A cleaner form of petrol was introduced at filling station today but not all cars are compatible.

E10 petrol, made up of 10 per cent bioethanol – a type of renewable fuel, is replacing E5 petrol starting today, Wednesday September 1.

The Department for Transport stated that this change will see CO2 emissions cut by 750,000 tonnes per year, the equivalent of 350,000 cars.

More than 95 per cent of petrol cars are compatible with E10 and it is not expected to be any more expensive however an RAC survey found that 27 per cent of motorists are yet to check whether their car is compatible.

Motorists can check if their vehicle is compatible by using the government’s online E10 checker at www.gov.uk/check-vehicle-e10-petrol.

The RAC’s head of policy, Nicholas Lyes, said: “While the vast majority of drivers of petrol cars aren’t affected, a sizeable minority will be and the only way to be sure is to use the official online checker.”

AA president Edmund King added: “While the vast majority of vehicles will be unaffected by the change, it is important for owners of older cars to use the Government’s vehicle checker to see if they can use E10.

“Even if E10 is put in a non-compliant vehicle, drivers should not panic and can simply put super unleaded in their tank at the next available opportunity.”

Owners of incompatible cars, such as classic cars and those built in the early 2000s, can continue to access E5 by purchasing super unleaded, which costs an average of 8.7p more.