Shell Dubs Its Lubricants as Car’s Most Essential Component

According to Shell, its lubricants must be viewed in the same light as the most vital component due to their huge contribution to greater fuel efficiency.

The leading oil and gas company made the statement at the Shell Technology Centre in Hamburg, where it recently displayed its Project M partnership with The Gordon Murray Design Group and engine specialist, Geo Technology to boost fuel burn and powertrain efficiency.

Bob Mainwaring, Shell Lubricants Innovation Technology manager, said that lubricant must be considered as a design component, co-engineer hardware and fluid for optimal efficiency. “Treating lubricants in isolation would be wrong. Bringing everything together gives you the best chance to get to the fuel economy goals. One fifth of total fuel you are burning is to overcome friction.”

Mainwaring continued that affordability is key not only to the Western world but also to the burgeoning economies as well. He added that their view in Shell is that internal combustion engines would still form a huge part of transport to 2050 and beyond.

Shell supplies fluids for the car, particularly designing the motor oil to boost overall efficiency.

The giant energy producer noted that it would be a usual assumption that greases, oil and fuels are added at the end of a concept-car build project such as the T25S, but Project M Shell targets to show what can be attained when its products are included in the design, right from the beginning.

The three parties last teamed up in 1988 on Formula 1 drivers Alain Prost and Ayrton Senna’s Honda-powered Shell-fuelled race cars, which won one Grand Prix that season.