Moderate light commercial growth in August
Following the increase in July, the new van market also grew in August by 1.5 per cent to 15,619 units, SMMT figures reveal. Year to date, the market is now -2.8 per cent down on last year.
Following the increase in July, the new van market also grew in August by 1.5 per cent to 15,619 units, SMMT figures reveal. Year to date, the market is now -2.8 per cent down on last year.
Apollo Vredestein’s work to shift its Dutch brand’s replacement market focus to become an original equipment supplier has resulted in fitments on three major models. Vredestein, has been selected as a fitment on the Volkswagen Polo, Seat Ibiza and Ford EcoSport.
Hankook’s ultra-high performance flagship tyre, the Ventus S1 evo², will be fitted to the latest Audi RS5 Coupé as original equipment in 19 and 20-inch sizes. The tyre manufacturer has previously supplied the tyre to Audi’s TT RS in 2016. The RS 5 Coupé will use the newly developed V6 biturbo engine, which combines performance with greater efficiency. This suitability for everyday use is, Hankook states, reflected in the tyres, which are designed to provide sporty handling alongside driving comfort, and improved grip alongside durability.
Journalist and broadcaster Andrew Neil will be the guest speaker at this year’s Retail Motor Industry Federation (RMI) Annual Dinner, on Thursday 19 October at the Landmark Hotel, London. Neil currently presents the BBC’s live political programmes, Daily Politics and This Week, and was a former editor for The Sunday Times for 11 years. He recently stepped down as the presenter of the Sunday Politics programme after 5 years in the post.
TVR has commissioned a bespoke Avon tyre as the original equipment (OE) fitment for the new TVR model which will be unveiled at Goodwood Revival on Friday 8 September.
Avon’s ultra-high performance ZZ5, which exists within Avon’s current tyre range, has been developed further to feature a unique performance compound and new sidewall graphics for exclusive fitment to the much-anticipated and latest TVR to launch.
ZC Rubber has opened a European subsidiary – Zhongce Europe GmbH (ZC Europe). According to the leading Chinese manufacturer, the new subsidiary focuses on the expansion of the European market especially in the OE sector and “improving market shares by exploring the market with local mentality and by providing more services”. It is the fourth branch of ZC Rubber on the global market after Thailand, Brazil and America.
On 5 September VMI opened a new factor in Leszno, Poland. The location was officially opened by Lukasz Borowiak, mayor of Leszno and Alexander van der Lof, chairman of the executive board of TKH Group.
Pirelli is set sell up to 40 per cent of its equity capital in an initial public offering (IPO) on the Milan stock exchange in October.
Doublestar’s proposed acquisition of Kumho is reportedly close to collapse after the Qingdao-Chinese tyre manufacturer asked for a double-digit discount. According to reports in the Nikkei, Kumho’s major shareholders are planning to write to Doublestar asking the firm to agree to the end of bid talks between the two parties.
Kumho has recently enhanced its 4×4 tyre range with the addition of the Crugen HP91 and Crugen KL33 SUV tyres, fitments which seek to attract interest from road-going owners of vehicles in the segment, as well as 14 SUV sizes in its Solus 4S HA31 range. The newest tyres in the range join the cross-functional new Road Venture MT51 and established KL71 to cover most fitments for popular 4×4 and SUV vehicles. Between them, Kumho states that they cover everything from such top end SUVs as the Range Rover and the BMW X5 to the evergreen Land Rover Defender.
The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders has reported a fifth consecutive month of decline in the UK new car market. August registrations fell -6.4 per cent, following 2016’s record August. The SMMT remained sanguine about the decline, pointing out that, at 76,433 new cars registered, it is still the third-best August in 10 years. The year-to-date has remained broadly in line with full-year expectations, down 2.4 per cent, with 1,640,241 new cars joining British roads in the first eight months.
A Goodyear Dunlop UK employee has marked her fifth anniversary of being cancer free by shaving off her hair and raising almost £2000 for Macmillan Cancer Support. Linda Clarke, a credit controller at Goodyear Dunlop, was diagnosed with non-Hodgkins lymphoma six years ago at the age of 42 and underwent a year of intensive chemotherapy at Birmingham’s Queen Elizabeth Hospital.
Over 300 companies have commit to Automechanika Birmingham 2018, according to the show’s organisers. Firms attending next year’s event include:
At the end of August China’s Ministry of Commerce began a year-long anti-dumping investigations into imported hydrogenated butyl rubber from the European Union, the United Sates and Singapore.
Rubber, plastics and composites testing specialist Smithers Rapra recently ran training at the Tire Technology Training Course, which was organized by The Rubber Institute of Chemical Industry and Engineering Society of China along with the Beijing University of Chemical Technology.
If you would like the latest news from the Chinese tyre industry in Chinese, visit our partner site TyrepressChina.com. Or click below to continue on Tyrepress.