A nearly new, 1,000-mile Bugatti Chiron, the first ‘used’ example to be offered in the UK – has gone on sale for £1 million more than its owner paid for it brand new four months ago.
While simply driving the majority of new cars off the forecourt can wipe thousands off their value, the 261mph supercar has bucked the trend and soared in value to £3.6 million – an increase of £1.1 million over its list price of £2.5 million.
With new factories in Europe and now also the US Nexen Tire is growing in terms of global production capacity. However, the firm is also investing in developing its brand, especially in terms of football sponsorship. Recently Tyres & Accessories looked into how the company is combining the two in order to meet its goal of entering the global top 10 by 2025.
In 1976 Kettering Tyres paid local football club Kettering Town FC to print its logo on the front of the team shirt. The move caused ructions in what was then known as the first division and didn’t last long, but it did set a precedent for sponsorship that went to the next level this year. 41 years later, shirt sponsorship in the English Premier League (called Football League First Division back then), which brought in £226.5 million in sponsor revenues during the 2016-17 season, is very big business.
UK car manufacturing fell in September, with year-on-year output declining -4.1 per cent, according to figures released today by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT). 6,500 fewer cars rolled off production lines than in the same month last year, with a total output of 153,224.
Market analysts at Clear report that the Eastern Europe trailer market has been hit by a severe downturn in the Turkish market for commercial vehicles. The forecast for Turkey in 2017 is for a fall in trailer demand of 29 per cent on the back of large declines in 2015 and 2016. Political instability had already undermined business confidence in early 2016 and then in mid-year there was an attempted military coup. This had a dire and worsening effect on business investment. As a result, a further 19,700 trailers have been wiped from the Turkish forecast.
Continuing the theme of technological development, Linglong Tire – a top five Chinese tyre enterprise – exhibited a number of technological developments including its: a dandelion natural rubber-based tyre, a tyre featuring a graphene compound and a polyurethane tyre manufactured with 3D printing techniques.
Pirelli has engineered a tailor-made version of its P Zero tyre for the new Hyundai i30 N in size 235/35 R19. The new OE-tyre is produced at Pirelli’s Settimo Torinese, Italy factory. To identify the P Zero specially made for the i30 N, the sidewall includes an `HN` mark.
The Boeing Company has certified The Goodyear aviation tyres for its 777X airplane. With this designation, the Goodyear Flight Radial becomes the first product to receive Boeing system part certification for the 777X.
Tesla is set to launch its first autonomous electric lorry next month as the company attempts to break into the commercial vehicle market.
The Tesla Semi truck is scheduled to be unveiled on October 26 and is expected to have a working range of 200 to 300 miles, making it more suitable for inner-city transport than long-distance motorway haulage.
Nexen Tire is supplying itsN’blue HD Plus tyre to Volkswagen, Seat and Skoda. The company’s N’blue HD Plus in size 215/45R17 91W will be fitted to the upgraded Volkswagen Polo. The same tyre in sizes 205/60R16 92V and 215/60R16 95V was selected for the Volkswagen T-Roc, a new compact SUV manufactured in Portugal.
“The overall relationship between franchised car dealers and manufacturers recorded an average score of 5.6* in the Summer 2017 Dealer Attitude Survey, which is -0.5 points down from the last survey and -0.6 lower than the same time last year”, said Sue Robinson, Director of the National Franchised Dealers Association (NFDA), which represents franchised car and commercial vehicle dealers in the UK, commenting on the NFDA Summer 2017 Dealer Attitude Survey, published today (4 September 2017).
Hyundai, Volkswagen UK and Toyota have all now announced scrappage schemes with discounts off various models, following on from Ford’s recent announcement and that of Vauxhall earlier in the year.
Hyundai’s scheme offers between £1,500 and £5,000 on trade-ins across its model range and will run from now until the end of the year. It will apply to all petrol and diesel cars with Euro 1-4 engines registered before 31 December 2009.
“It is positive to see that the new light commercial market grew moderately in August by 1.5 per cent in what is a low volume month in terms of registrations as customers wait for the new registration plate in September”, said Sue Robinson, Director of the National Franchised Dealers Association (NFDA), which represents franchised car and commercial vehicle retailers in the UK, commenting on the latest SMMT’s light commercial vehicle registration figures.
Hankook reports that it has updated its sound absorber technology with a new foam and adhesion process that further reduce tyre weight. The next foam is said to reduce internal noise levels by as much as 5 to 7 dB(A).
The long-awaited launch of the new TVR sports car at the 2017 Goodwood Revival is being supported by leading aftermarket suppliers, Euro Car Parts and LKQ Coatings. The two brands, which together can supply any paint, panel or part to a wide range of vehicles, will be pride of place on the bonnet of the eagerly anticipated TVR when it is unveiled inside the Earls Court Motor Show building.
Apollo Vredestein’s work to shift its Dutch brand’s replacement market focus to become an original equipment supplier has resulted in fitments on three major models. Vredestein, has been selected as a fitment on the Volkswagen Polo, Seat Ibiza and Ford EcoSport.
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