Prices of Bridgestone, Firestone and Dayton brand tyres in the USA and Canada will be increased on June 1st. The price rises will affect both OE and replacement tyres and will be up to five per cent, although some off-the-road tyre prices could go up by eight per cent. The company says that it has taken steps to minimise the effects of rising raw material costs, but has been unable to offset them entirely, hence the price increase.
Anthony Ensor is returning to Pirelli Tire Inc. of Canada, where he began his career in 1985, as Vice President and General Manager. He has spent the past decade with Pirelli’s European operations in Italy, Germany and the UK. Ensor replaces Nicola Ruccolo, who has spent 28 years with Pirelli in Canada and North America, and who is leaving the company to pursue other interests.
Bandag, Incorporated acquired an 87.5% majority interest in Speedco, Inc. from its founders and Shell Oil Products US. Bandag, a world leader in truck retread tires and tire management services, will operate Speedco as an independent business unit. Speedco, headquartered in Cayuga, IN, provides quickservice truck lubrication nationwide through 26 company-owned and six licensed on-highway locations.
About 130 Goodyear Tire & Rubber workers in Statesville (North Carolina) have reason to celebrate today after an independent arbitrator confirmed on Wednesday that a majority of production and maintenance workers have signed United Steelworkers of America (USWA) authorisation cards. They join more than 19,000 USWA members already working at Goodyear facilities in the United States and Canada. The workers, who produce tyre moulds for Goodyear, were organised through a neutrality agreement in the 2003 USWA-Goodyear labour agreement. It says the Union will be recognised as the workers’ bargaining agent if a majority of workers sign USWA authorisation cards.
General Motors (GM) said Monday it is recalling about 824,000 cars built from January 1996 through October 1997 to fix a possible power steering problem. The world’s largest automaker said models affected by the problem include the 1996 Buick Regal, the 1997 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme, the 1997-98 Oldsmobile Cutlass, Chevrolet Lumina, Monte Carlo, Malibu, and the 1998 Oldsmobile Intrigue cars. Some 1996 Pontiac Grand Prix and Oldsmobile Cutlass Supremes and 1997-98 Buick Regal cars were also affected, GM said. It said about 750,000 of the vehicles subject to the recall were in the United States while most of the rest were sold in Canada. In some of the vehicles a lower pinion bearing in the power steering gear may separate, causing the driver to experience an intermittent loss of power steering assist or unintended power assist, according to GM. It said there had been reports of eight injuries that may be related to the problem but no fatalities.
Bridgestone/Firestone North American Tire, LLC (BFNT) and Bridgestone/Firestone Canada Inc. (BFCA) have jointly announced an “across the board” price increase of up to 5 per cent on the companies’ tyre products sold in the replacement and original equipment markets, including consumer, truck/bus, agricultural and off-the-road channels. This increase will be effective January 1, 2004, and affects Bridgestone, Firestone, Dayton, associate and private brand tyres.
Bridgestone/Firestone North American Tire (BFNT), recently launched Winterforce, its latest winter tyre product line. The Winterforce is “stepped, siped and studable” for superior winter driving and is available in 33 sizes. “The new line is an outstanding value at an affordable price,“ said Phil Pacsi, executive director, North American consumer tyre marketing, BFNT. “The Winterforce is designed to deliver a quiet and comfortable ride to your destination – regardless of weather conditions.“ With the latest in high-sipe density, three-dimensional tread patterns, this tyre offers confident snow, wet and ice traction. Winterforce also features a computer-modelled unidirectional tread designed to provide optimum traction accompanied by a quiet, comfortable ride. The line meets Rubber Manufacturers Association (RMA) and Rubber Manufacturers of Canada (CMA) severe snow requirements and is pinned for 12 studs to offer extra grip. An “winter mountain theme“ sidewall design adorns every size of the Winterforce line. The tyres are available in a full range of 33 sizes.
Nine Teams from seven countries will take part at the Fulda Challenge in February 2004 in Canada’s Northwest Yukon Territory – two of the teams come from Great Britain. One team will be Gill Watson/Gary Bullen, who qualified last weekend in Sulden (Italy).
DaimlerChrysler has announced three recalls in North America, involving 1.2 million vehicles. The first involves 1.06 million LHS, 300M and Concorde models in the USA and 135,000 in Canada, after an investigation revealed that seat recliner bolts may loosen due to premature wear. Recall number two involves 23,000 Dodge Ram 2500 and 3500 diesel trucks, for reprogramming of the engine control software. The final recall affects 11,655 Chrysler and Plymouth Prowlers and replacement of the lower ball joint on the front suspension which may be in danger of separation because of corrosion.
Ford’s Excursion 4×2 and Super Duty F-250 and F-350 Models will run on Pirelli Scorpion STRs as OE fit in 2003. Powertrains are at the heart of doing what SUVs and trucks are designed to do. A wide range of engines give these vehicles incredible power and torque, including the all new 6.0-litre, turbocharged, Power Stroke V8 diesel. Pirelli’s Scorpion STR is designed to cope with the torque and towing potential. The LT265/75 R 16 radials will be available with either black sidewalls or raised outline white letters. The Pirelli Scorpion STRs destined for 2003 Ford Excursions and Super Duty pickups will be manufactured in Pirelli’s factory in Brazil. The technical specification of the STR includes the combination of steel belts and nylon wrap for which Pirelli is famous, being the core technology behind Pirelli’s high-speed performance tyres. Tyres will be shipped to Ford assembly plants in Louisville, Kentucky and Cuautitlan, Mexico and vehicles produced will be distributed in the U.S., Canada and Mexico.
The first 15 seat passenger van tyre related roll-over case has begun at Wichita Falls, Texas. This is the first case to come to court since the NHTSA issues an advisory about the vehicles in April 2001. The first hearing will establish the validity of expert testimony. The defendants are DaimlerChrysler Corp, Michelin North America (Canada) Inc, Michelin North America Inc, and Michelin Americas Research and Development Corporation. The case arose after the alleged tread separation of a Michelin tyre which is claimed to have caused the vehicle to roll over several times resulting in four deaths.
Toyota President Fujio Cho has said that the company will need to build a fifth factory in the US if things go as planned in North America. The company wants to sell two million vehicles annually in the US by 2005 and is aiming at a 15 per cent share of the US market by 2010 – its current share is almost 10 per cent. In addition to the four existing US plants, Toyota has a factory in Canada.
Michelin has been chosen by rail transport company Bombardier Canada to supply wheels and tyres for the new Las Vegas monorail; a nine-car vehicle linking eight hotels and the convention centre. The contract follows an audit of Michelin by Bombardier at Clermont-Ferrand, which proved satisfactory and gave Michelin an A rating.
A bizarre tyre story from Canada: four Canadians have legally changed their names from Dunlop to Dunlop-Tire in order to win a share of a $25,000 prize. The money was offered by Dunlop Tires and more than 100 people applied. Dunlop Tires carried out a survey, in which 42 per cent said that they thought that name-changing to brands will be a new marketing strategy. 37 per cent said they would change their name if paid sufficiently.
Every year, Canadian automotive journalists carry out a series of driving tests, after which they name their “car of the year” in various categories. In the 2001 awards, 10 out of 15 car and truck category winners were fitted with Goodyear tyres. Wayne Barnes, president and CEO of Goodyear Canada, said that the results underline the way the company works closely with OEMs to achieve better vehicle performance.
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