Motul launches Racing Kit oil with Honda
Motul has launched a new Factory Line engine lubricant for racing in association with Honda. Tailor-made for owners of Honda CBR 1000 RR-R bikes fitted with HRC (Honda Racing Corporation) KIT, the MOTUL 300V Factory Line Racing Kit Oil 2376H 0W-30 ESTER Core is the perfect example of the company’s living laboratory philosophy – developing and testing products in a racing application before offering them for sale to a wider customer base.
For decades Motul has developed high performance synthetic lubricants using ESTER Core technology which the company says extracts maximum engine power without compromising reliability and wear. This high-performance characteristic is key to the competition success of the 300V lubricant which has helped achieve many victories over five decades.
Working alongside Honda and using the All Japan Road Race Championship (Japan’s premiere two-wheeled road racing championship) as a test bed, engineers at the Motul R&D facility in Kawasaki developed an experimental oil dedicated to Honda CBR 1000 RR-R bikes. The ultimate proof of its efficiency and effectiveness came just weeks ago when the F.C.C TSR Honda France team claimed victory at the 24 Heures Motos at Le Mans.
Motul says the viscosity grade 0W-30, 100 per cent synthetic lubricant yields a low traction coefficient thanks to the Ester technology, reducing friction, therefore providing a significant gain in engine power. The exclusive development of the formulation for the Honda CBR 1000 RR-R fitted with HRC KIT allows a significant improvement of the wet clutch engagement, resulting in more power being transmitted to the rear wheel, and an exceptional increased reliability of the moving parts thanks to a choice of latest generation specific anti-wear additives.
Arai Katsuya, general manager of Motul R&D said every team wants better power without compromising reliability. “With a 200hp-plus superbike, if we gain one per cent of the horsepower, it could give additional speed on the straight and that is a benefit of the Racing Kit oil. If there’s no compromise on reliability, then everything will be perfect, and the team will have a better result. The unique Ester chemistry of our Racing Kit oil means we can extract the maximum engine power without compromising on reliability and wear.”
Fuji Masakazu, team manager of F.C.C. TSR Honda France Team said that in today’s high-speed, high-power engines, each part must be protected. “Therefore, it is necessary to have an oil which performs multiple, conflicting tasks at the same time. High-performance oil is essential for today’s high-performance engines. Oil leads to victory. We know Motul well. Honda trusts Motul and we trust Honda. There is no other choice. As far as the recent success at the 24 Heures Motos at Le Mans is concerned, Motul helped us as lubricant partner. We fought the world and won.”
Midori Moriwaki, general manager of Moriwaki Engineering said the relationship with Motul started in the 1990s. “When we developed the engine parts, so many times the engines broke during testing because the bike had heavy engine torque and it didn’t take well to the oils we were using. We tested many different oils, but we couldn’t find one that worked. We then heard that Motul oil from France was very high quality and might be good for this engine. The Moriwaki engineers contacted Motul to test the oil. Then the bike worked perfectly, solving all the problems. Since then we have a very good relationship with Motul and we are proud that some of our racing data contributed in a positive way, giving Motul key information to support the development of products such as the 300V Factory Line Racing Kit Oil 2376H 0W-30 ESTER Core. “
