Hannover-based Continental AG is a leading automotive supplier and – according to the company – is “the choice of leading car manufacturers, offering award-winning tyres that deliver responsive braking in all weather conditions.”
Continental returns to the Tour de France this year as a main sponsor, and in addition to supplying six of the participating teams with bicycle tyres, the brand is also equipping support vehicles with PremiumContact 6 and EcoContact 6 tyres. All tyres fitted to support vehicles feature ContiRe.Tex technology.
There are many changes in our latest leading tyre manufacturers ranking. The 2023 table, which lists the world’s leading tyre companies according to their full-year 2022 financial results, particularly highlights the shifts that have taken place this year in the second half of the top 20. Meanwhile, the top nine tyremakers appear to be an increasingly stable group. Between places nine and 10, there is still a gap of some 1 billion euros, something that is clearly hard to overcome for newcomers. However, as insurmountable as it appears, the gap is obviously narrowing.
The “most sustainable” Continental tyre to date will arrive next month. With up to 65 per cent renewable, recycled and mass balance certified materials, the Continental UltraContact NXT “combines a high share of sustainable materials with maximum safety and performance.”
With the introduction of the Barum Industry alongside existing Continental and General Tire super elastic ranges, Continental Commercial Specialty Tyres has completed its three-brand strategy for solid tyres. The Barum brand’s positioning within this “tailored portfolio of robust solid tyres for different industrial applications and customer requirements,” the company sees it “best suited for low-intensity applications.”
S8 Capital, which recently acquired the Continental plant, is set to acquire the Bridgestone tyre plant in Ulyanovsk, Russia and become the country’s second-largest tyremaker. According to the Pravda newspaper, the acquisition marks the continuation of S8 Capital’s expansion into the tyre industry. Post-acquisition S8 Capital will be second only to Tatneft, which acquired a Nokian Tires plant in the Leningrad region earlier this year, in terms of tyre manufacturing capacity.
Continental has launched a successor to its AllSeasonContact and says the new tyre not only delivers improved safety compared to the first-generation product, it is also capable of driving for an additional season. AllSeasonContact 2 will arrive at UK dealers and retailers from July.
Continental presented its second generation all-season tyre at an event in Austria. Tyrepress was there and will report on this at a later date, but the headline is generational performance improvements in almost all areas. AllSeasonContact 2 comes to market in a launch range of 99 sizes and will be available in the UK from July.
Tyres are important when stopping a vehicle, and brakes are too. Continental has both areas covered and has announced a world first for the latter: The company has commenced series production of its new generation of brake systems for Electronic Stability Control (ESC), the MK 120 ESC. The first OEM partner to receive the system is Chinese car maker Changan ahead of supply to a “European car manufacturer” later this year.
Jorge Almeida will become Head of Sustainability at Continental Tires from 1 May 2023, taking on responsibility for the strategic positioning and global management of the tyre maker’s sustainability activities. He succeeds Claus Petschick, who is retiring after more than 30 years at Continental.
Audi is factory-fitting its RS 6 Avant performance with Continental SportContact 7 tyres. Continental shares that it has obtained global approval for equipping this Audi model with a 22-inch fitment, and in numerous markets including the UK and Ireland the tyre of choice is the SportContact 7 AO Silent in size 285/30 ZR 22 101Y XL FR.
When Continental first discussed setting up a plant in Russia back in 2011, it spoke of an investment of around 220 million euros. According to sources within Russia, the German company may only recover a fraction of this amount when divesting its local operation to S8 Capital. Moscow-based newspaper Kommersant states that the transaction is valued at 7 to 10 billion roubles, or just 80 million to 114 million euros, a figure in line with the “impaired assets of around 87 million euros” that Continental reported in connection with its business activity in Russia on 8 March 2023.
At its meeting yesterday, the Continental AG Supervisory Board extended the appointment of Nikolai Setzer, the company’s chief executive officer and Executive Board chairman. It also appointed Philipp von Hirschheydt as a new Executive Board member for the Continental Automotive group sector, effective 1 May 2023.
For years the rise in prominence and market share of high-value and high-margin SUV and 4×4 tyres has continued unabated. During that time the boundaries between cross-over vehicles (CUV), sports utility vehicles (SUV) and 4x4s have been well and truly blurred. Now, with electric drivetrain technology coming to the fore as well, and with some tyre manufacturers making the case for specific electric vehicle-orientated tyres, is a new ultra-high value combined niche emerging? And if so, what does such intersectionality, or perhaps more appropriately since we are talking about tyres cross-sectionality, mean for the wider tyres business?
On 2 May, Continental will drive the first mile of a two-year journey that will bring its portfolio of truck tyres and services to fleet customers throughout Europe. By the time the Continental European Roadshow draws to a close in 2025, it will have covered more than 9,000 miles and visited 35 countries.
Bandvulc has launched a new tyre for bus and coach operators. Introducing Citymaster 5, the Continental-owned retreader states that the tyre “majors on delivering exceptional reliability, durability and safety for operators of passenger carrying vehicles.”
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Photo: Volvo