(Akron/Tire Review) H.Y. (Greg) Pae has been named president of Hankook Tire American Corp., replacing J.W. Choi, who was reassigned to head Hankook’s China operations. Pae took over as 1 December. Pae most recently served as executive vice president of Hankook’s U.S. arm, and has had a number of international assignments during his 20 years with Hankook.
Tyre manufacturers including Dunlop, Kumho, Vredestein, Pirelli, Yokohama, Toyo, Hankook, Maxsport and Hoosier will all exhibit at January’s Autosport/Aftermarket show. Others are expected to follow later. With the help of its exhibitor base, The Aftermarket Show will again focus on a number of tyre related issues, which include wheel balancing alignment and calibration, tyre disposal, tyre fitting and tyre safety.
Hankook is set to join forces with former British Rally Champion David Higgins on the final round of the China Rally Championship and of the World Rally Championship. The Welsh-based Manxman worked with Hankook earlier this year when he drove to third overall in the Lurgan Park Rally and the parties say they are delighted to be reunited on these two key events. Hankook Motorsport manager Mike Patterson said that Hankook would be supporting David’s efforts in the China Rally this month, which is the final round of the China Championship and the Asia Pacific Championship, together with his entry in Wales Rally GB.
1400 tyres have been stolen from a container belonging to Hankook Tyre UK Ltd. The company reports that a container carrying 165/65R 14T K702 and 185/65R 14T K702 tyres was hijacked on the A45 en route to its Daventry headquarters late on the 15 November. Hankook Tyre UK Ltd has asked that anybody approached with the aforementioned products should contact them directly, if they are not from a reliable source.
Hankook Tire Co. has reported that its third-quarter profit fell 16 per cent on higher raw material costs and a stronger currency. Net income was 44.4 billion won ($47 million) in the quarter that ended 30 September compared with 52.9 billion won ($56 million) a year earlier, the company said in a regulatory filing. Sales rose 7.9 per cent to 526.4 billion won ($558 million). Operating profit fell 27 per cent to 40 billion won ($42 million).
Wales Rally GB is set to be a fitting finale for the debut season of the SJR Hankook team in the British Rally Championship. And as an added incentive, the team boasts Wales’ top rally drivers Gwyndaf Evans and Stuart Jones who will likely receive tremendous home support on the Cardiff-based rally – also the final round of the World Rally Championship.
“2006 has been an amazing season for Hankook…raising its profile in the British motorsport world and by working with Gwyndaf and with Stuart we have been able to make a real impact,” said Hankook motorsport manager Mike Patterson. “We were at Wales Rally GB last year supporting three cars and we are delighted to be back on the world stage again with Gwyndaf and Stuart, and looking forward to an impressive end of season event.”
Describing itself as the leading supplier of Pirelli Circuit Tyres in the UK, Silverline Motorsport holds extensive stocks of the Pirelli P Zero Corsa and is able to supply from stock all the popular and not so popular sizes. The ever-expanding track day market has prompted Silverline to invest in the equipment to support this market and the Motorsport fitting trucks can be seen at all of the major UK and European circuits throughout the season.
Hankook’s truck tyre division is probably the fastest growing part of the UK truck tyre market. According to Tyres & Accessories’ research, in just a few years the UK truck wing of the South Korean manufacturer has grown to the point that it controls between 6 and 8 per cent of the UK truck tyre replacement market. Of course the exact figure depends on who you ask and which figure you put on the total market size, but either way it is obviously an achievement. Now the company hopes to build on its recent successes by launching a new national breakdown network called Truck Masters.
(Akron/Tire Review) Hankook Tire America Corp. plans to raise prices by up to 5 per cent on all of its replacement passenger, high performance, light truck and medium truck tyres. Hankook said the increases, which take effect 1 October, will vary by product line and/or size.
Hankook Tyre UK Ltd has announced the appointment of three new regional sales managers. Andy Doherty has been appointed as regional sales manager for the North West. He has 18 Years experience in the tyre industry, working for 10 years as a commercial and mobile car tyre technician and eight years as sales manager for a number of national wholesalers.
Deldo Autobanden (Belgium) has already pre-sold over 1 million winter tyres. The vast majority of these are made up of sales of the company’s Eurowin, Sunny and Wanli products, but between 60,000 and 70,000 premium winter tyres have also been pre-ordered. Deldo made the announcement alongside the news that it is publishing a new winter catalogue for the 2006/2007 season.
A Russian scientist who worked in cooperation with Hankook subsidiary ASA has been given a six-year suspended sentence for his part in an international espionage case. According to Russian news agencies, Oskar Kaibyshev, 66, the former director of the Institute for Metals Superplasticity Problems (IMPS), had been on trial in the Supreme Court of the Volga republic of Bashkortostan for passing dual-use technology to South Korea.
Hankook Tire Co. reported a 23.9 per cent decline in quarterly earnings, based on a stronger won and high raw materials costs, and the company has downgraded its full-year outlook, as reported by the Korea Times. Net profit totalled £24 million ($45.49 million) for the three months ending 30 June. Sales dropped 0.7 per cent, while operating profit declined 32.8 per cent. In the first half of the year, Hankook’s net profit was down 12.2 per cent from the previous year. Revenue grew 1.05 per cent, but operating profit fell 29.92 per cent.
(Akron/Tire Review) Hankook Tire America Corp. has introduced the Hankook Ventus AS RH07, an all-season performance line intended for direct OE replacement and for plus-sizing light truck/SUV applications. Hankook said the new Ventus AS RH07 will initially be available in 14 sizes, covering 17- to 22-inch wheel diameters.
Hankook has continued to have a strong UK motorsport season with the latest successes in the Jim Clark Rally – the second round of the Tesco 99 Octane British Rally Championship. The SJR Hankook team set a string of fastest times with driver Gwyndaf Evans and increased its points haul with an impressive finish by team-mate Stuart Jones.
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