Founded in 1898 by Frank Seiberling, The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company is an American multinational tyre manufacturing company based in Akron, Ohio. It is one of the oldest, biggest and best-known tyremakers in the world. Goodyear makes tyres for automobiles, commercial trucks, light trucks, motorcycles, SUVs, racing cars, aeroplanes, farm equipment and heavy earth-mover machinery. Find all the news and analysis you need relating to Goodyear here.
Kings Road Tyres, a leading distributor of Michelin, Kleber, Goodyear, Trelleborg, Firestone and Taurus agricultural tyres, has confirmed its presence at next month’s LAMMA 2014 farm machinery and equipment show. The company is exhibiting on Stand B119 during the two-day show at the East of England Showground (near Peterborough) on 22 and 23 January.
US off-road tyre specialist Titan International has released a new category of Goodyear brand tractor tyres intended to provide better floatation. Initially two ranges from this category are on offer: The Goodyear Super Terra Grip XT 1000/40R32 and the Goodyear DT930 1100/45R46. The tyres feature a wide footprint designed for a smoother ride, tighter turn radius, reduced width, improved flotation and reduced soil compaction. Both also feature low sidewall technology, reducing road lope and power hop and improving lateral stability on hillside conditions.
For the last year Goodyear has teamed up with Lancashire County Council’s highways maintenance department to test a range of winter tyres in some of the coldest and slipperiest conditions found on UK roads. Goodyear’s UltraGrip winter tyres were fitted to the council’s winter gritting vehicles in late 2012 to see if they could improve safety and stability during the vital task of applying salt to the 1,550 miles/2,500 kilometres of roads in Lancashire that are treated within four hours of a freeze being forecast. As a result of the successful trial, Lancashire County Council is extending its relationship with Goodyear. It is now looking to introduce a winter tyre policy for its gritting vehicles to ensure continued service in all conditions.
DAF has become the first truck manufacturer to offer Goodyear Kmax and Fuelmax tyres as standard original equipment. The new tyres will be supplied on the company’s brand new CF and LF models as well as its flagship XF range as of December 2013. The Goodyear Kmax and Fuelmax ranges were introduced in September. Kmax, as the name implies, has been developed for high mileage performance, while not compromising on other important criteria such as fuel efficiency and traction. Likewise the Goodyear Fuelmax range is for the operator who wants optimised fuel efficiency combined with good mileage.
According to a report from market research and consulting company TechSci Research, three tyre majors account for more than 70 per cent of tyre sales in Thailand. Bridgestone, Michelin and Goodyear dominate a market that is expected to grow significantly in the next few years and generate revenues up to around US$17 billion by the end of 2018. However the report, titled ‘Thailand Tyre Market Forecast and Opportunities, 2018’, opines that companies such as Yokohama, Sumitomo and Continental tyres are providing these three with “tough competition”.
Passenger car tyre production at Goodyear Dunlop’s Wittlich plant in Germany will decrease by at least 30 per cent next year. In local media source volksfreund.de, Wittlich works council chairman Joachim Weberskirch confirms rumours that PCR production “will be reduced from round 4,000 a day to 2,500 to 2,800 a day next year.” Weberskirch says this lowering of production is a response to declining sales of passenger car tyres throughout Europe.
On 2 December, the directors of The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company have announced a quarterly dividend of 73.44 cents per share of mandatory convertible preferred stock. According to the company, the dividend is payable 1 January 2014, to shareholders of record on 13 December 2013. The payout represents an annual rate of $2.9375 per share.
Women in the United States are being encouraged to buy local; Goodyear Tire & Rubber has featured twice in the ‘America’s Best in Automotive’ category of this year’s Women’s Choice Award. The company was selected as best Premium Tire Brand, Tire Retailer and Auto Service Retailer.
The performance of equipment in the field can greatly impact productivity, and thus, bottom line. Titan International points out that tyres are a very important part of this equation, and with regular inspection, and – if necessary – minor adjustments, agricultural machinery operators can see great improvements in the durability and performance of the tyres in the field. Titan says that following the completion of spring planting, the time is right to inspect tyres and make necessary adjustments to ensure the rest of the season goes off without a hitch.
Scott Sloan, agricultural product manager for Titan and Goodyear Farm Tires, says it’s as simple as following the ABCs.
The MG marque returned last year as a brand owned by China’s SAIC, and now the second new MG model has arrived in the UK. Following its launch at Auto Shanghai 2013 in April the new MG3 is now available here – and Goodyear has been chosen to provide original equipment tyres for all versions.
Road lope is a rhythmic, ‘porpoising’ motion that develops at higher speeds or in road gear when a tractor is not pulling any significant load. It often occurs because a tyre or rim is not truly round. And it’s annoying; according to a recent US survey conducted on behalf of Titan Tire Corporation, approximately 47 per cent of growers (regardless of tyre brand they’re running) identify road lope as a problem they’re currently experiencing with their tractors and combines. This physical swaying and bouncing of the machine during road transport can result in extreme rider discomfort and inhibit the grower’s productivity between fields, however there are some simple solutions that growers should be aware of in order to rectify their road lope issues.
In the USA Goodyear has been named a Top 100 Military Friendly Employer by GI Jobs magazine for the second consecutive year. The listing, drawn from a long list of more than 5,000 companies, recognises the company’s efforts to hire and support veteran employees, with companies selected based on the results of a data-driven survey on veteran-related programs and policies.
One hopes Maurice Taylor knows what he may be getting himself involved with. Goodyear’s Amiens Nord plant in France, scheduled to be closed and the subject of a potential acquisition by Titan International, is once again making the news – complete with photos of flaming tyres. Workers protesting the final meeting in the consultation process with employee representatives made their feeling known today when they blocked entry to the plant and set fire to piles of tyres.
Nick Harley, previously sales director at BP Castrol Lubricants, has joined Goodyear Dunlop UK & Ireland as director, Consumer Tyres. Harley, who was responsible for UK, Ireland, France and BeneLux markets at BP Castrol Lubricants, as well as Key International Accounts in Europe and Africa, will lead Goodyear Dunlop’s consumer business across all brands, reporting into UK and Ireland managing director, Erich Fric
Kumho first stated its interest in F1 tyre supply as early as 2004, and speculation regarding the Korean tyre maker’s aims occasionally makes the news. Now the company itself has mentioned the F-word, reporting that in September it officially tested its F1 tyres – which have the same specifications as the tyres it will supply to Auto GP from 2014 – at Spain’s Circuit de Catalunya. Three days of evaluation began on 16 September and Kumho says the purpose for the test was to “validate the technology for future business with F1 and to actually test the technology accumulated through motor sports since the 1990s for F1.”
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