General Tire launches Grabber GT European SUV tyre
The Continental Tire Group’s General Tire brand has launched the successor to its Grabber UHP, with a new SUV tyre in its wide range most equipped to offer on-road performance, at an event in Gran Canaria for around 100 dealers representing 25 European countries. The largest single group amongst these guests was from the brand’s UK distributor, Micheldever Tyre Services and its customers. Visiting the last SEMA show in Las Vegas – “the home of 4×4” according to MTS wholesale director, Alan Baldwin – the wholesaler reported that General has a 4×4 market share into double figures, proving its significance in Europe, despite lacking the original equipment fitments that have come with nearly 100 years of American activity. The availability of General tyres suitable for Land Rover models, which dominate the UK 4×4 market, and the specific market focus of tyres like the Grabber AT have given the brand some notable success in the UK according to MTS marketing manager Amelia Lion – the newly launched Grabber GT taps into a different sort of European market specificity, namely the long-term tendency towards greater on-road performance.