Henk van Tuyl has been appointed director of Goodyear Dunlop Tires’ Tire Technology Commercial Tires – Europe Middle East and Africa division. Van Tuyl, who is originally from the Netherlands, has worked for the company for more than 21 years and took up his new post on October 1.
HDW Scandinavia is the new extreme winter pattern in the ContiTread range of precured tread strips, produced by Marangoni under a partnership cooperation with Continental. The line has been specifically designed for the needs of northern countries, where vehicles frequently travel on roads covered by snow or ice and where the temperatures are quite low for many months of the year.
For almost 20 years, Rema Tip Top International has been the distributor of Equal Tire Performance; the revolutionary method of balancing wheels and tyres for trucks, light trucks and motorcycles. Equal is a plastic polymer granule which provides a continuous, maintenance-free solution to tyre force variation and imbalance for the life of the tyres. It can be installed on mounted tyres via the valve stem or, even easier, for unmounted tyres, simply drop a bag into the tyre, mount the tyre and, within a few miles, the bag breaks apart, allowing Equal to perform its function.
Although the volume of cold weather tyres sold in the UK hints at a sun-kissed climate far out of kilter with reality, in other European countries the winter tyre market is big business and swapping over to winter rubber a seasonal duty for all motorists. For this reason, Continental has expressed dismay at the presence of numerous so-called winter tyres on the market; although these bear the much trusted M+S mark, the German manufacturer reports the tyres in question are “not or only slightly suitable for winter”. According to Conti, these M+S marked tyres are really all-season or summer tyres “produced cheaply in the Far East”, and therefore consumers should check carefully whether a tyre really is a winter tyre before making a purchase.
Michelin’s North American retreading operation, Michelin Retread Technologies, has expanded its offering for the company’s X One wide single truck tyre through the introduction of the Michelin X One XZU S Pre-Mold retread. The new retreaded tyre, says Michelin North American, will enable refuse fleets and other urban, high-scrub or regional application vehicles to realise the benefits of both a retread and a wide single tyre.
Vredestein’s states that its recently introduced Flotation Trac implement radial is well suited to work on arable land, grassland and for transportation. This all-round range has now expanded through the addition of a fifth size.
Having shod the winners of the 2009 Isle of Man TT, Dunlop will no doubt be a name to spark interest among racing bikers, especially given the news released today that the brand is to launch the latest addition to its high performance Sportmax range at the National Motorcycle Show, staged at the NEC, on 26 November. Dunlop states that it has used technology derived from its race tyres to produce the GP Racer D211, specifically the technology from Dunlop’s D211 GP race tyre which helped to provide 165 podium finishes, 25 rider championships in top-class Superstock/Supersport and hundreds of club level race wins.
The latest addition to Pirelli Moto’s Diablo motorcycle tyre family is being billed as the only hypersport tyre for road and track use to draw upon technology from the Superbike World Championship. The Diablo Rosso Corsa, new for 2010, is a racing street segment tyre that supplements the Diablo Rosso in Pirelli’s sport range and effectively replaces the Diablo Corsa III. Pirelli comments that the new tyre exceeds each of its predecessor’s key performance values.
Interstate has announced that it has released its new eco-conscious tyre, the ECO Tour Plus. The tyre, as its name suggests, is particularly concerned with addressing ecological issues, such as lowering CO2 emissions through decreased rolling resistance. The company states that the tyre includes the development of materials technology called I-ECO combined with a new non-directional tread design. I-ECO, Interstate continues, produces a lower rolling resistance coefficient by reducing energy loss in the top compound during rotation. The new non-directional tread design features a connected block and a thin rib with strategically placed noise reducing ovals, which aims to enhance contact pressure and wet braking performance. All tyres are produced with the Interstate Clean-Oil.
North American motorists on the hunt for all-season tyres now have a greater selection to choose from following the release of the eNTYRE from Nokian Tyres. The Finnish company describes its new tyre as a premium product designed specifically for the North American market following input from its dealers. When setting out to design the eNTYRE, Nokian reports adhering to the concept of providing drivers with a ‘green tyre’ that provided ultimate in safety, driving comfort and performance.
Federal has introduced the 595RPM; the company's first ever asymmetric tyre engineered particularly for passionate driving enthusiasts and aimed at drivers of sports sedans, providing new levels of performance and luxury. Development of the 595RPM utilised computer simulations in a range of conditions to optimise a rounded tread profile for a quiet and pleasant ride.
Four drainage grooves provide improved stability, while maintaining a consistent footprint in wet. The asymmetrical tread pattern enhanced within the inner and outer shoulder areas ensures a smooth pace, with efficient water displacement to reduce the risk of aquaplaning and decrease rolling noise without affecting controllability.
Falken Tire has launched a new slogan it says ‘personifies’ its mission – We get you going. This phrase, explains Falken in a press release, holds multiple meanings and purposes for the tyre maker: “Over the years, the company has made every effort to capture the essence of a valued product in a highly competitive market. Falken has consistently taken a leaps-forward approach in how it designs, produces, markets and sells its tyres. From the sophisticated tread and carcass designs, engineered in Japan, to the most important facet of sales: Customer Service.
Kraiburg Austria has launched two new treads – the K222 and KST2. Following the company’s K74 development, reportedly the first design with sufficient traction properties for the 60 series, Kraiburg has now designed an all-season tread for 70 and 80 series casings. Suitable for trucks and buses, the new all-season design is said to be able to offer extra grip in winter without comprimsing on wear or increasing rolling noise or fuel consumption. According to the company, this makes the K222 or KST2 “ideal for all applications in which the annual mileage is approximately the same as the running performance of the drive axle.”
Pirelli is launching a raft of new products and line extensions at this year’s SEMA Show in Las Vegas, including the Pirelli Scorpion the Scorpion Verde All Season SUV/Crossover and Light Truck tyres developed under the “Green Performance” philosophy. Pirelli’s Green Performance strategy forms the basis for specific goals such as pushing the green proportion of its tyres from 20 per cent to 40 per cent by 2011.
According to the tyre maker, these tyres offer drivers increased performance in wet braking, dry handling, wet handling, snow traction and reduce aquaplaning. Scorpion Verde All Season’s use of cutting edge compounds is said to helps deliver longer tread life for consumers.
Demand for quality 63-inch OTR tyres from the mining sector and other related industries has remained strong despite the economic slowdown. For this reason, Goodyear has opted to throw its hat into the 63-inch size ring and announced it will begin production of these tyres during the fourth quarter of 2010. Goodyear is upgrading its Topeka, Kansas facility as part of its capital investment strategy to this effect, and preparatory work for production of the new giant tyres is already underway.
If you would like the latest news from the Chinese tyre industry in Chinese, visit our partner site TyrepressChina.com. Or click below to continue on Tyrepress.
