know NOTHING about mechanical things. Ask anyone who knows me. If I can do this, anybody can, which was the whole point of this venture.

A favorite painting spot

Quick on-site Oil Sketch from today's excursion to Gustafson's Farm

Before I moved to Singapore I was driving a VW rabbit that I bought from David Henri who did the conversion on it to run on Waste Vegetable Oil. It ran great on the oil and smelled much better than a regular diesel! A little like Tempura, I got the oil from a Japanese restaurant. Sadly I had to sell it when transitioning to Singapore. (I think she lives in Bethlehem now). After living in Southeast Asia and witnessing the destruction that commercial bio-fuel production does to the rainforest and other fragile eco-systems, I re-adjusted my view on biodiesel as a sustainable energy alternative. In order for biodiesel to be truly sustainable it has to come from waste vegetable oil which mine does.