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Leading Drivers Compete on Yokohama Tyres at Race of Champions

The 2008 motorsport season for Yokohama HPT, the UK distributor for the Japanese brand, culminated in style this December. Hot on the heels of Yokohama-shod Tom Cave winning his class on Wales Rally GB, the some of the world’s leading motorsport drivers competed in the annual Race of Champions at Wembley stadium, driving, among other vehicles, the Yokohama-equipped RX150s built by Rage Motorsport.

The Race of Champions has become something of an institution as far as the motorsport season goes, traditionally closing the year’s activities by pitting a variety of drivers from all forms of motorsport against each other in a range of vehicles. In addition to crowning the champion of champions, the event also sees a Nations Cup being fought out over the circuit, with drivers from different disciplines but the same country competing side by side.

19th December 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Tyres ‘Darted’ in Bristol

The British are known to be partial to a game of darts, but sometimes our love of the game goes too far. In the town of Totterdown, instead of holding a pint in one hand as they aim their ‘arrows’ with the other, local lads have been honing their skills on the tyres of parked cars.

Police suspect that scores of cars have been targeted in recent weeks by what the Bristol Evening Post describes as “a gang of teenagers”. The wayward youngsters are using a dart or a compass point to prick the wall of the tyres, causing a slow puncture.

19th December 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Delticom Growing in Europe Despite Weak Market Conditions

Delticom AG’s client base may grow by as much as a quarter in 2009. In an interview, company CFO Frank Schuhardt said that Delticom’s retail customer base could reach three million by the middle of the year, compared with 2.4 million at the end of September 2008. Sales at the German company for 2008 will be “in the middle” of a range of 240 million euros to 260 million euros, he added.

18th December 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Under Pressure

A survey conducted by Continental suggests that Britain’s young drivers are the social group least likely to check their car tyre pressure. The national poll revealed that under-25s are twice as likely to leave their tyres unchecked than any other age group, with almost half (46 per cent) completely unaware what their tyre pressure should be.

One in five of the young people polled had not checked their tyre pressures in the last month compared to the standard across all ages of one in 12. Conti estimates that “an average driver could waste as much as £120 a year on fuel by not regularly checking their tyre pressure.” With this in mind, younger drivers facing high motoring costs with more expensive insurance premiums can not afford to ignore their tyre pressures. For a generally more environmentally aware sector of the public, young people should also be considering that the average car driver could produce an extra 250lbs of CO2 a year by not maintaining their tyre pressures.

18th December 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Dubai Tyre Trade Worth £729 million

Dubai’s direct tyre trade (both commercial and passenger car products) amounted to 4.15 billion UAE dirhams (£729 million, 773 million euros, US$1.13 billion) in 2007, according to the Gulf Daily News. Further growth is expected next year, the paper reported.

“Commercial tyres worth 1.1 billion (175 million, 186 million euros) dirhams for buses and lorries were imported to Dubai last year, mainly from Japan, China, and India,” said Automechanika Middle East senior show manager Michael Dehn, adding: “…Dubai consumes almost 64 per cent, re-exporting 36pc to Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and Africa. The commercial vehicle market is an essential industry in the UAE and an increase of 35 per cent is expected from this year to 2012.”

18th December 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Lanxess to Reduce or Halt Production at Numerous German Facilities

Following reaching an agreement with employee representatives, Lanxess AG has announced its plans to cut back or shut down production at 23 out of 45 of its German production facilities over the Christmas period and into January 2009. These arrangements, planned for the company’s Leverkusen, Dormagen, Krefeld-Uerdingen and Brunsbuettel sites, will directly affect around 1,400 employees.

18th December 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Yokohama Driver 1st Woman to Win 2 Off-Road Truck Championships

Yokohama Tire Corporation-sponsored Heidi Steele became the first woman driver to win a Best in the Desert (BITD) off-road racing truck championship when she placed third at the Fabtech Desert Classic in Henderson, Nevada on Saturday, December 6. Steele also became the first woman truck champion in SCORE (Class 7SX mid-size truck) after taking a second-place class finish in November’s Baja 1000 in Ensenada, Mexico.

18th December 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

November’s Market Worse Than October’s, Says Michelin Data

The report published by Morgan Stanley Research Europe says it all: “If investors thought tyre data was poor in October, it just got worse…” What this memorable sentence refers to is data released by Michelin on December 18, which shows the supposedly more resilient passenger car tyre replacement market to be down in Europe 10.3 per cent in November, and in North America by a hefty 20.2 per cent. OE sales in the segment dropped a spectacular 33.5 per cent in Europe and 31.2 per cent in North America.

18th December 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Vipal Europe Change of Address

Vipal have moved to a new premises, a move they say has followed their growing presence in Europe. As of now the company’s new address is:

VIPAL EUROPE S.L.
GENERAL URRUTIA 75- 10-B
46013 Valencia
Spain

The company adds that its phone number +34 963 81 11 81 and fax number +43 963 28 16 83 remain unchanged. Vipal’s distribution centre in Valencia also continues to operate at its existing address.

18th December 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Goodyear Dunlop Presents Employee HR Gongs

Goodyear Dunlop has presented Pan-European development awards to two associates in the West Midlands. One of the Midlands’ top employers, the company aims to encourage development and recognition within the workplace, supporting employees who train in new areas and develop their roles within the organisation.

As part of their drive towards being “First with People” (the firm’s branding of the initiative), Goodyear Dunlop has developed the Pan-European award. These awards are presented on a yearly basis to those employees who have made a difference or special contribution to the company within the Europe, Middle East and Africa region. 35 associates out of over 30,000 within the EMEA region are selected.

This year the UK team, based in Birmingham, has proudly announced that two of its employees have received an award: Peter Wayte, of the Tyre Technical department and Cliff Hickman from IT. The manufacturer has called the gongs a “great achievement not only for the individuals but also for Goodyear Dunlop UK and Ireland. It highlights the company’s dedication to associates and the investments made.”

18th December 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

ASEAN Rubber Conference to be Held June 2009

One of Asia’s premier natural rubber events, the ASEAN Rubber Conference 2009, is to be held between June 18 and 20, in Vientiane, Laos. The promoters describe the conference as a one-stop-centre for the natural rubber industry players to learn, experience and network.

The objectives of the ARC, the organiser adds, is to bring together both regulatory authorities and commercial players of the rubber world to provide updates on current trends and future challenges faced by the naturally rubber industry, to facilitate the exchange of ideas and insight into the global rubber industry and the price discovery of rubber

18th December 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Troubled Chrysler in New GM Talks, Closing All Plants

Even as Chrysler announced that it was closing all of its plants at least through mid-January, word comes through that merger talks between the privately held automaker and troubled GM have resumed. Chrysler owner Cerberus Capital Management has signaled its willingness to give away part of its ownership in the automaker, according to the Wall Street Journal, which cited parties close to the situation, and merger talks with GM have restarted.

According to the report, Cerberus took the initiative to restart negotiations, which broke down a few weeks ago amid hope of a massive bailout by the Federal government. Earlier yesterday, Chrysler officials said the company was closing down all of its 30 North American plants “until at least 19 January.” The closings will kick in at the end of the day tomorrow.

In a new report, Moody’s Investor Services Inc. said if the U.S. government failed to intervene and all three automakers were to collapse into bankruptcy, it would lead to an estimated 2.5 million job losses by 2010 in the United States, cost the government there up to $250 billion, and cost the car companies about 20 per cent of their combined marketshare. Even a small bailout plan, such as that rejected by Congress last week, said Moody’s, would not be enough to allow GM or Chrysler to recover long-term. (Tire Review/Akron)

18th December 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Former Conti Deputy Director Appointed to Autoliv Board

The Board of Directors of automotive safety systems specialist Autoliv Inc. has elected former Continental AG deputy chairman Dr.-Ing. Wolfgang Ziebart to the Board, following the announcement that Board member Per Welin will retire from the board at its 2009 AGM.

18th December 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Nokian Employees Walkout in Protest of Production Adjustments

At midday on December 18, production personnel at Nokian’s heavy tyres factory in Nokia, Finland, walked out to protest against the company’s plans to adjust production capacity. According to an employees’ announcement, the workout will last until 10pm on Friday, December 19. Nokian adds that statutory negotiations regarding the adjustment measures are continuing and will end on Monday, December 22, 2008.

According to a previous announcement, Nokian Heavy Tyres is considering laying off some 100 employees for approximately 7-8 months as of January 2009.

18th December 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Energy Savings at Pirelli’s Carlisle Plant Following Inspection

An energy and heat loss survey carried out by Eriks UK at Pirelli’s manufacturing facility in Carlisle has led to the implementation of energy savings which, the company estimates, will amount to a total in excess of £60,000. The survey, carried out by Eriks’ condition monitoring division, made extensive use of modern thermographic techniques to identify areas of heat loss. Many of these would have been difficult or impossible to detect and quantify in any other way.

18th December 2008/by Tyrepress Editors