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As the motorcycle market grows, the fuel efficiency of motorcycle oils is becoming an important issue due to concerns over the conservation of natural resources and the protection of the environment. Fuel efficient engine oils have been developed for passenger cars by moving to lower viscosity grades and formulating the additive package to reduce friction. Motorcycle oils, however, which operate in much higher temperature regimes, must also lubricate the transmission and the clutch, and provide gear protection. This makes their requirements fundamentally very different from passenger car oils. Developing fuel efficient motorcycle oils, therefore, can be a difficult challenge. Formulating to reduce friction may cause clutch slippage and reducing the viscosity grade in motorcycles must be done carefully due to the need for gear protection.

Motorcycle manufacturers have recognized that highly friction modified passenger car oils can be deleterious to clutch performance, leading to clutch slippage. To address this issue, a JASO specification for four-stroke motorcycle oils was developed in 1999, categorizing oils into high friction oils termed JASO MA and low friction oils termed JASO MB. The high friction oils were preferred for most motorcycles where the engine oil also lubricates the clutch and gears. New motorcycle transmission technologies have increased the number of dry clutch applications which has led to an increased demand for JASO MB oils to improve fuel efficiency. While JASO MB oils contain friction modifiers to improve initial fuel economy, the motorcycle specifications have not addressed the fuel economy durability of motorcycle oils.

The growing need for improved fuel economy is a global challenge due to continuously tightening environmental regulations targeting lower CO2 emission levels via reduced fuel consumption in vehicles. In order to reach these fuel efficiency targets, it necessitates improvements in vehicle transmission hardware components by applying advanced technologies in design, materials and surface treatments etc., as well as matching lubricant formulations with appropriate additive chemistry. Axle lubricants have a considerable impact on fuel economy. More importantly, they can be tailored to deliver maximum operational efficiency over specific or wide ranges of operating conditions. The proper lubricant technology with well-balanced chemistries can simultaneously realize both fuel economy and hardware protection, which are perceived to have a trade-off relationship.