Apollo Tyres ordered to return 4.95% ‘Harshad Mehta share’
Almost 20 years ago, Harshad Mehta achieved infamy in India through an engineered rise in the Bombay Stock Exchange that became known as the ‘securities scam’. After the stock broker’s activities came to light in mid-1992, a number of Mehta’s assets were sold off as part of court proceedings. This sale included 5,488,850 shares in Apollo Tyres, equal to 15.1 per cent of the company’s equity, which were purchased by Apollo and its managing family the Kanwars in April 2003. Now the Supreme Court in New Delhi has ordered Apollo Tyres to return a portion of these acquired shares to the Mehta family custodian. A two-judge Supreme Court bench accepted in part the appeal of Ashwin Mehta, brother of Harshad Mehta (who died in 2002) challenging the Mumbai Special Court’s 2001 order that allowed the sale of bulk holding shares back to Apollo Tyres.
Continue ReadingHaweka Axis 4000 – measuring a tri-axle coach in under 10 minutes
Fuel consumption and tyre wear account for a large chunk of most transport operators’ ongoing costs, thus it is crucial to eliminate all unnecessary expense. Incorrectly aligned bus and coach wheels, for example, can have an adverse effect on both tyre wear and fuel consumption. When PSV wheels are aligned properly, these two problems are reduced, less strain is placed upon mechanical components, drivers report reduced fatigue and tyres are less likely to overheat.
Continue ReadingFalken to display vintage Sincera sizes at Classic Motor Show
Falken’s range of vintage tyre sizes with modern rubber compounds will be displayed later this week at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham. Visitors to the UK’s biggest classic car event, the NEC Classic Motor Show on 11-13 November, will see the company’s Sincera range displayed on different stands’ classic car displays. Falken says interest in smaller vintage sizes of its Sincera tyre has recently “surged”.
Continue ReadingBridgestone debuts 2012 MotoGP tyres
Bridgestone’s 2012 specification tyres were also debuted at the Valencia circuit at the Official MotoGP Test on 8-9 November. The test was conducted mostly with the new-era 1000cc machines including five Claiming Rule Team (CRT) bikes from BQR Inmotec, BQR FTR, TeamLaglisse and the Grellini Team. Every rider’s tyre allocation comprised only the 2012 tyres, marking the first full usage of the 2012 tyres that Bridgestone have been developing for one year. The manufacturer explained that the tyres have been developed to improve warm-up and operating range. The test was the first time that next year’s rider changes take effect and the 1000cc bikes have been on track at the same time.
Continue ReadingFalken first tyre company on Google+
New social network site Google+ expanded its social net to include brands and companies this week, and Falken Tire Corp. staked a claim to being the first tyre company to inhabit the online space, reports Tire Review. The company has already garnered 320,000 “Likes” on its Facebook page, and sees the addition of Google+ as “an extension of its consumer allegiance strategy.” The brand has been particularly vocal about its use of social networks in conjunction with motorsport activities to such an end this year.
Continue ReadingMichelin recognized by US military
Michelin North America has been honoured with a 2011 Secretary of Defense Performance-Based Logistics (PBL) Award, reports Tire Review. The award was presented to the French manufacturer at a ceremony last week at the Aerospace Industries Association Fall Product Support Conference. MNA’s aircraft tyre unit was a PBL Component-Level Award recipient for supplying tyres to the US Navy.
Continue ReadingBridgestone combats “tricky conditions” at Valencia finale
MotoGP’s final meeting of the season in Valencia was made a difficult affair for riders by inclement weather. Tohru Ubukata, general manager of Bridgestone’s Motorsport Tyre Development Department, said “all weekend the track conditions were neither one thing nor the other. When the track was wet, it wasn’t really fully wet and it dried through the session leaving the teams to chase setup, and when it was dry it was still very greasy. In the race spots of rain fell throughout, which made it very tricky for the riders to gauge the level of grip available, as it was often different from corner to corner, and in such a situation tyre performance is always a compromise.”
Continue ReadingFormer Toyo Tire Europe VP to head up Toyo Tire U.S.A
On 1 January 2012, Tatsuo Mitsuhata will take over from Yashushi Takagi as president and CEO of Toyo Tire U.S.A. Corp.; Takagi, who has held this position at Toyo Tire U.S.A. since January 2009, will return to Japan as Toyo Tires’ general manager of corporate planning. This appointment is Mitsuhata’s second US-based position – he previously worked for Toyo Tire U.S.A., as the company’s coordination manager between 1994 and 1998.
Continue ReadingMichelin sells Hankook shares for ‘12% discount’
Michelin is said to have sold some 15.2 million of its Hankook Tire shares for 623 billion won (£346.6 million) after announcing its intention to divest its 9.98 per cent stake in the Korean tyre maker. The accepted share price, says Hong Kong-based publication Finance Asia, was 12 per cent lower than the stock’s November 8 close price of 46,650 won per share and far below the indicative price range of 43,000-45,000 won.
Continue ReadingDespite positive H1 results, Apollo wary of slowing growth
Commenting on a half-year that saw the increase in Apollo Tyres’ net profit fall behind sales growth, company chairman and managing director Onkar Kanwar noted that “currency fluctuations, especially a weaker rupee, and continued cost push have impacted our bottom line.” Kanwar described the “near flat growth” in India’s commercial vehicle tyre segment during the first half of the country’s fiscal year as “worrying” and a situation that “could pose a challenge in the coming quarters.” The Apollo chairman said the company’s European business is currently registering strong growth, however his view of the region remains cautious: “We are alert to the broader economic situation there and are keeping a close watch on developments,” he stated.
Continue ReadingPirelli aiming to be "global premium leader" by 2015
Following the publication of positive nine-month figures yesterday (8 November), Pirelli chairmain Marco Tronchetti Provera today released details of the manufacturer's goals between now and 2015. The headlining statement of intent is the desire to be "global premium leader" (following a so-called "local by local" strategy) by 2015. And in order to achieve this Pirelli is increasing capital investment up to a value of 2.2 billion euros for the period 2011-2015.
Continue ReadingPirelli: all nine-month indicators improved
Pirelli & C. SpA has reported that in the nine months ending 30 September 2011, the tyre manufacturing group saw "all economic indicators improved over the period," with revenues growing by 17.9 per cent to 4,265.8 million euros and profitability - understood as the ratio of the operating result to sales - by 10.6 per cent.
Continue ReadingBluEarth approved for Prius OE
Yokohama’s BluEarth S34BZ eco tyre has been chosen as original equipment for the 2012 Toyota Prius V. The new crossover, which is known as the Prius + in Europe, is available to US and Canadian purchasers fitted with the BluEarth tyre in size P205/60R16 91V.
Continue ReadingBridgestone OE on mini Aston
Toyota has fitted the Bridgestone B250 Ecopia to its IQ for a couple of years now, and now the tyre has been selected as original equipment on a vehicle that bears more than a passing resemblance to the pint-sized city car. Bridgestone has started supplying the B250 Ecopia as standard equipment for the Aston Martin Cygnet, launched in Europe in September 2011. Each and every Cygnet sold will be delivered with Bridgestone B250 Ecopia tyres in size 175/60 R16.
Continue ReadingIAM calls for 80 mph speed limit
The IAM is calling for the government to pilot an 80 mph speed limit on a controlled and managed motorway to assess its practicality and safety, and road users’ reaction to it. In September the government announced that the motorway speed limit could be raised to 80 mph. According to the Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM), on uncongested motorways more than half of car drivers exceed the 70 mph speed limit, around a fifth exceed 80 mph and it is rare for the police to prosecute drivers travelling between 70 and 80mph.
Continue Reading
