High school drop out Jonathan Goodwin has more than doubled the mileage of his huge SUV by replacing its gas engine with a diesel version.
And he's filling the tank with vegetable oil, which can power any diesel engine, also doubles the horsepower.
Goodwin is winning some impressive conversion clients including California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger.
But it's not cheap; it costs $35,000 to put a diesel engine in a vehicle. But the benefits are obvious.
"I'm taking existing technology that's here now today. We don't have to spend $1 million inventing this and wait ten years to get it. It's already here," said Goodwin.
So why aren't carmakers building more diesels that can burn biofuels? They say it's unrealistic to make every vehicle diesel, but admit Goodwin is onto something.
"Detroit is doing it, actually. And in the next 18 months we'll have more than a dozen new choices for consumers and these vehicles will get anywhere from 20 to 40 per cent more miles per gallon," said Allen Schaeffe of the Diesel Technology Forum.
Goodwin's message to automakers is to create something that's more fuel efficient. "I don't mind paying $10 a gallon for gas if I have a 200-mile-per-gallon vehicle," he said.
