Three dimensions from Hankook’s Ventus S1 evo² line-up will be supplied to Audi for original equipment on its TT and TTS models. Size 225/50R17, 245/45R17 and 245/35R19 tyres, all produced at the tyre maker’s Rácalmás plant in Hungary, will be fitted on the latest version of the Audi models as standard or optional equipment, depending on the engine version.
Deliveries of Kama tyres for original equipment fitment on Russian-made Ford vehicles are set to begin now that JSC Nizhnekamskshina has received final approval from the Ford Sollers joint venture operation. Nizhnekamskshina began working towards homologation when the joint venture between Ford and Sollers was first established in October 2011.
Goodyear’s latest OTR tyre, the RT-5D, has celebrated its original equipment debut with Volvo. The Swedish firm is fitting its L350F wheel loader with the level 250 (L5) severe service radial in size 875/65 R33. The RT-5D is also currently available in a 29.5R25 size, with further sizes to follow.
UK truck and bus manufacturing sector could be on the up, with the industry showing signs of improvement, according to the latest detail published by automotive industry association SMMT. Indeed the latest data suggest that October saw the smallest monthly fall since June 2013.
Hankook Tire Europe has announced an upgrade to its AH11 truck tyre and the introduction of its DH05+ pattern into Europe. These tyres are – as first announced at the IAA Commercial Vehicles show in September – fitted to the Mercedes-Benz Atego Euro VI as original equipment in sizes 215/75R17.5, 235/75R17.5, 265/70R19.5 and 285/70R19.5, depending on vehicle specification. Fitment on the world’s best-selling distribution truck is Hankook’s first European Daimler commercial vehicle tyre deal.
Japanese tyre maker Bridgestone has teamed up with a couple of Ninjas in order to help maximise their performance. The Ninjas in question are the Kawasaki Ninja H2R and H2 supersport bikes, respectively launched on 30 September and 4 November; the pair will be fitted with Bridgestone’s Battlax tyres as original equipment. The Ninja H2R receives the Racing Battlax V01 in size 120/600R17 for the front wheel and size 190/650R17 on the rear, while the Ninja H2 comes with the Battlax Racing Street RS10 in size 120/70ZR17 M/C (58W) as standard on the front and size 200/55ZR17 M/C (78W) on the rear wheel.
The soon to be released Bridgestone Battlax Racing Street RS10 sport radial will be fitted as original equipment on the new Yamaha YZF-R1 and YZF-R1M supersport bikes in Europe and North America. The range was launched at the EICMA International Motorcycle Show in Milan, Italy on 3 November; a size 120/70ZR17 M/C (58W) front tyres and 190/55ZR17 M/C (75W) rear tyre will be supplied for both models, while a size 200/55ZR17 M/C (78W) rear tyre will also be fitted to the YZF-R1M.
Renault Trucks has signed an original equipment deal for Goodyear’s Kmax and Fuelmax tyres. The tyres will be fitted to the latest Renault commercial vehicles, comprising the Renault Trucks Long Distance range and the Renault Trucks Distribution range, both of which feature the latest low-emission Euro 6 engines. The manufacturer recently won a lucrative deal […]
Crysler Group LLC is recalling 21,042 2014-model year Ram ProMaster vehicles in the US due to a Tyre Press Monitoring System (TPMS) fault. The problem is that in the affected vehicles, the TPMS may fail to learn the locations of the individual sensors while the vehicle is being driven. As a result, the low tyre pressure warning light will light-up irrespective of the tyre pressure.
Yokohama says its BluEarth range demonstrates its commitment to reducing its environmental impact globally. The BluEarth AE-01 tyre encompasses much of Yokohama’s environmental technology and experience. The company pioneered “Orange Oil technology”, in which oil from the skin of citrus fruit is used to replace mineral ingredients in the tyre itself, reducing the petroleum-based constituents […]
The instability in both Ukraine and Syria has had a real impact on the outlook for trailer demand, indeed the East European trailer market is said to be flatlining in 2014. According to a new report produced by Clear International, nearly 7,000 trailers have been wiped from the forecast for the 2014/15 period. That is in addition to the reductions made to the last forecast in March this year following the annexation of Crimea. The forecast reductions affect Russia, Ukraine, Estonia and Latvia, plus Turkey which borders Syria.
Towards the start of October I had a chance encounter with a University of Oxford academic, researching the economics of Transport. Generally people understand that there is a certain cache associated with such a role. And people may have an idea of what life is like for academics that are part of elite institutions. But at the same time those in industry often question how close to the market and how practical the suggestions made by such academics really are. Talking to Dr David Bonilla (Senior Research Fellow in Transport, Energy Economics at St. Anne’s College, Oxford) between speeches at Goodyear’s recent fleet symposium really brought this home (See our complete Fleet Business feature in November’s Tyres & Accessories for more on the subject).
While some market analysts are pointing to the end of the 20 per cent annual growth “dream” attached to the seemingly perpetually growing Chinese domestic passenger car vehicle market, others point to the continuance of an “upward trend”. A new analysis of the automotive market in China produced by HIS should be counted amongst the optimists and suggests “significant growth opportunity continue in many of the country’s provinces, however, some provinces will start to see growth rates change significantly”. According to IHS Automotive forecasts, passenger vehicle volumes in the country as a whole are expected to rise more than 10 million units by 2026. And thus the detail is not as far apart from the opposing thoughts as it may first seem.
As part of its association with the World Series by Renault (WSR), Michelin will supply Renault Sport its Pilot Sport S9L for the new Renault Sport R.S. 01. Michelin will provide the tyre in two sizes, 30-68×18 for the front wheels and 31-71×18 for the rear. The company says the decision to fit an 18-inch tyre is in line with its desire to see as many parallels as possible between racing and road tyres, an arrangement that enables new technologies developed for motorsport to be more swiftly carried over to road tyres.
Maxion Wheels reports that it will supply Renault with more than a million VersaStyle wheels for the vehicle maker’s Megane, Megane Scenic, Clio and the Dacia Logan and Dacia Sandero Stepway models during the course of 2014. The company has already sold a million VersaStyle wheels in total this year, and more than 15 million units since VersaStyle wheels were first introduced in 2005.
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