Continental introduces aftermarket sealant kits and sealants

This month, Continental is introducing a new aftermarket tyre sealant kit and other sealant products. The company says these products are made to OEM quality and offer a solution to drivers looking to replace existing kits – products that, according to Continental, need to be substituted after around four to five years.

A 450-ml replacement bottle compatible with the million or so ContiMobilityKit units shipped with new cars every year is available, and Continental product manager Christoph-Emanuel Zinke points out that only the manufacturer’s own replacement bottle is directly compatible with the kit’s compressor. Replacement filling hoses can also be separately ordered, and this is an essential purchase after a flat tyre. As sealant residue can remain in the hose, it is a single-use item and must be replaced afterwards.

Motorists wishing to equip their cars with puncture sealant can obtain the complete ContiMobilityKit, including the compressor, as a retrofit solution. The kit can be used for almost all of the 50 top-selling summer and winter tyre sizes. Continental says it offers the advantage of a direct connection between the sealant bottle and the compressor, meaning that the driver doesn’t need to remove the tyre valve.

Continental’s aftermarket puncture solution range also includes a 600-ml ContiTireSealant squeeze bottle. This is intended for kits where the sealant is manually squeezed into the tyre instead of pumped by a compressor. Since the bottle doesn’t have to fit a compressor, it can replace any kind of sealant squeeze bottle, regardless of manufacturer. ContiTireSealant is sold with a hose, a small plastic bag with a valve remover and a decal stating the maximum permissible driving speed after application.

Vehicle manufacturers are increasingly dispensing with the traditional spare tyre. Last year, one in every three cars rolling off European assembly lines was kitted out with a puncture sealant kit. Continental views this spurning of the spare as an opportunity for garages and workshops, and encourages trade professionals to take a look in the boot or luggage compartment of every car that comes in. As already mentioned, sealant kits have a limited lifespan. “This is a service with which repair shops can score points with their customers, and it can generate increased sales,” says Peter Wagner, vice-president of Independent Aftermarket at Continental.

The ContiMobilityKit is designed to repair punctures caused by objects smaller than 5mm in diameter. Zinke says such intrusions account for 95 per cent of all flat tyres. The ContiMobilityKit, he adds, “seals damage to the tread up to a width of 6mm, allowing one to continue driving as far as 200 kilometres without problems.”