Toroidal LPG tanks enter US market

© WorthingtonToruses are new to the US, but multivalves don't enter the market along with them - separate fittings rule

Even though autogas is garnering popularity fast across the Atlantic (across from Europe, that is), vehicles converted to run on LPG have usually been equipped with cylindrical fuel tanks. While cylinders have their irrefutable advantages (primarily capacity, usually bigger than respective toruses), they sometimes tend to prove impractical as they occupy cargo or luggage space (e. g. in pick-up trucks they are fitted behind the cabin, within the cargo bed). Now, thanks to the acquisition of Stako, Worthington can introduce convenient toruses to their home market. The tanks have been certified by ASME (American Society of Mechanical Engineers).

According to Worthington, quality and safety regulations in the US are even more stringent than in Europe, so before the tanks could be introduced to the North American market, they had to be adapted to meet and even exceed the requirements of the certification procedure. For now, the line-up will comprise eight tank sizes with capacities ranging from 9,4 to 19,1 GGE (gasoline gallon equivalent), but later, as demand grows, it will be expanded.

Production of US-bound tanks will commence at Stako Worthington's facility in Słupsk, Poland, in autumn 2014, but order books will open in August. Will donut-shaped autogas tanks conquer America? Why shouldn't they, since they've already proven popular pretty much everywhere else?