UNLESS you've been unlucky, your car is unlikely to have ground to a half recently due to engine problems. But fifty years ago, it would have been a very different story. Back in 1954, engines were far less durable and reliable than today, a fact that brought to life the world's most famous and successful engine care brand, STP, which this year celebrates its 50th anniversary with a free draw and £100,000 worth of all-action prizes up for grabs.

The famous red, white and blue STP lozenge is now a true motoring icon and revered by enthusiasts worldwide, after four decades of high-profile motor sport sponsorship and record breaking. The STP brand remains very much the vanguard of preventative engine care, as even the most efficient petrol and diesel engines create power-sapping deposits through normal combustion, which increase their thirst for fuel, and produce a cocktail of lethargic starting and poor idling.

Ironically, you don't even have to lift the bonnet to apply a small dose of preventative medicine. Simply pour a bottle of STP Fuel Injector Cleaner into a tank of fuel every 3,000 miles or so and it will get to work delivering the benefits immediately. Fittingly, with 50 years under its belt, STP is acknowledging its golden milestone with the launch of a free competition draw to win £100,000 worth of high-performance, all-action prizes.

Motorists from 23 countries are taking part, all with an opportunity to win adrenaline-charged prizes such as snowmobile, jet-ski, ATV, scramblers, minibikes and the wild and wacky Zap Cat power catamaran. Competition entry is only via the STP anniversary website, www.stp50.com/uk, which not only contains the free on-line entry form, but also more on STP's product range, history etc.