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Winter Tyres

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Winter Tyre Test Specialist Appoints New MD

Test World, the independent winter tyre testing facility located in the brisk northerly reaches of Ivalo in Finnish Lapland, has a new managing director. Following the retirement of incumbent managing director Timo Mäkelä on August 1, deputy managing director Harri Eskelinen has filled his snow shoes.

The company performs an invaluable service for Europe’s tyre manufacturers. Tyre World’s extreme northerly location ensures frigid weather for a large chunk of the year – the test season begins in late October and runs until the end of April – making Ivalo a much sought after location for putting winter tyres through their paces. The testing specialist has developed track maintenance techniques that permit invariable conditions for the duration of tyre tests, and can conduct tests in all conditions likely to be encountered, including snow, slush, wet and dry surfaces. During 2007 the company is also launching a brand new indoors test facility that will be used for performing approval tests conforming to ECE norms.

20th August 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Eurostone from NDI –Tyres for Wet or Dry Winters

Nordisk Dæk Import AS (NDI) is a major supplier of tyres and wheels to European markets. The Danish company was established in 1970 and today its headquarters in the town of Brørup occupy more than 56,000 square metres of office and warehouse space. The company boasts a sizeable presence in its home market of Denmark – throughout the country NDI also operates nine strategically located branches and 50 company owned “Super Dæk Service” retail outlets, employing a total of approximately 750 people.

The company also produces wheels to order for industrial and agricultural applications, specialising in adapting rims to individual customer’s requirements. A third related field in which NDI operates is retreading. The company’s retreading subsidiary, Euroband, is Denmark’s largest manufacturer of retreaded tyres for trucks, buses, tractors and earthmovers. The Euroband facility is also located in Brørup.

17th August 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Cooper’s Winter Groove

New from Cooper Tire for the upcoming cold season is the recently launched Discoverer M+S Sport, a range of winter tyres introduced to meet the needs of high performance 4×4 vehicles. According to Cooper the Discoverer M+S Sport’s number one strength is its winter traction, particularly during snow and icy conditions. The tread design of the tyre incorporates biting edges that offer a high degree of grip without compromising tread element stiffness. Cooper attributes the road grasping qualities of the tread to a patent pending feature it calls “Snow Groove Design Technology.” The tyremaker reports that this unique design utilises the superior traction characteristics of ‘snow on snow’ grip as opposed to ‘rubber on snow’, while at the same time dispensing of unwanted snow build up in the tyre’s grooves. The zigzag sipe pattern present on the Discoverer M+S Sport ensures strong wet traction as well as winter performance. The depth of the sipes allows their efficacy to continue as the tyre continues to wear with use.

14th August 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Van den Ban Re-brands Flamingo as Blackstone Tyres

For the past thirty years Van den Ban Autobanden B.V. (VDB) has distributed its private brand Flamingo tyres, building up from initial local distribution in Holland into the current UK and European distribution network. The tyres are manufactured by a premium brand European manufacturer and are said to stand for ‘Comfort and Durability’ which is illustrated in the name of the CD patterns. The assortment consists of three distinctive patterns: CD1000, CD2000 and CD 3000 which serves the high performance sector of the market up to size 235/40/R18. Also a Flamingo Alaska winter tyre assortment has been available for a number of years now and has proven to be successful.

Blackstone Alaska winter tyres will be introduced first, as of the Autumn of 2007. Then in the first quarter of 2008 the PCR (CD range) will also be changed to Blackstone.

13th August 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Himalayan Sure-Footedness with Federal

Taiwan’s Federal Corporation have been producing winter tyres since the start of the decade, and for the coming winter months are offering UK drivers a choice of two cold weather tyres to choose from.

The Himalaya WS1 is aimed at the performance market and features a compound of tensile synthetic SBR rubber mixed with silica, a combination Federal claims lends itself to prolonged working life. The tread contains v-shaped longitudinal grooves and wide channel grooves for traction-improving water and snow dispersal, and the straight centre rib with cross sipes is designed to improve straight line stability and passenger comfort. The shoulder blocks on the Himalaya WS1 have been beefed up to provide an appropriate level of handling stability and steering response on winter surfaces.

10th August 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

No-Nonsense

‘No-nonsense rubber’ is a catchphrase adopted by Maxxis in the UK a short time ago, and given the company’s plans to expand the profile of its passenger car and light commercial lines here through its new Centres of Excellence program, it appears that Maxxis are taking a no-nonsense approach to giving their brand the same level of recognition in mainstream tyre segments as it currently enjoys with motorcycle and atv users.

This year the Taiwan based tyremaker brings to the table five tyres featuring tread and compound specifically designed for winter conditions. For passenger car drivers Maxxis has the MA-W1 Wintermaxx, a high performance tyre the manufacturer claims both offers a quiet ride and comes into its own in snowy weather. The tread is a unidirectional design featuring a zigzag pattern with multiple grooves for effective water drainage and snow removal. In keeping with winter tyre practice the footprint on the MA-W1 been optimised for as sure footed a ride and braking as possible on wet, icy or snow covered roads. The MA-W1 is available in many size configurations from 13-inches up to a V rated 17-inch variation.

9th August 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Nokian Reports Strong Growth, Especially in Key Markets

Nokian Tyres’ interim report for the period between January and June 2007 was released on August 8, and the figures contained within show sales and profits heading in a welcome direction. In contrast with the figures recorded during the January-June 2006 period, sales increased by 23.8 per cent during the recent half year and totalled 432.5 million euros. Operating profit was 89.2 million euros, up from 48.6 million a year earlier. Net profit, which in January-June 2006 was 31.8 million euros, more than doubled to reach 70.1 million euros. Also more than doubled was earnings per share, which jumped from 0.26 euros to 0.57 euros.

“Nokian Tyres had a clearly better second quarter and first half of the year in 2007 compared to the previous year,” said Nokian president and CEO Kim Gran. “Net sales increased and operating profit improved in all profit centres in the company’s core markets. While most of the increase in sales came from Russia, steep year-over-year sales growth was also recorded in Eastern Europe and the Nordic countries. Passenger car tyre sales mainly consisted of winter tyres, but summer tyres also sold well. The latter were boosted by the Nokian Hakka summer tyre family, which saw its first season in consumer sales. Average tyre prices rose as a result of the improved sales mix, price increases and new products. The benefits gained from manufacturing operations in Russia improved profitability. The outlook for the rest of the year is good and the order book is strong, but sales growth and profit improvement will be more moderate than in the first part of the year.”

8th August 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Deldo Sales Reach Record Levels

Belgium based wholesaler Deldo Autobanden has released its sales figures for the first six months of this year, and claim the results highlight the company’s strong performance and year by year growth. During 2007 Deldo has already attained half-year record sales of more than 3,400,000 tyres, and many European dealerships for Deldo’s exclusive Wanli, Sunny and Fortuna brands have been established. The development of dealers has also been boosted by a specific marketing promotion program launched in December 2006.

The wholesaler states they have been ‘happy’ with pre sales of winter tyres, despite many of their clients still holding considerable stock. Deldo states their pre sales of Wanli and Sunny tyres, for which more than 80 studdable and non-studdable sizes are available, have reached 65 per cent.

23rd July 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Steer Clear of Ebay Used Tyres, Says Entyrety

eBay shoppers looking for a bargain are being warned to steer clear of second-hand tyres being sold on the site, after independent testing revealed that half of the used tyres listed on eBay are too dangerous for use and if fitted to a car could put lives at risk.

The warning follows research by Continental Tyres who commissioned technical specialists, Entyrety, to check the safety of the thousands of used tyres that are up for sale on eBay for as little as £5. Twenty used car tyres were purchased and tested to see how they performed in terms of legislation and safety.

One in five were over the recommended age limit for tyres, meaning that they could fail or ‘blow out’ on the road, a further 20 per cent contravened the ‘Sales of Goods Act’ by not having a legally-required ‘E’ marking and none of the tyres fully conformed with regulations which say that they should be marked as part worn.

Even more shocking was that two of the tyres were well below the minimum tread depth and were even bald in places. One tyre was found to have an illegal and dangerous repair and another had been stuck back together with superglue.

19th July 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Marangoni Extends Meteo Range

Marangoni has extended the range of its Meteo HP winter tyres, which already includes 22 different sizes, through the addition of four new tyres developed especially for 4x4s. The tread and internal structure of the new tyre, the Marangoni Meteo HP SUV, has been upgraded to meet the specific needs of 4×4 vehicles. The Meteo HP SUV is initially available in four different sizes, designed for some of the most common 4x4s on the European market.

The range starts with a 215/65 R16 H suitable for vehicles such as the Toyota RAV4 and the Nissan Xtrail, continues with a 215/65 R16 H XL for the Nissan Xtrail, Suzuki Vitara, Land Rover Freelander and Honda CRV, a 235/65 R17 V XL for the BMW X5, Jeep Cherokee, Mercedes ML, VW Touareg and Volvo XC 90, and finally ends with a 255/55 R18 V XL for the Audi Q7, BMW X5 and Range Rover. As well as the new SUV tyres, the Meteo HP range also includes a 195/55 R16 winter tyre for compact and medium-sized cars such as the BMW Series 1, Fiat Grande Punto, Ford Focus, Mercedes Class A and Mini One and Cooper.

2nd July 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Nexen Shows New N6000

At Autopromotec, Nexen Tire was showing examples of its extensive range of UHP, SUV and winter tyres. One of the company’s latest products is the N6000, which is an ultra high performance summer tyre, designed for drivers of sports cars and sporty coupes, who enjoy the performance of their vehicles. The N6000 will eventually be available in 15 Y- and W-speed rated sizes, for rims from 15″ to 20″ and with aspect ratios from 55 series down to a very low profile 35 series.

Nexen says that an ultra high performance tread compound gives excellent dry traction, while the directional tread design, with its four, wide, straight channels and lateral grooves, provides good wet performance and aquaplaning resistance. Another recent introduction is the H- and V-rated Roadian HP range of tyres for SUVs. Available in 18 sizes, from 65 series to 30 series aspect ratios and rims up to 22″, the Roadian range combines a silica tread compound with a directional tread pattern to provide high performance tyre qualities to luxury SUV drivers.

22nd June 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Its All in the e-Bit

Delticom AG’s full-year 2006 and first quarter results must have been music to the ears of investors who put money into the company during last October’s IPO at the Frankfurt stock exchange. The company reported group revenues totalling 173.1 million euros for the 2006 financial year, up 34 per cent year-on-year. It also proved that online businesses can really be profitable, reporting a 78.9 per cent year-on-year increase in pre-tax profits (EBIT) to 10.2 million euros. In fact the company’s e-Commerce segment was said to be its strongest driver. Here revenues grew 42.2 per cent to 155.2 million euros. Consolidated net income increased 90.9 per cent to 6.3 million euros from 3.3 million in 2005.

22nd June 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Pirelli Tyre Romania Reports 2006 Turnover of £12.7 million

Pirelli Tyre’s operations in Romania ended the 2006 year having recorded a turnover of 60.36 RON (£12.7 million) and losses of 18.49 million RON (£3.9 million). The division has a capital share of 77.16 million RON (£16.3 million). However, while on paper the company’s 2006 appears less than illustrious, late October saw the opening of a new tyre manufacturing facility near its existing steel cord plant in Slatina. The establishment of this new plant, which specialises in the manufacture of high performance tyres and employs about 450 people, required an investment of £115 million.

22nd May 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Michelin Most Satisfying – J.D. Power

Michelin has come out tops for customer satisfaction in the winter tyre market amongst vehicle owners in Japan for the fourth year in a row, according to the results the J.D. Power Asia Pacific 2007 Japan Winter Tire Customer Satisfaction Index (W-TSI) Study. This particular study is now in its fourth year and employs five criteria to determine overall customer satisfaction with their winter tyres: tyre performance in snow-covered road conditions, icy road conditions and regular road conditions, as well as appearance and quality/durability. Customer evaluations are scored on a 1,000 point scale to determine the across the board winner.

Seven tyre brands were included in the study, and Michelin’s overall index score of 636 points saw the French manufacturer not only securing first place but also topping all five individual criteria that determine satisfaction. Close behind was Bridgestone on 606 points, who also performed strongly in all five individual areas. Both Bridgestone and Michelin earned the highest rating in tyre performance on icy road conditions, and were the only two manufacturers to rate an overall score above the industry average of 587 points. At the other end of the scale the lowest overall score was recorded by Falken, who received 532 points.

18th May 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Delticom Continues Strong Growth in First Quarter

According to preliminary figures, Delticom revenues increased by approximately 52 per cent to 38.9 million euros compared with 25.6 million euros for the same period in the previous year. EBIT improved to £300,000 at 31 March 2007 following negative EBIT (30,000 euros) in the first quarter of 2006.

The first three months of the year are seen as the weakest in terms of sales and earnings and this was no different for Delticom. Most winter tyres had already been bought before the turn of the year and sales of summer tyres only begin in earnest in the second quarter, a company statement read.

“With the preliminary quarterly figures, we started the current year somewhat better than we had thought”, explained Rainer Binder of the Delticom AG Managing Board, adding: “Having increased our revenues by 34 per cent in fiscal year 2006 and generated a strong EBIT margin of 5.9 per cent, the online tyre market also offers good growth opportunities for us this year. We intend to make use of these in the course of the year and to continue our strong growth in 2007.”

18th May 2007/by Tyrepress Editors