Not long ago, when I wanted a suit, I went to my favorite clothing store and bought a size 50 off-the rack. The cut and fit were usually satisfactory, but not always. Still, it was good value for the money.
Today, I am pickier. I want my clothes to fit perfectly, so I go to a tailor for a custom-fit suit. And Im not alone because I see a growing number of tailoring shops opening on the streets of my town.
Many factors are driving this trend, including peoples eagerness for things that no one else has, the so-called blue ocean strategy that suggests organizations should create new demand in uncontested marketplaces, and market forces that steer customers toward individualized products. It signals a shift from focusing on standard products to offering custom versions that work better in specific environments and meet specific needs.
The auto industry follows this thinking by offering different versions of the same model in different regions. And I think lubricants should soon follow suit. International and national engine oil manufacturers need to be more innovative to get the most out of this strategy.
Europe, Africa and the Middle East present a wide range of driving conditions that test the capabilities of even the best oils. Temperatures and altitudes vary wildly among and within countries. The region includes both the hottest and coldest places.
In the Middle East and Gulf Cooperation Council countries, for example, temperatures of +40 degrees C are common for three to four months in the summer. In fact, the hottest temperature recorded was in Kerman province in Irans Lut Desert at +70 degrees C. At the other extreme, winter temperatures in Europe are often below freezing with the coldest temperature hovering around minus 60 degrees C in parts of Russia. These seem like ideal targets for tailor-made oils.
Air density and pressure drop with increasing altitude and can cause incomplete combustion and higher soot and smoke emissions. Fuel consumption also generally climbs at higher altitudes. Forced induction systems such as superchargers and turbochargers can increase intake air pressure; however, many autos in this region are not turbocharged. Again, specially tailored oils can help address these issues.
The Middle East has vast deserts, containing dust rich in silicon, calcium and magnesium. When ingested into the engine, the dust can degrade lubricant quality, disrupt the oil film, cause air entrapment, cause dieseling and change detergency and foam characteristics. Drivers usually dont use special air or oil filters to cope with these conditions, nor do the oils contain special additives. It seems logical that oil companies should blend lubricants designed to survive these harsh conditions.
Besides engine load and environmental factors, driving habits can affect oil life significantly. These include running air conditioning year-round, long idle times, irregular oil monitoring, poor fuel quality, frequent acceleration and deceleration and annual mileage. Users manuals recognize these issues and recommend shorter drain intervals if driving conditions include dusty roads, heavy loads, repeated short trip, below freezing temperatures, extensive idling, low-speed driving for long distances, continuous high-speed driving and high fuel sulfur content.
Consider the dilemma of a fleet owner using low-SAPS (sulfated ash, phosphorous, sulfur) engine oils in trucks traveling from Europe with excellent fuel quality to countries with high-sulfur diesel. These oils contain less metal and have lower TBN, and they will not survive in areas using high-sulfur fuels.
Engine oils also must conform to a wide variety of standards, including API, ILSAC, ACEA, JASO, various national standards and OEM standards. Most are similar with slight differences, and additive manufacturers and OEMs invest a lot of money to develop formulations to meet the requirements. However, these efforts rarely address the conditions noted above. Again, it seems like an ideal situation for tailor-made oil.
The Middle East is becoming a hub for the auto industry thanks to the availability of engineered plastic, aluminum, low cost labor and energy, and access to a large population spread over a wide region. The area has a production capacity of 2.2 million vehicles, of which about 85 percent are passenger cars. Total vehicle sales are nearly 6.5 million units per year, and the passenger car fleet is almost 50 million.
All these figures show the potential for the region to become a strategic location for the auto industry. Why not the same for tailored engine oils?