Volkswagen Archives - Page 23 of 29 - Tyrepress

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Yokohama Chosen for Most Powerful Golf Ever

Volkswagen is releasing the most powerful Golf in the marque’s 33-year history, and has selected Yokohama to handle the hatchback’s phenomenal power. The Golf GTi W12-650, created to celebrate the annual GTi festival in Europe and 30 years of the Golf in the UK, features a twin-turbocharged 650bhp version of the W12 engine normally found in the Phaeton.

The massive engine is engine mounted amidships in the Golf GTi W12, behind the front seats. Power is channelled to the rear wheels via a six-speed Tiptronic automatic transmission. The six-litre W12 engine is usually rated at 450bhp but the addition of two turbochargers raises this by 200bhp and gives the Golf a staggering 553lbft of torque.

12th June 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

GTI Pirelli Makes a Long-Awaited Comeback

Almost a quarter century after its hugely popular predecessor first saw light of day, Pirelli is once again lending its name to Volkswagen’s high performance hatchback. Differentiated from its lesser brethren by its unique aesthetics and mechanical specifications, the Golf GTI Pirelli will make its debut several weeks after September’s Frankfurt Motor Show. Media and aficionados were treated to an advance showing of the new Volkswagen at its world premiere at the international GTI Meeting in Wörthersee, Austria on May 16.

The rubber chosen for the Golf GTI Pirelli is from the P Zero range, in 225/40 size, fitted to 18-inch 5P Pirelli light alloy wheels. The P Zero theme extends into the GTI Pirelli’s insides, with interior styling inspired by the tyre’s tread pattern. But while they may add to the car’s appearance, the P Zero tyres are not there simply for show – lurking under the Golf GTI Pirelli’s bonnet is a 230hp direct injection turbocharged engine capable of delivering a maximum speed of 245 km/h and acceleration from 0 to 100 km/h in 6.8 seconds.

21st May 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

BERU Opens Extended R&D Centre

Beru, manufacturers of the Tire Safety System (TSS) tyre pressure monitoring equipment, have officially opened their extended research and development centre in Ludwigsburg, Germany. The extension, made necessary by the growing demand for the company’s sensor and ignition technology, sees the centre increase in floorspace by approximately 1,000 square metres.

The May 9 opening was presided over by Beru managing director for research & development and sales of original equipment, Dr. Rainer Podeswa. Speaking to industry, political and business representatives attending the ceremony, Dr. Podeswa said: “The extension is a visible sign of a long-term corporate policy and permanent investment in the future.”

10th May 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Passenger Car Registrations Show Mixed Results

Passenger car registrations across the 15 established European Union states are showing signs of a slight decrease compared with 12 months ago, according to figures released by the ACEA on March 15. Throughout this entire region a total of 975,666 new passenger cars were registered in February 2007, a 3.5 per cent dip compared with February 2006 registrations. The scenario in the UK market was in line with this trend, with February 2007’s new car registrations – 73,586 new passenger cars – 3.2 per cent lower than the number recorded a year before. However new car registrations are traditionally low in the UK during February due to the March number plate changeover, and it must be pointed out that combined January/February 2007 new car registrations totalled 239,189, a 2.5 per cent increase on 2006 and bucking EU15 trends, where a 1.5 per cent decrease was recorded.

16th March 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Hayes Lemmerz Subsidiary Expanding in India

Hayes Lemmerz International, Inc. has strengthened its market position in India and bolstered export capabilities following the completion of expansion work on its Indian subsidiary’s steel wheel production facility. The Kalyani Lemmerz Limited factory is located in the city of Pune, approximately 100 miles from Mumbai, and following recent expansion work it possesses an annual capacity of 800,000 units. Kalyani Lemmerz intends to add a further 200,000 units of capacity during 2007 through an additional US$10 million investment.

14th March 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

What Car? Winners a Boost to Bridgestone

Bridgestone is celebrating after two top-selling cars shod with its run-flat tyres scooped back-to-back What Car? Car of the Year awards. The BMW 3 Series and BMW 5 Series, which are fitted exclusively with Bridgestone Potenza RE050A RFT tyres in a range of sizes, took the ‘Compact Executive’ and ‘Executive Car’ titles respectively in the awards – just as they did in 2006.

26th February 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Firestone Launches New Mass-Market Multihawk

Firestone has announced details of the long-term replacement for its F590FS tyre, a regular OE fitment on a number of mass-market hatchbacks and compact family cars – Including the Volkswagen Polo, Fiat’s Punto and Stilo and the Skoda Fabia, since its release in 2000.

26th February 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Safety Group Warns of Used Tyre Danger

A prominent motoring safety group in the US has voiced concerns about the number of used tyres sold throughout the country each year and the unregulated nature of used tyre sales.

The group, Safety Research & Strategies, say that used tyres are often repaired, repainted or patched before sale, making it difficult for purchasers to get an accurate idea of their safety, and such tyres are the cause of countless accidents every year. “Without self-policing and a more transparent business model, used tyres sellers are courting disaster,” said Sean Kane, the organisation’s president. “Regulators should examine how to ensure consumers are getting safe tyres.”

20th February 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Kumho Tire to Supply Mercedes Benz

Kumho Tire Co., the second-largest tyre manufacturer in Korea, has started supplying tyres to Mercedes Benz, a Kumho spokesman told the Korea Times. The spokesman said Kumho tyres will be installed on Mercedes Benz A-Class sedans. However, he declined to give more details, including the number of tyres to be supplied. Kumho Tire made inroads in the OE market when it supplied tyres to Volkswagen in 2002. In November 2006 Kumho began supplying tyres to Chrysler in the US. According to reports, Kumho plans to supply 6 million OE tyres to international carmakers next year.

15th February 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Volkswagen Racing with Hankook

Global tyre major Hankook is throwing its weight behind the Volkswagen Racing Cup for the second year running, acting as a principal sponsor for the manufacturer-backed saloon racing series. The Volkswagen Racing Cup, now in its seventh season, is arguably one of the most successful championships of its type in the UK.

16th January 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Bridgestone Tyres OE On Touran

The latest generation Volkswagen Touran will fit with Bridgestone run-flat tyres as an option. The tyres were named “Best Buy 2006” in the annual tyre test carried out by leading consumer motoring magazine Auto Express, beating rival rubber in a number of disciplines, including wet handling and rolling resistance. The Touran is available with a choice of two petrol engines, including Volkswagen’s groundbreaking TSI unit, and four great all-round performing diesel choices. Bridgestone Turanza ER300 RFT tyres are available in a size 205/55 R16 for the vehicle.

10th January 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Beru Chosen as BMW TPMS Supplier in US

BMW has chosen the German company Beru AG as its supplier of tyre pressure control systems for BMW vehicles destined for the US market. Beru AG manufactures the Beru Tire Safety System (TSS), a unit that directly records tyre pressure when a vehicle is either stationary or moving.
The US Tread Act compels all vehicles approved for sale in the US from September 2007 model year onwards to be fitted with a tyre pressure control system. Such a system must be capable of independently monitoring pressure in all four tyres simultaneously, a task that requires the use of a direct recording tyre pressure system such as the Beru TSS.

20th December 2006/by Tyrepress Editors

Marangoni Sponsors Car Design Exhibition

The Marangoni Group is one of the sponsors of Mittomacchina, a major exhibition dedicated to the history of car design, which is being held at Mart, the modern and contemporary art museum of Trento and Rovereto, until May 1st 2007.

Speaking at the opening of the exhibition on 2 December, Mario Marangoni, president – Marangoni Group, said: “For over 50 years our Group has believed in tyres and has educated its people and developed new technologies to be able to handle every aspect and every phase of a tyre’s life cycle.”

13th December 2006/by Tyrepress Editors

Apollo Tyres OE on Volkswagen?

Apollo Tyres is in talks with Volkswagen about supplying tyres to the small car the German carmaker is planning to introduce in the next two years. India’s Business Standard newspaper quoted Onkar Kanwar, chairman and MD of Apollo Tyres as saying: “We are holding talks for supply of car radials for Volkswagen vehicles, which are expected to roll out in the second half of 2009-10.” It is not clear if the deal will cover Europe or just India. According to reports Volkswagen recently firmed up its plans to set up a car plant in Chakan near Pune and is expected to sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Maharashtra government by next week.

5th December 2006/by Tyrepress Editors

Kumho ECSTA KH11 OE on Chrysler Sebring

KUMHO’s ECSTA KH11 tyre has been chosen by the Chrysler Group to be original equipment on the 2007 Chrysler Sebring. The ultra-high performance tyre, in size 215/55R18, will be a top-of-the-line plus-size option on the Chrysler Sebring in international markets, the company reports. The vehicle will be available in the UK from June 2007.

30th November 2006/by Tyrepress Editors