Winter Tyres
Comparative tyre tests can cost thousands to perform and require the involvement of experts. Magazines and motoring associations therefore regularly collaborate with partners. This is the case for German company car magazine Firmenauto, which has based its latest winter tyre test upon auto motor und sport’s recent comparative evaluation. To give the test greater relevancy to its readers, Firmenauto added cost as a fifth test criterion.
This week’s tabloid headlines warn us that the Beast from the East will soon return to the UK. Best pay attention to this season’s winter tyre tests then. Auto Bild has got in early and published the results of its winter 2019 preliminary round.
Firestone launched the second generation of its new all-season touring tyre, the Multiseason earlier in the year. Accommodating a wide variety of cars and drivers, the tyre joins other recent models, such as Roadhawk and Vanhawk 2, supplied by the Bridgestone brand to offer reliable tyres at a value price point. The Firestone Multiseason was preceded by its premium sister-brand Bridgestone’s latest product designed to take advantage of the all-season growth market.
Given the changeability of the UK climate, especially during the winter months, tyre manufacturer Maxxis has posed the rhetorical question: why do we fit summer tyres to vehicles in the UK? While the company espouses the advantages of summer tyres, such as more grip, better handling, and shorter stopping distances in the dry, it also questions whether a driver with no specific tyre needs should make all-season tyres their default choice.
Noting the more extreme UK climate, Landsail has built a cold weather range for the market, led by its Landsail 4Seasons all-season tyre, while also providing options for British drivers considering more specialist winter tyres for the first time.
Gridlocked motorways, empty restaurants and a host of other travel related problems were just some of the impacts of the freezing conditions last winter, which were estimated to have cost the UK economy £1bn per day. Given this financial impact, many large fleets and commercial vehicle operators have developed a series of contingency plans designed to mitigate against these losses and keep their operations mobile. But it’s not just big businesses that need to keep moving when the worst of the weather hits. Many families, small and medium sized business owners and their workers require to maintain their full mobility. Whether it’s visiting elderly relatives, trying to keep their company running or not missing out on important work shifts, it is vital for many that harsh weather does not affect their day-to-day lives. Yokohama says its extensive range of all-season and winter tyre products offer a solution, designed for a wide range of passenger car applications.
Giti Tire has developed its GT Radial all-season product range, available in the UK from exclusive distributor Micheldever, off the back of an encouraging run of sales for its initial product for this growth market. Tyres & Accessories spoke to Brian McDermott, country manager UK for Giti Tire, to get the latest on how the manufacturer is shaping its range for the segment, which appears to have gained more of a footing in the UK than specialist winter tyres have previously managed.
Giti Tire has launched the GT Radial Maxmiler Ice, its first studdable van and light truck tyre for extreme European winter conditions, in five sizes – 195/70R15C, 185/75R16C, 205/65R16C, 215/65R16C, 235/65R16C. The range covers the majority of mass-market popular vehicles from the Citroen Berlingo and Toyota HiAce through to the Ford Transit and Mercedes Sprinter. Load indices range from 104/102 to 121/119.
You have to get up early to fool a Tyrepress.com reader. A couple of weeks ago we asked who could correctly identify five winter tyres with remarkably similar tread patterns – and most respondents could.
The Motor Ombudsman won the 2019 TyreSafe Online and Social Media award. The tyre safety charity’s annual prize giving ceremony, which was recently held at Staffordshire’s St George’s Park, the home of the National Football Centre, acknowledges businesses and individuals, across eleven different categories, who have made a significant contribution to raising awareness about tyre safety-related issues during the past 12 mo
Vehicle manufacturer PSA Groupe is introducing a new winter tyre range via its Eurorepar brand. It’s called the Eurorepar Reliance Winter and will be available in a number of European markets. So far PSA hasn’t said the range will be sold in the UK alongside the Reliance Summer. The Eurorepar Reliance Winter is produced in 26 sizes for 14- to 18-inch rim diameters – PSA says that the five most popular sizes cover 75 per cent of vehicles in the market.
Directional or v-shaped treads offer several advantages on wet and snow-covered roads. Such patterns provide good levels of traction and also effectively remove water from the contact patch, thus offering stability and protection against aquaplaning. These characteristics make directional patterns an obvious choice for winter and all-season tyres, and it’s no surprise that the v-shaped tread is well-represented in these segments.
In what it calls a “complete upgrade” of its UltraGrip winter tyre range, Goodyear has announced three new product lines. The tyre maker has already begun the market rollout of the Goodyear UltraGrip Performance+, UltraGrip 9+ and UltraGrip Cargo, and all sizes will be available within the coming year.
Pirelli may be synonymous with traditional ideas of high performance, but in 2019 the tyre manufacturer is increasingly adapting what this segment of the market can mean. Earlier in 2019, Pirelli reported that tyres made according to the company’s Green Performance strategy had risen from 20 per cent a decade ago to 29.8 per cent in 2018 – not only that, but Green Performance tyres accounted for 57.5 per cent of Pirelli’s High Value product sales. Now the manufacturer is embracing another “electrifying” direction in which to develop its high performance tyres in 2019.
Toyo Tires will exhibit at the 28th edition of Autopromotec at the Fiera di Bologna from 22-26 May, 2019. The company will present its range of UHP and SUV products to the large number of aftermarket professionals who visit this exhibition. The tyre maker added that two new products will be revealed at the exhibition, a winter tyre and a new motorsport product.
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