Yokohama Rubber to Expand OTR/EM Tyre Production
Yokohama Rubber Co., Ltd., has announced that it will expand its off-the-road production capacity by about 50 per cent by building a new facility at its Onomichi Plant to provide the additional capacity. Work will begin on the new facility this month, and Yokohama’s plans call for production to get under way there in November. The project will increase Yokohama’s monthly production capacity for off-the-road tyres incrementally to 1,620 tons - as measured in rubber consumption - by 2009, from 1,100 tons today. Yokohama has earmarked 5 billion yen (almost £25 million) for the investment project.
Continue ReadingNew Tomahawk T3 Tyre
Tomahawk, the UK manufacturer of retread radial motorcycle tyres, has launched a new pattern tyre for the 2006 season. The company’s new T3 tyre is said to be sport biased “with a large contact patch that puts more rubber on the road.” The tyre offers Z-rated performance in a choice of three compounds; Road, for every day use and good rates of wear; Sport, for spirited riding on road or track; and Sprint, for track day use.
Continue ReadingVarta Warns of Further Battery Price Increases
Varta has warned the UK aftermarket to expect further steep rises in automotive battery prices later this year. This is the result of the high price of lead on global markets, which has been steadily rising since mid-2003, driven by demand for base metals from China and other emerging markets. The price of lead is the major factor governing the cost of a car battery and, while increased material costs were initially absorbed by the manufacturers, this is no longer tenable, with lead costing 80 per cent more than it did two years ago.
Continue ReadingGoodyear Promotes Two in Technical Group
(Akron/Tire Review) Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. has promoted William Hopkins and Joseph Zekoski to new positions in its technical group. Hopkins, formerly vice president global product marketing and technology planning, was named to the newly created position of vice president of technology and strategic initiatives. He will be responsible for global strategic initiatives, tyre engineering, materials, performance prediction and global vehicle systems.
Continue ReadingPlantation Workers Go on Strike – Reports
(Akron/Tire Review) News reports out of Monrovia, Liberia, say that some 3,000 workers at Bridgestone Corp’s natural rubber plantation there have gone on strike. “The strike is very serious. Production has come to a complete halt,” a public relations spokesman with Firestone Plantation Co. told Reuters. “We have asked the government to intervene. We do not know why this is going on.”
Continue ReadingGoodyear Appoints Farm and Earthmover Specialist
Goodyear Dunlop Tyres UK Ltd has announced the appointment of Stuart Starrs as Farm and Earthmover Tyre Specialist for Scotland. Stuart brings 20 years farm experience to the team reporting directly to Andy Morris, director of Off-The-Road tyres and will focus on developing contacts throughout Scotland co-ordinating promotions and sales as well as resolving any technical queries that may arise. He joins the company from Coventry-based tractor manufacturer AGCO, manufacturers of Massey Ferguson, Fendt and Challenger tractors for the European market. Here Stuart was area sales manager for England selling tractors to dealers throughout the territory as well as conducting field demonstrations and providing technical support.
Continue ReadingMicheldever Tyre Services Sold in Management Buyout
Tony Todd, the architect of 34 years of growth at Micheldever Tyre Services’, has sold the company to its management team. On 6 February Alan Baldwin, Phil Brookes, Ashley Croft, Mike Flood, Brian Kerswell, and Eric Noble became the new owners. A number of other companies, including Kwik-Fit, are said to have unsuccessfully approached the company. The deal was backed by private equity company Graphite Capital and the Royal Bank of Scotland. Financial sources report that Graphite is taking a 72 per cent stake while the management will own the remaining shares. While details of the price-tag have not been released, estimates would have to be based on the £150 – £160 million of sales the company achieved in 2005.
Continue ReadingKYB Strengthens OE Ties With Toyota
Shock absorber supplier KYB has strengthened its relationship with Toyota by signing a contract to supply shocks as original equipment for the second generation Yaris, which is built at Toyotas plant in Valencienne, France.
Continue ReadingB3081 Named Bendiest Road in Britain
Continental tyres has named the B3081 as the bendiest road in Britain. Continental commissioned research to find out which of Britain’s 6,300 classified roads sets the toughest task for car tyres. At a steady 30 mph, a one-mile stretch of the B3081 between Cann Common in Dorset and Tollard Royal in Wiltshire exerted lateral forces of a magnitude a car would experience on a racetrack like Brands Hatch. Researchers tested a shortlist of 10 roads, as nominated by Auto Express readers, from across the UK. A standard Vauxhall Astra 1.4 with Continental ContiSportContact2 tyres was fitted with state of the art measuring equipment and an on-board computer to record forward speed and lateral acceleration.
Continue ReadingAmtel-Vredestein Aims to Raise 100 million euros
Amtel-Vredestein N.V. has announced plans to issue credit linked notes (CLN) for 100 million Euros during the first quarter of 2006. The CLN issue will be used to finance the company’s retail expansion and to refinance debt. The term of the security will be four years with a two-year put option. The coupon will be paid twice yearly. According to the company, the issue lead manager is Alfa-Bank, Russia.
Continue ReadingRecord Mileage Performance for Owner-Driver
Carlisle based owner-driver Keith Simpson has just replaced the original drive axle tyres on his Volvo FH12 tractor unit after an impressive 616,000 kilometres. The Michelin 295/80 R22.5 XDE2 tyres recorded this performance during the first life of the brand new tyres, followed by a regroove, which ensured an additional 20 per cent mileage. The regrooving also extended the tyres most fuel-efficient state, in line with Michelin’s Stop Thirsty Tyres Campaign.
Continue ReadingBEN Appoints Head of Welfare
BEN, the Motor and Allied Trades Benevolent Fund has appointed Fiona Gorman to Head of Welfare effective 1 February, following the departure of its deputy director care services in December.
Continue ReadingFord Fiesta Turns 30
The Ford Focus might be Britain’s most popular vehicle, but the smaller Fiesta is still one of Britain’s best-loved drives. And today is the small car’s not so small 30th birthday. More than 3.2 million Fiestas – enough to stretch bumper to bumper from London to New York and back – have been sold in the UK since the first one rolled off the assembly line in 1976. The £1,856 entry-level model featured then state-of-the-art extras such as a folding rear seat, rubber floor mats and two-speed windscreen wipers. It was all a world away from the 2006 model, which offers motorists high-tech technology like voice recognition, satellite navigation, MP3 capability and Bluetooth capability.
Continue ReadingGSF Selects New Canterbury Branch for Customer Winter Checks
GSF Car Parts has announced the official unveiling of its Canterbury branch, which has opened as part of their 2006 expansion drive. This new branch opening is the first of many during 2006 as GSF follows business objectives and targets to grow company operations significantly. The driving ethos behind this expansion is to return benefits from increased ROI and deliver this success directly back to the customer through competitive pricing, high quality products and enhanced customer service.
Continue ReadingToyo Ups NASA Race Support
(Akron/Tire Review) Toyo Tire USA Corp. has increased its support of National Auto Sport Association (NASA) road racing for 2006. The long-time NASA sponsor is involved is regional races and spec categories such as American Iron Racing, Honda Challenge and Spec Miata Challenge. For the 2006 season, Toyo will double the rewards to Toyo-spec class champions in each region, and the company is nearly doubling its “Toyo Bucks” rebate program for regional races with more than five starters in each class.”
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