Renault Sport has chosen Bridgestone’s Potenza RE050A as original equipment for its 265hp Mégane R.S. Trophy, which was released onto the market on June 20. This limited edition of 500 cars is fitted with the Potenza in size 235/35R19; this choice of tyre will, Bridgestone comments, allow the Mégane R.S. Trophy “to reveal its sporty spirit, versatility and comfort.”
The UK distributor for Yokohama tyres has announced that it will introduce a new winter tyre for vans and light commercial vehicles to the market, with availability set for the third and fourth quarters of 2011. The new addition to the W.drive range, the WY01, will be aimed at van and cargo vehicles and will utilise the same technology as the W.drive tyres developed for passenger cars, according to a Yokohama HPT statement, yielding greater safety when the temperature falls below seven degrees centigrade. The compound has been created to provide increased grip from the late Autumn to the beginning of Spring.
Some 80 million television viewers around the world are said to watch the FIA European Truck Racing Championship, and in 2011 Goodyear is continuing its commitment to the sport by supplying tyres to all 24 participating race trucks. In addition to supplying all teams with specially designed and built Truck Racing tyres, the company will also provide the FIA with technical support at all ten series races. The Goodyear tyres are supplied and serviced by TRO (Truck Racing Organisation), the sole tyre supplier. TRO represents the interests of all teams in the FIA European Truck Racing Championship and its trucks and trailers will attend all races, providing a tyre fitting area in the paddock at each venue. This year sees the introduction of RFID chips in the supplied tyres to enable their systematic electronic monitoring during race weekends.
Pedro de la Rosa, who last September stepped in to replace Nick Heidfeld as Pirelli’s Formula One test driver following the German’s unexpected and ultimately short-sighted departure, has rejoined the McLaren F1 team as official test and reserve driver. De la Rosa originally joined McLaren back in 2003 and worked with the team for more than seven seasons, helping develop cars that scored 29 victories, not to mention the drivers’ world championship with Lewis Hamilton in 2008.
The new Motrio range of tyres, an own brand for Renault starting with two tread patterns is also to feature as an original equipment fitment to two vehicle models on the Romanian and Turkish market, Tyres & Accessories has learned. The tyre will come as standard on the Dacia Logan and Sandero models in the eastern European markets. When T&A asked who would be manufacturing the range, Renault UK press relations manager Jeremy Townsend said that it is “a major manufacturer highly present in Western Europe”.
Renault has announced that it will become the first vehicle manufacturer to offer its customers an own-branded tyre, when its Motrio range is released to UK Renault dealers on 1 February. The manufacturer is pitching the budget segment tyre to drivers of “older Renault vehicles, with prices starting at £36 per tyre fully fitted”. Renault recently lowered its new car prices by up to £2,000, and it says the own-brand tyres will “help drive down the cost of motoring” further. The manufacturer says the Motrio range “has been tested to Renault’s strict specifications to ensure owners can be certain that the performance of the tyre is in harmony with their vehicle”.
Lucas di Grassi is rumoured in motorsport news sources to be the new Formula One test driver for sole tyre supplier Pirelli. Di Grassi spent last season driving for the newly-established Virgin team, but lost his 2011 seat to Jerome d’Ambrosio of Belgium.
Following investments in “constant research to improve the quality standards of its products and services to all customers” wheel weight manufacturer BF Srl has published a new company slogan – “step up.” And according to the manufacturer, the latest news that the firm has produced a new balancing weight (the Z12) for French Alloy rims with the edge of Citroen, Peugeot and Renault reflects this motto.
Thompson Commercials, the largest private Renault Trucks dealer in the UK, has ordered 10 sets of xlite forged aluminium wheels for a new fleet of Premium 460.25 6×2 tractor units. The purchase of the 8.25 x 22.5-inch wheels was made after a customer specifically requested the product to further improve the vehicles’ class-leading fuel efficiency and payload capacity.
Continental has won evo magazine’s tyre test for the second time this year. The brand came top of the test on the front wheel drive Renaultsport Megane 250 Cup. The high performance car magazine tested nine of the most popular brands on the market including Continental’s new ContiSportContact 5 P in the popular 235/35 R19 size.
Referring to the Continental tyre’s performance the magazine said: “It set the standard in many of the tests, taking an almost clean sweep in the dry tests and rating very highly in the wet tests, too. It also garnered praise for its feel and abilities in the subjective tests.”
It is possible that F1 driver Nick Heidfeld may develop a swagger after hearing his tyre testing role at Pirelli has been filled by not one, but two drivers. In mid-September Pirelli announced the hiring of former Renault F1 driver Romain Grosjean to carry out evaluation work on Pirelli’s Formula One tyres ahead of its 2011 debut as sole tyre supplier, and the Italian tyre maker has followed this up by adding Pedro de la Rosa – the driver whose berth Heidfeld has taken at Sauber Motorsport – to its testing programme.
When testing of Pirelli’s Formula One tyres continues in Monza next week, former Renault F1 driver Romain Grosjean will take Nick Heidfeld’s place behind the wheel of the Toyota TF109 being used for pre-season tyre development. Heidfeld has been released from his contract with Pirelli following the announcement that he will drive for Sauber Motorsport for the remainder of the 2010 season.
Renault is in the process of launching several models in Russia through its partnership with vehicle manufacturer AvtoVAZ. Included in this arrangement are the Logan and Sandero, which will be imported in CKD form and produced in AvtoVAZ’s Moscow factory from September 2010 onwards. Sibur-Russian Tyres reports its Cordiant tyre brand is being fitted as exclusive original equipment on these two models. The tyre maker anticipates it will ship some 100,000 tyres for the Logan and Sandero by the end of 2010.
The bid for struggling South Korean 4×4 specialist Ssangyong submitted by Indian commercial vehicle manufacturer Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd has been given the green light. Should an arrangement between Mahindra and Ssangyong’s creditors fail to be finalised, however, the Ruia Group – parent company of Dunlop India and Falcon Tyres – is reportedly next in line. A total of six parties, including Renault-Nissan, expressed interest in acquiring the debt laden Ssangyong, the smallest of South Korea’s five car makers.
At last year’s Frankfurt Motor Show vehicle manufacturer Peugeot presented its BB1 concept, a car just 2.5 metres long and powered by electric motors placed inside the rear wheels – units designed in association with Michelin. This extraordinary vehicle is now a step closer to going on sale after Peugeot confirmed it has shifted the BB1 from concept car status to project status. A production version should thus be unveiled in 2012 or 2013 and most likely closely resemble the concept car’s design.
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