Four star wars!

But many drivers are confused about what they can do to keep their four star-powered cars on the road come January. Reporter VALERIE COWAN spoke to some of those who will be affected by the change.

PAUL Barry drives a 15-year-old Austin Metro which runs on four star fuel.

He does not want to have to scrap his car come January 1 - but when the cost of converting it to run on unleaded is the same as the value of the car, it might be the only option.

Paul, 24, a reporter with the Lancashire Evening Telegraph, said: "Some cars can be run on either fuel simply by adjusting the ignition timing and carburettor, but cars like mine were never designed for unleaded petrol. Lead-free petrol puts more strain on the engine and parts like the valve seats would quickly wear out.

"The only answer for my car would be to fit a completely new cylinder head, and that is a major engine overhaul job which would cost about £300. My car is not worth much more than that, so a conversion is just not worth it."

He said if he did convert, he would use more fuel and the car's performance would suffer.

Motoring organisation the AA has assured motorists additives and Lead Replacement Petrol, which is set to become more widely available, could also help them solve the problem.

Paul added: "I will be interested to see what additives come on to the market because that is the only way people on a low budget like me will be able to keep their cars running."

Motoring organisations have been inundated with calls from drivers worried about the changeover to unleaded fuel.

But Peter Harrison, a senior technical adviser for the AA, said most have no reason to fret.

Mr Harrison, who is based in Stockport, said: "We are taking around about 1,400 calls a week - a third of them are to do with leaded fuel. "When anything like this appears in the media or on television we get inundated with calls. It seems to worry a lot of people - but there are ways round it. It depends on what kind of car you are driving."

He said there were some cars which could change to unleaded fuel without any alterations to the engine.

"If you are not doing any sustained, hard, fast driving you might get away with it. You would have to make more regular checks on the valve clearances to make sure they are not closing up but otherwise it might be OK.

"People who cannot use unleaded fuel should consider having the car converted. Sometimes it is just a matter of a simple adjustment to the ignition timing.

"Leaded has an octane level of 97 and unleaded is 95 so it just needs a slight adjustment to stop the engine 'pinking'."

Some cars are fitted with soft engine valve seats, which need the lead in four star to stop them from wearing out and becoming damaged under high temperatures. Often they can be replaced with hardened ones - but it's an expensive business.

"That is going to cost anywhere upwards of £300," said Mr Harrison,

"If it is a car that is quite old and it would be really costly the driver may want to consider putting in lead replacement petrol (LRP). At the moment it is only available at one or two service stations and in the main it is down south but I would envisage it becoming more widespread during 1999.

"Or they can try dosing the fuel with a proprietary additive. They are widely available."

Mr Harrison said drivers currently using leaded fuel should be thinking about the other options now.

"Round about the autumn a lot of filling stations will be running out of leaded fuel and they are not going to bother buying more.

"Within the next six or seven months you are going to see more of these additives and the petrol companies will be making LRP more widely available."

He added that some people were worrying unnecessarily.

"We are getting calls from people who could have been using unleaded petrol for years. The amount of money they have been wasting is unbelievable," he said.

Classic cause for concern

AS vice-president of the Lancashire Automobile Club and a restorer of classic cars, Anthony Taylor knows well the concerns of drivers of cars with engines designed to run on leaded petrol.

He said he had had several queries from concerned customers about what would happen once leaded petrol was phased out.

"It is a blow because we run classic cars and also race them and the higher performance the car the more important lead is," he said.

"It acts as a lubricant in parts of the engine so certain things will wear more if it is taken out."

But he said classic car owners should not worry too much.

"People can have their cars modified or there will be quite a lot of additives which theoretically should help," he said.

"Those most likely to be affected will be people with things like early Minis or early Fords, which have cast iron cylinder heads. It is not going to mean they will have to scrap their cars - they are going to be able to buy additives."

The other good news is that a very small amount of leaded fuel - up to 0.5 per cent of total petrol sales - will probably continue to be marketed. It is expected to be used for classic motor-racing, with any remainder being sold for road use by classic vehicles.

THE ban on leaded fuel is intended to improve air quality.

Environmentalists have welcomed the move, but there is still some concern about some of the chemicals in unleaded fuel - which include benzene, a substance known to cause cancer.

Environmental pressure group Friends of the Earth says the fuel industry has promised that benzene levels in unleaded will be no higher than in leaded.

But Brian Jackson of the organisation's Pendle branch said he hoped research would continue into less noxious alternatives.

He said research into the effects of lead on people in the 1960s showed that a link between high levels of lead and violent behaviour. Later research indicated that lead was harmful to infants.

He said: "There was a noticeable reduction in IQ in children who had been exposed to high levels of lead. That was when the slide against leaded petrol started. It is certainly a good thing to see the back of it. "

Mr Jackson said benzene was a worry, but he hoped levels would be monitored closely.

"The main issue is that we are getting rid of lead," he added.

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