As newer cars come on board, people with older cars have very few options, especially with petrol. Since 2000, leaded fuel ceased to be on sale. In its place, we had the Lead Replacement Petrol, which has also been withdrawn in 2003 due to low sales.
If your car’s manufacturing date is before 1992, it is imperative to see if your vehicle can use regular unleaded petrol (95 octanes). Perhaps, the persons who owned the car before you did might have converted it to use petrol additives.
What problems do you face when using unleaded petrol on a car designed to use leaded petrol?
The valve seats can suffer wearing and tearing as the lead compound will lose its protective effect. This situation happens if the engine’s valve seats are directly cut into a block or cast-iron cylinder.
The fuel ignition quality will become poorer, although hardly noticeable. You might, however, need to reset the ignition timing to prevent pinking or detonation.
A long-term solution is to install hard-allow valve seats or fit an exchange head.
If your cylinder isn’t converted to use more modern petrol, there are some things you can do.
Use additional protection
Use protection for the valve seat for normal or a little hard surface. It will ensure that the engine remains as good as it would be when using leaded petrol.
It is crucial to be careful because it might prove difficult to get the perfect dosage and mixing. Once you decide to use an additive, stick to a single brand because swapping brands can be risky.
- Observe what happens with unleaded petrol
Observe and check for compression loss, reduction in valve clearance as a sign of attention.
When driven in calculated mileages and proper care, there won’t be any damage to the valve.
- Use leaded four-stars
A regulation supports a 0.5% sale of leaded petrol, even when four-star petrol was removed from general sales. This 0.5% is for vehicles with unique characteristics, but these vehicle owners need to visit a garage licensed with the Federation of British Historic Vehicle Clubs.
It is unnecessary to go long distances to get lead or additives when you can use four-stars instead.
Many regulations control the storage of petrol with strict measures. You can only keep this petrol in small spare cans or the regular petrol tank of the vehicle.
Suitable additives for your vehicles
When working on getting a DIY dose for your unleaded petrol, a list of lead-replacement additives exists in the petrol market.
Why do we use lead replacements?
Since the 1920s, lead has been used as a petrol additive until its ban by the European Regulation in 2000.
Lead supported the creation of fuel with a higher octane number. Actually, the higher the octave number, the greater the fuel can resist detonation or uncontrolled burning within the engine. We also discovered later that lead can also protect valves from getting worn out.
Lead petrol was eventually withdrawn because its toxic nature was discovered, and this nature can negatively affect a person’s health.
Check here on of the best Blyersttning options.
Recent methods of refining fuel can provide the needed fuel octane without including lead.