The last time Tyres & Accessories interviewed online tyre entrepreneur, Mike Welch, his latest venture Tirescanner was making in-roads in the US tyre retail market. Such was the concept’s growth that Welch had been pitching the business to investors in a bid to move onto phase two of Tirescanner’s development. Roughly a year later, T&A asked how things are progressing:
Tyre Reviews has made the newly released Goodyear Vector 4Season Gen-3 its 2020 All Season 17” Test winner. Putting nine all-season tyres in size 225/45 R17 through their paces at Goodyear’s testing facilities in Finnish Lapland and the south of France, tester Jonathan Benson gave additional recommendations to four further tyres: Hankook’s Kinergy 4S2 (second place) and the Continental AllSeasonContact (third) were given the review website’s Highly Recommended rating, while the Bridgestone Weather Control A005 (fourth) and Michelin CrossClimate+ (fifth) were Recommended. The weighting of different conditions is particularly relevant to all-season tyre tests, given the promise of functionality in a wide range of climate and road surface conditions. Tyre Reviews opted to award overall scores based on 30 per cent wet, 25 per cent dry, 25 per cent snow, 10 per cent noise and comfort, and 10 per cent rolling resistance. See below for the Tyre Reviews video of the 2020 All Season 17” test, and for additional comments on each of the nine tyres tested.
Official tyre partner of the VW Fun Cup 2020 season, Giti Tire is racing in a fully liveried GT Radial car. At each race weekend Ellis Hadley, senior test engineer at Giti Tire, leads a line-up of race enthusiasts from the GT Radial Performance Centre (GTPC) network. This activation of the event provides a great opportunity to get together with key distribution partners and customers of the brand’s exclusive distribution partner Micheldever Tyre Services, as well as increasing coverage of the brand. This approach to the series is demonstrated in a new Facebook video distributed on the championship’s Facebook channel, featuring Hadley and customers Carl Churchill and Alan Baldwin.
Whether it’s for journey planning or for looking at own houses online, we’ve all used Google Street View. Now, Sumitomo Rubber South Africa is helping fill the gaps in Street View’s maps and having and off-road adventure at the same time.
Waste rubber generated by tyre manufacturing could deliver increased energy savings and business opportunities according to IRR Waste 2 Energy. The company’s continuous pyrolysis technology, which is fully commissioned and in operation at its parent company Carlton Forest Group’s Worksop headquarters, has delivered “tangible results” in both “energy generation and the production of by-products such as pyrolysis oil and carbon char,” the company states. These materials can be refined further to produce high grade engine oil and recovered carbon black (RcB).
BMW AG has approved the Hunter RoadForce Elite (RFE) diagnostic wheel balancer in its global workshops. The system, distributed in the UK by Hunter partner Pro-Align, simulates the forces of the tyre on the road to match more accurately running conditions, and therefore increase ride comfort. The system is also designed to increase efficiency, helping to resolve the most challenging wheel vibration issues.
As reported earlier this month, Hankook Tire has released its latest winter products for motorists and Western and Central Europe. And the new tyre line is off to a promising start, with Auto Bild awarding the new tyre its top ‘exemplary’ rating in its winter 2020 comparative evaluation.
The European Commission’s new target of a 55 per cent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 has been welcomed by the tyre industry. The European Tyre & Rubber Manufacturers’ Association said that the industry is ready to “ready to contribute” to the latest decarbonisation goals. The association added that its “members have been committed to reducing their CO2 footprint throughout the tyre life cycle and investing in innovative and sustainable mobility technologies for many years now.” The association was responding to European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen’s 16 September State of the Union address.
Environmental campaigners have been protesting against Linglong’s Zrenjanin, Serbia tyre factory. At the same time the construction work, which has been variously described as either an 800 million euro or US$994 million project by different sources, has also been involved in certification disputes.
Dutch tyre brand Vredestein, part of the Apollo Tyres family since 2009, is a name well-known amongst European motorists. This isn’t the case in the USA and Canada, where Vredestein’s only enjoyed a niche following in past years. Apollo Tyres now intends to change this – in September it launched a “comprehensive brand offensive” there backed by a full range of new tyre lines explicitly designed for and developed in North America.
The majority of industries across the UK have been impacted by the effect of COVID-19 and – with up to 60 per cent of garages closed during lockdown – the tyre industry is no exception. Prevailing market conditions combined with the complexity of the pandemic’s damage means that insurers have reduced their risk exposure and overall capacity. This, combined with newer pressures on the horizon, has provided tyre companies with a rationale for bolstering their risk management measures in order to avoid costly and time-consuming slip-ups down the line. Tyres & Accessories spoke with Ben Harrison, vice president, Marsh Commercial in order to find out more.
OTR and agricultural tyre manufacturer BKT is extending its sponsorship of the shortest form of professional cricket, following its deal with Australia’s Big Bash League. In the 2020 season of the Indian Premier League, the most high-profile domestic T20 event, the multinational group from India will support Mumbai Indians, Chennai Super Kings, Delhi Capitals, Kings XI Punjab, Kolkata Knight Riders and Rajasthan Royals.
Toyo Tires continues to support world-class athletics, at the Diamond League AG Memorial Van Damme event in Brussels on 4 September. The tyre manufacturer expects the live broadcast to reach a wide global audience thanks to the meet’s attractive programme of events and the presence of many stars of athletics. These include British four-time Olympic champion Mo Farah, who is hoping to set a new One Hour World Record. A live DJ will provide a different soundtrack, with no crowd due to Covid-19 pandemic restrictions.
Hankook has collaborated with violinist David Garrett and composer Franck van der Heijden for a performance of the official UEFA Europa League anthem. Captured in a video titled ‘Symphony of Silence’, the performance aims to capture feelings about the empty stadiums hosting 2020 sporting events due to pandemic restrictions. The 2019/20 European club football season, including the Hakook supported Europa League, is completing its final stages without fans. Garrett’s performance was captured by Luke Bannister, five-time world champion in first person view drone racing, in an empty stadium to reflect this experience. The video will premiere on YouTube, Instagram, and Hankook’s website today (Thursday, 20 August, at 21:00 CET) one day ahead of the UEFA Europa League Final 2020.
Early in 2020 the UK government suggested a tentative plan to ban the export of all end of life tyres (ELTs). The timing was unfortunate, with the challenges of the rest of 2020 becoming increasingly apparent at the start of spring. However, with strict recycling, energy from waste, and environmental targets to meet over the next twenty years or so, many companies are pressing ahead in raising awareness and innovating within the broad recycling sector. ELTs represent a particularly important part of the new era in recycling introduced by the UK’s Environment Bill, not least because of new and incoming measures internal and external against used and end of life tyre exports, a popular, yet often damaging solution to the problem. Rory Hughes, technical director at IRR Waste 2 Energy, and a waste and recycling expert with more than 35 experience in the industry, told Tyrepress why adopting a more holistic approach to tyre recycling is the way forward.
TireScanner
Sumitomo Rubber South Africa
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Hunter
European Union
Alexas Photos; Pixabay
BKT
Toyo
Hankook
Shaun Flannery/shaunflanneryphotography.com