India is the second largest motorcycle market in the world [after China], and it is quickly becoming the hub for motorcycle engine technology development, said Howard Silver, Castrols regional technology director for the Asia and Pacific region. By being close to such a rapidly changing and evolving market, Castrol technologists can capture key industry and consumer trends as well as test new formulation technologies and product concepts in real life operating environments.

India is also closer to other key motorcycle markets such as Thailand, Vietnam and Malaysia.

Castrol had based motorcycle oil development in the U.K. since it began operating more than a century ago. Now functions associated with motorcycle and small engine product lines have moved to its Wadala Technology Center in Mumbai. That includes formulation development, chemical and physical evaluation and rig testing. The Mumbai facility employs 25 technologists, five of whom are exclusively dedicated to motorcycle engine oil development.

Castrols main engine oil test house in Pangbourne, U.K., retains engine test cells that are uniquely dedicated to motorcycles, along with a chassis dynamometer featuring a robot rider. Castrol said it will also tap into independent test houses and research labs in India.

It appears that plenty of research is going on in India. Japanese manufacturers have already established a presence in India and are bolstering their positions with new manufacturing and research and development centers. Premium European and American original equipment manufacturers such as Piaggio, KTM and Harley Davidson have started to set up operations in India as well.

According to Castrol officials, oil development efforts are focused on helping OEMs comply with mandates to reduce air emissions, as well as customer demands for better performance and durability. Lubricant marketers must cope with rapidly evolving engine hardware and a motorcycle market that is becoming more segmented.

Silver said there is also some effort to lengthen drain intervals. Current drain intervals in emerging countries range from 3,000 to 5,000 kilometers, with riders in countries such as Thailand and Vietnam still changing oils as frequently as every 1,000 kilometers, he said. In more mature markets OEMs prescribe longer drain intervals, typically 10,000 km, although motorcycles there are largely recreational, rather than a mode of daily transport.

Castrol claims to hold nearly 20 percent of Indias overall lubricants market and almost 24 percent of the motorcycle lubricants category.