Andrew is an editor for WhatTyre, Tyrepress, and Tyres & Accessories magazine. He has more than a decade of experience in editing, writing, and journalism.
Grupo Alves Bandeira’s MatraX Tyres brand experienced “an extremely productive” debut at Automechanika Dubai, according to the distributor. The expansive MatraX stand showcased the full MatraX range of PCR, high performance, SUV and 4×4 tyres. The MatraX Urcola, Veragua FX and Morucha patterns were featured on the stand, emphasising products suited to high-performance cars.
Kraiburg Austria has launched its redesigned website for its retreading materials business. Marketing manager Ulrike Auer said the new site was designed to “compress” the company’s digital content “down to the essentials” for increased ease of use. Kraiburg has targeted a move away from lengthy searches for information “towards the ‘1-click method’.” The German language site is now live, with an English version to follow shortly. Other languages are also planned.
Ascenso Tyres UK will continue its sponsorship of champion clay pigeon shooter, Kallum Burrell. The off-the-road tyre brand will exhibit at Lamma 2023 on 10-11 January (Hall 6, Stand 6.330, Birmingham NEC) alongside its exclusive UK distributor, BAB Distribution, the wholesale arm of the BA Bush group.
Falken Motorsports’ Nürburgring-based GT programme and drifting action resulted in another memorable season for the brand in 2022. The endurance racing team claimed two memorable victories, while Cork-based Falken drifter James Deane augmented pan-European competition with a return to the mainstream automotive media, with a Top Gear Magazine video feature.
The Firestone Firehawk guayule race tyre made its on-track debut in the United States in 2022. The tyre’s latest outing took place at the Big Machine Music City Grand Prix on the streets of Nashville in August, in another milestone in the efforts of Firestone and the NTT Indycar Series to promote sustainability. This new, eco-friendly tyre first debuted in May during the Ruoff Mortgage Pit Stop Challenge on Race Week of the 106th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge. It is partially composed of a new sustainable natural rubber derived from the guayule shrub, which requires less reharvesting than traditional sources of rubber.
Dunlop rider Erik Willems was crowned 2022 Enduro European Champion following the final meeting of the season in Rudersdorf, Germany. The Belgian rider raced a Husqvarna with standard Dunlop Geomax EN91 tyres, winning both the overall and E2 classes. The victory marks the continuation of a successful partnership between rider and tyre supplier. In 2021, Willems raced with Dunlop in the enduro Junior World Championship and moved up to win the European Championship in his debut season at the top of European enduro competition.
Katrina-May Kwan and Nick Pontefract have been appointed to the board of Motorsport UK as independent non-executive directors. Pontefract joined Sport England in 2018 as chief strategy officer. He has led the development and delivery of the body’s new strategy to tackle inequalities in grassroots sports participation. He is a former senior civil servant at the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, where he worked from 2005, including leading the bid for the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games. He was also a board member of Yorkshire 2019 Ltd, the organising committee for the 2019 UCI Road World Championships.
Falken Tyre Europe is set to be an Official IHF Men’s World Championship 2023 Partner for the upcoming tournament which is taking place at nine venues in Sweden and Poland from January 11th to 29th. The partnership was organised by the sports marketing agency Sportfive, which is responsible for exclusive marketing and media rights for all IHF World Championships until 2031.
Continental’s foundational support of electric-powered off-road racing series Extreme E, whose second season ended on 27 November 2022 in Uruguay, was inspired by the all-encompassing ethos of sustainability. Now the tyre supplier has joined the globetrotting series’ participation in a variety of technology and environmental sustainability programmes by “turning racing tyres into living space.” Conti’s used Extreme E tyres are now being used in the construction of a new basketball court in Hanover for children to play and train. The manufacturer is supplying rubber paving stones as a donation.
Goodyear is a long-term headline supporter and tyre supplier of one the most heavyweight forms of motorsport: truck racing. The tyre manufacturer says supplying the tyres on which the series competes demonstrates the performance, durability and sustainability of its truck tyre technology. The 2022 Goodyear FIA European Truck Racing Championship season ended in Jarama, Spain on 2 October, the last of eight rounds, with Norbert Kiss winning his fourth title. Teo Calvet fending off close competition to win the Goodyear FIA ETRC Promoter’s Cup.
Goodyear is contributing to the pursuit of increased realism in virtual racing via its collaboration with Studio 397, developer of the hyper-realistic rFactor 2 simulation engine. The tyre manufacturer says its partnership has led to a major step forward in replicating race tyre model behaviours in the virtual environment. Such developments allow esports drivers to get closer than ever to the experiences of their real-life counterparts. The engine, which uses thousands of data points to create an immersive and authentic experience, is used in the Le Mans Virtual Series, of which Goodyear is an official partner.
Kumho has continued its recent good form in tyre tests, outstripping 30 rival manufacturers to take fifth place overall in Auto Bild’s latest all-season tyre test. The Kumho Solus 4S HA32 was comprehensively put through its paces in a test that spanned two continents. Kumho rates the test highly, saying its results “will be regarded as highly significant by both the European tyre trade and its consumers.”
UK Hunter tyre servicing equipment distributor Pro-Align is helping to upgrade wheel aligners throughout Kwik Fit’s 600-plus site network. The company is supporting the software upgrade to WinAlign 17 on Hunter Elite TD aligners used by the chain. The new version increases accuracy and efficiency, and therefore revenue opportunities, Hunter says. Kwik Fit has been using the Elite TD since 2014. In addition to the network wide software upgrade, Pro-Align is also installing the Hunter Elite TD system across 14 Kwik Fit and Tyre Pros centres, with one site investing in a new Hunter DSP706 aligner for its workshop.
The European representatives of Chinese tyre manufacturers continue to await the European Commission’s decision on the future of tariffs on truck tyres imported from the country following the European Court of Justice’s annulment of the tariffs introduced on 8 May 2018. While the EC’s deputies of the Unit DG Trade have talked about a “re-investigation” in response to Chinese representatives calling for the EC to implement fully the judgement of the ECJ, Tyres & Accessories understands that the more likely outcome is rather a recalculation of the tariffs the EC will apply, while manufacturers’ European operations are also bracing for the possibility of the backdated implementation of newly set rates. T&A asked Corrado Moglia, general manager of Triangle Tyre’s European operation, who has been representing the company’s interests in discussions with the EC, about how the situation is developing from his point of view.
Bridgestone Americas will invest an additional $190 million to renovate and expand its Costa Rican tyre manufacturing operations. The newly announced funds extend the existing plan to invest $60 million in Belén de Heredia by 2026. Bridgestone will increase its production capacity by 36 per cent, adding more than 160 new permanent jobs.
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