Maxxis all-season tyre rated fourth in Auto Express test
The Maxxis AP2 all-season passenger car tyre was rated in fourth place in a series of performance tests recently carried out by Auto Express magazine. Maxxis scored an average of 95.4 per cent over a total of 14 disciplines, surpassing the score of comparative tyres from the likes of global giants Pirelli and Bridgestone.
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Michelin aims to be a “major metal 3D printing player” with Fives JV
An agreement signed on 4 September marks Michelin’s initial step towards becoming a well-known name in the metal 3D printing sector. The Michelin Group and the Fives Group are joining forces to create Fives Michelin Additive Solutions, a 50/50 joint venture partnership that aims to become a “major metal 3D printing player.” Fives Michelin Additive Solutions will be located near Michelin’s headquarters in Clermont Ferrand, France and initially employ around 20 people from both partners. At least €25 million will be invested into this new joint venture over the first three years.
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Falken off-road 4×4 tyres make sporting impact
Falken’s 4×4 tyres are increasing their presence in a variety of sporting contexts. While the brand in general is increasing its marketing presence in Europe through perimeter advertising at some of the continent’s premier clubs, the manufacturer has come up with an agreeably quirky way to show its off-road WildPeak line of tyres to UK […]
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CITExpo opens at Everbright for final time, previews move to modern facility
The 2015 edition of the China International Tire Expo opened Wednesday in Shanghai, with around 350 exhibitors – the show’s most ever. The sustained growth represented by these numbers has led to the decision by organiser Reliable International Exhibition Services to transfer CITExpo to the Shanghai World Expo Exhibition and Convention Center (SWEECC), built in the centre of the 2010 Shanghai World Expo site. The show also boasts strong continuity, with around 80 per cent of 2014 exhibitors back in 2015, according to Reliable; in past years the organiser has come to expect a similar proportion of its customers booking their space for the following year during CITExpo.
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Dakar involvement bolsters Cooper’s 4×4 tyre strength
Cooper can lay claim to being a leading brand within the 4x4 tyre market, with one of the stronger ranges of any manufacturer. Its tyres are selected for many applications, with the world’s most gruelling off-road endurance event, the Dakar Rally, perhaps the most notable for the challenge it presents to rubber. Cooper tyres are utilised by rally legends such as Xavi Foj, whose team is supported by the brand; links such as this help the manufacturer to underline its presence within this segment. Foj used the Discoverer S/T Maxx to take a podium finish in Buenos Aires this January, in what was the Spanish driver’s 25th Dakar Rally.
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Micheldever celebrating General Tire milestones in 2015
General Tire turns 100 years old in 2015, and the Continental-owned brand will mark its centenary with its UK distributor Micheldever with an event at Jaguar Land Rover’s Gaydon facility later in the year. The partnership between General and its distributor is itself celebrating a landmark year.
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Pirelli sponsors inaugural ‘Prestige & Performance’ competition at Salon Privé
Pirelli will sponsor the ‘Prestige & Performance’ competition at this year’s Salon Privé event, welcoming to the judging panel renowned car expert Tiff Needell. The inaugural Pirelli Prestige & Performance competition will take place on the final day of Salon Privé, Saturday September 5, at Blenheim Palace and will celebrate supercar models from 1975 through to the present day.
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Dunlop Aircraft Tyres tells UK business minister of export sales growth plans
Business minister Anna Soubry visited Dunlop Aircraft Tyres’ Birmingham plant to hear how the manufacturer’s further investment plans will help it expand its product range and increase international sales. The world’s only specialist manufacturer and retreader of aircraft tyres was one of four companies in the West Midlands that the minister visited during a fact-finding day in the region.
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Fraipont appointed Dunlop motorsport and motorcycle managing director
Goodyear Dunlop Tires Europe has appointed of Xavier Fraipont to the position of managing director, motorsport and motorcycle EMEA. Fraipont, formerly director, consumer tyre technology EMEA, replaces Sanjay Khanna, who has been appointed consumer sales and marketing director for emerging markets.
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SportContact 6 takes over as Continental’s flagship summer tyre
One of the many global debuts we can expect at this month’s IAA exhibition is the latest and greatest from Continental, and prior to the Frankfurt show dealers and automotive media gained the chance to discover this new ultra high performance summer tyre – a product Continental’s head of tyre development says is the company’s sportiest on-road tyre ever. Our first impression of the Continental SportContact 6 is of a tyre that allows drivers to explore the limits of sport car performance while offering a forgiving response should the limits of the driver’s own abilities be reached first.
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Veteran Pirelli motorsport engineer switches to Dmack as motorsport technical director
British tyre brand and World Rally Championship authorised tyre supplier Dmack has recruited the Pirelli veteran, Fiorenzo Brivio, who has been appointed to the newly created position of motorsport technical director. The brand, manufactured by China’s Yongtai, hopes to benefit from the technical expertise of Brivio, who they call “one of the world’s leading motorsport tyre engineers.”
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6 part worn tyre retailers convicted in a week for sale of dangerous tyres
The sale of dangerous tyres to unsuspecting motorists has led to the conviction of six retailers of part worn tyres from the Brent and Harrow area of London within the space of a week. Top Tyres & Auto Parts Ltd (Wembley); Whitchurch Road Tyres (Harrow); Pinner Road Tyres Ltd (Harrow); Quick Car Repairs Ltd (Harrow); Mr Walazedeh trading as Harrow Tyres (Harrow); and 3D Tyres Ltd (Wembley) faced 36 charges of supplying unsafe tyres, not complying with the Motor Vehicle Tyres (Safety) Regulations 1994. All six pleaded guilty and were ordered to pay a total of £18,009.40 in fines, including individual penalties for company directors, costs and victim surcharges.
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Michelin-fitted Porsche Team’s ‘perfect tyre strategy’ aids Nürburgring victory
The Porsche Team followed up Le Mans 24 Hours victory with a one-two finish at the 2015 6 Hours of Nürburgring. While the N°17 Porsche 919 Hybrid was driven to victory by Timo Bernhard, Marc Webber, Brendon Hartley, their N°18 teammates overcame three Stop & Go penalties (of five, 30 and 60 seconds), for excessive fuel consumption, to steal second place from Audi Sport thanks, in part, to the tyre strategy that was adopted for Switzerland’s Neel Jani on Lap 143. Michelin supplied a total of 2,400 tyres to its 23 partners at the event, with bespoke products designed to suit the particular needs of Audi Sport, Porsche Motorsport and Toyota Racing teams’ vehicles.
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Tyres in football: 2015/16 season heralds expanded deals with biggest clubs
Coinciding with the start of the 2015/16 European football season, various tyre manufacturers have continued the step up in sponsorship involvement with some of Europe’s biggest clubs. Continuing the trend Tyres & Accessories observed last year, bigger, broader deals are expanding tyres’ role in football, and increasing the prominence of brands outside the traditional premium names.
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Hans Vrijsen appointed general manager, Goodyear Dunlop UK
Goodyear Dunlop marketing director consumer EMEA Hans Vrijsen has been appointed the new general manager for UK and Ireland of Goodyear Dunlop Tires UK. Vrijsen succeeds Erich Fric, who has been appointed consumer PBU sales & marketing director for Western Europe.
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