Continental Archives - Page 163 of 229 - Tyrepress

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.”

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Hankook Ventus Prime Wins Auto Motor und Sport Test

Leading German motoring magazine Auto Motor und Sport has rated Hankook’s Ventus Prime as its top tyre in a recent magazine summer tyre test (issue 7/2008). “Excellent handling characteristics and superior braking ability on both wet and dry surfaces” steered it to first place for the automotive premium segment in a comparative test against eight tyres. The test examined tyres in dimensions 235/55 R17 W/Y from manufacturers like Continental, Bridgestone, Goodyear and Michelin on a Mercedes-Benz S-Class. Only the Ventus Prime was awarded the coveted rating “exceptionally recommended,” taking the top spot in four out of 10 categories: Handling and braking on wet surface, traction and lateral stability.

19th March 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Conti Wins 6 Which? Best Buys

Continental Tyres’ EcoContact 3, PremiumContact 2 and SportContact 3 models have been named Best Buys in a total of six size categories in the latest Which? tyre test report. Leading the pack of Continental’s Best Buy tyres is the ContiEcoContact 3 which took the top spot in four of the test size categories including 155/70 R13 T, 175/65 R14 T, 185/60 R14 H and 165/70 R14 T. The ContiPremiumContact 2 was also named Best Buy in the 195/65 R15 V size category, while the ContiSportContact 3 drove home the title in the 225/45 R17 Y size.

Tracey Hyem from Continental Tyres said: “Drivers need a lot from their tyres and criteria including safety, good handling, performance, low noise, durability and fuel economy are of vital importance. At Continental, we take these features very seriously and they are all hugely integral to the design and development of our tyres. To have this commitment recognised with six Which? Best Buy accolades is clear testament to the performance and quality of our tyres.”

18th March 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Wennemer Quashes Siemens VDO Renegotiation Rumours

Continental AG reports its new year has got off to “a very convincing start”, and adds that, contrary to stories appearing in the media, it sees no reason to reopen negotiations with Siemens over the VDO unit. Furthermore, the company holds a positive outlook for its 2008 targets. “We shall set forth our streak of success,” stressed CEO Manfred Wennemer on March 14. “In the first two months our sales and results far exceeded our forecasts and were well ahead of the previous year’s figures. We reaffirm our prognosis: Overall sales of more than 26.4 billion euros; a consolidated EBIT margin of 9.3 per cent before amortisation from the purchase price allocation and before integration and restructuring expenses. In addition we assign the very highest priority to cutting away at our debt. As planned, we shall apply our robust free cash flow to the reduction.”

14th March 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Wennemer Quashes Siemens VDO Renegotiation Rumours

Continental AG reports its new year has got off to “a very convincing start”, and adds that, contrary to stories appearing in the media, it sees no reason to reopen negotiations with Siemens over the VDO unit. Furthermore, the company holds a positive outlook for its 2008 targets. “We shall set forth our streak of success,” stressed CEO Manfred Wennemer on March 14. “In the first two months our sales and results far exceeded our forecasts and were well ahead of the previous year’s figures. We reaffirm our prognosis: Overall sales of more than 26.4 billion euros; a consolidated EBIT margin of 9.3 per cent before amortisation from the purchase price allocation and before integration and restructuring expenses. In addition we assign the very highest priority to cutting away at our debt. As planned, we shall apply our robust free cash flow to the reduction.”

14th March 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Conti Releasing 60 New 4×4 Sizes in 2008

Continental’s 4×4 tyre range has been further expanded this season, with no fewer than six summer tyre models now available in this segment. The German manufacturer is releasing 60 new sizes for 4×4, SUV and crossover vehicles this year, and continues to supply OE for numerous manufacturers, including Audi, BMW, Land Rover, Mercedes, Porsche and Volkswagen.

The ContiCrossContact UHP is designed for particularly powerful 4×4 vehicles. Its performance characteristics – including short braking distances and enhanced cornering stability – are geared specifically to the requirements of vehicles like the Porsche Cayenne or BMW X5. To satisfy specific tyre fitment requirements the ContiCrossContact UHP is also available in 23- and 24-inch sizes. The range thus covers the lion’s share of retrofitting and tuning requirements for V, W, Y and Z speed ratings (for speeds in excess of 210 km/h to more than 300 km/h). The ContiCrossContact UHP has already managed 330 km/h under controlled conditions in a high-speed event at Italy’s Nardo Ring.

13th March 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Conti May Re-Negotiate Siemens VDO Purchase

Continental AG may be looking at renegotiating its 11.4 billion euro acquisition of the Siemens VDO unit. Reuters has reported that a “source close to the matter” gave the news agency this information on March 12.

Reuters quotes the source as saying “In the Powertrain division, there are significant problems” – apparent confirmation of an article published that day in the Hannoverschen Allgemeinen Zeitung newspaper. The source added that Conti “would have to negotiate with Siemens because Siemens did not sufficiently inform Continental before the acquisition.”

13th March 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Dear Prime Minister – Conti Asks Tanzania’s Govt. to Aid GTEA

Continental is reported to have requested the government of Tanzania take action to aid the moribund General Tyre East Africa (GTEA), in which the German tyre major holds a 26 per cent share. Furthermore, Conti is said to have informed Tanzania’s Prime Minister, Mr. Mizengo Pinda, that without assistance a complete closure of GTEA may be required by March 31, 2008.

An article that appeared in East African Business Week on March 10 indicates that, according to “reliable information”, Continental wrote to Mr. Pinda in mid-February, asking his government to honour the commitments agreed upon nine months earlier. The country’s sole tyre manufacturer suspended its 400 employees without pay towards the end of 2007, and is said to need at least US$10 million before production can resume. However, Mr. Said Nguba, press secretary to Mr. Pinda, told the business newspaper in early March that he had no knowledge of the letter. “I’m not in office and I’ve yet come across such information,” stated Nguba.

12th March 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

New Sizes Increase Conti’s Summer PCR Range

Newly announced sizes have broadened Continental’s summer passenger car tyre range for 2008. The company’s top ContiSportContact 3 model is now available in a total of 138 sizes and 111 size options are included in the ContiPremiumContact 2 range for medium and larger sized vehicles.

The ContiSportContact 3 was developed with the manufacturers and drivers of sporty cars in mind, and Conti thus emphasised braking distances, handling and wet road performance as the tyre’s key strengths. The range features an additional tread pattern variant for powerful rear-wheel-drive sports cars and yet another tread version for tuning requirements. The Conti sports tyre has received original equipment releases from numerous leading carmakers: Volkswagen has recently started equipping its Passat CC with the self-sealing variant based on ContiSeal technology. Other vehicle manufacturers offer SSR-run-flat variants as standard tyres on wide sections of their model lines.

12th March 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

European Commission Approves Brose Acquisition of Conti Units

The European Commission has approved the purchase of Continental’s electric motor device and cooling fan businesses by German company Brose. The electric motor device business was acquired by Conti when it purchased the Siemens VDO unit, and its purchase by Brose was agreed upon in mid-December. The business specialises in electric motors for window regulators, anti-lock braking systems, heating/ventilation, engine cooling and electric power steering.

11th March 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Conti Announces PCR & LCV Tyre Price Increases

Continental has announced Europe-wide price increases of between 3.5 and 5 per cent for its passenger car and van tyre product lines. The increases affect both summer and winter tyre ranges and will take affect as of June 1. The reason behind the planned price increases is a familiar one, with the need to counter rising raw materials, such as steel, oil and rubber cited by Continental.

11th March 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Keep in Contact

Although the occasional taste of watery sunshine is giving us renewed confidence that, yes, summer is approaching, Continental is already looking ahead to the coming winter with the release of its new ContiWinterContact TS 830. And while the not so frigid past months may tempt us to scoff at the idea of separate tyres for the colder months, Conti’s decision to bring the TS 830 to our shores reflects the tyre major’s confidence in the handling and safety benefits its winter tyres can deliver, even in the UK.

Intended as a replacement for the TS 810, the new range will initially be available in popular 15 and 16-inch sizes and approved for speeds up to 240km/h. Conti reports that the TS 830 offers further improvements in terms of driving safety, mileage performance and rolling resistance over the TS 810 – in wet condition testing the TS 830 handled the aquaplaning longitudinal and lateral, handling and circle dynamic tests 4 per cent better than the TS 810. Dry weather braking and handling tests revealed 5 per cent better performance, while braking and traction tests in ice conditions revealed that the TS 830 was a significant 7 per cent superior to the older tyre. The new range also recorded 6 per cent better mileage.

These improvements have been made possible through changes to the tread structure, a modified sidewall design and new polymer compounds in the tread. In the development of this new tyre, the emphasis was on braking and setting off in typical wintry conditions, as well as on rainy, wet roads. Matthias Seng, the tyre developer working on the TS 830, thus designed a directionally orientated tread pattern divided into distinct centre and shoulder regions. The tread centre was developed to provide grip on ice, whilst the shoulder section ensures high braking performance in snow. The tyre’s central tread area features more than 100 large lugs and densely packed sipes, offering numerous gripping edges on icy roads. The tyre shoulders are characterised by the many smaller lugs and fewer sipes, providing gripping edges for optimum road holding in snow.

“In the shoulder section we have over 100 lug edges and a total sipe length of 30 metres across the entire tread,” commented Seng. “These are very high values that provide best grip in snow and ice.” The contact patch on the TS 830 tyre is even larger than on the previous model, ensuring larger numbers of effective gripping edges for road contact. Thanks to the functional sub-division of the different sections, Seng believes that the conflict that usually occurs during development between grip in snow and grip on ice was substantially reduced.

In regards to the sipes, they have been designed to provide very good longitudinal flexibility combined with high stiffness during cornering. This allows for a faster steering response and higher cornering speed – both important when confronted with unexpected obstacles that have to be swiftly avoided. Driving in the rain is made more secure through the rapid drainage abilities of the directional tread pattern, which ensure that water and slush are dispersed from the ground contact patch effectively. Conti adds that the tread’s directional orientation allows the tread elements to be arranged in a way that generates very little tyre/road noise.

The use of silica compound in cold weather tyres is a given, and Conti calls their particular variety “H.A.F.T.”, short for Hydrophilic Adhesion Fluid Technology, a compound containing a grip enhancing additive that creates a bond between the rubber and the thin layer of water behind the grip edge. Conti reports that the compound used in the TS 830 not only provides extra road holding in snow and ice, and on wet roads, it also reduces rolling resistance.

“We managed to improve driving characteristics in snow and ice by up to 7 per cent, whilst on wet and dry roads we outperformed the tyre’s predecessor by up to 5 per cent,” said Mr. Seng. Conti adds that the TS 830 is their first tyre specifically developed to support driver assist systems such as ESC.

Production of the ContiWinterContact TS 830 will start in summer 2008, ensuring that the tyre is available from dealers in good time for autumn. The initial range will consist of 18 sizes for 15 and 16-inch diameters in widths between 185 and 215 mm, and cross-sections from 65 to 55.

11th March 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Conti Announces PCR & LCV Tyre Price Increases

Continental has announced Europe-wide price increases of between 3.5 and 5 per cent for its passenger car and van tyre product lines. The increases affect both summer and winter tyre ranges and will take affect as of June 1. The reason behind the planned price increases is a familiar ones, with the need to counter rising raw materials, such as steel, oil and rubber cited by Continental.

10th March 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Conti May Merge Siemens VDO Facilities – Wennemer

According to Continental CEO Manfred Wennemer, the merger of some of the Siemens VDO production plants Conti acquired last year remains a possibility. In an interview with the German business magazine WirtschaftsWoche, Mr. Wennemer said “we have 200 plants in 36 countries. We certainly do not need all of these plants. One has to combine them in order to improve the manufacturing capacity of each of these plants.”

While the CEO did not elaborate on which facilities may be affected, he used the manufacture of airbags as a case in point: “We make airbags in Regensburg and Ingolstadt (Germany), in America, China and South America. We will examine which are the most competitive. And we will decide to produce the airbags there.”

10th March 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Conti’s Hippe to Run Passenger & Light Truck Tyre Divisions

During Continental AG’s March 7 board meeting the decision was taken to reorganise responsibilities within the company’s Executive Board. As a result, as of April 1 Manfred Wennemer will hand over control of the Passenger and Light Truck Tire division to company CFO Dr. Alan Hippe. At the end of September 2008 Dr. Hippe will also take charge of the ContiTech division, succeeding Gerhard Lerch, who intends to retire and relinquish his seat on the board at this time. Mr. Wennemer will remain responsible for the Interior division.

Dr. Hippe will continue in the capacity of CFO until a successor to the position is appointed. Continental reports that no changes have been made to the responsibilities held by other members of the Executive Board.

10th March 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

SmarTire & Siemens Reach Infringement Agreement

On March 4 SmarTire Systems Inc. announced it had settled the patent lawsuit it filed against Siemens VDO Automotive Corp., now known as Continental Automotive Systems US, Inc. Prior to the February 20 settlement the lawsuit had been pending in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia. The terms of the settlement and license agreement between SmarTire and Siemens have not been disclosed, with SmarTire claiming the information to be confidential. In addition, Siemens has also acknowledged the validity and enforceability of SmarTire’s United States Patent No. 5,231,872 in a judgment that was entered by the district court on February 21, 2008.

6th March 2008/by Tyrepress Editors