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Hunter Chosen as Ford’s US Aligner Supplier

The Ford Motor Company has chosen Hunter Engineering as its exclusive wheel alignment system supplier for Ford and Lincoln-Mercury dealerships in the United States.

Hunter Engineering has maintained a strong partnership with Ford since joining the Rotunda equipment program in 1964 as the first supplier of alignment and balancing equipment. The relationship between the two companies has strengthened over the years, as Hunter’s product line has expanded to include tyre changers, brake lathes and inspection equipment, which are also approved for the Rotunda program.

4th July 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Reifen 2008: TSI/SSG Reports Busy Show

American tyre service and recycling machinery manufacturers TSI/SSG (Tire Service Equipment and Saf-tee Siping & Grooving) has reported a busy and successful showing in all three key business segments at this year’s Reifen Exhibition. The company divides its output into siping machines, small tyre service machines (like manual tyre changers and bead seaters) and recycling machines (tyre cutters and wheel crushers).

Since 1998, when TSI/SSG first exhibited at Reifen, the company has seen a large increase in both interest and actual orders in the recycling portion of the business. Export Manager Arvid Vaaten believes that “more and more markets are getting ready to seriously deal with the ever increasing scrap tire problem.”

3rd July 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Superior Industries Names New Senior Appointment

Aluminium wheel producer and suppler Superior Industries International has appointed Parveen Kakar to the position of senior vice president, Corporate Engineering and Product Development. The 42-year old has been with Superior since 1989, most recently serving as the company’s vice president, Program Development. Kakar holds a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from India’s Punjab Engineering College.

3rd July 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Titan 63-inch Radial Gets OK

Titan Tire has released its new 63-inch steel-belted radial OTR tyre to full production at its Bryan, Ohio, plant. The 59/80R63 radials will begin full production as of July 7.

“We believe this is the beginning of a change in the specialty tyre and wheel business worldwide,” said Titan Chairman and CEO Morry Taylor. “This tyre should out-perform any tyre out there and we think as production moves forward, we should continue to find more ways to improve these giant tyres.

3rd July 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Banknotes Remind Titan Employees of US Manufacturing Importance

Titan Wheel Corporation has announced the issuing of a summer bonus to its employees on July 2, 2008. Titan Wheel President Ron Schildt said the total bonus payout for the subsidiary, with locations in Quincy, Illinois, and Saltville, Virginia, is over US$2 million.

Employees at Titan’s facility in Quincy, Illinois will receive a portion of their bonus in $2 notes. “We are fortunate to have a great group of employees who work together for the success of Titan,” said Schildt. “It is important to show appreciation where it counts—in the local economy. As each $2 bill circulates, the community will be reminded that American manufacturing is important to the future of our country.”

2nd July 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Solideal Increases Prices Worldwide

Solideal Group has increased prices across its whole product portfolio. In Europe, prices will rise 8-12 per cent. In other countries, prices are set to go up by between 10 and 14 per cent. The new prices will be valid from July to September 2008. Solideal increased prices earlier this year, including a steel surcharge on wheels. Both moves triggered similar responses from other industrial tyre and wheel makers. According to the company, Solideal increased prices due to continuous increases in the cost of raw materials, which have exceeded the Group’s expectations.

2nd July 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Titan Test 63-Inch Tyre on World’s Largest Bull Wheel

Following the construction of a bull wheel measuring 24 feet in height – the largest of its kind in the world – Titan Tire has begun testing its 63-inch tyre. Built in February 2008, the tyre required an equally imposing piece of testing machinery; a prerequisite more than adequately matched by the corporation’s newest piece of bespoke engineering. The bull wheel is used to run the tyres at varying speeds and loads, allowing the performance of the tyre to be measured in controlled conditions.

The tyre, weighing in at 12,500 pounds (easily exceeding five and a half tons) and measuring 13.5 feet – or just over four metres – is the first of its dimensions manufactured at the firm’s Quincy, Illinois plant. In testing the tyre, the gargantuan bull wheel is loaded with weights approaching 500,000 pounds and used at speeds ascending to 45 mph. The company compares the bull wheel to NASA’s device for testing its handling gear for space shuttles, claiming their wheel is much larger.

30th June 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Get the Hump With New Mak Run-Flat Wheel

MAK has launched the Fuoco, an innovative new SUV wheel featuring a special hump that allows particular run-flat tyres to be fitted to it. “Hump EH2+” holds ETRTO homologation, which opens up a whole new market for MAK. According to the company, the run-flat aftermarket is “profitable and very interesting [because] it is composed of customers and suppliers that represent prestigious car makers (for example BMW) on one hand, and people with an high purchasing power on the other hand.”

The MAK Fuoco is available in the following size range: 8J20”, 9J20”, 10,5J20”.

23rd June 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

New Finish For Pro-Lite Wheel

The Wolfrace Pro-Lite wheel is now available in a new finish – Satin Black with a red rim. The new finish makes the twelve-spoke wheel stand out even further from the crowd, combining class and individuality.
It is available in 6.5×15″ and 7×17″ sizes and, in addition to the Satin Black/Red Rim finish, the Pro-Lite comes in a range of colours/finishes, including Black/polished, Shadow Chrome, Silver, Matt Black, Gloss Titanium, Urban Titanium and White.

18th June 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Bada Touts Benefits of Steel Weights on New Site

Hennessy Industries has launched a new Web microsite to support its Bada steel wheel weight products. The site – www.steelwheelweights.com – promotes the environmental benefits of its Bada steel wheel weights. The microsite is also accessible through a link on the Hennessy Industries web site at www.ammcoats.com. “The majority of wheel weights are made are still made of lead, but that is quickly changing,” said Don Vanderheyden, group marketing manager for Hennessy Industries Inc. “The new microsite will educate independent dealers and retailers, merchandisers, and aftermarket companies about the full line of non-lead products Bada now offers and the technical and environmental benefits associated with our steel wheel weights.” (Tire Review/Akron)

13th June 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

New BFGoodrich Long Trail T/ATOUR

BFGoodrich has launched the new Long Trail T/ATOUR 4×4 tyre, which is designed for mainly road use and occasional off-road use. The new Long Trail T/ATOUR is designed to offer high levels of safety through its braking performance and road holding on dry, wet and loose surfaces. According to the company, the tyre is also one decibel quieter than its predecessor – something that is particularly important for road-going 4x4s.

The new tread pattern’s wet grip performance is provided by a combination of four longitudinal grooves to clear standing water, and heavy siping to grip wet and damp surfaces. Dry road performance is enhanced by a central rib in the tread that is made rigid by tie-bars. The combination of on and off-road performance comes thanks to staggered shoulder blocks, which are designed to give traction on loose surfaces including grass, mud and sand.

12th June 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Chicago Pneumatic Increases Socket Range

Chicago Pneumatic has announced a large extension to the company’s existing range of sockets. The addition of 500 individual sockets and 16 new sets represents a large increase in the product range available, encompassing in total 44 socket sets and 774 impact sockets.

Gary Rigg, the company’s UK business line manager comments that the update has been prompted by customer feedback: “we had some feedback from customers and distributors that a good impact socket line needs to cover all their needs in term of types and sizes. This is the reason why we drastically expanded the range. We also took this opportunity to improve the quality of the new impact socket line”.

5th June 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Protector Proving a Popular Addition to Kirkby Offering

Based at an extensive site adjacent to Liverpool John Lennon Airport, Kirkby Tyres & Wheels offers a full range of industrial tyre stock across several brands including Protector, which was introduced during 2007. According to company representatives, the Protector brand is “already proving to be a very popular addition to Kirkby’s portfolio and well accepted by distributors and end users alike.”

The Protector range is exclusive to Kirkby in both the UK and Ireland and includes sizes and patterns for industrial solid press-on, industrial solid resilient, agricultural implement, agricultural R1 and open centre implement, MPT, ATU, skidsteer, skidsteer turf diamond and port tyres.

3rd June 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Goodyear Launches High Performance Tyre

Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. announced the latest offering in its line of high-performance tyres, the Eagle GT. Starting in July, the Eagle GT will be available in 24 sizes representing 70 per cent of the volume potential in this segment, according to the tiremaker. Goodyear will add 19 more sizes by September, creating a 43-size lineup that ranges from 15- to 22-inch wheel diameters.

Design features include an aggressive dual zone asymmetric tread with an outboard High Performance Zone to aid grip and responsive handling, and an all season zone on the inboard side for all-season traction. Microgrooves in the all season zone help provide traction during normal driving, but lock together in handling maneuvers to provide a solid foundation for cornering, Goodyear said. (Tire Review/Akron)

2nd June 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Custom Wheels Entering US Aftermarket Mainstream – SEMA

Custom wheels and performance tyres in the US are rapidly expanding beyond the hot rod and racing market and into the mainstream aftermarket population, reports the Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA). Retail sales of custom wheels increased from US$1.265 billion in 1991 to more than $4.5 billion last year, a rise of 257 per cent. The percentage of cars produced with custom wheels has grown from 40.3 per cent in 1996 to 66.5 per cent in 2006, and the number of light trucks so equipped has gone from 70.9 per cent to 72.2 per cent during the same period.

Specialty/performance tyres often follow the custom-wheel market, SEMA adds. When customers upgrade the wheels on a vehicle, there is an inclination to do the same for the tyres. The market for performance tyres is slightly larger than the custom-wheel market. Performance tyres generated $4.4 billion in retail sales in 2006.

2nd June 2008/by Tyrepress Editors