Bridgestone is the exclusive tyre supplier for the MC20, Maserati’s new super sports car. The manufacturer has custom-engineered its Potenza tyres to meet Maserati’s demand for exceptional performance. Bridgestone is Maserati’s long-term development partner. The tyre manufacturer says it played a “significant role” in supporting the generational shift in performance over previous models of the MC20.
Leading tyre market data analyst Astutus Research has predicted that the European trend for higher performance tyres looks set to continue. The analyst’s report, ‘Future Dynamics of the European PCLT Tire Industry’, published in association with Tyrepress, has been updated for 2019 with an eye to the trends of the next five years. The analyst states: “The movement towards tyres with a higher rim diameter is clear within the European PCLT tyre replacement market. This reflects the trend towards larger tyres on new car models and changes in the composition of the car parc, with a greater share of SUVs. The replacement market reflects the changes in the original equipment segment, albeit with a lag.
The latest GfK data based on its tyre retail sell-out sources – what it refers to as its panelmarket – shows that UHP tyre sizes, especially above 17″, continued to represent a growing market in 2019. The analyst compared UHP tyres, here defined as 17” and above, in the period from January 2018 to December 2018 with January 2019 to December 2019. The first column shows that 17” takes a share of the total tyre market of just over one-fifth (21 per cent). 17” has been a popular size for many years, benefitting from the transition of more compact cars onto higher rim sizes. However, growth in 17” dimensions has now plateaued, with this figure representing no change on the previous year’s data.
Goodyear has launched its new EfficientGrip Performance 2 with a bold claim. The manufacturer believes the new tyre can reach around 50 per cent higher mileage than the first edition of its car tyre product line. In internal tests, driving open roads in Luxembourg and France in a VW Golf fitted with 205/55R16 91V size tyres, this is what Goodyear says the second edition EfficientGrip Performance achieved.
With coronavirus lockdowns lifting around the world, heightened vigilance in social interactions is likely to continue for some time. One effect of this could be an increased use of private cars, as commuters eschew public transport options to limit their contact with other people. The economic reality of this suggests that those in the financial position to drive are even more likely to do so. And in turn these motorists are more likely to drive cars that require the fitment of larger tyres. In its preparation for the launch of the new Cinturato P7 over the last month, Pirelli commissioned a survey of drivers using 18-inch and above tyre sizes. This highlighted the tendency for increased car use in future – especially while social distancing measures are in place. In China, 68 per cent of respondents said they would use their cars more, in Italy the figure was 31 per cent, and in Germany 20 per cent.
Pirelli has launched a new high performance tyre for premium cars in European and Asian markets, the next generation Cinturato P7. The Cinturato product line has one of the longest histories in the car tyre segment. The brand, with which Pirelli claims to have “invented the concept of the sporting tyre for the road”, celebrates its 70th anniversary this year. While the P Zero line is Pirelli’s primary focus for the highest performance vehicles, the Formula 1 tyre supplier includes Cinturato branding via the series’s wet weather tyres with good reason. Such is Pirelli’s focus on the ultra-high performance sector, that the Cinturato is positioned as another tyre line for top premium segment cars. Preparations for the launch of the new P7 focused on drivers using 18” and above sizes, while Pirelli’s original equipment focus has also yielded 70-plus homologations for the tyre.
The coronavirus outbreak and subsequent lockdowns mean that sales of car tyres especially have sustained a harsh blow around the world. But as measures introduced to halt the spread of COVID-19 begin to be eased, motorists will steadily begin to use their cars again, increasing demand. In the car tyre sector, high value, ultra-high performance segments could prove vital, as better potential margins offer attractive opportunities for increasing cashflow quicker. The other side of that coin is that motorists’ finances are also under pressure, putting the price they pay for their car tyres under even greater scrutiny. Could this, therefore, present an opportunity for mid-range brands to make a case for their products, offering more palatable performance compromises compared with premium rivals than the lowest-priced brands?
Giti Tire has made its latest ultra-high performance tyre, the GT Radial WinterPro2 Sport, available to order. The tyre is the brand’s latest winter tyre for the UHP market, launching in nine 17-19” sizes. The manufacturer states that the tyre is designed for both high powered passenger cars and premium SUVs.
Yokohama’s ultra-high performance Advan Apex V601tyre has been named a winner of an iF Design Award 2020. The tyre, which is currently available in the US market, combines new high-performance tyre technology with an asymmetrical tread pattern reminiscent of that used in the Yokohama A008, one of the its most historically important tyres. The tyre delivers superior wet performance and handling while delivering a most comfortable and quiet ride, while its high-grade micro silica tread compound delivers excellent cornering performance.
Davanti marked its fifth anniversary with its first international dealer conference at the end of February. The tyre brand hosted more than 150 attendees by Everton Football Club’s Goodison Park, where it’s development director Gary Cross took the opportunity to announce its upcoming products, including range extensions and what might be called the second generation of Davanti tyres given the new naming conventions first introduced in the Wintoura winter tyre and Terratoura all-terrain 4×4 tyre ranges. Davanti sales director for UK and Ireland Sean Maddocks also presented observations on tyre markets, the development of the brand’s global dealer network over the past five years, and its commercial partnerships including the renewal of its official brand partnership with Everton FC.
In January GfK’s “panelmarket” identified SUV tyres and all-season tyres as top two growing sub-segments in 2019. Indeed, since all-season tyre sales have shot up 19 per cent in terms of value and 13 per cent up in volume, the UK market is now selling four times as many all-season tyres as winter tyres sold at their peak. Within this, high performance tyres and bigger size tyres, specifically 17-inch and over, are growing fastest (see separate article for further details).
Pirelli has announced that its new P Zero Experience supercar track day, run in association with Salon Privé, will take place between 2 and 3 June 2020 in the UK. The event features driving, premium hospitality and of course and exquisite cars. Initially launched in France 10 years ago, the events now take place at Italy’s famous Mugello circuit, the Yas Marina track in Abu Dhabi and the famous Hockenheimring in Germany. This year the home of British motorsport, Silverstone, joins the line-up.
The combination of political disruption and Brexit uncertainty made 2019 a tough year for the UK economy in general, so it is not surprising to learn that this was reflected in the overall passenger car tyre replacement market. According to the latest sell-out UK tyre replacement market data collated by analysts at GfK, the headline news is that both the value and the volume of the decreased in 2019. But there are reasons for hope, with signs of growth remaining in the value-rich SUV tyre sub-segment and with evidence of strong growth in sales of all-season tyres.
A selection of Cooper 4×4 and high performance tyres equipped tuning company Liberty Walk’s vehicles at the 2020 Autosport International show. Exhibiting in the ‘Performance & Tuning Car Show’, Liberty Walk Europe’s eye-catching stand contained Cooper’s Zeon 4XS Sport and the Cooper Discoverer STT Pro POR.
After three years of close collaboration with Aston Martin’s, the prestige carmaker has announced that it is exclusively fitting the new Aston Martin DBX with a range of three Pirelli tyres. According to the company, the P Zero for the DBX has been developed to offer “the best possible performance and handling”, while the Scorpion Zero AS will go off-road, and the Scorpion Winter delivers “safety and performance even in in winter conditions, with the same dynamic drive as experienced in summer”.
Maserati
Hankook
Goodyear
Goodyear
Pirelli
Falken
Giti
Yokohama