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HiQ to Franchise Off Equity Outlets

HiQ has unveiled plans to “accelerate” the company’s franchise offer by transferring existing company-owned stores into 15 regional zones where Goodyear Dunlop are looking for larger franchise partners to invest in HiQ regionally as well as nationally. The news came in parallel with the launch of HiQ’s sponsorship of this year’s British Touring Car Championship. Company representatives told Tyres & Accessories that the seven figure motorsport investment represents the single largest marketing investment Goodyear Dunlop has committed to the HiQ brand.

In a further twist, HiQ managing director Neil Burrows announced that he and “three members of the management group” are interested in investing into a “significant part” of the network themselves, demonstrating they really are willing to put there money where their mouths are regarding the franchise’s development. Therefore, in the interests of transparency, Neil Burrows and the other three as yet unamed managers will be assigned to special projects (such as managing the BTCC sponsorship deal) within the Goodyear Dunlop group. Following the recent announcement that Robin Sharpe stepped down as Goodyear Dunlop Commercial Director, it now appears that he will manage the HiQ team until the final announcement regarding the franchising of the HiQ equity branches has been announced.

12th March 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Former Race Academy Winner Coaches Latest Intake

Dunlop Race Academy 2005 winner and Dunlop Sport Maxx Cup champion Simon Shaw is to coach this year’s Race Academy intake in a bid to find potential stars of the future. “I went through exactly the same process that this year’s finalists will go through so I know exactly how they will be feeling,” says Simon. “At the start of 2005 I was a car salesman but by the end of the year I was racing in the Ginetta Championship and last year I went on to win my class in the Sport Maxx Cup, supported by Dunlop.”

Race Academy will offer a schedule of training throughout 2008 with Shaw and Le Mans 24-hour racing driver, Calum Lockie. One winner will then race on track with the professionals in the televised Dunlop Sport Maxx Cup final race in October.

4th March 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Dunlop Control Tyre for New UK GT Cup Series

The organisers of the new GT Cup racing series have chosen Dunlop Motorsport as the sole tyre supplier to the inaugural series. The new televised series will consist of eight ‘double-header’ events at the UK’s top circuits, including Silverstone, Donington and Brands Hatch, and will be open to production GT cars such as Ferraris, TVRs and Porsches. Dunlop are a leading supplier to GT racing around the world, having won the GT2 class of the 2007 Le Mans Endurance Series with Virgo Ferrari team. Dunlop tyres are also used in other leading supercar and GT championships such as the International GT Open, Spanish Endurance Championship, Britcar, Dutch Supercar Challenge and Danish Endurance series.

11th January 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Dunlop Celebrates Motorsport Results at Autosport

Dunlop will be celebrating its 2007 motorsport successes, and unveiling important new motorsport contracts at the Autosport International Show at Birmingham’s National Exhibition Centre on Thursday. When the show opens at the NEC, the company’s key stand means that once again, the iconic Dunlop bridge will be the first thing that the predicted 100,000 visitors will see when they enter Hall 9. Dunlop design, develop and manufacture motorsport tyres at Fort Dunlop in Birmingham, and in 2007 were victorious in international Superbike racing, 125cc and 250cc Grand Prix motorcycle racing. On four wheels, Dunlop is the choice for touring car championships around the world, with success in the British, German and Australian national championships.

9th January 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

HiQ Set to Sponsor BTCC

HiQ has announced that it will replace the Dunlop brand as title sponsor of the MSA British Touring Car Championship. According an Auto Express report, Goodyear Dunlop’s recently overhauled retail equity and franchise network has signed up for the next three years, beginning in 2008. Executives see the BTCC sponsorship chance as a good opportunity to raise awareness of the HiQ brand amongst consumers. Dunlop will reportedly remain in its position as official BTCC tyre supplier.

7th December 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Eibach Extends Partnership with BTCC champions VX Racing

Suspension specialist Eibach UK has extended its technical partnership with Vauxhall’s Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship works team VX Racing following its successful 2007 season. Eibach supplied the team with performance springs and is proud of the contribution the springs’ immediate response, reduced body roll, increased stability and enhanced cornering ability made towards clinching the Drivers and Manufacturers Championships.

The extended deal was brokered by Triple Eight Race Engineering (888), the Greatworth-based organisation responsible for Vauxhall’s motorsport operations, which was highly pleased with Eibach’s contribution to the race-winning Vauxhall Vectra. “Eibach is the perfect partner for VX Racing,” said 888’s Commercial and Marketing Director Franck Marie. “Without doubt, Eibach has been an integral part of our success in 2007.

22nd November 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Giovanardi Takes BTCC Championship by the Slimmest of Margins

A second place finish in the BTCC season finale has seen Fabrizio Giovanardi crowned this year’s Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Champion. The final race at Hampshire’s Thruxton circuit, which ended two laps early following an accident involving Mike Jordan in the Team Eurotech Honda, saw Giovanardi pull ahead of his nearest rival in the points stakes, Seat driver Jason Plato. Victories for Giovanardi in the day’s first two races saw Plato’s nine point lead in the championship evaporate, and by the end of proceedings on October 14 Giovanardi had 300 points under his belt, a winning margin of just three.

Italy’s Giovanardi, driving for Vauxhall, is the 32nd different driver to take out the championship since the BTCC was first formed in 1958, and the Vauxhall team had double reason to celebrate. This season, the first in which it has fielded the Vectra, saw it regain the BTCC’s Manufacturer’s crown from arch-rival Seat, winning by 637 points to 623. But it is the Spanish make’s Seat Sport UK squad that has won the Teams’ title. Elsewhere, Colin Turkington was crowned the Independent Drivers’ Champion while his Team RAC BMW squad has taken the Independent Teams’ honours.

15th October 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Mini Goes Large at Oulton Park

This bank holiday the British Dunlop Motorsport Festival of 2007 hits Oulton Park in Cheshire on the forthcoming Bank Holiday Monday. After the season’s opening gathering at Snetterton in Norfolk, organizers are expecting another strong crowd to gorge themselves on a feast of Sports car racing, Production Saloon car racing, Mini racing, in fact a wall to wall racing spectacular from nine o’clock in the morning right through until six in the evening.

The action isn’t confined to the track either; also on the bill is the return of the popular Dunlop Great & British Mini Festival. Last year hundreds of Mini owners and their passengers took part in special parade laps around many of the country’s top racetracks and at Oulton Park they’ll be able to do the same again.

On the race front Scotland’s Oli Mortimer will be looking to continue his domination of the Mini Challenge championship. The promising youngster won all three races in his Cooper S at the recent Snetterton meeting and is out for more of the same at Oulton.

21st May 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Diesel Power enters the Dunlop BTCC

Dunlop has announced that a diesel-powered car will be competing in the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship for the first time in the championship’s 49-year history. BMW club series champion Rick Kerry indicates that he plans to enter a turbocharged BMW 1 Series acquired from BMW Motorsport in Germany.

12th March 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Aftermarket Show Improves Talkshop Concept

The TalkShop Seminar programme that made its debut at the Aftermarket Show last January will return again in 2007, in an enhanced format, designed to make it the centre of UK aftermarket trade event. This year’s programme will feature industry figures literally “talking shop” in a studio-style set-up, the focal point of which will be one of this year’s British Touring car Championship contenders.

15th November 2006/by Tyrepress Editors

Dunlop Launches BARC/Dunlop Sport Maxx Cup

During October Dunlop Tyres launched its latest motorsport series, the BARC/Dunlop Sport Maxx Cup. At the same time the company announced plans to upgrade its motorsport (particularly MotoGP) tyre production facilities in Birmingham. Tyres & Accessories met up with the Dunlop Motorsport team at Donington for the launch of the new series.

The new BARC/Dunlop Sport Maxx Cup, designed to be something of a stepping stone to the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, will take the form of a production saloon and sports coupe cup. The plan is for the new series to “star” at Dunlop’s 2007 Great & British motorsport festivals, alongside the existing Radial Enduro, BiDuro, Ginetta and Mini Championship events.

6th November 2006/by Tyrepress Editors

Dunlop Sport Maxx Cup Set for 2007 Launch

The BARC/Dunlop Sport Maxx Cup for production specification cars has taken a major step closer to taking a prime slot on the 2007 UK racing calendar.
Dunlop Tyres and the British Automobile Racing Club (BARC) announced the launch of the BARC/Dunlop Sport Maxx Cup in January this year. Since then the BARC has been inundated with enquiries, illustrating the demand for a genuine stepping stone to the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship.

9th June 2006/by Tyrepress Editors

Dunlop Awarded Marketing Design Award

Dunlop Tyres has been highly commended by marketing magazine, winning recognition in two categories. In the 2005 awards Dunlop has been presented with the marketing design ‘Award’ in the Sport and Leisure category and was ‘Highly Commended’ for Advertising and Sponsorship.

25th November 2005/by Tyrepress Editors

Dunlop launch ‘Great and British’ Racing Festivals

Dunlop is introducing a series of ‘Great and British’ Dunlop Motorsport Festivals for the 2006 season.

A major marketing programme, to broaden the appeal of motorsport in the UK and to introduce new spectators to the sport, will also support the weekend events.

The complete list of championships is due be announced shortly, however the John Cooper Mini Challenge, Radical Enduro and Radical BiDuro Championships, and Avo Ginetta Championship have already signalled their commitment to the package, which is backed by the British Automobile Racing Club (BARC).

6th September 2005/by Tyrepress Editors

Dunlop Sponsor BTCC

Dunlop will be the title sponsor of the MSA British Touring Car Championship for the next three years. As the sole tyre supplier to the BTCC for the past two seasons this latest agreement extends the relationship and reinforces the manufacturer’s brand marketing programme.

21st March 2005/by Tyrepress Editors