Aw, shucks!

 

The PCM will adjust the mixture as you climb/descend. That's part of what the O2 sensors do - maintain the proper fuel ratio.

It's also not just how much oxygen is in the air. It's how well it gets into the engine.

 

I'd use compressed air over O2, is it is cheaper. It costs as much as it does to run a compressor.

 

Ah, but air is only 21% oxygen. And bottle oxygen is a lot closer to 100%. And we're not talking about using a lot of o2, just as necessary when going up steep hills at high altitude.

You are probably right about the differences in cost, tho. Using a home compressor wouldn't put much air into a scuba tank--even if you could get it to pump up to 150 psi. Also using a home compressor for a scuba tank would probably ruin the tank for any scuba use (nasty contaminants.)

 

That's why I recommended a dive shop. He/she is in Hawaii, which has a lot of them and they normally have inhouse 3,000 psi compressors (other viable location: paintball arenas). That can fill the tanks for pennies on the dollar.

My biggest problem with pure O2 is that it is a fire hazard. Legally speaking you'd could have to carry warning diamonds.

 

can't you use CO2 as well?

Either way, injecting air alone does nothing. You need to inject a fuel to go with it, be it pump gas or methanol.

 

OK, now it's getting interesting.
The only problem is that this Dak is my every day-do all sled. I will not be making frequent trips up the mountain. I don't see me making any major mods to be able to operate at sea-level power levels while going up the mountain.
Now with that said, the only way compressed air will make a difference is if a turbo or supercharger type of addition is used. A bottle being bled into the manifold will not raise the O-2 partial pressure, but an O-2 tank would. I don't see me adding the plumbing to do so. I'm not familiar with nitrous, but unless it provides its own supply of O-2 going into the cyls, or it is supercharged, it should not make much of a difference.
In doing a bit of reading about driving to the top of Mauna Kea I think I've found the best way.
I have 4wd, so put it into 4-low, then kick back and cruise.
That is the official recommendation given to the general public by the official sources.
Why didn't I think of that?

As an after thought:
While coming back down the mountain I passed several tour buses that were going up with loads of tourists to watch the sunset.
I could hear a big beefy turbo/supercharger howling as they went by.
That seems to be the standard way of dealing with the problem if you're building for it.

Plus, on a bright sunny day it wouldn't take long to get badly sunburned at that altitude.

 

CO2 is what's in fire extinguishers.

The threshhold for DOT hazmat placards is pretty high. If placarding were required for anyone carrying o2 all those old folks and people with oxygen cannulas would have to have them.