>
>I beleive that the octane is about right also. I have run 103 octane in my
>cars before and had no problems so that will work just fine I think. Do I
>need to be concerned about the lead content, ie. is too much lead bad?
>
>The head does have hardened valve seats so lead or non-lead makes no
>difference to me or my car from what I'm told by a friend that works in a
>purely British car repair shop.
>
The problem with the high lead content, at least in aircraft, is that
residual lead can foul the spark plugs. This isn't a soft, sooty type
of fouling like that caused by too rich a mixture, or MTBE, but is
actual metallic lead nodules. There are lead scavenging additives in
the fuel, but it's a minimal amount that only works for a perfect
stoichiometric (chemically balanced) mixture, at high compression and
temperatures. The nodules form during idle and taxi, when the engine
is cool and not producing high compression. There is an additive, TCP
(tri-cresyl phosphate), that can help, but it's expensive and a hassle.
I think, however, that a 50-50 mixture of AVGAS and premium unleaded
would work fine for an LBC, especially if you can avoid stop-and-go or
slow-and-go traffic, and can "unload" on the freeway fairly often.
BTW, this type of plug fouling usually requires removal and cleaning
of the plugs with a wire brush.
On another note, I just read a newspaper article about a proposed
national "cash for clunkers" program. This is similar to the
much-ballyhooed PR scheme promulgated by an oil company in Los
Angeles a couple of years ago, whereby the oil company paid $700
cash for cars of any condition. This is a blatant reelection ploy
by the Bush campaign, designed to buy votes, mainly in Michigan
(who stands to benefit most from "getting the old heaps off the
highway?"). Apparaently not a threat to our LBCs, YET ...
Regards,
Bob
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