It is not a name that everyone in the automotive aftermarket is necessarily aware of – yet! – but Motul has a history of innovation. As the company that brought the world the first multigrade, the first semisynthetic and first fully-synthetic motor oils, Motul said it has long been at the cutting edge of both road and race lubricants.
Motorsport has always been a key factor in the development of new Motul product: Motul 300V, the world’s first fully-synthetic automotive oil, is named in honour of the 300 race victories that Motul had achieved. That was more than half a century ago and, in the intervening period, fully-synthetic lubricants have moved from racetrack to road.
Synthetic oils have become part of the everyday motoring mix, where once they were the sole preserve of the highest performing engines on track. At the top of Motul’s everyday motor oils is the 8100 range, which is fully-synthetic in all its variants. The 8100 range combines many different recent type approvals for engines, from a host of different OEMs into this single but wide-reaching range.
Motul 8100 is designed in such a way that dealers, factors and workshops are able to cover a wide spectrum of cars, with full OEM approval, with a minimum number of references. The 8100 portfolio encompasses most modern engines, whether normally aspirated or turbo/supercharged, and whether they are petrol or diesel fuelled.
Motorsport pedigree
However, the 8100 now has the distinction of not only being an oil with a racing heritage, but also perhaps the unique chance of creating a racing heritage of its own, having been chosen as the mandated engine oil of this year’s ROKiT F4 British Championship, certified by FIA. The 2022 race series is the start of a new era for the single-seater racing championship, with a new car and new engine powering it.
The latest-generation F4 car is the Tatuus T-421 chassis, which features state-of- the-art safety measures, like a Halo-style cockpit protection device, reinforced side anti-intrusion panels and on-board safety signalling systems.
The new 1.4l turbocharged, 414-F4 dry sump four-cylinder engine produces around 160bhp and comes courtesy of Abarth, the brand that has long been responsible for fast FIAT-derived motor cars.
This engine is lubricated by Motul 8100 X-Power 10W-60, which has been introduced as the control engine oil within the regulations, so that all of the cars in the championship, throughout the 2022 season, are lubricated by it.
Motul’s Andy Wait said: “To have a passenger car oil lubricating a race series engine is not what people expect; however, if 8100 X-Power can lubricate these race cars, with the extremes that motorsport produces, then it clearly demonstrates it is an oil that is a more-than up to coping with everyday road use.”
