A Legacy of Craftsmanship – From Chinese Roots to German Engineering Excellence
Amid China’s Reform and Opening, the predecessor of Rofeibi—Shanghai Hongqi Chemical Plant Workshop No. 3—quietly began operations. In that small workshop, China’s first mineral-based motorcycle oils were created, mixed in simple saponification reactors and hand-filled to keep iconic bikes like the Xingfu 250 on the road.
Technical Director Wang Jianguo wrote a single line in his notebook:
"Oil is not a petroleum byproduct—it is the lifeblood of machinery."
Copied and repeated by workers across generations, those words became the very first quality creed of Rofeibi.
As Japanese four-stroke engines entered China, Rofeibi engineers pushed to match their performance. Key breakthroughs included:
- Replacing Soviet paraffinic base oils with Daqing hydrocracked crude
- Introducing ZDDP anti-wear additives (zinc dialkyldithiophosphate)
- Becoming Jialing-Honda’s first domestic lubricant supplier in 1987
The workshop’s bold slogan—"Surpass Japan in five years"—was realized by 1992, when Rofeibi’s “Iron Rider” series achieved JASO MA certification and made its export debut in Southeast Asia.
A turning point came when Motorrad, a respected German magazine, tested Chinese motorcycle oils. To everyone’s surprise, Rofeibi outperformed established European brands in BMW R1100GS wear tests.
This discovery led to deeper collaboration with Bavaria Chemical Group, and by the 2000s:
- 2003: Joint R&D center established in Ludwigshafen, Germany
- 2008: Full TÜV certification achieved after adopting Rheinmetall’s sulfur-phosphorus purification process
By the 2010s, Rofeibi had become a brand with dual DNA—both Chinese ingenuity and German precision.
- In Shanghai, engineers preserved the original 1978 formula archives and refined them through more than 1,000,000 km of road tests.
- In Germany, robotic titration systems on the Rhine delivered ±0.001g dosing accuracy, ensuring unmatched precision in every batch.
When modern riders pour Rofeibi full-synthetic oil into their KTM 1290 Super Dukes, few realize they’re benefiting from decades of evolution:
- The anti-wear formulas can be traced back to mountain road trials in Chongqing in 1985.
- The ester base oils are reengineered at the molecular level in German labs.
- Every batch still carries the 1978 “Hongqi” wax seal, a mark of authenticity and respect for heritage.
A Legacy That Endures
From a modest workshop on the Yangtze River to state-of-the-art smart factories on the Rhine, Rofeibi has stayed true to its founding belief:
“Oil is machinery’s lifeblood.”
For more than 46 years, that creed has guided Rofeibi through innovation, resilience, and global recognition—turning a small Shanghai workshop into a brand that bridges cultures and redefines what endurance truly means.
Rofeibi Lubricants — Made to Endure.
