Founded in 1898 by Frank Seiberling, The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company is an American multinational tyre manufacturing company based in Akron, Ohio. It is one of the oldest, biggest and best-known tyremakers in the world. Goodyear makes tyres for automobiles, commercial trucks, light trucks, motorcycles, SUVs, racing cars, aeroplanes, farm equipment and heavy earth-mover machinery. Find all the news and analysis you need relating to Goodyear here.
After rekindling their partnership in 2019, Goodyear and Brabham Automotive have once again teamed up. Goodyear is supplying its Eagle F1 SuperSport RS as original equipment tyre for the road-going version of the Australian-made supercar, the Brabham BT62R.
Cooper Tire wasn’t initially looking to sell when Goodyear chief executive Rich Kramer approached the company, Cooper’s president and CEO told journalists in a virtual press conference on 22 February 2021. Rather, Cooper’s management and board were convinced by Goodyear’s “compelling offer” and “strategic logic”. So, what exactly was it that convinced Cooper’s leadership team?
Explaining the rationale behind Goodyear’s multi-billion dollar acquisition of Cooper Tire, executives said the combination offers “compelling strategic and financial benefits”. Specifically, they suggested the transaction “further strengthens Goodyear’s leading position in the US, while significantly growing its position in other North American markets.” With just two home-grown domestic tyremakers in the US (Goodyear and Cooper), that much is clear. However, the benefits of the announced merger are not limited to North America. In China, the combination will almost double Goodyear’s presence. According to Goodyear, it will also increase the Akron, Ohio-based tyremaker’s OE tyre supply position, while creating broader distribution for Cooper replacement tyres through Goodyear’s network of 2,500 branded retail stores.
The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company and Cooper Tire & Rubber Company have made “a definitive transaction agreement” that will see Goodyear buy Cooper for roughly $2.5 billion. The combined company will have approximately $17.5 billion in pro forma 2019 sales. Upon closing of the transaction, Goodyear shareholders will own approximately 84 per cent of the combined company, and Cooper shareholders will own approximately 16 per cent.
Ten premium and mid-range brands of tyre show us what they can – and can’t – do in Autozeitung’s 2021 summer tyre test. This year the German motoring publication looks at size 225/40 R18, which is a dimension suited to around 60 vehicle models – including the new Seat Leon, which served as test vehicle.
The days are getting longer and the air outside less bitingly cold. Summer is on its way, and this also means that tyre testers have emerged from hibernation. The first comparative evaluation we’ve seen for the warmer months of 2021 comes from German car magazine Gute Fahrt, which tested the tyre size 245/40 R18 Y.
Goodyear has invested in a further autonomous vehicle firm through its Goodyear Ventures venture capital fund. The latest business to join Goodyear Venture’s growing investment portfolio is TuSimple, a global autonomous trucking technology company that operates self-driving trucks out of its facilities in the USA, Europe, China and Japan.
The BMW M2 CS Racing is the new entry-level model in the BMW M Motorsport product portfolio, and the car has its own race series. BMW M Motorsport is collaborating with motorsport agency tolimit to bring the BMW M2 Cup to European circuits this year. Each of the identical cars competing in the series will race on Goodyear tyres.
Cross Magazin has given the Dunlop Geomax MX53 its ‘Product of the Year’ award in recognition of the motocross tyre’s wide range of performance and longevity after extensive testing. In its January 2021 issue, the German specialist publication presented Geomax MX53 as its ‘Product of the Year’ for 2020, explaining that its performance window as an intermediate to hard motocross tyre and durability after varied testing was not only an improvement over its predecessor the Geomax MX52, but outstanding in its own right.
Goodyear is the new ‘Official Tire Partner’ of the Nürburgring circuit in Germany. It gained this status upon expanding its existing partnership with the Nürburgring Driving Academy, the ring°kartbahn and Offroadpark to cover the entire Nürburgring organisation.
In the US The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company and ConMet announced a strategic collaboration to create combined digital solutions that will “better connect commercial truck fleets to the health of their tyres and wheel ends”. Billed as leveraging big data and utilising predict analytics, ConMet’s existing SmartHub is positioned as a stepping stone en route to autonomous vehicle technology.
Goodyear Ventures, the venture capital arm of Goodyear Tire & Rubber, has added Starship Technologies to its investment portfolio. Goodyear Ventures joins multiple investors helping to raise US$17 million for the autonomous delivery company.
With the addition of a new DiM250 Dynamic Driving Simulator, the Goodyear Innovation Center in Colmar-Berg, Luxembourg will gain greater tyre testing capabilities. The equipment supplied by VI-grade, a provider of real-time simulation software and driver-in-the-loop simulators, will also enhance technical collaboration between Goodyear Tire & Rubber’s European operation and its headquarters in Akron, USA, where another DiM250 recently entered operation.
After debuting in 2020 as exclusive tyre supplier to the British Touring Car Championship (BTCC), having taken over from sister brand Dunlop, Goodyear has now signed up for a further five years. Goodyear Tyres and BTCC series organiser TOCA announced today that their partnership will continue through to the end of 2026 and through the introduction of hybrid power to the championship.
Goodyear has brought out a second generation of its summer van and light truck tyre. The first sizes in the new Goodyear EfficientGrip Cargo 2 range began arriving in December, and the full range of 23 SKUs for 14- to 17-inch rim diameters should be available by the end of October 2021.
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