Titan has expanded its OTR product range with new Low Sidewall (LSW) options for light, medium and heavy-duty equipment. These tyres, with their larger rim diameter and smaller sidewall than standard tyres, offer improved equipment stability and performance.
Half of all road markings on England’s highways are so worn that they need replacing immediately or need to be scheduled for replacement now, according to a survey of nearly 4,000km of the country’s roads. LifeLines England, a report based on the survey carried out by the Road Safety Markings Association, and published today (13 March), found that 52 per cent of markings on motorways, 42 per cent on dual carriageways, and 48 per cent on single carriageways all need replacing immediately or need to be scheduled for replacement now. The survey, the most comprehensive published of its kind, also shows that just 16 per cent of markings on England’s motorways and 13 per cent on single carriageways make the “excellent” grade.
Newly-published third quarter results show a Stamford Tyres experienced slight decline in turnover and a marked year-on-year drop in profits during the period. In the three months ending 31 January 2014, the Singapore-based company’s revenues decreased 2.94 per cent in the quarter to S$71.7 million (£34.0 million). Gross profit was down 2.35 per cent to $16.6 million (£7.9 million). Net profit fell 62.66 per cent to S$838,000 (£397,560).
February new car registrations rose 3.0 per cent to 68,736 units; this means that the UK new car market has achieved 24 consecutive months of growth, increasing 17.4 per cent over the period. The SMMT suggests that rising GDP and growing car registrations signal increasing consumer confidence and automotive retailers are looking forward to March results as expectations rise for a strong 14-plate performance.
The 2006 launch of Starco’s Flex Pro –known simply as the ‘Flex’ back then – heralded a step forward in puncture-free tyre technology for manual applications such as wheelbarrows, and this was followed up by the Flex Lite combined tyre-wheel unit in 2011. Now the Danish company has introduced its third-generation Flex product, the Flex iCore.
Cooper Tire has released its 2013 third quarter financial report, carrying with it the scars of the failed Apollo Tyre deal and the linked issues with the Cooper Chengshan (Shandong) Tire Company (CCT) joint venture. Cooper could not report before now as a result of unrest and lack of cooperation at CCT’s Rongcheng facility in reaction to Apollo’s attempted acquisition. The company said that it will produce Q4 and full 2013 financial reports later in March.
For the third quarter of its financial year – October to December 2013 – Apollo Tyres reports an 8.0 per cent year-on-year rise in consolidated revenue to Rs 34.75 billion (£336.1 million). Operating profit increased 51.2 per cent to Rs 6.19 billion (£66.7 million), a result that includes exceptional items of Rs 1.12 billion (£10.8 million) from non-operational income, and a 17.8 per cent operating margin. Net profit, including the aforementioned non-operational income, rose 86.7 per cent to Rs 3.38 billion (£32.7 million).
Michelin has reported full year 2013 net sales of 20.247 billion euros, down 5.7 per cent (or 1.2 billion euros) on last year. Meanwhile operating income was fell roughly 10 per cent to 2.234 billion euros and net income plummeted some 23 per cent to 1.127 billion euros. According to Dow Jones analysts’ consensus was that this figure would fall less – by 22.0 per cent, and operating profit to retreat by 5.8 per cent.
Pirelli & C. SpA has announced that the Board of Directors meeting it scheduled to review results for the year ended 31 December 2013 will now take place on Thursday 27 March 2014 and no longer on Tuesday 11 March, as previously announced. The company says this change follows the announcement from Prelios SpA – a real estate sector company that Pirelli is shareholder of – that it has postponed its Board of Directors’ meeting to review results for the year ended 31 December 2013 until 25 March 2014.
Performance brake manufacturer Tarox has revealed details of what it is calling its extreme brake testing protocl. While motorsport can be a benchmark for out and out performance, and a breeding ground for new technology, the performance aftermarket has its own set of unique requirements that cannot be tested in motorsport. In this way Tarox is striving to ensure that its performance brake range not only performs like it has just been swapped from a race car but that it’s as hassle free as high quality OEM parts found on most modern day cars.
Continental AG has integrated the cables for wheel speed sensors and the electric parking brake (EPB) into a single harness, making the company one of the first manufacturers to offer such a combination of components. And what’s more a Japanese car manufacturer is set to introduce the innovation in 2015.
Figures released by the ACEA show that, with a 13.3 per cent increase in new car registrations in December 2013, the EU recorded the largest monthly year-on-year growth since December 2009 (+16.6 per cent). However, in absolute figures, the results were the third lowest to date for a month of December with a total of 906,294 units.
Trelleborg has received the ‘Silver Ears 2013’ innovation award for its ProgressiveTraction technology at leading agricultural exhibition, Agribex 2013, in Brussels, Belgium.
Louise Thompson, protagonist in the scripted reality show ‘Made in Chelsea’, was recently recruited by Volvo for an event even more gripping than the E4 series. Volvo Car UK invited her to Tamworth Snowdome to demonstrate the effectiveness of winter tyres for driving in snow. There Thompson was confronted by a pair of Volvo V40 D2 hatchbacks, identical save for the fitment of winter tyres on one and standard summer tyres on the other. Thompson’s challenge was to drive each car up the Tamworth Snowdome’s ski slope to the summit. The results were as expected.
This year’s Baja 1000 was won by BJ Baldwin, racing for Toyo Tire U.S.A. Corp. Commenting on his win in the 883.1 mile race held on Mexico’s Baja California Peninsula, the tyre maker describes Baldwin’s race time of 18:36:10 as “impressive”. Toyo says Baldwin “blazed the course” in a Chevy Silverado Trophy Truck equipped with size 39×13.50 R17 Toyo Open Country off-road tyres.
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