Countywide

The California Highway Patrol will begin stopping motorists at random in San Diego County on Monday so officials from the state Air Resources Board can inspect automobile pollution control devices.

The board is trying to determine whether motorists are tampering with the devices, and to what extent the devices are reducing fuel emissions, said Bill Sessa, public information officer with the board.

The inspections are for research only, and no citations will be given to anyone found violating state smog control law, he said.

“All we really want are statistics,” Sessa said. “It gives us some understanding of what really goes on in the world, and what we expect when we set certain standards.”

Inspectors will check for tampering under hoods, and exhaust emissions will be measured. Officials also will try to determine whether leaded gasoline is being used in new cars, which are designed to use unleaded gasoline.

Similar inspections have been conducted in Los Angeles, San Francisco and Sacramento, Sessa said. San Diego County inspections should continue for about two weeks.