English Section
The Fintyre management has left behind companies in ruins. Insolvency proceedings were initiated into the property of Reifen Krieg, Reiff, tyre1 and RS Exclusiv with the county court Frankfurt am Main.
Summer Tyres
Goodyear has presented the successor of its summer tyre EfficientGrip Performance. The tyre manufacturer will address vehicle drivers with rims from 15 to 18 inches with the EfficientGrip Performance 2. The new tyre is supposed to have a mileage which is about 50 per cent higher than the one of its predecessors.
Hankook Tire Europe prepared itself for the new decade: At the beginning of the year, Sanghoon Lee was nominated as new Chief Operation Officer (COO) and President. Until then, Lee was responsible for the Chinese market and is Han-Jun Kim’s successor, who will take over new responsibilities within the Hankook Tire & Technology Group. Sanghoon Lee will be responsible for the whole operative business in Europe and the CIS countries.
Continental invited to the “most winterly environment you can think of” for the presentation of the WinterContact TS 870. The new WinterContact TS 870 is the successor of the multiple test winner from the year 2012 and the WinterContact TS 860 from the year 2016.
The company Van Aalderen Twen-Tyre from Almelo in the Netherlands stopped its business as of March 2020. The tyre wholesaler was taken over by the company Tyre Trading International (TTI) from Numansdorp in 2017.
There is a big question mark concerning the presentation of the Italian tyre manufacturer Pirelli at the The Tire Cologne. The editorial staff received information that refer to cancelling the participation in the industry trade fair.
Apparently, the Continental PremiumContact 6 was able to convince with its outstanding wet performance in the dimension 225/40 R18 in the ADAC test. Michelin offers good performance with two treads.
Industrie
The Bridgestone Innovation Park is to be the tyre manufacturer’s key element of change towards a leading supplier of advanced mobility and sustainable solutions. The existing plants in Kodaira will be reconstructed in a comprehensive way.
The Portuguese specialized journal “automotive magazine“ has honoured The Tire Cologne (TTC) with the “Best International Exhibition“ award. The specialized exhibition for the tyre, wheel and workshop industry celebrated its premiere in May 2018. Ingo Riedeberger, Director at TTC, represented the whole TTC team of Koelnmesse, and received the award in a ceremony in Lisbon at the end of November.
The Dutch Pon Holding has announced that Reifen Gundlach and its affiliated companies will change its proprietor at the end of the year, and, in the future, it will act as an independent group in the market. The business area Pon Tyre Group had already been restructured and strategically reoriented since last year. As a consequence, the Gundlach Automotive Corporation (GAC) was created, which consists of a total of seven companies from six countries, among others Reifen Gundlach, Euro-Tyre NL, PTG Automotive Solutions & Services, RG Automotive Solutions, and Goodwheel.
The Michelin Region Europe North (EUN) will open its office in Frankfurt in May 2019. The Michelin Frankfurt Office will be located in The Squaire right on top of the long-distance train station at the airport Frankfurt/Main. Finally, there will be room for more than 300 work places on a total of 6,200 square metres.
Kumho Tyre has extended the sponsoring contract with Tottenham Hotspur, which has existed since 2016, for further three years. Thus, it will remain the “Official Tyre Partner” of the team, which is currently in the fourth position of the English Premier League, until the season 2020/2021. The contract was signed in the presence of several representatives of both sides at the London training ground “Hotspur Way“.
Balkrishna Industries Limited (BKT) has announced a 100-million-dollar construction project for a new production location in the USA. The production plant will be the first production location of the multi-national group outside India. At the moment, BKT is generating more than half of its total turnover in Europe.
Hankook Tire has announced the financial results for the third quarter of 2018. The company achieved a global turnover of 1,760 billion KRW (about 1.35 billion euros) and an operative result of 184.6 billion KRW (about 141.5 million euros) during the period under review. The operative result decreased by 15 per cent compared to the previous year.
GETTYGO is made in Germany, but the platform has also established itself in Austria, France, and Belgium. At the beginning of 2018, GETTYGO started in Spain too. The people being responsible took stock: During the first six months, 1,500 customers registered after entering the market.
As of season 2019, Maxxis will deliver tyres for FIM Motocross World Grand Prix (MXGP) for the first time. Youthstream, the company selling the international rights for TV, marketing, and promotion, has announced the partnership, which normally lasts for three years, in Monaco only recently. The contract will be valid as of the future season 2019.
Audi will optionally equip the fully electrical e-tron with the Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetric 3 SUV in size 265/45R21 108H XL. As electric vehicles have a significantly higher torque than combustion engines, tyre wear can be up to 25 per cent higher. Thus, Goodyear tried to maximize mileage of the Eagle F1 Asymmetric 3 SUV.
The Nexen Tire Europe Niederlassung Deutschland and the Technical Center Europe have moved together in a newly built company location of about 11,000 square metres in Lise-Meitner-Straße 1 in 65779 Kelkheim. The new building was set up after thirteen months of construction time. According to company information, there was a clear focus on the use of environmentally friendly building materials and on placing orders with local companies.
From 1st to 9th December 2018 (preview day: 30th November) the Essen Motor Show will bring sports car enthusiasts, motorsport racers, and classic car fans together. The horsepower festival will take place for the 51th time. There will be Continental, Hankook, Mercedes FanWorld, Porsche Motorsport, Renault Motorsport, Skoda, and Toyo Tires as well known exhibitors.
As of now, the Japanese tyre manufacturer Yokohama will pay increased attention to sustainability when purchasing natural rubber and has passed corresponding guidelines. A positive impact is to be expected across the whole supplier chain.
Vehicle manufacturers have increasingly equipped their vehicles with bigger and wider tyres. Concerning summer tyres, driving dynamics are stressed, but what about the consequences of wider winter tyres? ADAC was interested in this question and for the first time, it tested five tyre widths of the Dunlop Winter Sport 5 for the VW Golf.