Cooper Tire Europe has announced a new feature to its presence at the 2013 Rally Day event. The company’s 4×4 zone will offer visitors the chance to ride in one of DriveTech’s 4×4 machines, which swaps speed for sheer inclines and drops, mud, water and more as the Cooper rubber is put through its paces in a demanding off-road course.
Micheldever Tyre Services has appointed Lorna Craig as the company’s new Kumho brand manager. Craig was previously charged with the development of Micheldever’s business and brands in Scotland where she was an area sales manager. Wholesale sales director Alan Baldwin stated the company’s delight in her appointment, saying her previous experience had “made her the perfect choice for what is one of the most important roles within the MTS business.” Micheldever says it is Europe’s largest distributor of Kumho tyres, evincing the importance of Craig’s new position.
Brembo has developed a 10-15 per cent lighter brake disc, designed to offer reduced fuel consumption and less environmental impact. The new light-weight brake disc, conceived by Daimler AG in partnership with Brembo, has reportedly allowed the company to launch a product with “absolutely innovative characteristics”.
Firenza characterises its partnership with West Midlands based wholesaler International Tyres as “increasingly successful”, and the tyre supplier has been working to increase its range to suit more sizes and applications across the commercial tyre segment in the UK and Europe.
Italmatic Group has entered into a Joint Venture with Tesco of America Inc., the US based supplier to the automotive and tyre sector. The joint venture will be renamed as Tesco Italmatic LLC, with headquarters in Oakland Park, Florida, USA. According to the company, the partnership will focus on “making a strong statement for the distribution of Italmatic products in the North, Central and South American regions, offering a wide and complete range of products and services.”
The Al Dobowi Group has initiated an annual Infinity German Partner Conference, having presented the Infinity Tyres programme and discussed new distribution strategies with a select group of German tyre retailers, distributors and journalists at Aschaffenburg’s Schloss Hotel in Bavaria. Infinity Tyres were introduced to the European market nine years ago, and the brand’s owner and global distributor expects a complete new passenger range for 2014 to bring faster year on year sales growth, especially in technically demanding markets such as Germany.
Following a rise in the number of manufacturers that fit emergency tyre inflation kits instead of spare wheels, the RAC has introduced a ‘universal’ spare wheel to handle call outs for unfixable punctures.
Bridgestone has developed a new super sports car tyre, the Potenza S007, as original equipment for the 2013 Ferrari F12berlinetta. The tyre size is 255/35 ZR 20 and the S007 will be fitted on the F12berlinetta in conventional and Run-Flat Technology tyres.
Yokohama Tire Corporation (YTC) has announced it is sponsoring three teams during the 2013 NFL season – the New England Patriots, the Chicago Bears and, for the first time, the Indianapolis Colts. YTC’s affiliation with the Bears is in its second year and in its third with the Patriots.
Bridgestone is sponsoring Warwick resident Anna Turney’s bid to become a paralympian, after she enquired about a set of winter tyres. The leading manufacturer agreed to sponsor Turney’s preparations to qualify for the Paralympic Games in Russia next year, where she hopes to represent Great Britain in a number of Alpine Skiing events. She said the partnership would make a huge difference to her chances, with funding going towards an intensive training programme in the run-up to the games in March.
Continental has been working on automated driving systems for some time now, and began open road trials of this technology early last year. It also entered into a research partnership with BMW to develop an ‘electronic co-pilot’ in January 2013. The German firm is now extending its collaborative activities; the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung newspaper shared on 21 August that Continental intends to develop self-driving cars together with IBM and Google.
Bridgestone’s subsidiary on the Indonesian island of Sumatra, PT Bridgestone Sumatra Rubber Estate, will enter into trading contracts with local rubber farmers; it is said these contracts will promote cooperation between the farmers and Bridgestone Sumatra Rubber Estate.
20 year old Tatiana Calderón from Columbia has set herself the goal of competing in Formula One having entered into professional karting at eight. Now tyre supplier Hankook is supporting her development as part of its role as tyre supplier to the FIA Formula 3 European Championship, in which she is now competing.
Halfords Autocentres reports it has seen its customer satisfaction scores hit 93 per cent following a new customer experience management (CEM) strategy in partnership with Empathica Inc., a provider of Customer Experience Management (CEM) solutions.
Since appointing Empathica 12 months ago, Halfords Autocentres has reviewed the feedback of over 52,000 customers which has allowed the business to implement operational changes that deliver immediate impact to the customer experience. With good value and customer loyalty key measures for the business, customer feedback levels following their visit have been reassuringly positive – with 89 per cent of customers reporting that they received value for money and 87 per cent stating they would recommend Halfords Autocentres to their friends and family.
Porsche set a world record at the Silverstone Classic, as more than 1,000 911s took to the track in a parade to celebrate the model’s 50th anniversary. Pirelli sponsored the parade, as part of its Porsche Club Great Britain partnership agreement signed earlier this year, which stipulated that Pirelli will support Porsche Club GB financially and with tyres and on-event expertise. 1,208 Porsche 911s, which included an array of Carrera, GT, RS, RSR, Speedster, Targa and turbo variants, took part in the parade, which helped raise funds for national cancer charity, Hope for Tomorrow.
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