Having the right tyres on your car when the weather turns treacherous provides more than just peace of mind, it makes a real contribution to road safety. With this in mind, Toyota has launched a trial winter weather tyre programme to help motorists be best prepared for the kind of Arctic conditions Britain has suffered over the past few years.

The pilot scheme is targeting owners of some of Toyota’s most popular models: Auris, Avensis and Corolla, plus the Dyna and Hiace light commercials. Two Toyota centres are handling fitting, Currie Motors in West London and Ron Brooks Toyota in the East Midlands.

The rubber compound used in winter weather tyres is specially formulated to maintain performance at low temperatures, ensuring braking and the operation of active safety systems, such as traction control, are not compromised. In some countries, such as Germany, they are a legal requirement during the winter months.

Steve Settle, Toyota Customer Services Director, said: “Safety is of prime importance and, following the severe winters we’ve experienced recently, there is a much greater awareness of the benefits of fitting winter weather tyres.

“We have launched our trial programme to give Toyota owners the chance to gain the right advice and professional assistance to fit appropriate tyres to their vehicle. Although this is a pilot scheme, we will be monitoring its progress closely and there is the potential for it to be expanded to other models and to centres in other regions in the future.”

Furthermore, all Toyota centres are currently offering a free winter vehicle check, which includes a safety report, checks on lights, wipers and tyre condition, screenwash and oil top-up and a visual assessment of brake condition. The offer is available until 31 December with the bonus of a free car care kit worth £35 on presentation of a voucher downloadable from Toyota’s customer web site at www.toyota.co.uk.

The number of drivers successfully prosecuted by courts in England and Wales for driving on defective tyres has risen by 14 percent to more than 4,300 convictions. The information, which relates to 2008, has been released by the Ministry of Justice in response to a parliamentary question by Stoke-on-Trent MP, Tristram Hunt. The figure is a seven year high, up from a low of 3,595 convictions in 2006.

“Many drivers have the misconception that the police are too busy or too stretched to stop and prosecute them for driving on illegal tyres,” explains Stuart Jackson, chairman, TyreSafe. “These latest figures show this is clearly not the case and that the court system still considers driving on illegal tyres a very serious offence.”

Current UK law requires car drivers to have a minimum of 1.6mm tread depth across the central three quarters of the tyre, around its entire circumference. Drivers who fail to comply with the regulations face a fine of up to £2,500 and three penalty points for each illegal tyre.

“We fully support the police’s efforts in clamping down on this dangerous behaviour and would encourage all drivers to take a few minutes every month to check their tyre’s tread depth, pressure and general condition,” continues Jackson. “Not only could the checks save you from a court prosecution, it could help save your life.”

The information has been released just days ahead of October’s tyre safety month which is educating drivers about the importance and simplicity of checking tyre tread depth. Drivers who are unsure about how to check the condition of their tyres can visit one of the many hundreds of garages and tyre retailers who are offering free tyre safety checks as part of tyre safety month.

The number of tyre related deaths and accidents on the UK’s roads could be set to rise after new research has revealed that more than one in ten drivers is more likely to buy part worn tyres compared with 12 months ago.
The worrying findings have been issued by TyreSafe, the UK’s leading tyre safety group, who has warned that not only could part worn tyres be a false economy, but they could pose a significant safety hazard to drivers and other road users. In 2008, illegal, under-inflated or defective tyres contributed to the deaths of34 drivers and the injuries of more than 900 other motorists.

“Tyres play a critical role in vehicle safety and consequently, some very strict requirements exist regarding the sale of part worn tyres,” warns Stuart Jackson, chairman, TyreSafe. “If part worn tyres are bought from an unreliable source or do not meet the required standards, drivers could be placing themselves and other road users in significant danger. We understand the financial pressures being faced by many motorists but the risks associated with fitting part worn tyres are too high and we would always recommend fitting brand new tyres.”

One of TyreSafe’s primary concerns with part worn tyres relates to the internal structure of the tyre. Regulations require that part worns must be free from large cuts, bulges and lumps and must not have any of their plies or cords exposed. However, without a thorough examination of the internal components of the tyre using an x-ray machine, TyreSafe claims it is impossible to tell what unseen damage may have occurred.

“There are many internal components of a tyre which are essential for safe motoring,” explains Jackson. “These can be damaged by a number of things such as punctures, driving over kerbs or pot holes or running at too low pressures. All of these can make the tyre dangerous and unsafe. The visual inspections required to sell part worn tyres may not identify these internal structural problems and consequently divers may be sold a product which is essentially not fit for purpose.”

TyreSafe’s research found that as many as one in six drivers had bought part worn tyres for their car at some point. It also found that younger drivers are much more likely to compromise their safety by buying part worn tyres compared with older drivers. One in five drivers aged between 18-34 said they were more likely to buy part worn tyres compared with 12 months ago, whereas only one in twenty drivers aged over 55 said they were more likely to buy part worns.

Among the many regulations regarding part worn tyres, they must be permanently marked as such. They must also have at least 2mm of tread depth around the whole tyre and the original grooves must be clearly visible in their entirety. Any repairs to the tyre must have been carried out in accordance with British Standards BS AU 159.

Part worn tyres can come from a variety of sources meaning that it is extremely difficult to understand their history. Some are removed from vehicles which have been written off following an accident; others are put back into service having been changed by their original owner; and others arise from situations where drivers switch between a set of summer and winter tyres and choose to refit brand new tyres rather than refitting their old set.

After all the gritting and salting to roads to keep traffic moving during this winter’s unprecedented bad weather, the wheel arches and undersides of UK vehicles are now caked in corrosive debris. Whilst every effort should be made to clean it off, motorists may be causing unseen but terminal damage to their car’s tyres by using pressure washers incorrectly. In a bid to limit the possibility of damage, mytyres.co.uk, part of Europe’s largest web-based tyre retailer, is advising motorists of the dangers pressure washers can pose to the sidewall of a tyre.

According to the respected German safety and testing organisation, DEKRA, if a pressure washer nozzle is held too close to the sidewall of a tyre at high pressure, serious damage can result in as little as five seconds! Even tyres that appear to be unaffected after being exposed to a pressure washer may have microscopic perforations which can weaken the tyre sidewall and cause deflation, leading to a possible blow-out.

Other factors, says mytyres.co.uk, that may cause deterioration or damage to tyres include some soaps and detergents. These can remove protective chemicals that are embedded in the sidewall – they can sometimes be identified visually on the tyre as brown watermarks –resulting in a significant reduction in durability.

mytyres.co.uk advises motorists considering using a pressure washer on their cars to adhere to the following tips:

· Ideally, use a light to medium duty pressure washer (110 bar or less)

· Keep the washer nozzle at least 20cm from the tyre surface

· Always use a fan nozzle to clean tyres, rather than a circular nozzle

· Avoid prolonged jet washing of any one area of the tyre

· Avoid aiming the water jet at the join between the tyre and wheel rim

Kumho’s laser etching technology was lauded at the recent (February 10) Tire Technology International Awards for Innovation and Excellence 2010. The milestone process won the award for ‘Tire Manufacturing and Design Innovation of the Year’. It was one of five prestigious prizes presented at a gala dinner on the second night of the three day Tire Technology Expo at the Cologne Messe. The Expo is Europe’s leading international tyre design and exhibition and conference that, like the dinner, is organized by UKIP Media & Events Ltd.

Kumho’s laser etching system was launched at last Autumn’s Frankfurt motor show and embodies technology that is set to transform the way the company designs its tread patterns. The award was collected by Roger Jenkins, managing director of Kumho’s Birmingham-based European Technical Centre (KETC), who said, “We are delighted to have been selected for this accolade – it means a great deal to us that such a prestigious panel of judges has recognized the pioneering nature of our work. It is a milestone for Kumho and falls on the 50th anniversary of the company’s inauguration.

“Of course it represents the work of many people, in particular the engineers at KETC and our R&D operation in Korea, who are always open-minded about  our ambitions. Thanks too to for the patience and expertise of our development partners in the UK.”

Kumho has won an iF Product Design Award for the innovative laser etching technology it launched at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September. A total of 2486 entries were submitted by 1061 companies from 39 nations for the contest, from which Kumho was declared victorious in the Advanced Studies category.

Introduced in 1954, the German iF accolade is considered to be one of only four design awards of world renown. The criteria for selection comprise: design, technology, degree of innovation and brand value potential. The award process, which is recognised for its rigorous and fair judgement, is conducted by experts from around the world, including some famous designers.

The laser etched tyre shown at Frankfurt, which incorporated the company’s logo, embodies technology that is set to transform the way Kumho designs its tread patterns. It was this concept tyre, together with a typical application of Kumho’s products of the future, that the company entered for the award.

Said Roger Jenkins, managing director of Kumho’s Birmingham-based European Technical Centre, ‘Consumers take into account the design of a tyre as well as its performance when making a purchase. Kumho was one of the first companies to recognise this and continually invests in the development of both aspects. It is therefore all the more rewarding to have our work recognised with such a prestigious award.’

There are many facets to the award, including a six month display of the winning entries at the Hanover Exhibition Centre, which will be visited by 250,000 people from March 2 onwards, and an online exhibition on the iF website for an indefinite period from March.

Cooper Tire’s first ever premium UHP 4×4/SUV tyre, the Cooper Zeon 4XS, has been designed and built by British engineers.

Experts based at Cooper Europe’s base in Melksham, Wiltshire, developed the 4XS specifically to meet the demands of European 4×4 vehicles on European roads. It is the first time that the American company has entrusted a technical team outside of the US to design one of its 4×4 tyres.

The 4XS, which will include fitments for Porsche Cayenne, Volkswagen Touareg, BMW X5, Audi Q7, Volvo XC90 and Mercedes M-Class, is available to buy in V, W and Y speed ratings in the UK and mainland Europe from early November.

Cooper has used the latest in design technology to ensure the 4XS offers comfortable quiet running, while the asymmetrical ‘rib’ tread design offers optimum grip in wet weather conditions. A rim protector also guards your alloys from kerb damage.

Cooper Tire & Rubber Company Europe managing director, Julian Baldwin, said: ‘The fact that Cooper Tire’s headquarters in America have entrusted our design team in Melksham with the development of the company’s first premium UHP tyre for high performance four-wheel drive vehicles is yet another major seal of approval on the quality of work we do here in Europe.

‘The 4XS caters for a wide range of very popular vehicles and will compete with the market leaders thanks to a rich heritage in the US, where roughly one in every five 4×4 tyres sold is a Cooper.’

For more information or to find your nearest stockist, visit www.coopertire.co.uk or call 01225 705050.

Michelin’s 2009 Fill Up With Air campaign results have shown that an alarming 36 per cent of drivers in the UK are driving with dangerous or very dangerously under-inflated tyres*.

The Fill Up With Air tyre safety roadshow, now in its sixth year, took to the roads this summer, visiting 24 cities including Dundee, Manchester and Birmingham to offer drivers a free tyre pressure check and a free fill-up for those with under-inflated tyres.

More than 4,500 cars were checked during the three-month campaign, more than ever before, and only 34 per cent were found to be driving with correctly inflated tyres, while a shocking 6 per cent were driving with punctures.

Michelin’s head of communications, Peter Snelling, said: ‘Tyres are the only thing keeping a car on the road and it’s all too easy for drivers to take them for granted and not treat them with the utmost care and attention that they deserve.

‘This year’s Fill Up With Air campaign figures have, as we predicted, shown a slight deterioration from 2008 which even then positioned us as one of the worse offenders for tyre safety in Europe. We believe this downward trend could be partly due to the economic climate as drivers try to save money wherever they can.

‘However, this is a false economy in terms of safety and fuel costs. Incorrectly inflated tyres, bald tyres and damaged tyres are dangerous and can lead to fatal crashes and lives must not be sacrificed for the sake of saving a few pounds. Also, under-inflated tyres have a serious impact on the environment as cars consume more fuel to overcome the increased rolling resistance.’

The results were revealed at the Road Safety Expo 09, the premier road safety conference in the UK, attended by the Road Minister Paul Clark MP and the Chairman of the Global Road Safety Partnership, Patrick Lepercq.

Mr Snelling added: ‘The Michelin message to Fill Up With Air needs to get through.  With petrol prices hurting everyone and the overall cost of motoring rising, it makes so much sense to regularly attend to this simple task.  Checking and correcting tyre pressures once a month and before long journeys can save lives as well as money.’”

(Via .)

Continental has been awarded first place in the annual tyre test by leading motoring magazine Auto Express. The ‘Best Buy’ accolade was won by the premium manufacturer following nine stringent tests on the leading brands available in the UK today.

Auto Express tested the UK’s most popular tyre size (205/55R16) fitted to many family hatchbacks such as the VW Golf, Honda Civic and Ford Focus. The magazine chose the popular Audi A3 to test the tyres.

The tests determined each tyre’s performance in wet and dry handling, wet cornering, aquaplaning, dry and wet braking and rolling resistance. Auto Express also evaluated price and cabin noise.

Continental’s ContiPremiumContact 2 scored top marks in the wet cornering, dry and wet braking tests, coming first overall. The magazine concluded: “The best all round tyre money can buy is the Continental. The PremiumContact 2 will perform anywhere and it deserves to take the crown for the German maker.”

Product manager for Continental Tyres, Scott Benbow, said: “We are delighted that the ContiPremiumContact 2 has been recognised in this prestigious test.

“The magazine really put the tyres through their paces and we are pleased that the tests showed what a great tyre it is. Before we launch our tyres, we rigorously test them to make sure that the consumer gets the best performance and safety possible and these results prove it.”

For more information on the ContiPremiumContact 2, visit www.conti-online.co.uk.