Could you live with LPG? We find out - pictures

LPG has become more and more unpopular over the years, but it still offers motorists the chance to lower their motoring costs. We got our hands on an Autogas Ford Focus EcoBoost to see if it works for a commuter. 

Despite the decline of LPG in the UK, there are still around 1,400 filling stations in the country which have specialised pumps. 

Filling up is daunting to begin with as you have to lock in the nozzle to ensure no flammable gas escapes, but we soon got the hang of it. 

LPG costs about half the price of petrol on the forecourt, so we were looking forward to seeing what the savings could be. 

At our local service station, the cost of LPG was half that of petrol, and we calculated a saving of about £300 a year. 

On the open country roads at the start of our commute, LPG Focus is no different to the regular petrol or diesel model from behind the wheel. 

Once on to the slower urban roads, though, our man found throttle response a bit hesitant, especially when the engine was cold, plus the traffic started to build. 

Liveried Focus drew plenty of attention on the road, but its low emissions should have been the real talking point, with a 15 per cent reduction claimed. 

We head home on the motorway, and when racking up high mileages on this type of road, LPG makes the most sense, costing just 61p per litre. 

Under the bonnet, there are no real clues to the conversion. 

Aftermarket conversions used to involve big LPG tanks being fitted in the boot of cars. Now Autogas simply fits a small tank in the spare wheel well. 

Despite big savings at the pump, it would still take five years to recoup the £1,500 LPG conversion cost if you did around 10,000 miles a year.