Optional sport tyres always deliver better performance, right? Not necessarily, says auto motor und sport (ams). When the German motoring publication tested the latest Porsche Macan Turbo Electric, the model they received didn’t arrive on standard 20-inch rims, rather with 22-inch wheels fitted with “performance tyres” – an option that costs £464 in the UK.
Pirelli reports “stable” sales of 3,447.5 million euros in the first half of 2024 (First-half 2023: 3,437.5 million euros). Adjusted pre-tax profits (EBIT) amounted to 539.1 million up 4.2 per cent compared with first half of 2023. Executives put the improvement down to “solid commercial performance (volumes and price/mix)” and “efficiencies”.
Shortly after The Tire Cologne 2024 opened its doors, Maxxis International representatives launched a brace of new high-performance car tyres – namely, the Maxxis HP6 and Victra Sport 6 tyres. Introducing the two new tyres, Ivan Lee, manager of the international sales department, compared the event and Rudy Versteeg, managing director of Maxxis International’s European technical centre explained the technology behind the new products.
The percentage of company cars being fitted with 18 inch-plus tyres has increased by a third in three years, new data released by epyx shows.
In the first quarter of 2021, 42 per cent of cars fitted with tyres through the business’s TyreServe service were 18 inches or over. This increased to 47 per cent in for the same period in 2022, 52 per cent in 2023 and 56 per cent in 2024.
After subjecting its Hyundai i20 N loan car to all manner of testing, the Sportauto team have finally turned their attention to the tyres. As a crowning finale to its activities with this pocket rocket, the German performance car magazine fitted five brands of size 215/40R18 summer tyre to evaluate how each product influences the Hyundai’s performance and safety characteristics. For good measure, the test team also worked with an all-season tyre, but did not include it in the final results.
Ariel Motor Company, has selected Yokohama tyres as original equipment (OE) for two of its vehicles – the Ariel Atom and the Ariel Nomad. Effective immediately, the Atom will be available to customers fitted with Yokohama’s Advan Sport V105 tyre. From later in 2024, all Ariel Atoms will be fitted with Yokohama’s Advan Sport V105 as part of an exclusive one-make supply agreement.
Triangle’s EffeXSport passenger car tyre range is not new to the market. The high-performance tyres were previewed at Tire Cologne in May 2022 and Triangle highlighted the initial line-up’s strong labelling performance in March 2023. However, Triangle’s EffeXSport event at the Hungaroring near Budapest, Hungary sought to offer key distributors and journalists the chance to “EffeXperience” the tyre’s performance when pushed to the limit.
Prinx is the new flagship brand of Prinx Chengshan Tire Europe and following their public debut at The Tire Cologne in 2022, the market launch of the first Prinx products is imminent. Wholesalers can now order the XNEX Sport and XLAB Comfort, which together are obtainable in a range that covers 45 sizes and 69 articles.
Sailun Group Europe has introduced several new tyres featuring its EcoPoint3 liquid-phase mixing technology. One of these products is the Sailun Atrezzo ZSR2, a tyre hailed by its manufacturer as the “ultimate combination of sustainability and performance.” Atrezzo ZSR2 is available in sizes for 17- to 20-inch rims, 205 – 275mm tyre widths, 30 – 55 cross sections and speed ratings W and Y.
For its summer 2023 test, Auto Bild Sportscars lined up a baker’s dozen of size 225/40 R18 tyres and fitted them to a Toyota GR Yaris, a car that highlighted “both the sporting qualities and the weak points” of each and every candidate after “just a few bends” of track. When the dust & water spray had settled, five tyres proudly wore Auto Bild Sportscars’ top ‘exemplary’ rating.
It’s a bank holiday weekend and the UK is looking forward to the three-day break. Yokohama has kicked off the weekend at Silverstone Circuit for Europe’s biggest historic racing event, The Classic.
Visitors to The Classic at Silverstone will be amongst the first in the UK to see the newest addition to the Yokohama Advan range. Following an official launch at the Nürburgring earlier this year, the Advan Neova AD09 will gain its first public airing this side of the Channel during the show, at which Yokohama will also serve as official tyre partner.
The practice of pairing wide rear tyres with a narrower size on the front axle is a common one for modern performance cars as this configuration provides good traction and cornering on dry roads, more even levels of wear – and it looks good. But is a mixed fitment advantageous in the colder months? Do the wider rear tyres really deliver more traction on icy and snowy roads and reduce the risk of oversteer? German publication Sportauto has sought to answer such questions by comparing mixed fitment winter tyres with a non-mixed setup.
The first Michelin tyre engineered to meet the specific handling and range requirements of electric sports cars will come to market from 1 April. Announcing the imminent launch of the Pilot Sport EV, Michelin shares that the tyre excels in a number of areas of key importance to drivers of electric performance vehicles – notably grip on wet and dry roads, resistance to wear, low rolling resistance and reduced noise.
Its market launch was actually planned for last autumn, but Continental postponed the introduction of its new WinterContact TS 870 until 2021 for corona-related reasons. The wait is now almost over, as a company representative has confirmed that “preparations to bring the WinterContact TS 870 to market are on schedule” with a launch range that consists of almost 20 SKUs in 14- to 17- rim diameter sizes. And this winter tyre isn’t the only new product that Continental is bringing out – a number of online retailers have already made space for a successor to the SportContact 6.
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