Hayes Lemmerz has announced that Cynthia Feldmann has been appointed to the Company’s board of directors. With the addition of Ms. Feldmann, the Board now consists of seven members. Ms. Feldmann has also been appointed as the Chairperson of the Audit Committee and a member of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee.
John Edwards, former US Senator from North Carolina and vice presidential candidate, has written a letter to Alan Hippe, CEO and president of Continental Tire’s North American (CTNA) expressing his concern over the German company’s alleged violations of US labour laws at the Charlotte, North Carolina plant.
(Akron/Tire Review) Standard & Poor’s has dropped Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. from its S&P 500 index. The Findlay, Ohio, tyremaker will be replaced by telecommunications firm Windstream Corp. According to S&P, Cooper was the smallest member of the 500 in terms of market capitalization. In November 1999, Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. was cut from the Dow Jones Industrial Average, which considers the performance of 30 stocks.
(Akron/Tire Review) Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. is teaming up with Speed, Style & Sound (S3) magazine to find “a cool car” to appear on the cover of the publication’s November 2006 issue. Cooper is inviting enthusiasts to post photos of their vehicles – including all modifications – on coopertire.com. Deadline is Aug. 31. Entrants must include the name and location of their local Cooper tire dealer.
Media speculation surrounding film legend Sophia Loren’s participation in the 2007 Pirelli calender continues. It seems everyone is asking: “Does she or doesn’t she pose naked in the world famous calender?” Tyres & Accessories has learnt that Loren does indeed appear in the 2007 collection, making her the oldest person to appear in the Pirelli calender. But the 71-year-old Oscar winner does not pose naked despite reports from Deutschland Radio that she will appear in nothing but a pair of diamond earrings. According to reports Naomi Watts, Penelope Cruz, Lou Doillon and Hilary Swank also all appear in the 33rd edition, which is due to be released in November. This year’s theme, as you might have guesed, is “the movies.”
Some Russian stocks are either under-performing or were overvalued at their initial public offerings. There have been some notable successes in the market recently like Novatek a Russian gas company which raised $966 million at its IPO and has seen its share price rise 150 per cent since then. Unfortunately for the tyre business, Amtel-Vredestein has not faired so well.
Goodyear Dunlop UK is investing in and reorganising its TruckForce network in a move designed to enhance customer service, company executives told Tyres & Accessories today. In England and Wales Goodyear’s truck business will now be served by 16 hub outlets and 45 so-called “spokes.” These company-owned and franchised dealerships will be supported by a wider network of 250-280 TruckForce partners.
The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company has confirmed that staff of the Securities and Exchange Commission have terminated their investigation into accounting matters included in the company’s restatement of financial results, announced in October 2003, and in subsequent public filings.
(Akron/Tire Review) Maxxis International will sponsor a Time Attack series in the US beginning this year. Time Attack is a form of track racing, originating in Japan, in which participants drive street tuned cars on DOT tires and try to post the best laps times. Maxxis is offering a contingency for the top three finishers in each of the seven race classes. The series kicks off 6-7 May at Phoenix International Raceway, then continues 29-30 July at Virginia International Raceway; 12-13 August at Road Atlanta; and 14-15 October at Buttonwillow in California. East Coast finals will be held at Mid-Ohio in September, and the West Coast finals will be at Buttonwillow on 8 November.
The legendary Morgan 4/4 launched in 1936 and still produced today is about to become even more special. To celebrate its 70th anniversary, the Morgan Motor Company has unveiled a limited edition Morgan 4/4 slightly smaller than its Plus 4 and Roadster siblings. Just 142 “70th Anniversary” Morgan 4/4 cars will be built – two cars for every year of its production life since launch. Each car will be individually marked with the year it honours, finished in period style and fitted with Continental 165/80R15 CT22 tyres.
There is still a possibility that Continental AG can make an amicable agreement with the German works council over job-cuts at its Hanover-Stoecken tyre factory, the AFX news agency has reported. Workers at the Stoecken plant are expected to meet management today. At the same time Continental employees across Germany have been asked to protest against the planned 320 job cuts – around 10 per cent of the work force. The cuts, which are planned to take place by the end of 2006, were announced in November due to lower-than-expected growth in car tyre sales.
Amtel-Vredestein NV (AV), a pan-European tyre manufacturer with operating facilities in Russia and the Netherlands, today announced that its chief financial officer, Victor Nekrasov, will leave the company to join a leading international investment bank.
At the end of November a group of 12 tyre dealers from throughout the country flew to Dubai to take part in the BFGoodrich Grip Challenge, a five-day event driving Mitsubishi Pajero T1s across the desert and up into the mountains of the United Arab Emirates and neighbouring Oman.
Wheel deliveries between Amcast and General Motors have been temporarily restored following the component manufacturer’s second chapter 11 filing this year. The move is said to have averted a shut down at several GM assembly plants. Either way, court documents presented in Amcast’s bankruptcy filing report that it stopped all deliveries of previously ordered wheels to GM on 30 November, the day before Amcast filed for emergency bankruptcy protection. That move came after talks designed to modify business contracts between the two companies broke down.
A Hamburg court has dismissed a total of 26 actions relating to the merger of ContiTech and Phoenix. In so doing, the court affirmed the validity resolutions made at a Phoenix extraordinary shareholders meeting at the end of 2004. This means the merger has cleared a significant legal hurdle on the road to legal clearance.
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