Dunlop has been selected as an OE supplier for Audi’s R8. The German sports coupe (dubbed by Audi the “slowest car we’ve ever built” due to its labour intensive, non-production line manufacture) will receive two top of the range Dunlop products, the UHP Dunlop SP Sport Maxx GT and for the upcoming winter season the Dunlop Winter Sport 3D.
According to sources reporting to Israel based business daily Globes, Alliance Tire Company has laid of dozens of temporary employees and intends to lay off “a considerable number of veteran employees”. This action is being taken, reports Globes, following a sharp fall in orders.
Logistics provider DHL is introducing across Europe a new patented solution for transporting tyres to market. The company calls the product ‘DHL Tyrebox’ and reports it is a convenient, cost saving and environmentally friendly method of packaging. The Tyrebox, says DHL, offers a unique solution to the conventional challenge of transporting tyres, turning them from a non-conveyable shipment into a conveyable one, allowing tyres to be easily stacked together and delivered flat-packed.
It appears that the current auto industry woes are by no means restricted to North America and Europe. In India, the Hindu Business Line reports that major manufacturers of medium and heavy commercial vehicles have reduced their OE tyre offtake projections by about 40 to 50 per cent during the current financial quarter.
The ContiTech Power Transmission Group has issued a new catalogue specifically for Asian vehicles. The range covers over 96 per cent of the Asian vehicle parc in Europe. The compilation helps workshops and dealers quickly locate the right belts as well as the range of deflection and tensioning pulleys and kits for Asian passenger cars.
The leading e-Commerce tyre retailer in Europe, Delticom, has announced that it is to merge its current car fleet business with the company’s buff new online portal. The change means that trader fleet owners can now purchase tyres through user-customised settings at the e-tailer’s online presence, www.flotten24.de.
The site will allow any user wishing to buy tyres from Flotten24.de to register free; following which visitors will be able to access the site’s comprehensive web-based catalogue of tyres and accessories. In this way, car tyres, lorry tyres, light truck tyres, motorbike tyres and high-quality motor oils will be offered in the fleet shop, while a personal sales contact will give advice to fleet customers and negotiate individual fleet solutions. In addition to these services, Delticom states that a network of professional service partners – which currently numbers over 5,700 in Germany alone – is available to fit online purchases. The average delivery time, the company adds, is between 48 and 72 working hours.
Yokohama announced today (Tuesday, 28 October) that it has diminished its projections for consolidated net sales and net income in the six months period between April 1 and September 30, 2008 (the first half of the fiscal year to March 31, 2009). Now the company has reported that it expects to see net sales increase by 1.4 per cent over the same period of the previous year to 257 billion yen (1.7 billion pounds sterling – assuming 1 GBP = 149.138 JPY). It also expects operating income to decline 54.6 per cent, to 5.5 billion yen (36.9 million GBP) and for net income to decline 96.2 per cent, to 500 million yen (3.4 million GBP).
The revised projection for net sales is 2.7% lower than the projection Yokohama announced on 12 May, 2008, when the company announced its results for the previous fiscal year. The projection for operating income is unchanged from the earlier projection, and the projection for net income is 75 per cent lower.
Finland’s Nokian Tyres has acquired two retail locations from Monro Muffler Brake, and plans to convert them to its Vianor retail tyre outlets. The new Nokian properties are located in Brattleboro, Vt., and Keene, N.H. The two new locations gives Nokian 12 Vianor stores in the U.S. Nokian has some 470 Vianor stores in Europe. (Tire Review/Akron)
On October 28 Michelin announced its plan to make operations in Italy more competitive. More than 200 million euros will be invested between now and 2013 to upgrade the company’s production facilities in the country, in order to make them more productive and specialised.
Production capacity will be significantly increased in Cuneo; following this expansion the Michelin plant will be the largest premium passenger car tyre production facility in Europe. Car tyre production will end at the company’s Stura workshop in Turin at the end of 2009. Semi-finished products will continue to be manufactured there, however, and the site’s logistics centre will operate following the transfer of the Vercelli warehouse.
One of Europe’s leading distributors of winter tyres, Belgian wholesaler Deldo is offering a catalogue of 25 brands, detailing its complete product range of premium and private labels. The company already delivers to around 10,000 clients throughout Europe, and will this winter hope to increase that number by offering what the company calls an “interesting mix” in its budget label line-up.
Thanks to experience gained over many years importing tyres from Asia, Deldo is able to offer several attractive product lines. Minerva is a long-established brand name, and was introduced in 1992 as a private label. From this year Minerva is being produced by two new manufacturers, offering approximately 15 new sizes. With Rockstone (Deldo’s new exclusive brand for Europe) the budget segment has been further extended. Thanks to the introduction of the new CP-661 Roadstone (Nexen) pattern, 15 new sizes have been added to Nexen’s (already) large size range.
Goodyear is highlighting the safety aspects of its products through a new integrated advertising campaign. The advertisement, created by London based agency Leagas Delaney, utilises the iconic Goodyear blimp, portraying the airship as a flying laboratory housing a team that looks after drivers on their journey.
The safety message is bolstered by statistics highlighting the safety benefits of Goodyear’s innovations, and the campaign also introduces a new endline – ‘Safety Together’ – and a new corporate identity. The campaign will be shown across Europe, the Middle East and Africa, encompassing TV, print and point of sale.
Continental AG should remain European, says Michelin. The Dow Jones news service reports that the French manufacturer’s co-managing partner Didier Miraton expressed this opinion to journalists at the sidelines of a Michelin press presentation on October 17.
It is “important for us that Continental remains in Europe,” said Miraton, referring to speculation that Conti may be a potential target for competitors from Asia, such as Hankook Tire. He added that Michelin will conduct talks with interested parties about Continental, but noted that anti-trust regulations represent a considerable obstacle.
Today’s advanced cars require advanced batteries. It’s no longer possible to simply select a replacement battery based on size and type of vehicle alone because many other factors influence battery selection. Within a single vehicle model line-up a range of engine types, power output levels and “in-car” electrical accessories are available, and end user fitments add further uncertainty to the ‘what battery is right’ question – the demand placed upon a battery varies widely. Modern vehicles also operate in vastly differing conditions, from short but intense urban driving conditions to longer sustained driving, and regardless of driving conditions, extreme heat or cold have always been factors for consideration.
Dunlop’s ultra-high performance tyre SP Sport Maxx GT has been made original equipment on the new Mercedes-Benz SL 65 AMG Black Series. The car delivers an unprecedented amount of power for a Mercedes roadster, meaning – Dunlop says – that the choice was made on the basis of the manufacturer’s experience and track record with high and ultra-high performance tyres.
Mercedes tuner AMG uses the SP Sport Maxx GT at the demanding DTM (Deutsche Tourenwagen-Meisterschaft, or German Touring Car Championship), one of Europe’s largest motorsport events. The new powerful two-seater road version, which continues AMG’s successful Black Series strategy, follows the appearance of famous AMG sports cars, such as the DTM CLK-Class or the CLK-GTR from the 1997 FIA GT-Series. Mercedes believes that the AMG 6.0-litre V12-Biturbo engine – with a maximum power of 493 kW (670 hp) – promises performance at the highest sports car levels and fulfils the expectations of the most demanding driving enthusiasts.
With fuel economy now an integral part of commercial vehicle driver training, Volvo Trucks’ official UK truck importer recently fitted the latest Monityre tyre pressure monitoring system (TPMS) from Safe Europe plc to one of its driver training vehicles.
“We talk about the importance of having the correct tyre pressures on your vehicle as part of our overall fuel economy training programme. By having the Monityre TPMS fitted to this Volvo FH-440 tractor unit, drivers can literally keep an eye on the Monityre in-cab display while undergoing their full driver training tuition. All participants using this vehicle get to see the tyre pressure monitoring system in operation, which we believe is part and parcel of any driver training programme,” said Andy Collett, Truck Evaluation Manager at Volvo Trucks.
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