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Smiths of Bury Choose XDN2 Grip Tyres

Lancashire-based haulier, Smiths of Bury, has taken delivery of two new DAF XF 105 4x2s which have been specified with Michelin’s XDN2 Grip tyres as original equipment. These tyres selling point is that Michelin claims they retain their grip even when two-thirds worn, the XDN2 Grip tyres are being fitted to all new vehicles joining the fleet following an extensive in-house trial which saw a set of XDN2 Grip tyres fitted as replacements on the drive axle of one of the company’s 460 hp Volvo FH12 4×2.

“The driver of the Volvo regularly visits a customer’s premises, which are spread across three levels, with a sharp turn to negotiate at the bottom of a steep incline,” says Tim Laycock, a director of Smiths of Bury. “He was reporting traction difficulties when making the turn, and so we were keen to trial the Michelin XDN2 Grip tyres to see whether they would improve things.

14th October 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Goodyear Releases Aviation Tyre for Business Jet Sector

The Goodyear has introduced its Flight Eagle LT (Light Turbine) tyre for the rapidly growing entry level, very light and light jet business segments. The new tyre is an extension of Goodyear’s Flight Eagle line of aviation tyres, a leading choice for business jets.

“Throughout our 100 year history, Goodyear Aviation has been involved in many aviation developments,” said Pierre Jambon, general manager of Goodyear’s Global Aviation Business. “From supplying tyres to the Wright brothers, to providing the right tyres for Embraer’s newest personal jets, we have earned our reputation as an innovator. The business and personal jet category is our next step in this progression. We are pleased to launch this product for aviation’s newest segment, the light turbines.”

10th October 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Goodyear Expands Kelly Size Line-up

This autumn Goodyear is adding new sizes to its North American Kelly Tires range, including additional sizes for the Navigator Touring Gold and Explorer Plus lines. The Navigator Touring Gold, a tyre with a 60,000-mile tread life limited warranty on H- and V-rated sizes and a 70,000-mile tread life limited warranty on T-rated sizes, receives eight new sizes. They are: 185/60R15, 205/70R15, 215/70R15, 205/65R16, 215/65R16, 235/65R16 and 225/55R17 in T speed ratings, and a 215/60R17 in an H speed rating.

1st October 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Nokian Introduces HT SUV Tyre for Urban 4x4s

Nokian’s product range has grown with the addition of the Nokian HT SUV, a summer tyre intended for urban use 4×4 vehicles. The HT SUV is, says the manufacturer, most at home on asphalt roads, however it is said to also function excellently off on “twisty small roads” and “tracks that are covered in sand and gravel and difficult to drive on.” The T and H speed rated range will be available in a wide range of sizes covering all popular 4x4s sold in Europe, with sales starting in the spring of 2009.

30th September 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Removal Firm Fits New Michelin XDN2 Grip

The UK’s largest independent removal firm, White & Company, has just taken delivery of a new Scania drawbar combination. The vehicle is the first in the fleet to be fitted with Michelin’s XDN2 Grip tyres on its drive axle.

Roger Brown, White & Company Group Fleet Manager explaines that: “We opted for a full Michelin policy three years ago following successful trials which demonstrated that Michelin tyres have a longer life expectancy and better performance in our fleet than the alternatives. We are now trialling these new XDN2 Grip tyres as they are designed to improve traction in difficult driving conditions, ahead of hopefully rolling them out as standard fitment across similar vehicles in the fleet.”

26th September 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Conti Introducing M+S Steering Axle Tyre at IAA Show

Continental Truck Tyres is presenting its new HSU 1 M+S steering-axle tyre for city driving at the IAA Commercial Vehicle Show in Hanover, Germany. The new tyre is available in size 275/75 R 22.5 148/ 145 J (152/ 148 E), and Conti reports the HSU 1 M+S complements its already introduced HSU 1 and the HSW Scandinavia tyres, and provides enhanced braking and steering safety.

The introduction of the HSU 1 M+S tyre completes Continental’s city driving tyre line-up. Joining the HSU 1, an all-season tyre for varying weather conditions and the HSW Scandinavia for extremely adverse wintry road conditions, the new tyre provides excellent traction on muddy, snow-covered roads. The newly developed tread pattern provides a wider margin of steering and braking safety than an all-season tyre tread, reports Continental.

25th September 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Amerityre Partners Defence Industry Contractor

Amerityre Corporation has entered into a development programme with an unnamed multi-billion dollar defence industry contractor that is a leader in aerospace composite technology. The objective of the Phase I development programme is to establish the base line performance characteristics of Amerityre’s polyurethane passenger car tyre incorporating a “composite hoop” belt, as opposed to traditional tyre belting material.

The composite hoop belt has been investigated in rubber tyre applications by Edward Markow of Edward Markow Consulting. Under the programme, Amerityre will provide the polyurethane tyre design and material, the defence contractor partner will fabricate the composite hoop belts and Markow will consult on the programme.

25th September 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Marshal Offer Comprehensive Truck Range

Fresh from the launch of its new website, Marshal is keen to ramp up its truck tyre operation, using a variety of customer-friendly measures.

To make selection easier for customers and end users, a clear naming system has been adopted for all new tyres in the range. This includes an indication of the application, for example L for long haul, R for regional, M for mixed service etc. The position is also given by a letter such as S for steer, T for trailer and A for all-position. Finally a two digit number (01, 02 and so on) shows the series.

In addition to the improvements to retail operations, Marshal is confident that its range can cater to the needs of a wide range of customers. To meet the demands of long-distance highway use at constant high speed, Marshal’s long haul range delivers good stability and handling and long original tread life, while offering a smooth ride and minimising uneven wear. The regional range combines excellent handling and ride comfort with the need for good traction and long tread life.

22nd September 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Kumho to Focus on Regional Truck Sector

Kumho’s current focus in the truck tyre segment is on the development of new products for the regional market. With this in mind, the company says that it is following closely the evolution of distribution trends. Today’s market sees the haulier faced with an increasingly complex network of routes, comprising many different road types and surfaces. As a result, the wear rates on tyres in these operations are inevitably higher than in long-haul, mainly motorway, usage. Recognising that durability and wear performance are two key factors influencing operators in their choice of tyres, Kumho is introducing new steer, drive and trailer patterns which provide a very competitive package in cost-per-mile terms.

The Longmark KRS 03 steer and KRD 02 drive axle tyres specifically address the problem of increased wear rates. Each has a wide, deep tread pattern which aims to give tyres longer life and increased driving stability in all highway applications. A newly-developed casing design reduces stress points and heat build-up, also to improve durability. The S-shaped sipes of the KRS 03 are designed to produce enhanced wet grip, stability and handling, while the KRD 02’s sturdy tread blocks result in more effective traction and braking in all weather conditions.

22nd September 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Conti Extends Sizes on HSC1/HDC1 Construction Tyre

Continental has released a bevy of new sizes on its range of next-generation construction tyres for both on and off-road applications. The HSC1 pattern – with its optimised tread design that minimises stone strapping – is now available as a steer or a drive tyre (HDC1) in 295/80R22.5, a key size in UK and Ireland.

The tyre also boasts a reinforced belt construction and a deep tread pattern – which provides better protection from damage, high mileage performance on-road and precise steering and traction on all other surfaces. The HDC1 – the HSC1’s cousin – provides better tread depth than its predecessor, in addition to all the benefits of its steer counterpart.

Conti’s tyres are sold and distributed through ContiNetwork Partners, a group that represents the largest independent tyre dealer network in the UK and Ireland.

19th September 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

OTR CushionTyre Retread Success

Earthmover tyre specialists OTR Tyres introduced their solid CushionTyre early last year and the performance of the product has been further enhanced by OTR’s ability to retread the tyre, following recent major manufacturing developments.

Waste Industry Manager Paul Tracey says that some CushionTyres have been returned to the factory for second and third life retreading, with no loss of performance, adding: “We have found that tyre life hours of a retreaded CushionTyre are very similar to that of the original tyre specification, but with significant cost per hour reductions.”

17th September 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Falcon vs. Dragon: Indian Court Throws out TVS Plea

While the prospect of a Dragon fighting a Falcon seems attractive to the PlayStation generation, 12 September’s court hearing in New Delhi ended with both creatures standing to meet another day. The P K Ruia Group can continue to sell Falcon tyres with similar tread patterns to Dragon tyres, much to the chagrin of TVS Srichakra, the manufacturer behind the Dragon.

Justice SB Sinha said that Falcon, based in Karnataka, could go ahead with its product design, despite TVS’s submission that “it was the registered owner of a particular design of tread pattern for its tyres marketed under brand ‘Dragon’ and the same was developed after spending stupendous amounts on R&D,” according to Indian news source, The Economic Times.

12th September 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Firestone Adds to Ultra-Deep Drive Radial Lineup

In the USA, Bridgestone Bandag Tire Solutions (BBTS) is adding two sizes to its lineup of new Firestone FD690 PLUS deep drive axle radial tires: 225/70R19.5 and 245/70R19.5.

The FD690 PLUS features a continuous shoulder design specifically engineered to combat irregular wear, an aggressive block/lug design to cut through water and road films and linked center lugs to add stability against tread squirm and to fight heel and toe wear, according to the company. The tyres are available from a Firestone commercial tyre dealer or truckstop. (Tire Review/Akron)

11th September 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Cooper Courts UK “Soft Roaders”

Cooper Tire has launched a 4×4 tyre in the UK specially designed for sporty SUV drivers not wanting to take their vehicle off-road: the Cooper Zeon XSTA.

Cooper’s research suggests that there are around a million “soft roaders” in the UK and has thus developed the tyre specifically for sporty SUV vehicles such as the BMW X5, Mercedes M Class, Honda CR-V and Lexus RX400, providing greater comfort, luxurious properties. In fact, the company claims that the XSTA is Cooper’s most luxurious 4×4 tyre to date, with a dual tread attempting to master both wet and dry conditions. The inner tread design expels water in all four directions to offer better traction and control in wet weather. According to the company the outer part of the tyre also makes sure steering response in the dry is crisp and direct.

10th September 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Bridgestone Trial Single Wet F1 Tyre

Bridgestone have revealed that they are in the process of developing a single wet tyre for Formula One cars, to replace the current choice of standard and extreme wets.

The tyre is to be based on the single wet rubber used in the GP2 Series, also supplied by the Japanese giant. It possesses a sloping block tread profile, which is designed to wear down when the track begins to dry, allowing an in-use transformation from an extreme-wet tyre to showing the characteristics of a standard wet.

4th September 2008/by Tyrepress Editors