The cost of driving the Veterans Green Bus @ ten miles to the gallon runs about $.50 per mile. Not including the driver's time or the vehicle's maintenance. For that, add an additional $.50 to $1.00 per mile.
By converting Large Marge to run on used cooking oil we have reduced the costs by $.90 per mile and saved in many other areas of fund raising. We don't ask for money to burn for a few miles! We ask for the capacity to burn sustainable fuel for years.
The money we save on fuel reduces the money we need to spend to raise money and the frequency we need to raise it. We raise money just for repairs and maintenance not fuel. When something happens to the bus like a fire or flat tire or a top end rebuild, people know the money they give us will continue to serve the mission for years to come not just get it a few miles down the road.
Over the life of the bus we expect to save far more money this way. If we raised the money to rebuild the entire bus or buses, it will still be cheeper than the cost of the fuel we replace. The savings on fuel costs once the bus/s operating full time will go towards the sustainability of the project. The more we drive the message home the more we save on emissions as well.
We are currently raising $2,500 to pay for the top end gasket rebuild, new turbo, injectors, oil cooler, water pump and transmission and oil lines. These are the parts the wear out after 300,000 miles on a good engine. We are at 297,000 miles now.
Help keep Large Marge and her crew of green veterans on the road demonstrating sustainable disaster relief for years to come donate here:
http://www.gofundme.com/...