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Dunlop will be official tyre partner and sponsor of the Classic TT. The manufacturer said that success at the 2014 Isle of Man TT, as well as the desire to underline the tyre manufacturer’s commitment to motorsport had informed the decision. Dunlop took 13 out of a possible 15 podium places at the Isle of Man TT.
For the first time in its 15 year history, online retailer Delticom has reported negative net earnings. The German firm says it ended the first half of the 2014 financial year with a net loss of approximately €200,000; it says this minus result is primarily attributable to an accumulated, after tax loss of €8.0 million from Tirendo, the Berlin-based online tyre retailer Delticom acquired in September 2013. The perhaps understated comment from Delticom on 14 August was that “Tirendo’s performance in the first half of the year is significantly below planning, both in terms of revenues and earnings.”
A month from now, 40 electric racing cars will line up on the grid at the inaugural Formula E Championship race in Beijing. Each of the tyres that take to the track on 13 September will be fitted with identical tyres that were specifically developed for the competition. In a Michelin-hosted Q&A session, the company’s motorsport director Pascal Couasnon explains that the decision that all cars should run on Pilot Sport EV tyres was not simply a strategic option in technology terms; he says it was also an obvious choice.
After extending its partnership with NASCAR Group company the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA), Continental Tire the Americas will continue as official tyre of the Tudor United SportsCar Championship and exclusive tyre supplier and sponsor to several event classes. The company will also remain entitlement sponsor and exclusive tyre supplier to the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge. All up, Continental says it will continue as the ‘official tyre of IMSA’ through to 2018.
Bridgestone is to be title sponsor of the inaugural America’s Golf Cup, which will take place at the Pilar Golf Club in Buenos Aires, Argentina between 20 and 26 October. Upon announcing the deal, Bridgestone described the Bridgestone America’s Golf Cup as an “important platform” for advancing golf in the Latin America region and a venue for promoting the company’s product portfolio.
Bridgestone’s mooted rejuvenation of its Firestone brand in Europe is partially focused on its motorsport heritage. One recent Firestone promotion will allow a couple from Toynton, near Spilsby, Lincolnshire, to experience the brand’s US motorsport involvement at first hand, winning a £10,000 Indianapolis 500 motorsport holiday. The sales campaign ran in a number of garages around the country to coincide with the brand’s efforts to reinvigorate itself and become a major force in the UK tyre market once more, Bridgestone stated.
After a first quarter punctuated by lower year-on-year net sales and income, Cooper Tire & Rubber achieved growth – albeit slight – in the second quarter. During the three-month period ending 30 June, the tyre maker’s year-on-year net sales increased 0.5 per cent to US$888.7 million. Operating profit rose 10.7 per cent to $76.6 million, with operating margin reaching 8.6 per cent (7.6 per cent in Q2, 2013). Cooper says the increased in operating profit resulted primarily from favourable raw material costs of $67 million, higher unit volume of $13 million, favorable selling, general and administrative costs of $10 million, and manufacturing cost efficiencies of $7 million, which more than offset unfavorable pricing and mix of $85 million. The 2013 operating profit included $7 million in costs related to the then-pending merger with Apollo Tyres, which subsequently did not occur.
At the start of November 2013, Goodyear Dunlop appointed Nick Harley as director Consumer Tyres for Goodyear Dunlop UK and Ireland. At the end of July 2014, Tyres & Accessories caught up with him to hear – nine months in – his reflections on the current state of the tyre market and what he can foresee in the future.
It bears more than a passing resemblance to the M1 of three decades ago and represents something of a sea change in how hybrid vehicles are perceived by performance car fans; such is the popularity of the new BMW i8, UK stocks of the £95,000 supercar sold out within two weeks. New buyers have been informed they face a wait of up to ten months to receive their pride and joy.
In Tyres & Accessories’ August 2013 Winter Tyre feature, we discussed the UK tyre industry’s continued deliberate steps towards the development of a winter tyre market, and the possibility offered by all-season tyres (which we’ll come to later). While the figures showed that sales of specialised products represent a much greater share of the market than you might have thought in the winter months, the correlative spikes in this figure remain confined to the months in which the weather is coldest. Market analyst GfK’s latest infographic on winter tyres, displayed on this page, goes further towards showing that this trend is prevalent even within the October-January period where winter tyre sales are most popular.
No less then three new Michelin tyres have been developed for this season’s FIA World Rally Championship, and the tyre maker says “extremely positive feedback” was garnered following private session tests by its partner teams, with improvements noted in a number of areas. The trio represents a complete renewal of Michelin’s WRC range and covers every road and weather condition expected during the championship calendar.
It’s never easy to follow up a smash hit – just ask Gotye – but with more than seven million UltraGrip 8s shipped in Europe since 2011, Goodyear’s ninth generation winter tyre is following an all-time great. Travelling to Goodyear’s Innovation Centre Luxembourg earlier this year with dealers from across Europe, Tyres & Accessories got an exclusive preview of the new tyre, in addition to some insights from Xavier Fraipont, director technology consumer tyres EMEA, about the development process that has led to the UG 9.
ITMA has announced that China’s Shengtai Group has become the association’s latest member.
Established in 2002 and located in Xishui, Shandong, the company produces a wide range of tyre products and brands including the ‘Rapid’ brand. As a member of ITMA, Shengtai will receive regular updates on the legislative and technical issues which affect the sale of tyres within Europe.
The news back in May that commercial vehicle wheels have been named as a “safety critical item” in European law is something of a breakthrough for those that have been lobbying for the inclusion of wheels in this legislation, not to mention the wheel industry in general and the many automotive and haulage businesses that depend on wheels. Manchester-based Motor Wheel Service Distribution (MWSD), which played a key role in the wording used in the latest EU Roadworthiness Package and continues to be at the forefront the forefront of raising awareness of wheel safety issues, has a right to be particularly pleased with the latest news. However, if you will excuse the pun, the wheels of European legislation and implementation turn slowly. Therefore with 27 countries all at liberty to interpret and apply the rules over a period of years before compliance will begin to be checked – there is still a mountain to climb. With all this in mind, around the time of the news Tyres & Accessories met with managing director John Ellis at MWSD’s Sharston, Manchester headquarters to find out more about what the rules mean for the company and the industry at large.
Onkar Kanwar has used the opportunity afforded by his company’s 41st Annual General Meeting to share Apollo Tyres’ view of why the planned acquisition of Cooper Tire & Rubber never materialised. The Apollo chairman also spoke on upcoming plans and the market opportunities and challenges the tyre maker has identified.
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