Counterfeit Lubricants are Sold Freely, Consumers are Harmed

HENDRICUS ARGA YUDHANTARA

Tool for coloring fake oil. This tool is used to change the color of the fake oil to match the color of the oil to be counterfeited, Tuesday (18/10/2022).

Motorcycle lubricants suspected of being counterfeit have been circulating and are sold freely to the public. The sellers claimed the fake lubricant is a genuine product. This condition is detrimental to consumers.

JAKARTA, KOMPAS — An investigation conducted by the daily Kompas revealed that a large number of fake motorcycle lubricants were sold freely in the market. An investigation at spare parts shops, workshops, marketplaces and the counterfeit lubricant supply chain in Jakarta, Tangerang, Bekasi and Semarang from October 2022 to November 2022 showed that the fake motorcycle lubricant can easily be found in the market.

These fake lubricant brands are sold at various prices. Some are sold at prices lower than the prices of the original product and some are sold at the same prices. The fake lubricant can be identified based on the characteristics on the packaging, such as untidy bottle caps, imprecise bottle shapes and scanned security codes or quick response (QR) codes that do not lead to the official website of the original oil manufacturer.

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The fake lubricants are generally used for automatic motorcycles. There is now a growing demand for lubricants at spare parts shops or repair shops, partly due to the increase in the number of automatic motorbikes that are currently more dominant than other types of motorbikes.

Based on the characteristics of the packaging and the QR code, which had also been confirmed by the manufacturer, there was strong indication that the motorcycle lubricants purchased were fake.

Kompas bought lubricants from 11 places, including repair shops, spare parts shops and distributors, in Jakarta, Bekasi, Tangerang and Semarang recently. Some were also bought from online shops. Based on the characteristics of the packaging and the QR code, which had also been confirmed by the manufacturer, there was strong indication that the motorcycle lubricants purchased were fake.

One of the MPX2 motorcycle lubricant brands was purchased by Kompas from a repair shop in Manyaran, Semarang City, Central Java, for Rp 52,000 (US$3.32) per bottle. There was a strong indication the lubricant was fake based on the characteristics on the packaging. The workshop owner said that the lubricants he sold were supplied by a trusted salesperson.

KOMPAS/ADITYA DIVERANTA

Counterfeit oil seller when found in Tangerang, Banten, Wednesday (12/10/2022).

Then, Kompas also bought counterfeit lubricant from a store that was also a large distributor in the Cengkareng area, West Jakarta. A box of MPX2 lubricant brand (containing 24 bottles) was sold for Rp 530,000.

In fact, the genuine MPX2 lubricant brand, which is officially produced by Astra Honda Motor (AHM), is sold for Rp 1.27 million per box or Rp 53,000 per bottle.

After being checked, including by scanning the QR code on the back of the bottle, the characteristics of the lubricant packaging was the same as those on the official AHM website. However, when asked, the shop assured us that the lubricant is genuine. He nodded when one of us asked if the lubricants were genuine. "Guaranteed, it is original," he said.

The shop owner said that the lubricants in the shop were not only marketed in Jakarta, but also to Tangerang, Serang and Tasikmalaya.

In fact, almost every day the shop is always crowded with consumers who buy boxes of lubricants that are transported by motorbikes, cars and even boxcars. The shop owner said that the lubricants in the shop were not only marketed in Jakarta, but also to Tangerang, Serang and Tasikmalaya.

The front of the shop is always full of piles of boxes of various brands of motorcycle lubricants, especially for automatic motorbikes.

Laboratory tests

To find out the content of the lubricant purchased from the distributor, Kompas took the initiative to test the lubricant at PT Surveyor Indonesia's laboratory in Bogor Regency, West Java. The lubricant was tested with 15 parameters based on the specifications printed on the packaging.

Laboratory test results showed that the lubricant did not meet a number of parameters. In the test related to viscosity, for example, the results of the viscosity index showed the number 111 points or lower than the specified lower limit of 125 points.

In addition, the test for lubricant viscosity at -25 degrees Celsius showed a figure of 21,331 centipoise (cP), higher than the threshold of 7,000 centipoise. The test results also indicated the absence of a number of metal contents, such as calcium (Ca), magnesium (Mg) and zinc (Zn).

KOMPAS/ADITYA DIVERANTA

Officers take a test sample from a fake oil brand at PT Surveyor Indonesia's Lubricant Test Laboratory, Sentul, Bogor, West Java, (9/11/2022).

Referring to laboratory results with a number of these parameters, the chairman of the Indonesian Lubricant Society, Tri Yuswidjajanto, revealed that the lubricant only contains base oil. The genuine brand usually contains additives.

According to Tri, the lubricant for motor vehicles should contain base lubricating oil and nine additives, namely anti-oxidizing agents, anti-wear, friction modifiers, pour point depressants, anti-foam and viscosity improvers.

According to Tri, this shows that the basic lubricating ingredients in the oil may come from used lubricants which can damage motorcycle engines.

Based on the laboratory test data, there are parameters that measure the alkaline nature of the oil and the results show that the oil content tends to be acidic due to the suspected presence of oxide products. According to Tri, this shows that the basic lubricating ingredients in the oil may come from used lubricants which can damage motorcycle engines.

"It is possible that the fake lubricants were made from used lubricants through a filtering process and heating," said Tri, who is also a lecturer at the Bandung Institute of Technology's School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering.

Supply chain tracing

The presence of the distributor of the suspected counterfeit lubricants in the Cengkareng area, West Jakarta, is based on the results of investigations carried for two weeks. Based on police investigation, the sellers of fake lubricants offer their products through social media. In an oil buying and selling forum group on Facebook there are accounts selling various brands of oil with prices ranging from Rp 300,000 to Rp 800,000 per box.

RIAN SEPTIANDI

East Bekasi Police arrested four oil counterfeiters in East Bekasi on August 25, 2022 in Mustikasari Village, Kec. Mustikajaya Bekasi City. The photo was taken on Friday (7/10/2022).

Through the seller's cell phone number listed in the upload, the Kompas coverage team made an appointment to meet one afternoon in October at one of the workshops in downtown Tangerang.

The seller guaranteed that their lubricants would be available in large numbers if the buyer made an order the day before. For an order of at least 30 boxes, the seller is willing to deliver directly to the buyer's location. "Our goods are always available but the order should be made one day earlier. We have to make a list first," said the seller.

The team bought MPX2 motorcycle lubricants, which was sold at Rp 690,000 per box. After that, the team tried to find out the genuine brand being sold at the repair shop. From digital footprints on social media, it was found that the lubricant seller visited a number of places to collect oil supplies. The visual background to one of the uploads on Tiktok showed that the location was in Cengkareng, West Jakarta.

The team found that it was the largest lubricant distributor in the region when it visited the area.

Further investigation in the area showed that there were a number of lubricant distributors and spare part shops located centrally so that it resembled a trading center. One of the grocery stores was seen displaying piles of boxes of motorcycle lubricants, mostly the MPX2 and Yamalube brands. The team found that it was the largest lubricant distributor in the region when it visited the area.

The team, then, found out where the supply of the lubricants to the Cengkareng shop came from. After observations for more than two weeks, it was discovered that trucks visited the store almost every day dropping boxes of various brands of oil.

The team followed several trucks to a location suspected of being a fake lubricant warehouse in the Tangerang Regency warehouse area, Banten.

KOMPAS/HARRY SUSILO

Police ask for information from the perpetrators of oil counterfeiting at the East Bekasi Sector Police Headquarters, Bekasi City, West Java, Friday (7/10/2022).

When the warehouse door was partially opened, the team saw a pile of lubricant bottles that looked like MPX2 wrapped in plastic bags. It was not clear what activities took place inside the warehouse that did not have a nameplate and whose fence was often tightly closed.

Kompas also contacted the telephone number of the oil distributor in Cengkareng to ask for confirmation regarding the origin of the lubricant. The call was answered by Dian, one of the shop's employees.

Dian said that the shop owner was not there. When it was confirmed whether the lubricant sold in the shop was from an official manufacturer, the phone line was immediately cut off. When called back, there was no response.

Meanwhile, the warehouse in Tangerang Regency that supplies oil to the shops in Cengkareng was also not owned by AHM.

PT Astra Honda Motor (AHM) internal attorney, Edward, confirmed that the MPX2 oil sold at the distributor in Cengkareng was not produced by AHM because the price was far below the highest retail price (HET) of the genuine lubricant. Meanwhile, the warehouse in Tangerang Regency that supplies oil to the shops in Cengkareng was also not owned by AHM. "We confirm that the warehouse or place is not a warehouse for storing products from PT Astra Honda Motor," said Edward.

According to Edward, the rise of oil counterfeiting including the brand of oil produced by AHM has resulted in a decline in consumer confidence in AHM products. Meanwhile, from a material standpoint, this counterfeiting is considered to be very harmful to the sales of AHM's official oil products.

Meanwhile, the attorney of Yamaha Motor Co Ltd, Purnomo Suryomurcito, said that the distribution of counterfeit Yamalube lubricants had created many problems for customers and caused huge losses to sales of genuine Yamaha products. That includes investment in the introduction of the Yamalube brand.

Detrimental to consumers

Sularsi, head of the complaints and legal division of the Indonesian Consumers Foundation (YLKI), said that consumers were the ones who suffered the most from the rampant sales of fake lubricants on the market.

The lack of guidelines for getting the best quality oil makes consumers vulnerable to getting counterfeit oil. “Now, we don't have that information for consumers. It is just like buying a cat in a sack. If you're lucky you get a good one, if you don't [get the original one], you suffer a loss. It means that the ones who suffer the most are consumers," Sularsi said.

RIAN SEPTIANDI

East Bekasi Police arrested four oil counterfeiters in East Bekasi on August 25, 2022 in Mustikasari Village, Kec. Mustikajaya Bekasi City. Photo taken on Friday. (7/10/2022). Unpackaged oil bottles were found in the rented house that the suspects used to produce fake oil.

One of the motorbike owners, Saeful, said that his Honda Supra X motorbike was allegedly affected by the use of faked lubricants in 2019. The condition was very detrimental because the engine of the motorcycle had to be overhauled.

Saeful said that his motorbike engine was overhauled in August 2019 because the motor's traction was very weak. In fact, the engine overhaul should have been carried out nine months earlier. "After an investigation, it turned out that the innards of the engine were crusted and there was thickened oil," said Saeful.

Sopar Halomoan Sirait, head of the Industrial Standardization Supervision Center of the Standardization and Industrial Services Policy Agency (BSKJI) at the Industry Ministry, Sopar Halomoan Sirait, said that regarding the circulation of the counterfeit lubricants, his office had taken a number of efforts, including supervision of the Product Certification Agency which issues SNI certification for lubricants, supervision of oil products, law enforcement against business factors and outreaches to the public regarding oil labeling.

"This is expected to be able to stop the circulation of counterfeit lubricants on the market and also needs to be supported by the application of other instruments," he said.(ILO/JOG/FRD/DIV )

(This article was translated by Hyginus Hardoyo)