Three new HiQ centres open their doors
The HiQ network has grown this month with the addition of three new centres – HiQ Oxford, HiQ Cardiff and HiQ Witney – on 1 December.
The HiQ network has grown this month with the addition of three new centres – HiQ Oxford, HiQ Cardiff and HiQ Witney – on 1 December.
This year’s Formula 1 season ended with the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix late last month and preparations are already under way for 2018. Looking back over its year as exclusive tyre supplier to the championship, Pirelli has presented statistics from its 2017 season.
The 2018 Jeep Wrangler – unveiled Wednesday at the Los Angeles Auto Show – will be fitted with two sizes of Goodyear’s Wrangler AT Adventure with Kevlar as original equipment. This latest approval continues an original equipment partnership that commenced in 1941 with Goodyear-produced tyres for the Willys Quad prototype. In addition to the Wrangler, Goodyear also currently supplies the Jeep Grand Cherokee with multiple tyre sizes.
In our August edition, this column examined how “the clocking is ticking for combustion engines”, which also means the clock is ticking for conventional tyres designed with combustion engine-centric vehicles in mind. Four months later, both points are true. However, there are also significant challenges facing this market development that also warrant our attention.
Two of the obstacles between the status quo and the electric vehicle car parc of the future are charging points and technological recall risk.
Pro-Align’s recent distribution agreement with ADAS diagnostic and calibration tools supplier TEXA shows how garage equipment specialists are adapting to the rapid development of the connected car. Yet the staple equipment remains a vital part of the equation; greater accuracy in the tyre changing and wheel balancing processes can help ensure the full functionality of downstream systems. In addition, Pro-Align tells Tyres & Accessories that balancers and changers are often overlooked in terms of their potential for a workshop’s efficiency and profitability.
The UK new car market declined for an eighth consecutive month in November, according to figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT). 163,541 vehicles were registered, down -11.2 per cent year-on-year, driven by a significant fall in diesel demand.
SMMT figures show that new light commercial vehicle (LCV) registrations experienced a double-digit decline in November. The market fell -11.1 per cent, with 26,486 new vans and pick-ups registered – the third consecutive monthly fall.
Talk to westerners and they see China as a relative newcomer to the global tyre industry table. Talk to Chinese people and they may just point out that China has been the world’s leading tyre producing nation since 2005. Indeed, full-year 2016 figures show that 600 million tyres were “made in China”, many of which were passenger car and light truck products. However, China now wants to move on from its reputation as being the biggest tyre producing nation and progress towards a renewed emphasis on quality and technology. Tyres & Accessories spoke with Mary Xu, the China Rubber Industry Association (CRIA) deputy secretary general, in order to find out more about how the Chinese tyre industry wants to move from biggest to best.
Maxxis shares that it has been selected to provide original equipment tyres to the new KTM 790 Duke. The supply arrangement was announced at the EICMA motorcycle show in Milan last month.
Rema Tip Top Automotive UK’s fourth consecutive Aftermarket Equipment Supplier of the Year Tyre Industry Award was a testament to its “great working partnerships and mutual value added benefits and expertise,” according to group CEO Mark Insley. In its capital equipment portfolio, the company supplies Corghi garage equipment, including the brand’s latest Touchless line of wheel service equipment for all ranges of tyre changers, wheel balancers and wheel aligners, demonstrating such added value partnerships. Rema Tip Top states that Corghi’s latest products “guarantee extreme professionalism”, as they concentrate on the wheel alone without touching the rim and/or the tyre, depending on the product line, during any procedure.
A farmer from Northern Ireland says his working day has been transformed by Michelin’s new AxioBib 2 tractor tyres – after becoming the first person in the country to fit a set.
The conclusion of this year’s DTM season left fingernails bitten down to the quick. With no less than six potential candidates in the running to claim the touring car series, the question as to who’d finish on top of the drivers’ championship table stayed open right until the chequered flag waved the end of play at the Hockenheimring circuit. In the end, honours went to Audi works driver René Rast, whose second-placed finish on the day pushed his season tally to 179 points, three points ahead of incumbent championship leader and fellow Audi pilot Mattias Ekström and six ahead of British driver Jamie Green, whose hopes of a championship win were dealt a stinging blow the previous day through a ten-place grid penalty for the final race.
From the beginning of 2018, Continental will be an official partner of the Tour de France. This means from 2018 onward, for an initial five-year period, all official support vehicles – cars, vans and motorcycles – at the Tour de France will be equipped with Continental tyres. The sponsorship agreement was officially confirmed by Christian Prudhomme, general director Tour de France, and Nikolai Setzer, Member of the Executive Board of Continental AG.
Over the years, we’ve known Nokian Tyres primarily for its activities in the replacement tyre market. Nevertheless, the Finnish manufacturer has also cooperated with vehicle manufacturers and is working towards increasing the share of its turnover earned in the original equipment segment. It has now announced a BMW Group approval – the Nokian WR D4 will be fitted as an original equipment winter tyre on the BMW X1.
The level of race to road technology transfer in Formula 1 is insufficient to pique Michelin’s interest in returning to the series as tyre supplier. This is the comment from Pascal Couasnon despite the tyre maker’s renewed interest several years ago.
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.