A MORDIALLOC company is turning London's famous black cabs green.

Gastech Engine & Equipment will remanufacture up to 1000 engines here and in the UK this financial year.

The switch will power the iconic vehicles so they can run on gas or petrol, instead of diesel.

The new-look cabs will comply with strict new emission laws and use less fuel.

"They run all day on gas and the petrol is a back-up," manager James Monahu said.

"They just flick a switch."

Diesel in London sells for about $2.56 a litre while LPG fetches just $1.18.

Mr Monahu said previous attempts to convert black cabs to gas had failed.

"They rode rough and they didn't have the reliability," he said. "If an expat gets into a London taxi and it runs smooth it's most likely an Aussie engine."

The London project involves replacing the diesel-guzzling powerplant used in about 4000 black cabs managed by Computer Cab with a Gastech-made Nissan Navara TD 27 2.7-litre engine.

The first engines took a 16,000km durability trial at 37km/h to simulate taxi conditions.

A prototype meeting Euro V emission standards left the Mordialloc workshop last month and more are set to follow.
With the global fuel crisis continuing, Mr Monahu said there were plenty of opportunities for the privately owned business.

This month it signed a contract to refit engines for 3000 buses in India and will turn 1000 Singapore cabs green.

http://www.mordiallocchelsealeader.com.au/article/2008/06/16/37064_mcv_news.html