Tyre Recall Due To Inflation Error?
Automotive safety experts in the USA have said that erroneous inflation recommendations from Ford may have played a part in the recent recall of nearly 600,000 Continental tyres, fitted as OE on Ford Expeditions and Lincoln Navigators. Rear tyres should have been inflated to 33 p.s.i., but Ford recommended 30 p.s.i. It has not been determined whether or not low pressure contributed to the current recall, but some observers pointed to the difference in recommended pressures by Ford and Bridgestone/Firestone as a factor in the spate of accidents involving Explorer SUVs and Firestone tyres.
Continue ReadingNew Factory For Porsche SUVs In Leipzig
Porsche yesterday opened a new 127 million Euros factory at Leipzig, eastern Germany, to produce the new Cayenne SUV, a vehicle developed in conjunction with VW. The new factory, next to a 4km test track and customer centre, will also produce the Carrera GT sports car from the middle of next year.
Continue ReadingVoluntary Recalls At Continental Tire North America
Continental Tire North America today announced a voluntary safety recall of 595,000 of its Continental P275/60R17 ContiTrac AW and General Grabber AW P275/60R17 tyres. Consumers will receive free replacements. The tyres involved have DOT codes from 109 to 4400 and were produced between March 1999 and October 2000 and fitted as original equipment on 106,701 2000-model year and certain 2001-model year two-wheel-drive Ford Expedition and two-wheel-drive Lincoln Navigator sport utility vehicles. Approximately 60,000 of the tires are in the replacement market. The voluntary recall we are announcing today shows how Ford and Continental early warning/quality systems work together and why we are at the forefront of testing, data analysis and responsiveness, said Mark Sowka, vice-president Original Equipment, Continental Tire North America.
Continue ReadingOfficial Opening Of Pirelli North American HQ And MIRS Plant
Pirellis new North American HQ and first US MIRS tyre factory were officially opened this weekend in Rome, Georgia. The ribbon was cut by Roy E. Barnes, Governor of Georgia and Pirelli North American President and CEO Gaetano Mannino. Various other local dignitaries attended the ceremony. The complex will employ 300 in three years time, 250 of which will be involved in production. Initially there will be three MIRS modules, but Pirelli says that this number will substantially increase by 2003. Pirelli also says that it expects to announce new OE contracts for MIRS tyres with more than one North American car manufacturer.
Continue ReadingTim Parker To Be Kwik-Fit Chief Executive
CVC Capital Partners has appointed Tim Parker (46) as Kwik-Fit Chief Executive. Parker is currently CE of Clarks, the shoe manufacturer, which he is credited with turning around by cutting costs and increasing outsourcing. Reports say that he will take an (unspecified) equity stake in Kwik-Fit once the deal is completed, which CVC says will take a few weeks but will happen by the end of the year.
Continue ReadingDisease Fear Leads To Tyre Clean-Up
Thousands of tyres are being removed from Pittsburgh after mosquito eggs and larvae were found in piles of abandoned tyres. The clean-up follows fears that an outbreak of West Nile virus is imminent in the area; a virus which is carried by the Culex mosquito.
Continue Readingmytyres.net Sets Up In UK
On-line tyre retailer mytyres.net has set up in Glasgow, UK, following in the footsteps of Germany, Austria, Switzerland, the Netherlands and Sweden. The company behind mytyres.net is Hanover-based Delticom AG, which last year achieved on-line tyre sales of 21.7 million Euros. It promises next day guaranteed delivery on mainland Britain for orders placed before 12 noon and offers tyres from more than 40 manufacturers.
Continue ReadingFire At Goodyear Factory
Arsonists have been blamed for a fire at Goodyears Wolverhampton UK factory, in which 4,000 truck tyres and three lorry trailers were destroyed. 120 firefighters took two hours to bring the 70 ft-high flames under control and residents were told to stay indoors with windows closed against the emissions. Although the fire has been put out, experts have warned that the tyres could continue to smoulder for up to two days.
Continue ReadingHose Disputes For Goodyear
Goodyear is being sued by four New York homeowners over allegedly leaky heating hose, which has caused damage to their houses. The hose, called Entran II, was usually installed under floors to heat homes - it was removed from the market in 1993. In Colorado earlier this year, Goodyear was ordered to pay $23 million to a property developer who used the hose in his buildings. Other lawsuits are pending. Goodyear is appealing the Colorado decision and says any problems lie with improperly designed heating systems, rather than the hose. Two years ago, a federal jury found no blame attached to Goodyear in a dispute with a customer, Heatway Systems, who used Entran II in its heating systems and is now facing hundreds of claims.
Continue ReadingBridgestone Group to Expand Global Production Capacity
Bridgestone Corporation has announced that it and its subsidiaries will expand their collective production capacity worldwide. It also announced that the Bridgestone Group will realign the geographical distribution of production capacity for different kinds of products. Bridgestone and its subsidiaries will invest approximately 250 million dollars in the production expansion and realignment, according to the announcement. The moves are measures to cope with the shift toward larger sizes of passenger car tyres in the industrialised nations and the growing demand for commodity-grade tyres in the newly industrialising economies of Asia and elsewhere.
Continue ReadingAnother Knight For Kwik-Fit
Reaction continues to the sale of Kwik-Fit to CVC, who have announced that chairman of the new company will be Sir Trevor Chinn, the outgoing chairman and former chief executive of Lex Service. Analysts are still debating the deal, with the consensus being that Ford overpaid when buying the company in 1999. Ford denies that the accounting irregularities at Kwik-Fit, where liabilities were understated by 3.4 million Pounds (5.3 m Euros), depressed the selling price. Ford says that the low valuation represents present market value, but many think that, by paying 330 million Pounds for 81 per cent of a business which turned over more than twice that last year (2001 turnover was 762 million Pounds), CVC has got a good deal.
Continue ReadingRecall Scare Hits Bridgestone Shares
Bridgestone shares dropped by 5.4 per cent following the filing of a lawsuit by an American lawyer, calling for the recall of 27.5 million Bridgestone Steeltex tyres. Potential costs of the action are estimated at $2.75 bn. The fall in share price and possible damage to brand image appear to be unwarranted, as the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has already investigated the tyre and officially announced that it found no defects on Steeltex tyres.
Continue ReadingBig City Tyres Closes
Midlands-based, three-depot retailer Big City Tyres is to close down, as chairman Stephen Belcher is retiring. The Leicester and Coventry depots have been bought by the Mr. Tyre chain and the Nottingham depot has been acquired by Peter Callicott, a former director of Big City Tyres and ex-area manager Chris Simpson.
Continue ReadingTurnover And Profits Up For Nokian
Nokian Tyres has released its figures for the second quarter. Looking at the figures for the first six months, both turnover and operating profit were up on 1H 2001. Turnover rose 12.6 per cent to 193.3 million Euros (1H 2001 171.6 m Euros) and operating profit was 8.7 m Euros (6.7 m). Net profit was 1 m Euros (-0.8 m Euros). The good figures were the result of price increases, improved product mix and lower material costs. Most product groups showed increased sales, with the exception of retreading materials, and the Vianor retail chain lost 2.5 m Euros.
Continue ReadingCVC Capital and Ford Shake Hands On Kwik-Fit
Ford has announced its intent to sell Kwik-Fit to CVC Capital Partners, a leading European Equity group. The price being paid is 330 million pounds in cash and a note that will be paid as CVC obtains outside financing. The proposed transaction will be completed using a new company formed for the purpose, and financed by funds under the management of CVC. Ford will retain a 19 percent equity interest in the new company in order to benefit from the businesss future growth. The sale is expected to be completed in the fourth quarter of 2002 and is subject to regulatory approvals. Ford will record a one-time, after-tax charge of approximately $500 million in the third quarter of 2002 related to the sale of Kwik-Fit. Collision Team America has also been sold, though Ford has withdrawn from the sale of Hertz Equipment Rental Corporation. We are pleased to have found such suitable owners for both Kwik-Fit and Collision Team of America, said Martin Inglis, Ford group vice president, business strategy. Although these are good businesses, they dont align with our back-to-basics strategy. These sales further signal the progress that Ford is making on key parts of our Revitalization Plan.
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