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Motul History
Established in New York over 150 years ago in 1853, MOTUL had its roots in the whale-oil business,
used for lanterns. Owned by the Rockefeller Group and operated as a subsidiary of Standard Oil Company,
the company was later managed and run by Swan Finch and in 1919, came to known as the Swan Finch Company.
Having established its headquarters in the USA, the Swan Finch Company expanded its lubricant business and
started exporting to Europe. In 1932, the Zaugg family, a French distributor bought out the Swan Finch Company,
but kept the MOTUL brand name. The entire operation moved to France and the brand name MOTUL, was
relaunched as a French brand. Focused on improving the reliability and performance of lubricants, MOTUL dramatically
altered the lubrication industry by producing several world's first and hence, set forth to shape the history of motor lubricants.
1953 - the launch of the World's 1st Multigrade Motor Oil.
1966 - the launch of the World's 1st Semi-Synthetic Motor Oil.
1971 - the launch of the World's 1st 100% Synthetic Motor Oil.
Till today, MOTUL continues in its tradition of producing superior quality lubricants by turning its technological innovations
into real products for the automotive world. From Turbo Engine Oils to Catalytic Mufflers to Brake Fluids and Transmission,
MOTUL has been and continues to be the favored name.
An environmental-conscious organization, MOTUL has concentrated its efforts in developing cleaner and more
environmental-friendly products. MOTUL has also invested in recycling programs, offering consumers a cleaner and
greener way of living.
Currently headquartered in Paris, France, the MOTUL line of premium performance products is sold in 65 countries today.
Motul Faq's :
Q. What is the difference between mineral oil and Synthetic oil?
A. Mineral oil (Dino oil) comes from the ground and goes through a refining process. Most of these base oils are a
byproduct of fuel refining and are quite limited in their ability to perform. True Synthetics are created in a laboratory
and are molecularly engineered to perform by design; that is why Synthetic oils can have a lower cold start viscosity,
like a 0W (a 0 weight oil flows like water at 0 degrees C).
Q. I have heard that some synthetics in the market are actually mineral oils with fancy marketing hype, is this true?
A. It’s true, some of these oils are actually highly refined mineral oils, after an unprecedented battle in US courts, this refining process
was deemed to have enough human involvement to be called “a Synthetic oil” and so, this opened the doors for some smart marketers
to call their products “Synthetic”.
Q. What kind of synthetic base stock are used in the Motul product?
A. Motul known for their mastery of ester technology; uses the best in base stock technology; depending on the application,
Motul uses Ester, PAO, and a small combination of Group III base stocks.
Q. What do the “Starburst / Donut” and the alpha-numeric numbers on the back of the bottle represent?
A. They are the systems issued by the sanctioning bodies to define the performance levels of the lubricant.
Q. Why is that important to me? Oil is oil!
A. On the contrary! These standards systems are quite ambiguous; the North American and European standards are far apart,
so understanding these systems will help you get what you pay for when you are buying your oil.
API / ILSAC American Petroleum Industry, is the primary sanctioning body for lubricants in North America.
The weakness of the API system is the inability to position one approved product as an upgrade over another.
Manufactures engineer and build cars that have varying degrees of performance
and technologies, having one blanket oil standard for a wide variety of cars doesn’t make sense.
YEAR API ILSAC
1994-1996 SH GF-1
1997-2000 SJ GF-2
2001-2004 SL GF-3
2005-present SM GF-4
ACEA European Automobile Constructors Association, is chaired by representatives of the car manufacturers and not oil company
executives. This association is geared towards the requirements of specific cars and technologies. Utilizing a system of concurrent
standards based on engine technology and performance requirements under progressively tougher testing methods, achieves oils that
allow the engines to operate to their true potential.
Criteria Gasoline Diesel SAPS Drain Interval
Fuel Economy[FE] A1 B1 C1 <15,000 kms
Hi Performance / Turbo + Long drain A3 B3/B4 C2 >15,000 kms
Hi Performance + FE Turbo + Long drain A5 B5 C3 <30,000 kms
Q. What are SAPS?
A. Sulphated Ash, Phosphorus and Sulphur are components of the additives package in engine oils. With new low emissions
exhaust technologies, these compounds have been shown to clog and damage the sensitive catalytic converters and particulate
filters. New oil standards have mandated reduced SAPS oils; you will find this latest technology in the Motul line up.
Q. I see Motul products ranging from 300V, 8100, to 6100 etc, what is the difference?
A. Motul products are categorized from our best and highest technology to the lower technologies. Which product is right for you will
depend on your needs and requirements.
300V is our most advanced base stock featuring double ester technology, a true racing product used by top race teams
in the international arena yet available to car aficionados. Due to its exceedingly high standards, many passionate enthusiasts
are using this product in their high performance street cars.8100 Premium Synthetic is our most advanced synthetic base stock,
using Ester and PAO technology, these products surpass the latest Manufactures' Approvals with flying colours, longer drain intervals
and fuel economy for maximum efficiency and protection for your investment. 6100 Synthetic utilizes our advanced base stock with
Group III technology; these products achieve the latest Manufactures' Approvals with recommended drain intervals and fuel economy
improvements.
Q. What does Technosynthese mean ?
A. Nowadays, the terms synthetic, semi-synthetic and synthesis base have been tainted, because it is not enough to add a few % of PAO to
claim to rival the performances of oils using MOTUL synthesis techniques.
All techniques using synthesis products, developed and fully mastered by MOTUL for 30 years, are gathered under the generic name
TECHNOSYNTHESE.
What is the difference between a synthetic oil and a mineral oil?
A lubricant is said to be " mineral " when it is based upon refined crude oil. Synthetic lubricants are manufactured through chemical reactions
taking place between various chemical components.
The process for obtaining a synthetic lubricant is therefore more complex and more costly. Nevertheless, synthetic oils have superior properties,
including greater resistance to oxidation; this allows their use under very severe conditions (high temperatures) and also results in increased times
between oil changes.Semi-synthetic oils can be obtained by mixing mineral and synthetic oils. This produces, at a more reasonable cost,
properties that are superior to mineral oils since they retain the high performance characteristics of the synthetic base.
What is the difference between diesel engine oil and petrol engine oil?
The constraints imposed by the two engines are not entirely identical: more particularly the minimum performance levels of chemical properties
relating to detergent action and dispersion are different. Nevertheless, virtually all oils in the MOTUL range largely meet such minimum levels and
therefore possess the required standard and approval for both petrol and diesel engines.
When using a catalytic exhaust system, are there precautions that should be taken in relation to engine oil?
The only constraint regarding engine oils in this respect is that they must have low phosphorous levels, since this destroys catalytic exhausts.
The whole MOTUL range of four-stroke engine oils is fully compliant. You can therefore use MOTUL without any risk to catalytic exhaust systems.
ESTER OIL
Under normal conditions, oil forms a continuous film between two surfaces. This oil film provides hydrodynamic lubrication as it prevents direct
metal-to-metal contact thereby reducing friction.
The ability to maintain a continuous layer of oil between two metal surfaces is an important attribute of an engine oil to provide fluid lubricity.
Friction and wear result when this lubricant film is broken under high load conditions. This is where Esters excel in providing boundary lubrication.
Ester has the propensity to reduce friction where other base oils fail.
Ester's molecules: consist of Oxygen (O), which has a positive polarity, and Hydrogen (H), which has a negative polarity. These two molecules
electrically adsorb onto the metal surfaces and form a layer known as ad molecule film. It is this ad molecule film that makes Esters stand
out from other oils (where film is created by viscosity).
The difference is obvious in its lubrication performance when starting the engine. With oils that depend on viscosity for film strength, pressure
and oil will drop when the engine stops. When the engine is restarted, the film between the two metals no longer exists and this results to a dry start.
Ad molecule film on the other hand, does not rely on viscosity for fluid lubrication. Therefore it is able to continuously lubricate between the two metals
even if the engine stops.
In city driving, where there are frequent start and stop, these car engines are subjected to more stress than in racing. It is therefore more critical
that the appropriate engine oil is chosen to protect car engines.
MOTUL uses Ester as base oil for its 4-stroke and 2-stroke engine oils.
ESTER AS BASE OIL FOR SYNTHETIC OIL
Before the introduction of Esters, the choice of base oils was based on its ability to control viscosity. It was thought then, that the
thicker the oil the better it would be.
By employing Esters as the base for synthetic oil, MOTUL changed the conventional concept of synthetic lubricants. Esters
are polar molecules that have the ability to electro-chemically bond with metals, so as to maintain a continuous lubricant film at high or low temperatures.
After experimenting with a variety of Esters, MOTUL selected Complex Esters in 1996 as its latest generation of base oils. Complex
Esters have increased adsorption ability thereby making higher performance synthetic oils
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