Castrol is a
brandThe American Marketing Association defines a brand as a "Name, term, design, symbol, or any other feature that identifies one seller's good or service as distinct from those of other sellers."...
of
industrialIndustry refers to the production of an economic good or service within an economy.-Industrial sectors:There are four key industrial economic sectors: the primary sector, largely raw material extraction industries such as mining and farming; the secondary sector, involving refining, construction,...
and automotive lubricants which is applied to a large range of
oilAn oil is any substance that is liquid at ambient temperatures and does not mix with water but may mix with other oils and organic solvents. This general definition includes vegetable oils, volatile essential oils, petrochemical oils, and synthetic oils....
s,
greaseThe term grease is used to describe semisolid lubricants. Although the word grease is also used to describe rendered fat of animals, in the context of lubrication, grease typically applies to a material consisting of a soap emulsified with mineral or vegetable oil...
s and similar products for most
lubricationLubrication is the process, or technique employed to reduce wear of one or both surfaces in close proximity, and moving relative to each another, by interposing a substance called lubricant between the surfaces to carry or to help carry the load between the opposing surfaces. The interposed...
applications. The Castrol brand is part of the
BPBP p.l.c. is a global oil and gas company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the third-largest energy company and fourth-largest company in the world measured by revenues and one of the six oil and gas "supermajors"...
's Group of Companies, but has retained its separate identity.
History
In February 1899,
Charles Cheers WakefieldCharles Cheers Wakefield, 1st Baron Wakefield , was a British businessman.-Early life:Wakefield was born in Liverpool, in 1859, the son of John Wakefield, and his wife Margaret, née Cheers, and was educated at the Liverpool Institute.-Business career:Wakefield patented the Wakefield lubricator for...
resigned from the
Vacuum Oil CompanyVacuum Oil Company was an American oil company known for their Gargoyle 600-W Steam Cylinder Oil. Vacuum Oil merged with Socony Oil to form Socony-Vacuum Oil Company, and is now a part of ExxonMobil.-History:...
over a disagreement with the management regarding Vacuum Oil's foray into the
railwayRail transport is a means of conveyance of passengers and goods by way of wheeled vehicles running on rail tracks. In contrast to road transport, where vehicles merely run on a prepared surface, rail vehicles are also directionally guided by the tracks they run on...
lubricants sector, and set himself up as competition. The firm he left behind would go on to become
Mobil OilMobil, previously known as the Socony-Vacuum Oil Company, was a major American oil company which merged with Exxon in 1999 to form ExxonMobil. Today Mobil continues as a major brand name within the combined company, as well as still being a gas station sometimes paired with their own store or On...
.
Wakefield
rentedRenting is an agreement where a payment is made for the temporary use of a good, service or property owned by another. A gross lease is when the tenant pays a flat rental amount and the landlord pays for all property charges regularly incurred by the ownership from landowners...
three small rooms on the third floor of 27
Cannon StreetCannon Street is a road in the south of the City of London. It runs roughly parallel with the River Thames, and about 250 metres north of it. It is the site of the ancient London Stone.-Etymology:...
in the heart of
LondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, and it was there, on March 19th 1899, that the firm of C.C.Wakefield & Co opened its doors for the first time.
In 1909, the company began production of a new
automotiveAn automobile, autocar, motor car or car is a wheeled motor vehicle used for transporting passengers, which also carries its own engine or motor...
lubricantA lubricant is a substance introduced to reduce friction between moving surfaces. It may also have the function of transporting foreign particles and of distributing heat...
named "Castrol" (a contraction of
castor oilCastor oil is a vegetable oil obtained from the castor bean . Castor oil is a colorless to very pale yellow liquid with mild or no odor or taste. Its boiling point is and its density is 961 kg/m3...
, from which it was made). The company developed specific oil applications for various applications of the new
internal combustion engineThe internal combustion engine is an engine in which the combustion of a fuel occurs with an oxidizer in a combustion chamber. In an internal combustion engine, the expansion of the high-temperature and high -pressure gases produced by combustion apply direct force to some component of the engine...
, including cars, motorcycles, and
aircraftAn aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air, or, in general, the atmosphere of a planet. An aircraft counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in a few cases the downward thrust from jet engines.Although...
. The original 3 grades of oil being
CW for cars,
C for motorcycles and
R for aircraft and racing engines, the castrol oil being responsible for the noticeable exhaust odor of early aircraft
rotary engineThe rotary engine was an early type of internal-combustion engine, usually designed with an odd number of cylinders per row in a radial configuration, in which the crankshaft remained stationary and the entire cylinder block rotated around it...
s.
In 1966, Castrol was acquired by
BritishThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
oil company
BurmahThe Burmah Oil Company was a leading British oil business which was once a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index.-History:The company was founded in Glasgow, Scotland in 1886 by David Sime Cargill to develop oil fields in the Indian subcontinent...
, which was renamed Burmah-Castrol. In 2000, Burmah-Castrol was acquired by the then BP
AmocoAmoco Corporation, originally Standard Oil Company , was a global chemical and oil company, founded in 1889 around a refinery located in Whiting, Indiana, United States....
plc (now renamed
BPBP p.l.c. is a global oil and gas company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the third-largest energy company and fourth-largest company in the world measured by revenues and one of the six oil and gas "supermajors"...
plc). Castrol branded lubricants continue to be sold around the world and are, in many countries, market leaders.
Products
Castrol offers lubricants for virtually all domestic, commercial and industrial applications. For automotive lubrication (including
motorcycleA motorcycle is a single-track, two-wheeled motor vehicle. Motorcycles vary considerably depending on the task for which they are designed, such as long distance travel, navigating congested urban traffic, cruising, sport and racing, or off-road conditions.Motorcycles are one of the most...
s
2-strokeTwo-stroke oil is an engine oil intended for use in two-stroke engines....
and
4-strokeMotorcycle Oils are a range of lubricants, including engine oils, which are specifically developed and marketed for use in the internal combustion engines and transmissions of motorcycles and may also be recommended for use in vehicles utilizing drive-trains similar to those of motorcycles, such as...
engines, car
petrolA petrol engine is an internal combustion engine with spark-ignition, designed to run on petrol and similar volatile fuels....
and
diesel engineA diesel engine is an internal combustion engine that uses the heat of compression to initiate ignition to burn the fuel, which is injected into the combustion chamber...
s), their products include an extensive range of manual and automatic transmission fluids, chain lubricants and waxes,
coolantA coolant is a fluid which flows through a device to prevent its overheating, transferring the heat produced by the device to other devices that use or dissipate it. An ideal coolant has high thermal capacity, low viscosity, is low-cost, non-toxic, and chemically inert, neither causing nor...
s, suspension fluids, brake fluids,
greaseThe term grease is used to describe semisolid lubricants. Although the word grease is also used to describe rendered fat of animals, in the context of lubrication, grease typically applies to a material consisting of a soap emulsified with mineral or vegetable oil...
s, cleaners and maintenance products. Castrol also produces products for
agricultural machineryAgricultural machinery is machinery used in the operation of an agricultural area or farm.-Hand tools:The first person to turn from the hunting and gathering lifestyle to farming probably did so by using his bare hands, and perhaps some sticks or stones. Tools such as knives, scythes, and wooden...
,
plantA factory or manufacturing plant is an industrial building where laborers manufacture goods or supervise machines processing one product into another. Most modern factories have large warehouses or warehouse-like facilities that contain heavy equipment used for assembly line production...
, general
industryIndustry refers to the production of an economic good or service within an economy.-Industrial sectors:There are four key industrial economic sectors: the primary sector, largely raw material extraction industries such as mining and farming; the secondary sector, involving refining, construction,...
and
marine engineeringMarine propulsion is the mechanism or system used to generate thrust to move a ship or boat across water. While paddles and sails are still used on some smaller boats, most modern ships are propelled by mechanical systems consisting a motor or engine turning a propeller, or less frequently, in jet...
uses.
Castrol products include:
- For passenger cars: Edge, Magnatec, Syntec and GTX; less commonly, XL, GTD, Formula RS, Synt and SLX
- For motorcycles: Power1, PowerRS and Act>evo; less commonly, TT, TTS, GP, GPS and Go!
- For heavy duty vehicles: Elixion, Enduron, Hypuron, Tection, CRB and Agri
- For ships: Cyltech and TLX Plus
- For industrial applications: Hyspin (hydraulic), Aircol (compressors) and Alpha (industrial gears)
Motorsport
The most prevalent display of the Castrol brand is to be found in sponsorship of varying motorsports (mainly as a "technical partner"), currently in the
World Rally ChampionshipThe World Rally Championship is a rallying series organised by the FIA, culminating with a champion driver and manufacturer. The driver's world championship and manufacturer's world championship are separate championships, but based on the same point system. The series currently consists of 13...
,
World Touring CarsFor the video game, known as World Touring Car Championship in Japan, see TOCA World Touring CarsThe FIA World Touring Car Championship is an international Touring Car championship sanctioned by the FIA.-History:...
,
MotoGPRoad Racing World Championship Grand Prix is the premier championship of motorcycle road racing currently divided into three distinct classes: 125cc, Moto2 and MotoGP. The 125cc class uses a two-stroke engine while Moto2 and MotoGP use four-stroke engines. In 2010 the 250cc two-stroke was replaced...
,
World SuperbikesSuperbike World Championship is the worldwide Superbike racing Championship. The championship was founded in . The Superbike World Championship season consists of a series of rounds held on permanent racing facilities...
and World Supersports. Castrol have previously been formally involved in
Formula 1Formula One, also known as Formula 1 or F1 and referred to officially as the FIA Formula One World Championship, is the highest class of single seater auto racing sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile . The "formula" designation in the name refers to a set of rules with which...
(most notably - with
WilliamsWilliams Grand Prix Engineering Limited, trading as AT&T Williams, is a British Formula One motor racing team and constructor. It was founded and run by Sir Frank Williams and Patrick Head...
), British Superbikes,
British RallyingThe Dulux Trade MSA British Rally Championship is a yearly rallying series based in the United Kingdom. It comprises seven events with eight scoring opportunities throughout the British Isles. The first championship was run in 1958 and it has been licensed by the MSA Motor Sports Association since...
,
DTMThe Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters is a touring car racing series based in Germany, but also with rounds elsewhere in Europe....
, V8 Supercars,
Dakar RallyThe Dakar Rally is an annual rally raid type of off-road automobile race, organised by the Amaury Sport Organisation...
,
Drag racingDrag racing is a competition in which specially prepared automobiles or motorcycles compete two at a time to be the first to cross a set finish line, from a standing start, in a straight line, over a measured distance, most commonly a ¼-mile straight track....
,
Sidecar racingstyle="float:right"|FIM Sidecar World Championship is the international sidecar racing championship. It is one of the two remaining original FIM road racing championship classes that started in 1949, the other being the 125cc world championship...
- and more. Castrol also have sponsored the Castrol Driver Rankings since January 2010.
The brand has been involved in Formula One for many years, most visibly as the title sponsor of
Team LotusTeam Lotus was the motorsport sister company of English sports car manufacturer Lotus Cars. The team ran cars in many motorsport series including Formula One, Formula Two, Formula Ford, Formula Junior, IndyCar and sports car racing...
for the 1993 season. Prior to that, Castrol had provided lubricants to a number of other teams, including
JaguarJaguar Racing was a Formula One team that competed in the FIA Formula One World Championship from 2000 to 2004. It was formed from the purchase by Ford of Jackie Stewart's Stewart Grand Prix Formula One team in June 1999. Ford renamed the team Jaguar Racing as part of its global marketing...
, McLaren, Brabham and
Walter Wolf RacingWalter Wolf Racing was a Formula One constructor from 1977 to 1980, notable for winning the very first race the team entered.-1975-77:In 1975, the Slovenian-Austrian-Canadian businessman Walter Wolf had started to appear at many of the F1 races during the season. A year later, he bought 60% of...
.
Following the temporary withdrawal of
ElfElf Aquitaine was a French oil company which merged with TotalFina to form TotalFinaElf. The new company changed its name to Total in 2003...
from the sport at the end of 1996, Castrol forged an alliance with the Williams F1 team as a technical partner. As of the end of the 2006 season, when the relationship ended, this partnership had yielded both Formula One World Championship titles in 1997 and 17 wins.
Castrol is one of the most popular oils used in the Australian Touring Car/V8 Supercar series. For many years, Castrol was the title sponsor of the Perkins Engineering
HoldenGM Holden Ltd is an automaker that operates in Australia, based in Port Melbourne, Victoria. The company was founded in 1856 as a saddlery manufacturer. In 1908 it moved into the automotive field, before becoming a subsidiary of the U.S.-based General Motors in 1931...
team, the relationship ending in 2006. Latterly, Castrol has been one of
Ford Performance RacingFord Performance Racing is a British-owned Australian-based motor racing team that contests the Australian International V8 Supercars Championship...
's title sponsors, backing the Falcon of
Steven RichardsSteven Richards is a New Zealand racing driver, currently competing in the with the team. He previously raced in the V8 Supercar series for Ford Performance Racing....
. Castrol's 2010 program will see Paul Morris Motorsport run a Castrol Racing Commodore for
Greg MurphyGreg Murphy is a racing driver, best known as a four-time winner of the Bathurst 1000. Greg Murphy joined Jeremy Clarkson and Richard Hammond presenting Top Gear, when it had its first international Live show at ASB Showgrounds in Auckland from February 12 - 15th 2009, and again when the show...
, alongside its existing
FPRFPR may refer to: Focal Point Review*False Positive Rate , measure of the specificity of a classifier.*Family Procedure Rules, a set of rules in English and Welsh family courts*Fatal Prodigy Resurrected, a Call of Duty 4 team...
Ford entry.
Castrol is the title sponsor with Team Bray, owned by Australian drag car legend,
Victor BrayVictor Bray is an Australian drag racing competitor in the Top Doorslammer class of racing. He drives a 1957 Chevy.Victor owns a large race team, Team Bray, which is sponsored primarily by Sidchrome, his long-time sponsor...
for 17 years.
The Toyota World Rally Championship team was supported by Castrol until 2003. Since then, the works Ford team has been supported by BP and by extension, Castrol lubricants.
During the 1980s, the Jaguar entries for the
Le Mans 24 hoursThe 24 Hours of Le Mans is the world's oldest sports car race in endurance racing, held annually since near the town of Le Mans, France. Commonly known as the Grand Prix of Endurance and Efficiency, race teams have to balance speed against the cars' ability to run for 24 hours without sustaining...
race were sponsored by Castrol, along with the tobacco brand Silk Cut. The company also supported the Sauber Mercedes sportcar team.
The company sponsored the
Brewco MotorsportsBaker Curb Racing, formerly known as Brewco Motorsports, is a racing team that competes in the NASCAR Nationwide Series. Based in Nashville, Tennessee, it is owned by Gary Baker, former owner of Bristol Motor Speedway and Nashville Superspeedway, and record executive Mike Curb...
#27 car in the
NASCARThe National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is a family-owned and -operated business venture that sanctions and governs multiple auto racing sports events. It was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1947–48. As of 2009, the CEO for the company is Brian France, grandson of the late Bill France Sr...
Busch SeriesThe NASCAR Nationwide Series is a stock car racing series owned and operated by the National Association of Stock Car Auto Racing. It is promoted as NASCAR's "minor league" circuit, and is a proving ground for drivers who wish to step up to the organization's "big leagues"; the Sprint Cup circuit...
, driven by
Casey AtwoodCasey Lee Atwood is an American race car driver. Atwood is currently a free agent in NASCAR. He married his longtime girlfriend, Laura, in 2005. Atwood and Laura have two daughters, Kaylee and Emma...
from 1999 to 2000.
In
North AmericaNorth America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
, Castrol has been an active sponsor of NHRA drag racing. Castrol has sponsored
John Force RacingJohn Force Racing is an NHRA drag racing team. In over 30 years of competition, John Force Racing has won 17 Funny Car championships. The current line-up of drivers includes John Force, Mike Neff, and Robert Hight. John Force Racing has had Castrol as their main sponsor for more than 30 years...
under the GTX brand since 1987. Currently, Castrol is a sponsor of both
John ForceJohn Harold Force is an NHRA drag racer, a 15-time Funny Car champion driver, and a 17-time champion car owner. Force owns and drives for John Force Racing. He is one of the most dominant drag racers in the sport with 133 career victories...
and Ashley Force Hood. Castrol is the name sponsor of
EdmontonEdmonton is the capital of the Canadian province of Alberta and is the province's second-largest city. Edmonton is located on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Capital Region, which is surrounded by the central region of the province.The city and its census...
,
Alberta'sAlberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...
Castrol RacewayCastrol Raceway, formerly known as "Capital City Raceway Park", "Capital Raceway", "Labatt Raceway", and "Budweiser Motorsports Park", is a multi-track auto racing facility located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Located on land leased from the Edmonton International Airport, the clay oval was built...
, a multi-track oval, drag, and motocross racing facility. Castrol is the sponsor of D.J. Kennington in the
NASCAR Canadian Tire SeriesThe NASCAR Canadian Tire Series , commonly abbreviated as NCATS, is a national NASCAR racing series in Canada that is based from the old CASCAR Super Series which was founded in 1981.-History:...
.
In 2011 Castrol Edge became the official motor oil of NFL.
Football
- Castrol sponsored Swindon Town Football Club
Swindon Town Football Club are a team based in Swindon, Wiltshire. Currently in League Two, Swindon have been managed by Paolo Di Canio since 23 May 2011...
from 1995 to 1997. In the first season of this two-year deal, Swindon were Division TwoFrom 1892 until 1992, the Football League Second Division was the second highest division overall in English football.This ended with the creation of the FA Premier League, prior to the start of the 1992–93 season, which caused an administrative split between The Football League and the teams...
champions.
- Castrol also sponsored the UEFA
The Union of European Football Associations , almost always referred to by its acronym UEFA is the administrative and controlling body for European association football, futsal and beach soccer....
Euro 2008 football tournament and will sponsor the UEFAThe Union of European Football Associations , almost always referred to by its acronym UEFA is the administrative and controlling body for European association football, futsal and beach soccer....
Euro 2012 football tournament.
- Castrol sponsors the Castrol Performance Index
The Castrol Performance Index is a ranking system created by Castrol for men's club association football as part of a sponsorship package with FIFA. The system uses mathematical formulas which evaluate various player performance in terms of how individual actions either assist or prevent goals...
, a player performance rating system.
- Castrol is an official sponsor of the FIFA World Cup 2010TM as well as the FIFA World Cup 2014TM.
Cricket
The Castrol Cricket Index for a team is a dynamic indicator of the overall performance of the cricket team. It is calculated by taking into consideration the batting momentum, the bowling efficiency, the performance of the teams in the quick start overs and the extreme performance overs and many other factors. Castrol Cricket also ranks cricketers based on their overall performance. India centric initiatives being undertaken like
Castrol World Cup ka Hero was created during the
2011 Cricket World CupThe 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup was the tenth Cricket World Cup. It was played in India, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh. It was Bangladesh's first time co-hosting a World Cup...
.
Other sports
- Castrol sponsored the 2009 Royal Rumble.
- Castrol has recently began to sponsor a popular Nintendo podcast called Lithcast.
Speed records
Historically, Castrol has been a prolific sponsor of World
Land Speed RecordsThe land speed record is the highest speed achieved by a wheeled vehicle on land. There is no single body for validation and regulation; in practice the Category C flying start regulations are used, officiated by regional or national organizations under the auspices of the Fédération...
, with 21 "titles" to their credit, and their rightful claim of the
"World's 'Fastest' Oil", with their current unbroken record of a
supersonicSupersonic speed is a rate of travel of an object that exceeds the speed of sound . For objects traveling in dry air of a temperature of 20 °C this speed is approximately 343 m/s, 1,125 ft/s, 768 mph or 1,235 km/h. Speeds greater than five times the speed of sound are often...
speed of 763.035 mph (1,228 km/h) set by
RAFThe Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
fighter pilotA fighter pilot is a military aviator trained in air-to-air combat while piloting a fighter aircraft . Fighter pilots undergo specialized training in aerial warfare and dogfighting...
Sqn LdrSquadron Leader is a commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence. It is also sometimes used as the English translation of an equivalent rank in countries which have a non-English air force-specific rank structure. In these...
(then)
Andy GreenWing Commander Andy D. Green OBE BA RAF is a British Royal Air Force pilot and World Land Speed Record holder.-RAF career:...
, in the
Richard NobleRichard Noble, OBE was the holder of the land speed record between 1983 and 1997, and was the project director of ThrustSSC, the vehicle which holds the current land speed record, set at Black Rock Desert, Nevada in 1997....
'brainchild'
ThrustSSCThrustSSC, also spelt Thrust SSC by secondary sources, is a British jet-propelled car developed by Richard Noble, Glynne Bowsher, Ron Ayers and Jeremy Bliss....
. This occurred in the USA at the
Black Rock DesertThe Black Rock Desert is an arid region in the northern Nevada section of the Great Basin with a lakebed that is a dry remnant of Pleistocene Lake Lahontan...
in
NevadaNevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
, on 15 October 1997.
Advertising
Castrol products are still marketed under the red, white and green colour scheme that dates from the launch of Castrol motor oil in 1909. Advertisements for Castrol oil historically featured the slogan "Castrol - liquid engineering"; this was more recently refreshed and reintroduced as "It's more than just oil. It's liquid engineering." In 2008, this slogan is also being featured as the name for a new rewards club called the
"Castrol Liquid Engineering Crew" in which members get the chance to win prizes.
For many years,
the opening notes of the first
Nachtmusik movement of Mahler's
Seventh SymphonyGustav Mahler's Seventh Symphony was written in 1904-05, with repeated revisions to the scoring. It is sometimes referred to by the title Song of the Night , though this title was not Mahler's own and he disapproved of it. Although the symphony is often described as being in the key of 'E minor,'...
were used as the signature theme of Castrol TV commercials.
External links