Like your wheels bright? Then look no further…In March Alcoa announced that its Commercial Vehicle Wheels business has launched a new line of forged wheels that employ a new proprietary process. This process, says Alcoa, delivers not only the industry’s lightest forged aluminium wheel and even greater strength; it provides a finish on both sides that is six times brighter than any wheel in its class.
Wheels India, part of the TVS group companies, and leading Indian tyre maker, MRF, are supplying the original equipment wheels and tyres for Tata Motors’ pint-sized ultra-mini the Nano. Wheels India managing director, Srivats Ram, told Hindu Business Line: “The wheel that was developed is lighter than any other passenger car wheel in the country and the first wheel to my knowledge in passenger car wheels to have three bolt-holes instead of the conventional four.”
Proving their race cars to be both faster and greener than the competition, Audi and Corvette scored the prototype and GT race wins respectively while winning the first Michelin Green X Challenge awards at the Twelve Hours of Sebring, the opening event of the 2009 American Le Mans Series season. Making its first race appearance, the low sulphur diesel powered Audi R15 TDI prevailed in an epic 12-hour battle against archrivals from Peugeot to claim the race victory while also using less energy. The pairs of cars from the two teams exchanged the lead 23 times in the 12-hour race that produced new records for race distance and average speed.
Goodyear has announced the winner of its 26th Goodyear North American Highway Hero Award, honouring Colorado truck driver Jorge Orozco Sanchez. He saved the lives of two young girls after a horrific highway accident last October. The announcement was made at a special awards banquet during the Mid-America Trucking Show. Alongside the award, he also received a $10,000 U.S. Savings Bond, a plaque and a specially designed ring.
An independent owner-operator, Orozco Sanchez was hauling grain on Oct. 28, 2008 on Highway 392, north of Greeley, CO, when an SUV suddenly crossed the centre line and crashed head-on into his tractor-trailer rig. After impact, the truck pushed the SUV backward down the road for about 200 feet. As the vehicles stopped moving, a shaken Orozco Sanchez quickly jumped from his cab and went to the other vehicle. There, with flames already beginning to surround the vehicles, he saw two girls, strapped into their car seats and crying, and a woman up front who was not moving. Working with a passer-by who used a fire extinguisher to fight back the flames, Orozco Sanchez used his knowledge of child car seats – he has two young children – to rescue the two girls.
One of the youngsters was extracted quickly, but the fire was getting bigger and the smoke was so thick he had trouble seeing into the vehicle. He was finally able to remove the other girl, then the truck’s saddle fuel tanks ruptured and exploded, creating an inferno. The 27-year-old mother died in the crash. Orozco Sanchez sustained burns on his arms from the rescue and was taken to a nearby hospital. The fire reduced the cab and the SUV to rubble, also burning the side of a nearby building.
Continental Tire North America plans to “improve the product, service and training offerings to commercial vehicle tyre customers” though its new Continental Revolution program. The new project was launched this week at the Mid-America Trucking Show in Louisville, Kentucky. Part of the program was the launch of five new medium truck radials (see separate story), and “new programs designed to reduce overall driving cost and a new state-of-the-art mobile classroom,” CTNA officials said.
Named the “Untamed Innovation Tour,” CTNA’s new 83-foot mobile tyre information centre featuring product samples, rolling resistance demonstrations, a movie theatre, driving games and touch-screen explanations of Continental tyre technologies, according to the company.(Tire Review/Akron)
The Auto Channel reports that on Monday 9 March, 2009, Michelin presented PSA Peugeot Citroën with the millionth Michelin Energy Saver tyre, reaffirming the strategic partnership between the two groups. The Energy Saver made its debut exclusively on the Peugeot 308 in 2007.
Michelin states that its ‘green’ technological solution “generates fuel savings of nearly 0.2 litres per 100 kilometres in combined cycle driving, resulting in a reduction in CO2 emissions of nearly 4 grams per kilometre.” In recognition, it states of its “performance and the exceptional teamwork demonstrated by the partners,” PSA Peugeot Citroën presented Michelin with an Innovation award in May 2006. Today, this tyre technology is widely deployed on a large number of Peugeot and Citroën vehicles.
Kumho tyres have won a respected magazine tyre test for the second year in a row. Russian publication Za Rulem declared the Kumho Solus KH17 as outright winner of Za Rulem’s test of 15 major tyre brands. The extensive trial encompassed all key disciplines including: braking, steering response, safety, noise level, fuel consumption and wear resistance on both wet and dry roads.
“Kumho’s Solus KH17 is strongly recommended and boasts excellent performance in all weather conditions as well as remarkable fuel efficiency. Kumho’s second consecutive victory in our annual test proves last year’s result was well deserved,” Za Rulem commented. The Korean manufacturer also won considerable acclaim in a similarly comprehensive comparison of major tyre brands run by Germany’s ADAC motorwelt.
Sumitomo Rubber Industries, Ltd. has pledged its Eco-First Commitment to the Japanese minister of the environment. In response the company has received “Eco-First Company” certification in recognition of its group’s efforts on environmental conservation based on the country’s Eco-First Program.
However, from the tyre industry’s point of view, the most striking news is that the company is aiming to develop “the ultimate eco-tyre…100 per cent free of fossil resources and fuel-efficient tyre whose rolling resistance is reduced by 50 per cent for launch in 2013 and in 2015, respectively.” The company’s Enasave product is already 97 per cent petrochemical free, however, Sumitomo’s goal of achieving a fossil-free tyre in the next 4-6 years is certainly ambitious.
Pall-Ex has switched its forklift truck fleet to Continental CSEasy tyres. Pall-Ex’s headquarters in Ellistown in Leicestershire operates 36 fork lift trucks running on a 24 hour shift operation. Barloworld in partnership with Continental Tyres introduced the new, award winning CSEasy to the site and the results have reportedly shown a number of key benefits for Pall-Ex.
Tony Mellor, commercial director, said: ”Both tyre punctures and truck downtime were a real concern for us at Pall-Ex. The CSEasy tyre can be mounted and demounted without the use of a press, safely in the on-site Barloworld workshop. This saves us costly downtime and the need for expensive equipment. It also means that we are able to change tyres 24/7 keeping our operation moving round the clock.
Domestic Chinese tyre manufacturers are taking step to produce more environmentally friendly tyres, according to a China Economic report. “The occurrence of [the radial] in 1946 reduced the tyre’s rolling resistance by 20 per cent and the ‘green’ tyre emerging in the 1990s further reduced the rolling resistance,” Head of Rubber Tyre Expert Group of Planning and Economic Committee of China Rubber Industry Association Chen Zhihong said, adding: “although it just begins, the ‘green’ tyre represents the trend of further energy saving and emission reduction via tyre.”
According to Chen Zhihong’s analysis the main way to reduce the rolling resistance is to use SSBR in combination with “mainly white carbon” fillers. In this scenario the “green” tyre can reduce the rolling resistance by about 26 per cent, save fuel by between 3 and 8 per cent without losing out on other performance characteristics such as noise and wet grip. Nevertheless, the “green” tyre is currently said to mainly be used by top-grade automobiles in China “as a result of its high cost.”
Johnson Controls Batteries has urged the UK aftermarket to gear up to cope with stronger demand for AGM (absorbent glass mat) batteries to support the stop-start technology now available on an increasing range of new cars. Stop-start is the European automotive industry’s primary response to EU guidelines for the reduction of average CO2 emissions to 120 g/km by 2012. It conserves energy by shutting off the engine whenever the car stops, such as at a traffic light, thus reducing fuel consumption by up to 10 per cent and also reducing CO2 emissions.
New European models launched with automatic stop-start include the Audi A4, Fiat 500, Panda and Croma, Mercedes-Benz C, E and S Class, Volvo C30, S40 and V50 and the new Mk 6 VW Golf. Re-starting the engine requires sufficient power, but in urban driving conventional batteries often do not charge sufficiently. To resolve this, all cars using stop=start technology rely exclusively on an AGM battery to provide enough starting power to support the new system.
Pressure Systems International, along with Wirth Financial and Velociti, is offering a new “stimulus package” program for the trucking industry during the Technology & Maintenance Council’s annual meeting and transportation technology exhibition in Orlando, Florida. The MTIS Stimulus Package is a turn-key, buy four get one free retrofit program that will allow fleets to purchase four retrofit kits, including installation, directly from Velociti, for any axle combination and have an immediate 20 per cent savings on the cost of the MTIS by PSI product. Velociti will perform kit installations at fleet locations.(Tire Review/Akron)
Bridgestone has released its premium Turanza ER300 Ecopia grand touring tyre in Europe, and according to the company versions of the Mercedes S-Class and Opel Insignia fitted with the tyres have already been introduced onto the market. Outside of these two OE fitments, the new Ecopia tyres will be progressively available in the replacement market from April 2009, initially in 15 different sizes from 14 to 17 inch and H to Y speed ratings. More sizes will follow in the near future, states Bridgestone.
A new official Goodyear distributor has been appointed in Malta, United Automobile Limited (UAL). The beginning of this relationship was marked at a UAL service centre in Lija, and was attended by Goodyear’s Mediterranean regional business leader, Martin Lumb.
Yokohama Rubber plans to hold the European launch of its new ‘dB super E-spec’ at the Geneva Motor Show, which gets underway on March 3. The tyre is, according to Yokohama, the “ultimate eco-tyre designed to be environmentally friendly in all respects.” Other new releases will be the “ADVAN NEOVA AD08,” released in Japan in February and marketed here in the summer, and the W.drive cold weather tyre – the latest in the four-product “.drive” series – which will be released this coming winter.
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