Conti Says “No Decision Made Yet”
“We have not made a decision yet.” That was the comment of a Continental spokesperson in Hanover, Germany, in response to rumours that the tyre manufacturer has already decided to end the joint venture with the Moscow Tyre Plant.
Continue ReadingWholesale in the 21st Century
Wholesalers across the world have noted that the face of tyre wholesaling is changing. “The tyre world is getting smaller everyday,” says one company, “there is a lot consolidation going on,” adds another. Yet despite the spiraling costs of raw material and fuel, a number of wholesalers are claiming that business is better than ever. In a new ‘Question of the month’ Tyres & Accessories invites national and international wholesalers to give their comments on the state of wholesaling asking the question: Which factors are the greatest threats to the wholesaling business? To add your answer to the current question of the month, and to participate in the discussion please click here
Continue ReadingTyre TV Documentary
British television viewers are in for a tyre lesson next week, as Granada’s ‘Men and Motors’ will be broadcasting a documentary called Life of Tyres. The programme will trace the history of tyre development from John Boyd Dunlop’s initial pneumatic tyre to today’s latest technical advances.
Continue ReadingHi-Q Trains Flat Out
Tyres fitters at Hi-Q branches up and down the country have completed the training necessary to fit run flat technology, the company has announced. Hi-Qs operations manager Mike Garwood said run flats should only fitted by highly trained staff, adding: “Theyre radically different from conventional tyres. Run flats are designed by experts: they must be installed by experts. Hi-Q is the only nationwide network to have been trained by Goodyear and Dunlop. We have the equipment and trained personnel to do the job safely and competently.” Goodyear Dunlop spokesperson James Bailey said his company had worked closely with Hi-Q to develop a training programme that made sure staff who fitted its safety tyres were qualified experts. “Courses within the industry are rarely as rigorous as this: passing it should give motorists peace of mind that our tyres are being fitted properly and safely. Although run flats must be fitted by experts, theyre not just for specialists. These tyres can be fitted to almost any wheel rim, and their popularity is growing at such a rate that theyre quickly becoming standard for any motorist who refuses to compromise on safety.”
Continue ReadingDunlop Sport Maxx Put to the Test
Dunlops new performance tyre, the Sport Maxx, has been put to the test through the Performance Car of the Year programme. Hailed as “the toughest media evaluation programme of its kind,” the annual test, conducted by Car & Driving, the UKs motoring media agency, puts top performance vehicles and their tyres through a series of road and track tests all over Europe.
Continue ReadingMatador gets the Green-Light to Supply VW
Volkswagen has selected Matador’s so-called “green tyre” for original equipment on its Polo model.
Continue ReadingPeugeot Cooperate in China
A cooperative financing venture has been created by Peugeot to partner Banque PSA Finance and Dongfeng Peugeot Citroën Automobiles (DPCA) with the Bank of China.
Continue ReadingAlcoa Opens New Automotive Centre in Detroit
Alcoa has opened a new Automotive Centre in Farmington Hills, Michigan, USA. At the same time the company announced that it has been awarded more than a dozen new product applications by some of the most respected brands in the automotive industry.
Continue ReadingCV Registrations Hit a High
Commercial vehicle registrations hit a record level in September with the highest monthly volume for 15 years. The rolling yearly total was 381,388 and Septembers 52,230 registrations were up 8.4 per cent on last year’s corresponding figure. The SMMT also claims that there was high demand for heavy vans. The society’s chief executive, Christopher Macgowan said: “September is a vital month in the registration calendar and the figures confirm strong demand. We expect demand to hold at similar levels over the coming months, but growth next year may ease as interest rate rises hit more consumer and business markets.”
Continue ReadingFirst Stop Awards Customer Service Stars
Bridgestone has announced that the number of UK First Stop dealerships reaching the network’s highest customer service standard has doubled in the past 12 months. In addition the company has given six outlets its highest five-star award.
Continue ReadingSchumacher and Bridgestone Take ‘Home’ Grand Prix
After fears that a so-called super typhoon would halt the Japanese Grand Prix, Michael Schumacher has won his 13th race of the season. The fact that qualification was more than a little disrupted by an “undriveably” wet track only meant that more emphasis was put on tyres. After the first ever Sunday morning qualification, Michael Schumacher’s Bridgestone equipped Ferrari blew away the opposition. Williams’ Ralph Schumacher took second place, with Britain’s Jenson Button taking the third podium spot. According to Button: “I went for the two stops because it worked pretty well for me in the last race.” Michelin drivers took the majority of the other point scoring positions. When the reigning world champion was asked what it felt like to back in winning form, having set a new record for the number of wins in a season, the Ferrari driver commented: “Yeah. It is obviously nice, for other reasons, particularly that it is Bridgestone’s home Grand Prix and we wished to do well for them and we did. We did very superb in being basically fastest all weekend and finally get the win and it is the way to pay back something to our partners.”
Continue ReadingAutomechanika a Success for British Automotive Suppliers
The SMMT is describing Automechanika 2004 as “another success for British exhibitors.
Continue ReadingSlow Quarter for Tyre Manufacturers
Financial analysts are reporting that this quarter is likely to be a slow quarter for retailers and tyre manufacturers. According to the Deutsche Bank analysts, tyre shipments were weak in September declining 6 per cent year over year. This is said to have follow a 7 per cent decline in July and a further 1.5 per cent slip in August. As a result, the consultants are predicting that US tyre makers will experience, on average, a 5 per cent drop during the quarter. Industry players are attributing the weakness to weather in Southeastern US and the ever-increasing fuel prices, impacting on car maintenance spending. This analysis means that the bank is lowering is third quarter estimates for both Goodyear and Cooper.
Continue ReadingTIA Strongly Opposes New Bill
The Tire Industry Association (TIA) has written an open letter to the US Senate explaining its strong opposition to aspects of a new Jobs bill.
Continue ReadingTreadway Gets a New Name
Treadway Exports Limited, one of the largest tyre wholesaling companies in North America, has announced that it will be changing its name. From 1 November the company will be known as Hercules International. According to Treadway, the name change is designed to align the parent company with its export division.
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