Tire Review, 12.2012

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TIRE REVIEW (ISSN 0040-8085)(DECEMBER 2012, Volume 112, Number 12. Published monthly by Babcox Media Inc., 3550 Embassy Parkway, Akron, OH 44333 U.S.A. Phone (330) 670-1234, FAX (330) 670-0874. Periodical postage paid at Akron, OH 44333 and addi-tional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Tire Review, 3550 Embassy Parkway, Akron, OH 44333. A limited number of complimentary subscriptions are available to individuals who meet the qualification requirements.Call (330) 670-1234, ext. 242, to speak to a subscription services representative or FAX us at (330) 670-5335. Paid subscriptions are available for non-qualified subscribers at the following rates: U.S.: $69 for one year. Canada: $89 for one year.Canadian rates include GST. Ohio residents add current county sales tax. Other foreign rates/via airmail: $129 for one year. Payable in advance in U.S. funds. Mail payment to Tire Review, P.O. Box 75692, Cleveland, OH 44101-4755. Visa,MasterCard or American Express accepted. Founded in 1901. © 2012 by Babcox Media Inc. “Tire Review” is a trademark of Babcox Media Inc., registered with the U.S. Patent and Trademark office. All rights reserved. Publisher reservesthe right to reject any subscription that does not conform to his standards or buying power coverage. Advertising which is below standard is refused. Opinions in signed articles and advertisements are not necessarily those of this maga-zine or its publisher. Diligent effort is made to ensure the integrity of every statement. Unsolicited manuscripts must be accompanied by return postage.

30 Cover: The Data Driven Dealer

36 Feature: GTE/SEMA Show Wrap Up

48 Tires: Run-Flat Tire Update

53 Service: Wheel Bearing Service

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Columns & Departments

■ FIRST LOOK: TireReview.comTPMS Problems + Bushings + Year-End Taxes | 4

■ COMMENTARY: The Car Side - How the Buick Stole Christmas | 72

■ NEWSMAKERS:Industry News Briefs | 6Alliance Dealers Visit Aeolus | 10Conversation With Hankook Chief | 14Pirelli’s Big Dealer Meeting | 18

■ BUSINESS:Market Intel - Tire & Service Pricing | 21Mobile Marketing - QR Code Basics | 24

■ TIRES: Tire Tech - Considering Passenger Retreads | 60OTR Tires - Year-End OTR Tire Strategies | 62

■ SOLUTIONS:Spotlights - Shocks & Struts | 64

CONTENTSDECEMBER 2012Volume 112 | No. 12

FEATURES


TireReview.com Visitor Comments

FIRST LOOK ONLINE @TIREREVIEW.COM

Wanted: TPMS SensorCorrosion Input

Year-End TaxPlanningThere are a number of end-of-yeartax strategies businesses can useto reduce their tax burden for2012. We’ll cover the details ofsome of the best options.tirereview.com/inBusiness

Through his blog, Editor JimSmith recently brought tolight a common but under-discussed problem: seriousTP MS sensor corrosion.After one dealer called toreport the issue, many haveweigh ed in, and their re-sponses shed light on theproblem. We want to hearyour experiences with TPMSsensor corrosion. Check outtirereview.com/blogs for theoriginal entry, plus a secondblog that includes readerfeedback. Then, share yourown opinion by commentingonline or [email protected]!tirereview.com/blogs

inBUSINESS

BushingTestingThere is no real maintenanceschedule for a bushing beyondperiodic inspection. Find outthe basics when it comes to in-specting, diagnosing and re-placing these vital parts.tirereview.com/inService

inSERVICE

The Great MSRP Debate“I have never been in a market whereyou could get MSRP. My prices have al-ways been below that. My biggest prob-lem is making the consumer realize thatthe price on the tire at big box storedoes not include installation, balancingand taxes.”– Reedy Creek Tire

Florida Legislator Wants Used Tire AgeBill“Before coming to the tire industry I hadnearly 30 years of law enforcement ex-perience that included a few thousandMVA accidents. I saw situations wheretire condition was a contributing factor

(i.e. bald etc.) but making a statementabout a warehouse filled with wreckedcars with a ‘lot’ of links to the age of thetire is preposterous and self serving. Thehuman factor is usually ignored becausethey are always seeking out deep pock-ets where they can assign blame. A qual-ity new tire will be a quality used tire iftaken care of properly.” – Tire Sergeant

“I have never seen a study that defini-tively shows the relationship of tire fail-ures to the age of a tire. Millions of usedtires are kept from the landfills each yearby recycling the perfectly good usedtires. With no evidence of a direct rela-

tionship between age of tires and failurerates, we need unbiased studies to ex-amine the real cause of tire failure, i.e.underinflation, tires worn below 2/32-inch, speed and other factors.” – Tom

Oliver Rubber: 100 Years and Counting“The Oliver organization has alwaysbeen a class-act – congratulations.”– Tim Loden

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Backed by an Orlando law firm,Florida State Rep. Jason Brodeur hasproposed a bill that tackles both thesale of used tires and tire aging at thesame time.

The still unnamed and un-num-bered proposal would require “retailused tire dealers” to inform buyersof the age of the used tires they arebuying and provide “certain warn-ings relating to the age of used tires.”

Specifically, the language of theproposed bill states: “A retail tiredealer shall, no later than the time ofsale, before dismounting a tire to bereplaced by a used passenger or lighttruck tire sold by the dealer and be-fore mounting a used passenger orlight truck tire sold by the dealer,provide a written disclosure of the

age of the replacement used tire tothe purchaser. The disclosure mustbe initialed and dated by the pur-chaser, who must be given a copy,and the dealer must retain the origi-nal for at least three years. The dis-closure shall include the followinginformation:

“(a) The week and year the tirewas manufactured; and

“(b) The following statement:“‘Passenger and light truck tires,

including spare tires and tires thatare stored or have had little or nouse, deteriorate as they age and aremore prone to sudden failure thatcan cause a crash. Heat caused byhot climates can accelerate the agingprocess. Most vehicle manufacturersrecommend that passenger or lighttruck tires be replaced after six years,regardless of the remaining treaddepth.’”

A violation brings a fine of up to$250 per incident, and Brodeur pro-poses the bill become law and take

effect by July 1, 2013.Orlando-based law firm New-

some Melton is backing Brodeur’s ef-fort, and has been drumming upsupport through the Florida media,and its website.

“Despite several efforts in multi-ple states in recent years, legislatorshave been unable to establish lawsthat would require tire manufactur-ers and retailers to provide con-sumers with a tire’s age upon sale,”said the website.

“Additionally, a potentially great-er problem exists in the used tire re-tail industry, as new tires are gener-ally safer and experience fewer casesof tread separation than used tires.”

In mid-November, firm principalRich Newsome told WFTV-TV in Or-lando that he has a “warehouse filledwith wrecked cars,” and said the“link in a lot of these cases is the ageof the tire. Most people don’t knowit, but tires have a shelf life.”


On Election Day, Massachusetts voters resoundingly passed

the Right to Repair ballot question, adding another layer of

icing to an already well-decorated cake.

However, passage of the ballot measure apparently causes

some conflict with the Right to Repair legislation that was

enacted by legislators in August. State legislators and oth-

ers have been working to reconcile the ballot measure and

the R2R law so that the wishes of voters are met.

One key way the two differ lay in the proposed start dates.

The ballot measure requires automakers to make diagnos-

tic and repair information available to independent shops

and dealers through a universal system by 2015. The com-

promise legislation, which was signed by the governor in

August, gives automakers until 2018 to comply with new

regulations.

After the compromise bill was signed, lobbyists said they

would work to let voters know they did not need to vote for

the measure on the ballot. However, AAA of Southern New

England and other industry organizations pushed for pas-

sage, saying that was in best interest of consumers to have

a choice when getting their vehicles repaired, and stepped

up efforts to increase voter awareness in the weeks leading

up to the election.

R2R Ballot MeasurePasses in Massachusetts

INDUSTRY NEWS & EVENTS

NEWSMAKERS

Florida LegislatorWants Used TireAge Bill

Automotive market consultantand trainer AskPatty.com Inc. haslaunched the Women’s AutomotiveSpeakers Bureau.

The company said its new Wo -men’s Automotive Speakers Bureau“is a strategic resource to decision-makers in the automotive industryon how to effectively market and sellto the growing and influential baseof women automotive buyers, aswell as how to attract and retainmore women as employees withintheir organizations.”

“We’re a company that thrives on

educating and empowering womenas consumers, as well as educatingbusiness owners and employees inthe automotive industry about thegrowing power of women con-sumers,” said Jody DeVere, CEO ofAskPatty.com Inc. “Our speakers bu-reau is just another step in our jour-ney to help the automotive industrygrow marketshare and get better re-sults with women on all fronts.”

AskPatty.com is a strategic part-ner with TIRE REVIEW magazine on ahighly successful tire industry-spe-cific training and certification pro-gram for tire retailers.

AskPatty.com’s Women’s Auto-motive Speakers Bureau represents across section of “outstanding, profes-sional and dynamic speakers who

specialize in a wide range of topicsand services, including keynote pre-sentations, brand spokespersons,workshops, coaching, video training,live and recorded webinars, facili-tated panel session speakers andmore.”

For more information on thespeakers that make up the Women’sAutomotive Speakers Bureau, visitaskpatty.com/speakers.

Monro Muffler Brake last monthannounced plans to buy the 32-storeTire Barn Warehouse, based in An-derson, Ind.

The family-owned Tire BarnWarehouse has stores across Illi-nois, Indiana and Tennessee. Monrosaid it plans to retain the Tire Barnname. The deal was set to close onNov. 19. ■


■ NEWSMAKERS: NEWS & EVENTS gFollow@Tire_Review

Business Barometer

Total Tire Units

Retail Sales – Oct ’12 vs. Oct ’11 (Final)

103.4

Total Service $s

Broadline

HP/UHP

LT/SUV

Undercar

Underhood

103.4

103.2

103.5

102.9

97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104

102.9

102.9

Retail Sales – Nov ’12 vs. Nov ’11 (Prelim.)

Retail Sales – Nov ’12 vs. Oct ’12

Total Tire Units96.7

Total Service $s

Broadline

HP/UHP

LT/SUV

Undercar

Underhood

96.8

97.0

96.5

98.0

91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98

98.0

98.0

Total Tire Units97.9

Total Service $s

Broadline

HP/UHP

LT/SUV

Undercar

Underhood

97.9

98.1

97.9

99.1

93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100

99.1

99.1

Indiana DealerSells to MonroMuffler Brake

AskPatty.comAdds Women’sSpeakers Bureau

SCAN FOR INFOTo view additional news stories, go totirereview.com/news or scan this bar codewith your smartphone or tablet.

Retail Sales – Year to Date

104

103

102

101

100

99

Service $ Tire Units

105

98

97

Apr.

Nov.

Dec.

Jan.

Aug.

Sept

.Oc

t.

Mar.

Feb.

May

July

June

Certainly, much of Alliance TireGroup’s recent success can beattributed to organic growth;

since it was formed and reformedthrough a confluence of events, thecompany has steadily built a loyaldealer base for its core farm and OTRtire products.

And then there are new businessopportunities, with a radial mediumtruck tire line that has paid surpris-ing dividends for both Alliance andits Chinese partner. With its 2009 ac-quisition of portions of the bankruptGPX International Tire, ATG inher-ited the U.S. distribution rights forAeolus medium truck tires.

In its first two years, ATG saw Ae-olus sales increase by 60%.

Aeolus Tyre Co., headquartered inthe heavily industrialized and oldcity of Jiaozuo (population: 3.6 mil-lion) in Henan Province, about 370miles southeast of Beijing, is the 20thlargest tiremaker in the world andthe fifth largest tire company inChina, according to TIRE REVIEW sta-tistics. Besides the company’s offices,Jiaozuo hosts Aeolus’ four tire pro-duction facilities, located on two vastcampuses.

Aeolus (most commonly pron oun -ced “yoe-lus”) was founded in 1965as Henan Tyre Factory. The publiclytraded company produces Aeolusand Henan brand radial truck andOTR tires, a variety of brands of biasply tires, and (under license fromGoodyear) Kelly-Spring field brandradial medium truck tires for theAustralian and Middle East markets.

Radialization began in 2001, firstwith truck tires and then with OTRin 2007. The “Old Plant,” located onthe same campus as Aeolus’ head-quarters and R&D center, is actuallya series of buildings in which work-ers produce thousands of bias andradial tires each day.

Across town lies the “New Plant,”a matched pair of massive structures.One building houses radial truck tireproduction, and started commercial

production in 2009. Its twin is home toradial passenger and light truck/ SUVtire production (see October 2012 iss -ue, page 18) that began in 2011.

In 2004, Aeolus posted sales of $253million, $82 million of which was ex-port. In 2011, sales reached $1.54 bil-lion, and a third of that came fromexports.

In September, ATG brought agroup of its truck tire customers toChina to meet with Aeolus officials

and tour the facilities. Making thetrek were Maggie Buckholtz of D.B.Rice Tire in Frederick, Md.; DarrinMalone of Malone Warehouse Tire inAthens, Ohio; Dale Talbert of J.P.Thomas Tire in Asheboro, N.C.; JohnTodd of Atlanta Commercial Tire inDoraville, Ga.; and Joyce Cole of Par-menter Inc. in Odessa, N.Y. Theywere hosted by ATG’s John Hull, na-tional truck tire sales manager, andSeth Walters, vice president of mar-keting and logistics.

Striving for QualityLanguage barriers made it diffi-

cult to gather much detail about pro-duction levels and long-term goals,and the portions shown of the “Old

Factory” and the newer facility werecomparable to many other tire plants.

Aeolus chairman Wang Feng toldTIRE REVIEW that the focus has beenon technology, product quality anddelivering a green tire through bothraw materials and lower rolling re-sistance. As of November, for in-stance, Aeolus has three radials thathave been EPA SmartWay verified.

“Most of our focus is on quality,on professional tire manufacturing,”

Feng said. “Our best customers aregoing to sell quality.”

While Aeolus claims 600 SKUs inits truck tire portfolio, the North Am -erican distributor carries far feweroptions, but still delivers a prettycomplete product screen with tiresthe maker vows will deliver at leasttwo retreadings.

ATG officials said the companywill sell between 220,000-250,000 Ae-olus truck radials in 2012. “Dealerscan invest in this brand,” said Hull.“The ‘two retread ‘guarantee is im-portant to emphasize the quality ofthe casing. When you combine allthe other advantages and features ofthe tire with the retread warranty, it



> Alliance Tire Group

Aeolus Truck Dealers Get Look at Manufacturer

Continued on

Aeolus Tyre’s vast “new” truck tire plant is actively contributing the nearly 250,000medium truck radials sold by ATG to U.S. dealers.

makes a very competitive packagecompared with our competitors.”

While it was not a focus of thevisit, Walters reminded that ATG al -so offers Aeolus OTR tires. The cur-rent offered size range is 17.5R25through 24.00R35 and 65/35R33, in-cluding a full line of crane tires in14.00R25 and 1600R25 sizes and intothe large L5 loader tires.

Aeolus is the only brand of trucktire ATG currently offers, and ATG ap-pears quite happy with that arrange-ment. “We have made a commitmentto Aeolus and they have made one tous with the sole distributorship for theU.S.,” Hull said. “We have not enter-tained any other brands at this point.”

Dealers Like ProductThe dealers on the visit also said

their fleet customers were happywith the products and the fill rates.“I don’t think there are any real ‘hotbutton’ issues with our dealers,” saidHull. “Most of them have been sell-ing Aeolus from the beginning andare comfortable with the quality andavailability.

“We know we need to grow thebrand in the U.S. for Aeolus to main-tain a stable relationship with them,and we will,” he continued.

“One of our advantages for ourAeolus dealers is that we work hardto protect their sales territory so theycan invest in the brand with theircustomers and not have to competewith another Aeolus dealer down thestreet,” Hull said. “This adds valueto the brand, and staying power. Weare looking to be a good supplier toour customers and provide a productthey can make money with and de-pend on. Volume for the sake of vol-ume is not in our or our customers’interests.”

“The fill rate with Aeolus is excel-lent,” Walters offered. “But havingsaid that, there are always situationswhere we both have to be flexibleand contend with holidays, moldcleaning and shipping issues any-

time you operate a container-basedprogram. Our advantage is our abil-ity to warehouse product so our cus-tomers see a minimum of supplyissues.”

Going forward, Walters seesplenty of opportunity for ATG, Aeo-lus and tire dealers. “We offer Aeolusa lot of information on our market,new sizes and patterns that need to

be developed. They do a good job ofconsidering our requests.”

It’s not always easy, he admitted,as ATG has to remember that Aeolus“serves a global marketplace” andsometimes ATG has to “get in linefor development of new SKUs.”

“We continue to explore growthopportunities with Aeolus in bothTBR and OTR,” said Hull. “OE is anavenue for their OTR products togrow, as well as other distributionchannels for truck tires if they makesense for us and our dealer base.” ■



Visiting Aeolus’ headquarters in China were (from left) Seth Walters, ATG vice pres-ident of marketing and logistics; Dale Talbert of J.P. Thomas Tire; Joyce Cole of Par-menter Inc.; John Todd of Atlanta Commercial Tire; Maggie Buckholtz of D.B. RiceTire; Darrin Malone of Malone Warehouse Tire; and John Hull, ATG national trucktire sales manager; with host Wei Wu, ATG’s attache with Aeolus. Below, Waltersshows dealers Aeolus’ production testing for its truck tires.

Jim SmithEditor

[email protected]

THE FOCUS HAS BEEN ON TECHNOLOGY, PRODUCT

QUALITY AND DELIVERING A GREEN TIRE THROUGH

BOTH RAW MATERIALS AND LOWER ROLLING

RESISTANCE.

Soo-Il Lee has led Hankook Tire Am -erica Corp. for three years now,and during that time the company

has enjoyed its greatest growth both hereand globally. In 2011, the American armexceeded $1 billion in sales for the firsttime, and expects to reach $1.4 billion inthe coming year.

Lee sat for an interview with TIRE

REVIEW during the recent Global TireExpo/SEMA Show, and talked about anumber of issues, not the least of whichwas the potential for Hankook to build atire plant in the Americas. Subsequent tothe interview, Hankook revealed that it isplanning a passenger and light truck/ -SUV tire plant in the U.S. that willbegin production in the second half of2015, and already is looking at potentiallocations for a $700 million facility.

The full-length version of this inter-view can be found at tirereview.com.

What do you see as your biggestsuccesses as president of HankookTire America?

“Frankly there is no ‘biggest suc-cess.’ It’s still coming, I hope. We arean improving brand. This market isthe biggest in the world and it iscomplicated, with different channelsand a lot of different kinds of con-sumers. There are still a lot of thingsto improve with our brand. We havethe right product and we are doingbranding activities to improve con-sumer awareness. For the future,though, we are looking at building afactory in this country so that we candeliver better service, improve fillrates and delivery service, and re-duce working capital needs for ourdealers. Our dealers’ cost is our cost,you know, so trying to reduce ourdealers’ cost is important to our part-ners and Hankook.”

Will the announcement of a plant inthe U.S. come soon?

“It definitely will be. According toour projections, we will produce ourtires in this market in 2015. The sec-ond half of 2015.”

So the new plant will be announcedat the 2013 dealer meeting?

“(Laughing) I don’t think so. Wehave not decided the place where wewill build it yet. We can talk aboutwhy we will have a plant, but wehaven’t decided on a location.”

At the 2012 dealer meeting, you an-

nounced plans for a new associatedealer program. How has that pro-gram progressed?

“We are newcomers to having anassociate dealer program. A lot ofour competition has this kind of pro-gram already. But as a kind of ‘newbaby’ program for us I think it hasbeen quite successful. We have morethan 1,200 dealer locations enrolledalready. It is a new program and weare going to make it better.”

Are you planning any major en-hancements to the program?

“We’ve had some feedback fromour dealers. There are some goodthings that they like, and some thingsthey want us to improve. We’re goingto take a look at everything at theend of the year. It’s only been six

months since the program launched,so we will take a look at areas for im-provement and make the changesneeded.”

With the added tariff on importedChina-made consumer tires ending,what was the impact on Hankook?

“I worried about the impact on

pricing and maybe on demand fromour dealers, but frankly speaking forthe last two months for our brand, Idon’t think there has been much im-pact. Demand has been okay, saleshave been up for the last couple ofmonths even though the market wasdown by double digits. We havebeen able to stabilize our businesseven though there has been a lot ofprice pressure in the market. For thelast several years, we have invested alot in our OE business – this pastyear we supplied maybe 3.5 milliontires to automakers in the U.S., plusour OE positions on Korean cars likeHyundai and Kia that are importedto this market with our tires. So thatOE business helped stabilize our de-mand in this market.”



> Hankook Tire America Corp.

A Conversation With Soo-Il Lee, President & CEO

Continued on

Soo-Il Lee, Hankook Tire America Corp. president and CEO (left), with Shawn Denlein, seniorvice president of sales and marketing, at the company’s Global Tire Expo/SEMA Show booth.

Hankook had to change its produc-tion around when the tariff cameinto effect, is that correct?

“Yes, we have three plants inChina. Originally we brought in 60%of our tires from South Korea and 40%from China. So after the tariff cameon, we changed that to 90% fromSouth Korea and just 10% from China.Since then, we have added a newplant in Indonesia, so we will bring inmore tires from that plant. Now it willprobably be more like 60% from SouthKorea and 30% from Indonesia and alittle more than 10% from China.We’re not looking to roll that back toChina, even though we have threeplants there. Ultimately those plantsare for the Chinese domestic market.”

Hankook does very well in China,does it not?

“We were the Number One brand

in China in terms of marketshare forsomething like the last 10 years. Idon’t know the exact number, but wehave done very well in China. Thewhole economy in China has beenslowing down. We still hold the Num -ber One spot there, but the growthrate is down quite a bit.”

Do you see the lack of that addedtariff as a good thing or a bad thingfor the U.S. tire industry?

“It’s an economic issue, and thereare some good things and bad things.One of the good things is price; may -be the consumers have a larger selec-tion of tires to choose from with somelower prices. So for them it is good.But maybe there are some quality is-sues, too. There are some cheapertires with poor quality, too.”

What is the impact on Hankook?“Well, one thing is that we are

bringing in another associate brand –Kingstar. What this does is give ourexisting dealers a lower price pointproduct that is manufactured byHankook so that they can competewith a third-tier priced tire. It doesnot have as broad a range of cover-

age, but the quality is as good asHankook. We’re starting with a pas-senger line and then an HP line.These tires are being made in China,but they won’t be priced as low assome Chinese tires.”

Where will Hankook Tire Americafinish this year? And what is yoursales goal for 2013?

“We will surpass $1.2 billion defi-nitely this year in U.S. sales. And for2013 we are targeting $1.4 billion.”

What things will Hankook have todo to meet that goal?

“A lot of marketing activities. As Isaid, in a couple of years we willhave a factory in the U.S., so we willneed more brand awareness and togrow brand equity in this market.We have been very successful withsports marketing, like with Major

League Baseball. In 2011, we had be-hind-the-plate signage with 22teams, this past year it was 26 teams.This coming season we will add acouple more teams, maybe to 30teams total. We’re looking at the up-coming World Baseball Classic, too.There is motorsports and NCAAsports. It’s a combination of thingsthat have worked for us in the past,and some things that we have nottried. We are spending more on TV,for instance, with the NFL and col-lege football. We were looking atdoing more with NHL hockey, butbecause of the player lockout, wehave set that aside. We also are look-ing at other motorsports opportuni-ties, both high level and grassrootshere in the U.S.”

Looking at 2013, how do you thinkthe U.S. tire industry will perform?

“I think it’s probably going to be acarbon copy of what has happenedthis year. The only thing I see thatcan be different is with the tariffcoming off and what happens withChinese brands. I do think it will bemore price competitive, more so thanwhat it is, and supply is obviously

coming back. I don’t see a tremen-dous amount that will be differentfrom this year, just that there will begreater supply and the effect the tar-iff situation will have on everyone’sbusiness.”

What obstacles are there for tire-makers and for dealers?

“All manufacturers will have topay attention to what happens withthe tariff off, because everyone hasan entry level product. It will be in-teresting to see if manufacturers fol-low, go down or hold their positionin the market. For us, our plan is tohold our position in the market andutilize our Kingstar brand to addressthat part of the marketplace. I thinkdealers’ challenges are going to betheir inventories. We see a lot ofdealers closely watching the value oftheir inventories. If the market andour competition continue to have‘deals’ and those types of things,dealers are going to have to be veryconscious about what they are order-ing and what type of mix they have.From what I have seen, the dealersthat are doing well are those who arereally concentrating on the con-sumer. They are really taking care ofthe customer, and they are actuallystealing customers from other retail-ers.”

How is Hankook’s medium trucktire business doing?

“It has been tough, actually. Ourglobal marketshare for truck tires islower than for passenger and lighttruck. But this year there was big im-provement. Our 2012 sales in theU.S. will increase by maybe 15% to20% in quantity, not in value. Big im-provement, but we need more im-provement next year. Service is soimportant in this market. We want togain more premium positions withfleets. We have a good range of prod-ucts. For the last five years, we havetried to develop the right tires forthis market. We have tested our tireswith about a dozen fleets and havereceived good feedback. Our CPM isreally good and all of our tires areEPA SmartWay verified, so that willhelp drive sales for us in key marketsegments.” ■



Jim SmithEditor

[email protected]

IN A COUPLE OF YEARS WE WILL HAVE A FACTORY IN

THE U.S., SO WE WILL NEED MORE BRAND AWARENESS

AND TO GROW BRAND EQUITY IN THIS MARKET.

The weekend of Nov. 16-18 wasone of “firsts” in Texas. That pe-riod marked the first Formula 1

race in the U.S. in five years, and thefirst event staged at the all-new Cir-cuit of the Americas near Austin.

And it was the first (at least inanyone’s memory) Pirelli dealermeeting in quite some time. Not thatthe tiremaker had a lot of catchingup to do, but it did have alot to talk about, a new tireto showcase for some 150U.S. and Canadian deal-ers, and a group of about400 U.S. and internationaldealers and other gueststo host at the big race.

Among the replace-ment market wholesalersand retailers at the HyattRegency San Antonio forthe dealer “convention”were some familiar deal-ers (such as CharlieCreighton of Colony Tire,Edenton, N.C.); dealergroups like the Independ-ent Tire Dealers Group,Tequesta, Fla.; car dealertire supplier Dealer Tire,Cleveland; and The TireRack.

The tightly-packedweekend meeting waslong on information, which execu-tives hoped reflected a new, clearerapproach to market for the brand.Some of the information was revis-ited the following day during a driv-ing and classroom event around therecently launched Cinturato P7 All-Season Plus, and at the Grand Prix ofthe United States, won by Brit LewisHamilton, who celebrated in a cus-tom-made, Pirelli-badged Stetson.

The heart of the weekend, though,was the dealer meeting, kicked off byPaolo Ferrari, nine months on the jobas chairman and CEO of Pirelli’sNAFTA unit, who introduced themeeting theme: “Think Big. No Com-promises.”

A Good Story“We have a good story to tell,”

Fer rari said. The bold theme was ap-propriate because now Pirelli has afirm plan and can think big while notaccepting compromises – or excuses,he noted.

He shared Pirelli’s view of wherethe OE and replacement markets areheaded – global and North America

– and how it matches Pirelli’s “pre-mium strategy focus” (UHP, run-flats, winter tires).

“We are pursuing that part of themarket that is growing,” he said.“And that is the premium segment.”

Every tiremaker, Ferrari noted,defines premium differently, someby size, some by speed rating, someby intended fitments. “Premium tous is a moving target” that “con-stantly shifts” based on “continuousadvances in technology and innova-tion,” as well as changes in OEM de-mand and consumer desire. “Wehave to think of it this way.”

To be in the premium segmentand succeed, he said, “we need to be

relevant to consumers and OEMswill be willing to pay a premiumprice.”

Proof of that moving target, Fer-rari said, is that Pirelli is seeing moreof a convergence between the Euro-pean and North American markets –smaller vehicles and greater empha-sis on fuel economy (hybrids, electricvehicles and low rolling resistance

tires). That is not lim-ited to smaller vehi-cles, he added, assuper premium car-makers like Audi,Porsche, Bentley andMercedes-Benz areasking for lower roll -ing resistance tires,and carmakers in gen-eral “are seeking 10%-15% year-over-yearimprovements inrolling resistance.”

Boosted signi -ficant ly by the new$300 million Silao,Mexico, consumer tireplant that opened ear-lier this year, Ferrarisaid, Pirelli now hasready access to prod-uct, and is backingthat with a cleaner,clearer product screen

and significant investment in mar-keting and promotion. The added ca-pacity, he noted, will be key movingforward as Pirelli has committed to18 new products over the next fiveyears (globally, not specifically forNorth America). By 2015, these newproducts will account for 57% ofPirelli’s global revenues.

Throwing the Levers“We are concentrating all re-

sources and aligning all internallevers and programs to a premiumstrategy – R&D and product devel-opment, local manufacturing, tar-geted premium consumer segments,



> Pirelli Tire North America

Big Week, Big Firsts, Big Meeting, Big Goals

Continued on

Paolo Ferrari, chairman and CEO of Pirelli’s NAFTA unit, said the tiremaker can think big without accepting compromises – or excuses.

and a focus on select dealer and re-tailer partners,” Ferrari said.

But even with that, he admitted,“we have an even more comprehen-sive portfolio of products, I think,than we are able to communicatesometimes.”

To better leverage the Pirelli brand(valued at $2.9 billion), the tiremakeris scaling up itssell-in and sell-out marketing,advertisingand channelsupport efforts.

That starts atthe beginning,according toTom Gravalos,vice presidentof marketingand OE sales,with under-standing howconsumers buytires and howthey see tirebrands. Gra -valos review -ed extensiveresearch Pir -elli has done to not only position itsbrand, but to develop models of dif-ferent “premium” tire buyers. Some,he said, are more engaged in the pro -cess than others; some proceed basedon how they see brands, vehicles andretail outlets.

At the end, the effort to see howthey want to research and buy tires,he said, helps Pirelli stay ahead ofshifts in consumer desires and de-mands, and better target its market-ing and promotion efforts to reach allidentified premium buyers in differ-ent ways.

Marco Zambianchi, vice presidentof product and business planning,told dealers about the OE level shiftsinto and around the “premium mar-ket” and how these are impacting thereplacement side. And he showeddata indicating that even as the totalreplacement market has slid by 17.7million tires between 2007 and 2011,(based on RMA shipment data), the“premium segment” has grown by10.7 million units.

Zambianchi showed how the re-vised Pirelli product screen fits intothe “premium segment.” Once re-garded as disjointed by dealers, Pir -elli’s new product screen is straight

forward, focused on the UHP seg-ment with the P Zero lineup, theSUV/CUV and pick-up market withthe Scorpion line, and the HP all-sea-son segment with the Cinturato line.

He gave way to senior vice presi-dent and head of sales RiccardoCichi, who talked about “customerpartnership programs.” Cichi point -

ed out that on the replacement side,Pirelli “is not overexposed and hasdedicated focus on our selectivebusiness partners” – those being cardealers and retail and wholesale in-dependent tire dealers. Car dealers,he noted, are growing as a share ofthe replacement market.

Cichi outlined sales support ef-forts through consumer rebates, aswell as other special promotions,sales incentives, digital media andPOS support, and a major consumersweepstakes (with the winner get-ting an all-expenses paid trip toSicily), which launched Oct. 1 andruns through March 31, 2013.

Dealer training aids have been en-hanced, Cichi said, with a revised e-learning modular training and dealercertification program, and an ex-panded 12-city “drive and learn”tour in 2013.

Rafael Navarro, vice president ofcommunications, media relationsand motorsports, complimented Fer-rari’s vow of more promotion, moremarketing and more support with anoutline of planned 2013 media, pro-motion and support activities. Pirelliwill return to advertising in tire in-dustry publications, increase its ex-

posure in enthusiast and lifestylepublications, and increase its TV ef-forts.

TV advertising will not only sup-port Formula 1 (which shifts to NBCSportsNet next season), but also thetiremaker’s World Challenge efforts.Pirelli also re-upped with famed cardesigner Chip Foose on a multi-year

support dealon Foose’s“Overhaulin’”show on Dis-covery, plusspots on thecar-orientedVelocity net-work. Pirellialso signed anew contractwith rallydriver and In-ternet sensa-tion Ken Block.

On the mo-torsports side,Navarro re-minded thatthe tiremakeris working toextend its F1

supply deal with the FIA past its2013 expiration. Additionally, Pirellihas signed new multi-year contractsto support the Pirelli World Chal-lenge, the Ferrari Challenge, the Pir -elli Porsche Cayman Inter Series andthe Porsche Pirelli GT3 Cup.

Navarro also outlined how Pirelliwill become “the most relevant tiremanufacturer online.” The effort, hesaid, is designed to “build considera-tion and preference for Pirelli” inorder to “drive conversion with deal-ers.”

In addition to an all-new website,the online push will include tradi-tional social media platforms, workwith well-recognized bloggers, andall-new digital off-shoots.

“Why digital?” Navarro asked theattendees. “Research drives us there,and enthusiasts and image consciousdrivers are both heavily invested on-line.” Pirelli, he said, has a defined vi-sion of how all of the media elements– traditional and digital/social – willconverge on the target consumer forthe benefit of the tiremaker and its re-tail customers. ■



Also addressing dealers at the meeting were Riccardo Cichi, senior vice president (left),and Tom Gravalos, vice president of marketing and OE sales.

Jim SmithEditor

[email protected]

Rapid Response: 800-928-1184 ext. 45120 �

TireReview.com 21

Legend * = Tier 1 Brand ** = Tier 2 Brand *** = Private Brand/Other

Helena, MT MarketPeriod 11/13-16 Mass Mass Tire Tire Car Avg. Merch. Merch. Dealer Dealer Dealer All A B A B

Vehicle 1Oil Change/Filter $29.99 $34.95 $39.00 $34.00 $36.95 $34.98Replace All: 215/60R16 $502.64** $540.00** $624.00* $553.92* $762.00* $596.51 Vehicle 2 4 Wheel Alignment $83.50 $69.95 $79.95 $59.95 $69.95 $72.66Replace All: 225/60R16 $385.92*** $519.80** $520.00** $468.00** $568.00** $492.34 Vehicle 3 Front Brakes, Turn Rotors $200.00 $225.00 $175.00 $190.00 $225.00 $203.00Replace All: 265/70R17 $864.00** $819.80* $800.00* $872.00** $680.00* $807.16

Macon, GA MarketPeriod 11/13-16 Mass Mass Tire Tire Car Avg. Merch. Merch. Dealer Dealer Dealer All A B A B

Vehicle 1Oil Change/Filter $31.99 $27.00 $33.20 $30.00 $29.99 $30.44Replace All: 215/60R16 $447.96* $524.00** $572.24* $520.00** $744.00* $561.64 Vehicle 2 4 Wheel Alignment $79.99 $79.99 $69.00 $59.95 $99.99 $77.78Replace All: 225/60R16 $511.96** $359.96** $359.60** $360.00** $384.96** $395.30 Vehicle 3 Front Brakes, Turn Rotors $179.99 $210.00 $160.00 $130.00 $180.00 $172.00Replace All: 265/70R17 $587.96** $536.00** $560.00** $632.00** $848.00* $632.79

Oklahoma City, OK MarketPeriod 11/13-16 Mass Mass Tire Tire Car Avg. Merch. Merch. Dealer Dealer Dealer All A B A B

Vehicle 1Oil Change/Filter $36.99 $29.99 $34.95 $35.00 $46.12 $36.61Replace All: 215/60R16 $589.96* $488.00* $499.98** $345.00** $665.00* $517.59 Vehicle 2 4 Wheel Alignment $79.99 $69.99 $89.00 $65.00 $79.95 $76.79Replace All: 225/60R16 $363.96** $352.00** $371.80** $472.00** $632.00** $438.35 Vehicle 3 Front Brakes, Turn Rotors $160.00 $130.00 $189.00 $190.00 $199.95 $173.79Replace All: 265/70R17 $559.96** $520.00** $679.80** $780.00* $700.00* $647.95

Lexington, KY MarketPeriod 11/13-16 Mass Mass Tire Tire Car Avg. Merch. Merch. Dealer Dealer Dealer All A B A B

Vehicle 1Oil Change/Filter $24.99 $29.99 $31.99 $22.88 $35.00 $28.97Replace All: 215/60R16 $739.96* $627.84* $524.00** $514.28** $834.00* $648.02 Vehicle 2 4 Wheel Alignment $79.99 $79.99 $49.95 $64.99 $59.96 $66.98Replace All: 225/60R16 $443.96** $568.00** $439.00* $359.96** $421.64* $446.51 Vehicle 3 Front Brakes, Turn Rotors $200.00 $160.00 $190.00 $159.99 $179.95 $177.99Replace All: 265/70R17 $799.96* $752.00* $743.80** $519.96** $668.00* $696.74

Madison, WI MarketPeriod 11/13-16 Mass Mass Tire Tire Car Avg. Merch. Merch. Dealer Dealer Dealer All A B A B

Vehicle 1Oil Change/Filter $29.99 $22.99 $39.99 $30.00 $32.99 $31.19Replace All: 215/60R16 $550.96* $496.00** $616.00* $468.00** $587.40* $543.67 Vehicle 2 4 Wheel Alignment $79.99 $79.99 $69.95 $98.00 $109.95 $87.58Replace All: 225/60R16 $556.00* $464.00** $440.00** $488.00* $450.00** $479.60 Vehicle 3 Front Brakes, Turn Rotors $160.00 $140.00 $275.00 $170.00 $226.95 $194.39Replace All: 265/70R17 $786.56* $588.00** $689.96* $640.00** $633.80* $667.66

Trenton, NJ MarketPeriod 11/13-16 Mass Mass Tire Tire Car Avg. Merch. Merch. Dealer Dealer Dealer All A B A B

Vehicle 1Oil Change/Filter $29.99 $36.99 $26.95 $26.99 $34.95 $31.17Replace All: 215/60R16 $524.36* $535.96* $604.12* $396.00** $919.36* $595.96

Vehicle 2 4 Wheel Alignment $79.99 $80.00 $69.95 $69.95 $129.95 $85.97Replace All: 225/60R16 $528.00* $580.00* $544.00** $340.04* $395.84* $477.58 Vehicle 3 Front Brakes, Turn Rotors $190.00 $199.99 $200.00 $170.00 $179.00 $178.80Replace All: 265/70R17 $692.00** $960.00* $712.00** $640.00** $604.00** $721.60

BUSINESSMARKET INTEL

TIRE RE VIEW and InteliChek pres-ent up-to-date tire and service priceinformation from major U.S. metro-politan areas.

For this monthly feature, Inteli -Chek directly contacts a selection ofindependent tire dealers, mass mer-chants/chain stores and car dealersto obtain current pricing on replace-ment tires and vehicle services.

InteliChek requests and verifies

retail prices via phone calls, usingcommon specific vehicles, tire sizesand vehicle services. In that way, di-rect and useful comparisons can bemade by readers.

The tire prices shown in this re-port are for tires only, and do not in-clude mounting/balancing or anyadd-on warranties or other servicesor fees. To allow for a more accuratecomparison, the level of tire brand –

Tier 1, Tier 2 and Private Brand/Oth -er – recommended by the retailer isnoted. (See legend below charts.)

The services chosen for these sur-veys include a standard oil change(oil plus filter), a standard four-wheel alignment and front brakework (replace front pads and turnboth rotors).

For more information on InteliChek,visit intelichek.com. ■

� Rapid Response: 800-928-1184 ext. 45121

Iwas recently with a client and that’swhat he called it – a funny littleblack box. They look weird, but they aren’t

funny. Rather, they carry a good bit ofinformation, and I’ll bet if you lookaround you’ll see them all over theplace.

They’re on the packages in yourshop, in articles and ads, on billboardsand bus stop stands, in grocery storesand on cars in a dealer’s lot.

These boxes are called “QR codes,”basically two-dimensional barcodesthat are easily scanned using any mod-ern smartphone or tablet computer.Once “read,” the code takes the user toa piece of (interactive) text and/or link.It could be a website or a video or an e-brochure.

For instance, you notice a poster foran event that seems interesting. Youtake out your smartphone, scan the QRcode, and instantly receive more infor-mation and a link to a website whereyou can book your tickets.

The main benefit is that you don’thave to type anything or remember aURL or an 800-number. And for mar-keters, QR codes are a highly effectiveway to move people to get more infor-mation to aid the buying process. Plus,because QR codes can be very small,they save a lot of space on productpackaging.

These codes were created in 1994 byJapanese carmakers as a means to tracktheir vehicles. In recent years, therehave been a couple of competing plat-forms, but QR codes, because of theirsimplicity, won out.

Best of all, they are very simple tocreate and there are many free QR code

generators and smartphone/tabletreaders on the market.

To create a code, simply type in thewebsite URL or web address for theplace you want the visitor taken whenthey scan it. The software automaticallycreates a unique QR code, and it can bereproduced on virtually anything. Wehave even seen QR codes on head-

stones.There is no cost to generate a QR

code, and now you even can createthem in unique shapes, sizes and col-ors.

How Can You Use Them?You’ve probably heard buzz about

interactive media. Well, that’s what aQR code does – it makes your media(ad, direct mailer, poster, Facebookpage, website, etc.) interactive. Or atleast more so.

Here are some ideas on how youcan profit with them:

• Put a QR code on your counter-top that sends the user to a “VIP” areawhere they can sign up for futurecoupons and “exclusive” offers. This isa great way to data mine customersand prospects to obtain their valuablee-mail and street addresses. This alsois the perfect opportunity to offer themother services and possibly even a dis-count or incentive on their currenttransaction.

As we addressed in a past column,the most important contact informa-tion you can get from your customersis their cell phone number. Recent fig-ures show that more and more peoplehave multiple e-mail addresses andthat e-mail deliverability is declining.

Due to economic circumstances,more and more people are now usingtheir cell phone as their ONLY meansof telephone communications. The im-portant point is that even when a cus-tomer changes carriers, they typicallykeep the same cell phone number.

If they have a smartphone by whichthey can scan your QR code, they alsohave a tool by which you can reachthem using text message marketing.That makes any customer cell numberpure gold.

• Use a QR code to take them to avideo for a particular service and offera discount. I recently did this for ashop owner. First, he set up a YouTubepage (free) and we used a pocket cam-era to record a three-minute video.Winter was coming, so we did a videowith him explaining how to winterizea vehicle. He went through all the im-portant components, including the


What’s ThatFunny LittleBlack Box?

QR codes offer your

customers easy

access to additional

information

BUSINESS MOBILE MARKETING

BRIAN SACKS

Contributing Writer

[email protected]

QR codes, when scanned with asmartphone or tablet, take users to a piece of interactive text or a link,whether a website, video or e-brochure.

tires, and then offered viewers a free“winterization evaluation” when theyshowed the mobile coupon on theirnext visit.

• Take them to a special page thatshows the benefits of using your busi-ness and services vs. the competition.You even could have videos of satis-fied clients on this page telling newvisitors why they chose you instead ofanother dealer.

• Send them to a coupon page andshow them how to redeem coupons byshowing their phone at the time ofservice. This is important because younow have a way of tracking your mar-keting efforts to ensure you are gettingthe best ROI on your advertising dol-

lars. Unlike expensive mailings, radio,TV and print ads that are only avail-able for a defined time, these QR codeswill continue to produce results foryou until you decide to change them.

• Deliver a survey page where theycan rate your service and recent expe-rience, and refer you to others whomight need a reliable tire and serviceprovider. Some dealers use a “Tell aFriend” button right on their mobilewebsites, which allows the user to eas-ily refer your business to their friendswith the click of a button.

No Pens, No Paper, No CardsRemember that the easiest people

to whom you can possibly offer yourservices and products are the ones thatalready know, like and trust you –your current customers.

Current customers don’t have totype anything or remember anything.They simply scan a QR code and aretaken where you want them to land.

Of course, you always should in-clude your QR code (or one for a spe-cific purpose) on all of your marketingmaterials – even your business card or

customer invoice.One of the biggest mistakes I see

many shop owners make is using aQR code on their marketing materials,but not having a mobile optimizedwebsite. This only leads to frustrationfor those who scan your QR code (thepeople you are trying to impress),since they’re unable to easily navigateyour website on their smartphone.

If you have a smartphone or tablet,I suggest you download a free scantool like ShopSavvy or BarCode Scan-ner and scan the next QR code youfind. Get a feel for how they work andwhat others are doing. It can be a realeye-opener. ■

■ BUSINESS: MOBILE MARKETING

Brian Sacks is a mobile market-ing expert with more than 26years of direct response market-ing experience. He is co-founderof Trackable Response Inc., a mo-bile marketing provider to thetire and auto service industries,based in Catonsville, Md. Briancan be reached at [email protected] or 410-747-1100.


>TAKEAWAYS

• MAKE IT MORE INTERACTIVE

• USE EXCLUSIVE OFFERS

AS SALES INCENTIVES

• GET CONTACT INFO

For independent tire dealers,keeping up with change can beone of our biggest challenges.

Most of us don’t like change; after all,if we’ve been working hard and enjoy-ing some success, why would we needor want to change anything?

The answer is simple: Everythingaround us is changing at an accelerat-ing rate. Vehicles are changing, tiresizes and types are changing, autoservice is changing, regulations arechanging, and the workforce is chang-ing. Lots of these changes are prettyobvious and we work with them everyday.

Others are not so obvious, and in

order to be successful as tire and autoservice businesses, we need to betterunderstand what is happening in ourmarket and with our customers. Onlythen can we decide the actions neededto get ahead of these changes and re-main successful.

Keeping existing customers happywhile gaining new ones comes fromunderstanding who they are, wherethey are, and what their needs reallyare. Shifting demographics are not al-ways obvious, and your market area isconstantly changing on all levels. Ac-cording to a research report in theApril 2012 issue of RETAIL LEADER, 76%of retailers had altered their productmix due to changing demographics.Many retailers recognize changes andact on them.

A successful marketing plan in-cludes strategies to maintain existingcustomers and ways to identify andengage your target customer – that“best customer” that every businesscraves. Finding your target customerinvolves figuring out who has a needfor your specific products and servicesand what their demographic charac-teristics are, including age, gender, lo-cation, income, education, marital/-family status, occupation or ethnicbackground.

Options also are available to diginto their specific vehicles and habits,from make/model/year to number ofvehicles to driving habits.

What can basic demographic re-search tell us? Perhaps that a growingnumber of drivers in your market areaare under 35. Since marketing to thosecustomers is different than marketingto older customers, you might need toadjust your plans based on that demo-graphic.

A recent study by DMEautomotive,a Florida-based market research com-pany specializing in the automotivefield, says that two-thirds of the cus-tomers under age 35 are likely to re-search a tire or automotive servicework before buying. So if your targetcustomer is under 35, you better becurrent on the available informationabout your business, products andservices.

Another example of how customerdemographics are important is the in-crease in female tire and auto servicebuying decision makers. Today women– single and married – make up thelargest share of all tire/service cus-tomers, but a lot of tire dealers stilldon’t recognize this factor and maywell be giving up a big chunk of po-tential business.

For the most part, women tire/ser-vice buyers are far different than malebuyers; they approach the process dif-ferently and have entirely different ex-pectations. AskPatty.com (a partnerwith TIRE REVIEW) and others are thereto help dealers understand this uniquecustomer, and how you can convert fe-


FEATURERICK BARNHART

Contributing Writer

>TAKEAWAYS

• CHANGE IS ACCELERATING

• USE DATA TO ADJUST PRODUCT

MIX AND MARKETING TARGETS

• DETAILS ON CUSTOMER DEMO-

GRAPHICS, VEHICLE TYPES

• VARIETY OF PAID SERVICES

• MANY LOW/NO-COST OPTIONS

male buyers into being among yourmost loyal “promoters.”

Local demographic research canshow you how many females vs.males are in your market, what kindsof vehicles they drive and even wherethey like to shop. And deeper data canuncover even more.

For instance, a study of female pur-chase decisions and buying habits byMarketplace Insights shows that 30%of women will do some research be-fore buying tires, while the other 70%will either buy them right away or notat all. Brand of tires is only importantto 20% of the women, according to thestudy, while “expertise and conven-ience” are the most important con-cerns to women tire/service buyers.

Gathering InfoFrom the most basic information to

highly specific data about your mar-ket, there are many tools available tohelp tire dealers understand changingdemographics.

At the ground level, there is infor-mation that’s available right in front ofyou, every day. If you have POS soft-ware that can capture customer spec -ifics, you can gather key informationabout gender, age, occupation, vehiclesowned, how much they are driven,past purchases, and even notes aboutdriving habits and likes/dislikes. Andlet’s not forget key contact informationlike cell phone numbers and email ad-dresses, invaluable for future promo-tions.

You might not get the level of detailthat those big, robust databases offer,but you can get some interesting andactionable data. Even without com-puter capability, data can be collectedat the point of sale right on the cus-tomer’s paperwork.

So far, we’ve been looking at this asa sales and marketing issue, but let’stake a brief detour to consider anotheruse for extensive customer demo-graphic data: Expansion.

There is a lot of site selection soft-ware out there with built-in demo-graphic information, but those pro -ducts can offer a lot even if a new storeisn’t on the horizon. Available data canhelp you find your ideal target cus-tomers today, as well as help you planfor tomorrow. Some of this software isavailable through subscriptions, withcosts that range from a few hundred to

a few thousand dollars per year. A freetrial subscription might be all youneed to gain enough demographic infoin your market area. We’ll get back tothat in a minute.

A few years ago when Conrad’sTire Express & Total Car Care in Cleve-land, Ohio, entered a growth phase toadd to its 17 locations, the dealershiplooked at a wide variety of demo-graphic data available internally. Bycomparing things like number of vehi-cles, population density, gender per-centages, income levels, number ofcompetitors and various other datapoints, Conrad’s could pinpoint whatwas successful at its stores and wherethey were falling short.

The primary goal was to find newlocations that would best fit the suc-cessful models that they already had.“Sometimes we collect so much in -formation that we confuse ourselves,”jokes Dominic Umek, general man-ager, but the data collection and analy-sis paid off. Conrad’s Tire now has 34stores.

Site selection for ground-up storesis Umek’s most important use of de-mographic data, but he also uses twoother tools to attract potential custo -mers in Conrad’s market areas – those“best customers” who aren’t buyingfrom the dealer.

One is traditional direct mail. Directmail companies can provide customersegmentation analyses that will helpyou target important, influential po-tential customers that fit your “bestcustomer” profile. Umek also uses cus-tomer plotting tools, which can helpfind the best potential customers

within a defined geographic radius. For the most part, Umek doesn’t

use tiremaker-supplied informationbecause he’s focused on the “Conrad’scustomer” rather than a Michelin,Goodyear or Continental customer.Market research need not be just bybrand, though, and some tiremakersare eager to help their customers growbusiness in various segments.

Providing demographic data andtools to help dealers hit their targetcustomers is the kind of support tire-makers can offer, often at little or nocost. And while dealers should be tak-ing advantage of this, according toAdam Croneis, key account managerat Michelin North America, such help“is being underutilized.”

Part of the reason may be the sheervolume of available information, whichmakes it hard to encapsulate for adealer. And where tiremakers once hadentire market research departments,today they contract those services tooutside marketing/demo graphic spe-cialists that may not be attuned to adealer’s real needs.

That’s not always the case, though.Michelin recently partnered with anoutside company to provide marketresearch and customer profiles. Re-ports can be run for a specific marketarea or for a specific radius within aZip code.

Items in the available “base demo-graphics” report include median age,median household income, medianhouse value, population by agegroups, ethnicity and projected valuesfor five years in the future.

Tire information includes Top 20

TireReview.com 31

■ FEATURE: COVER

sizes and a report on potential sales bysize and category.

To help determine product screensand inventory levels, Croneis has seendealers look at the number of singleparent households in a market, as wellas the mix of “premium” vs. “mid-pre-mium” tire fitments in a market. That’show specific tiremaker-supplied datacan get.

TIRE REVIEW contributor John Mont-gomery came out of a large tire-maker’s research department and nowruns his own market and consumer re-search firm, Marketplace Insights. Inboth roles, he has developed and pro-vided vast amounts of often quite spe-cific consumer data to dealers andcompanies, large and small.

One of Marketplace Insights’ keyofferings is called Metro Scan, which isconducted annually across 26 metro-politan statistical areas (MSA), creatingpiles of data for tire companies andmega-retailers alike. Metro Scan also isoffered to smaller retailers within theirtrade areas. At the heart of both arequestions to determine “tire buyer be-havior,” including how they preparefor a tire purchase, where they preferto buy, how they see tire brands in themarket, and much more.

Montgomery says the benefit todealing with MPI is that he and histeam are from the tire industry, under-stand the dynamics, and can help deal-ers identify the things that are impor -tant to customers and how well deal-ers are addressing them.

Brightline Marketing LLC is an-other company that provides marketresearch information to tire and autoservice dealers. Owner Randy Laddalso came out of a tire company mar-ket research team and has two decadesof experience in marketing and marketresearch.

Brightline’s Tire Market Vision re-ports are somewhat similar to Market-place Insights’ Metro Scan. Brightlinesurveys the top 30 MSAs each yearand the results are offered to varioustire/service retailers, complete with asummary of results and action recom-mendations. Ladd says the companyhas worked with large and small re-tailers, and can tailor its surveys tospecific needs.

You might think your dealership istoo small to take advantage, but con-sider that these studies also includevaluable competitive data, so you can

learn a lot about how your competi-tion and their products, services andbrands stack up against yours.

DIY Data GatheringFor those hard-core demographic

data lovers (and for the fun features),take a turn with Google Earth Pro. Onthe Google Earth website you canlearn more about its “Data Layers”feature, which can help you explore“untapped markets, locate your targetdemographic, and expand your busi-ness.”

While Google Earth’s cool satelliteimagery and maps are free (check outwhat your store looks like from outerspace), Google Earth Pro costs $399per year and is truly designed for busi-nesses. The Pro version also can cap-ture specific area demographics andtraffic counts.

Employing the U.S. Demographics“layer” lets you access interesting datadown to U.S. Census block areas – thesmallest census breakdown can in-clude as few as 600 people. You canlook at data about age, education, gen-der, households, income, marital statusand vehicle availability. It is possible todisplay color-coded median age mapsfor any area that you wish. One nicefeature is that all data shows current(2011) values, but also has the optionto show five-year projected numbers.

Traffic count information on GoogleEarth Pro is as simple as finding a lo-cation on the interactive map andclicking on the car symbol. You willget average daily traffic count, the dis-tance to the nearest cross street and theyear the count was done.

Google Earth is really fun to playwith and is easy to use, and the Proversion adds more levels of interestingresearch capabilities – at a price. But ifyou are a real data geek, you can al-ways go straight to the U.S. Censuswebsite to get some good demographicinformation.

It is free (but not necessarily easy touse) at census.gov/cbdmap. The cen-sus information on this interactivemap is supplied on the state or countylevel, and includes population figures,race, ethnicity, age, gender and hous-ing status. Under the “housing” tabyou can find how many homes areowner occupied vs. renter occupied,the number of houses for sale, etc.There also is a comparison feature thatallows you to compare the figures toanother county.

Large research corporations devoteconsiderable resources to developingbusiness intelligence for sale. Fortu-nately, many (like Demographics Nowand MapInfo) offer free trial packagesso you “cut your teeth” on a trial to getstarted with your demographic re-search; if you wish to purchase the fullprogram, that is your choice.

Sometimes there are other work-arounds. In the case of MapInfo, wefound a free version of its demo-graphic information through a com-mercial real estate website to which itprovides information. By becoming amember of LoopNet.com, you canlook at commercial real estate in yourarea, but also run a demographic re-port for the Zip code of any specificproperty.

There is a tab for “demographics”under LoopNet.com’s “AdditionalOptions,” where you will find reportson age, gender, race, housing, incomeand industry for a specific Zip code.The basic free membership comes witha limited number of inquiries; it is,after all, a paid subscription service forthe commercial real estate industry.

Mapping Out ResultsInstead of glazing over doing your

own online research, you always couldhave someone do it for you. Direct


Information available on Google EarthPro includes average daily traffic count,the distance to the nearest cross streetand the year the count was done.

■ FEATURE: COVER

mail and database marketers can provide valuable demo-graphic information and customer research – even as theytry to sell you the services that they provide.

An example is Customerlink, a company that has part-nered with several POS software companies and dealer or-ganizations to provide things like demographic segmentreporting, Google mapping and a proprietary marketingprocess – all with the goal of retaining existing or acquiringnew customers.

CustomerLink claims that it gathers data “from over 150sources” and compiles that data into “segments” so thatdealers can compare that against data from their shop man-agement software.

Understanding who your customer is will help you re-tain existing ones and more accurately determine where po-tential new customers reside. But have you mapped whereyour customers live or where your competition is? Thereare lots of free mapping software sites online that can fairlyeasily let you drop a list of customers or other stores froman Excel spreadsheet onto a map. Your desktop softwaremight even have it already.

It would only take a few minutes to do and the resultinginformation might be really interesting. Some of the freeones are difficult to maneuver through, but sites like topo.lyare quick and easy to use. All you need is a list and you candrop it into many of these mapping programs yourself.

On the pay side is Microsoft MapPoint, available for$249. It has many demographic features down to the zipcode level that could be useful. Unless you have a need for

some of the features of a more robust program, the free stuffwill work fine.

So why map your customers? Many neighborhoodshave distinct market lines. It would be interesting to figureout why some customers drive a further distance to buy


■ FEATURE: COVER


An example of a website hosted by CustomerLink, which haspartnered with POS software companies to provide thingslike demographic segment reporting, Google mapping and aproprietary marketing process.

from you vs. an alternative. Perhaps ahighway or community border existsthat impedes people from going inyour direction.

A dealer once told me that custo -mers on the other side of the riverfrom his store didn’t typically shop inhis neighborhood, even though hiswas the closest tire store by severalmiles. But after he specifically mar-keted to that area, he started to pick upsome new customers. A simple map-ping of your customers is worth aquick look.

Successful retailers in various indus-tries put demographic information touse with great success. I recentlyswitched back to a dry cleaner that Ihad used in the past because of $30worth of coupons that I received in themail. As it turns out, those couponsweren’t just randomly sent to myhouse; the dry cleaner hired a market-ing company to attract new customers,retain current customers and win backformer customers like me.

The agency segmented the cleaner’sdatabase into the three targeted groupsand “crafted a custom message for eachgroup.” After establishing a “best cus-tomer profile” and using the clean er’sdatabase, the firm created a targeted di-rect mail campaign that in c luded a se-ries of coupons.

The result was a response rate morethe twice the national average for cur-rent customers and more than fourtimes the average for “new custo mers.”

So if you are thinking about a directmail campaign, there probably is awealth of demographic information inyour existing database from which todraw. Even without a good database ofexisting customers, an experiencedlocal agency can use other demogra -phic data to develop your target cus-tomer profile and market to them. Drycleaners or tire dealers, the idea is thesame.

The two big questions today, ac-cording to Randy Ladd at BrightLineMarketing, are:

• Who is your target customer?

• What is your value proposition?

In order to promote and sell your-self successfully in your market area,you really need to determine both. Bymaking good use of demographic re-search, you can establish your target

customer and then develop a valueproposition that is aligned with it. Youalso can come up with a strategy tochange your customer conversations towhat is important to them (safety, con-venience, service, peace-of-mind, cost,etc.) rather than what is important toyou (sales, sales, sales).

Your market area has certainlychanged over the years, and it will con-tinue to do so. Using market demo-graphics – becoming a data driven

dealer – will help you make good busi-ness decisions and help you meet thechallenges and stay successful.

The access to good demographic in-formation has grown exponentially,and the cost no longer needs to be aburden on the small tire and auto serv-ice dealer. Resources are out there forsmart, resourceful tire dealers to getas much information as they canmanage. ■

TireReview.com 35

■ FEATURE: COVER


SPECIAL

Growing Training FocusBrings New ‘Safety’Tagline for TIA

TIA adopted the tagline “Tire SafetyStarts Here” to bring greater attentionto its overall efforts to educate tire deal-ers and technicians – and now the gen-eral public – about how to properlymaintain tires.

“This new tagline closes the loop onTIA’s long-standing efforts of raisingthe professionalism and perception ofthe tire industry and more accuratelyrepresents what this modern associa-tion’s core values are aimed toward,”TIA stated.

TIA also revealed its education plans– for both consumers and technicians.

The association announced plans todevelop an ongoing consumer educa-tion campaign that will start in 2013.Each quarter, the association willlaunch a 3- to 5-minute consumer-ori-

ented video focused on some aspect oftire care and maintenance. The videoswill be available in multiple formats onthe TIA website, and they will be acces-sible at no charge to both consumersand dealers.

On the books for 2013 are videos ti-tled: Tire Safety Starts with Proper TireRepair (first quarter); Tire Safety Startswith TPMS (second quarter); TireSafety Starts with Inflation (third quar-ter); and Tire Safety Starts with Rota-tion (fourth quarter).

“The new consumer education pro-gram has a lot of synergy with TIA’straining and legislative agendas,” saidRoy Littlefield, TIA executive vice pres-ident. “Obviously, the first video onproper tire repair will support our ef-forts to ban on-the-wheel plug repairsand other tire repair practices that arenot consistent with industry guide-lines. And while we do not have anyplans to introduce legislation on the re-

maining topics, we expect the conceptsof a properly functioning TPMS, cor-rect inflation pressure, and regular tirerotation to have a positive impact onsafety as well as the image of our in-dustry.”

TIA also said it plans to continue theconsumer education program in 2014and beyond with new topics.

On the professional education side,TIA announced a 16-city Certified ATSTraining Tour for 2013, the follow-up tothe highly successful 2012 tour that hit28 cities.

TIA’s Certified ATS Instructor Pro-gram provides in-depth and compre-hensive instruction on the recommended procedures for servicing mod-ern automobiles and light trucks. Deal-ers can take advantage of TIA’s“train-the-trainer” model by investingin the education of a key employeewho can return to the dealership as a


GTE/SEMA WRAP UPFEATURE

Missed this year’s Global Tire Expo/SEMA Show? TIRE REVIEW has you covered – with all of thenews and announcements, plus the hottest new tires and equipment, straight from the show floor.

New TIA President Randy Groh wants to continue build-ing a stronger relationship with the RMA, and has set hissights on two major industry issues as potential buildingblocks.

During TIA’s annual general meeting in Las Vegas, Grohsaid TIA will work to put forth a “recommended practice”regarding how tire dealers should handle the “tire agingissue,” and plans to help develop similar guidelines on thesafe sale of used tires.

Toward both goals, which he indicated would be com-pleted by the close of his term as president, Groh said TIAwould work directly with RMA officials and board membersto craft positions that both organizations can support.

It marked the first time TIA specifically stated that itwould tackle either controversial topic, both of which havebeen of concern for many years.

Groh said that while TIA would prefer “to educate, notlegislate,” it recognizes that the industry would be betterserved if it and the RMA took a leadership role in creating

legislation regarding proper tire repairs. And, by steppingforward now on the subjects like used tire sales and tireaging, perhaps avoid regulation all together. ■

TIA President Randy Groh

NEW TIA PRESIDENT LOOKS TO GREATER COOPERATION

Continued on

TIA’s Tire Industry Honors pro-gram – now in its fourth year –saw four new members inducted

into the Tire Industry Hall of Fame:Ran dy Clark, chairman and presidentof Dunn Tire; Bruce Halle, DiscountTire founder; Paul Kruder, founder ofComputerized Information and Man-agement Services (CIMS); and PeterVeldman, Tire Rack founder.

Also honored at the event were 2012Ed Wagner Industry Leadership Aw -ard recipients Steve Akridge, executivedirector of the Virginia Automotive As-sociation; and Reece Hester, executivedirector of the North Carolina TireDealers Association.

After the inductions, TIRE REVIEW an-nounced its 2012 Top Shop AwardWinner, Chapel Hill Tire Car Care Cen-ter, a second-generation, family-ownedand operated independent tire dealerwith four retail locations in North Car-olina’s Research Triangle. Representingthe dealership at the ceremony wereowners Marc and Britt Pons, who ac-cepted the award on behalf of the busi-ness, as well as the winner’s check for

$1,500. The dealership also will receivea Coats X-Series Model 70X Rim ClampTire Changer.

Also recognized were 2012 Top ShopFinalists Duxler Complete Auto Care,with four locations in the Chicagolandarea of Illinois; McGee Tire Stores,headquartered in Lakeland, Fla., with

27 retail stores around the state; andUpton Tire Pros, based in Madison,Miss., with four retail locations. Each ofthese dealerships will received a $500check, along with a Coats 1250-3DVtire/wheel balancer. ■

TireReview.com 37

■ FEATURE: SPECIAL

Pictured at the Industry Honors event are (from left): TIA President Randy Groh; withTire Industry Hall of Fame inductees Discount Tire founder Bruce Halle; Susan Kru -der, who accepted on behalf of her late husband, Paul Kruder, CIMS founder; RandyClark, chairman and president of Dunn Tire; and Tire Rack founder Pete Veldman.

Bruce Halle, founder of DiscountTire, accepts his induction into theTire Industry Hall of Fame, address-ing a tightly-packed house.

Owners Britt and Marc Pons were on hand to accept the 2012 TIRE REVIEW Top ShopAward on behalf of Chapel Hill Tire Car Care Center. Pictured here are (from left):TIRE REVIEW Editor Jim Smith; Britt and Marc Pons; and TIRE REVIEW Publisher DavidMoniz.

Industry Greats Honored at Annual Event

TIA-Certified Instructor to train theirother technicians.

“Based on the feedback from thisyear’s tour, we feel it is definitelyworth the effort to revisit our mostpopular locations and reach some newmarkets in 2013,” said Kevin Rohl -wing, TIA senior vice president oftraining. “By making the Certified ATSProgram more accessible around thecountry, we’re confident we can con-tinue to fulfill our mission of improv-ing safety by raising the bar for tireretailers.”

TIA Addresses Key Legislative Issues

On the legislative front, at the annualTIA general meeting, association mem-bers approved a pair of resolutions for2013. The first resolution positions TIAas supporting the repeal of the estatetax, while the second opposes a pro-posed credit card settlement.

“In nationwide polls, small businessowners have expressed a deep concernregarding the death tax, and named ittheir primary legislative concern,” theresolution on the estate tax read. “Thistax has had an overwhelmingly harm-ful effect upon a small business…tothat end, TIA is resolved to support allfederal legislation that will repeal theestate tax. If necessary, TIA will alsosupport legislation that will extend thecurrent law of a 35% top rate and a $5million exemption.”

With regard to credit card processingfees, TIA’s resolution stated, “Thesefees are the third largest expense on abusiness, after labor and rent. To com-bat these rising costs, over 40 lawsuitshave been combined in a class actionsuit, suing Visa and MasterCard andtheir issuing banks. The MerchantsPayment Coalition has been formed toseek a more transparent credit cardsystem, which will better serve retail-ers and consumers alike.”

But the proposed settlement “givesmerchants a limited right to surchargeconsumers, and it does not reduceswipe fees in the long-term,” and withsuch, TIA opposes the settlement.



From left: Ben Zavala and Mark Hearn, first and second place winners of Hankook’s“Tire Design for the Future Environment” competition, with University of Cincinnatiprofessor Raphael Zammit.

Derrelle and Amanda Ruschel (center) accept recognition for “Hankook Heroes” fromHankook Tire America Corp.’s Soo Il Lee, president and CEO (left), and Shawn Denlein,senior vice president of sales and marketing.

Continued from Page 36

Hankook Honors Design Students, Heroes WinnerHankook Tire America Corp. showcased the winning innovative tire design mock-

ups from its “Tire Design for the Future Environment” competition, in addition to

honoring the winner of its first “Hankook Heroes” Facebook campaign.

The three-month “Tire Design for the Future Environment” competition, held this

past spring for third-year design students at the University of Cincinnati, tasked

students with creating new tire designs based on their own visions of future cars,

sustainability needs such as reducing and reusing raw materials used in tire pro-

duction, and the importance of increasing tire efficiency and meeting specific tire

performance targets.

Soo Il Lee, president and CEO of Hankook Tire America Corp., presented awards

to first place winner Ben Zavala for his “Tiltred” tilting tire design and to second

place winner Mark Hearn for his “Motive” off-road design.

“The project brief asked our students to stretch their imagination about future

cars, view the role of tires from new angles, and propose a new tire design accord-

ingly,” said University of Cincinnati professor Raphael Zammit, who noted that Han-

kook designers worked with the students throughout the process, providing

constructive feedback and valuable insight. “It was an all-around great project and

we are truly grateful to Hankook for giving us the opportunity.”

Hankook’s Shawn Denlein, senior vice president of sales and marketing, con-

cluded the tiremaker’s first “Hankook Heroes” Facebook campaign by awarding

Derrelle Ruschel, this year’s winner, for the good he does using his car and tires.

Derrelle, a married husband with four children, was nominated by his wife for his

dedication to his family and unending devotion to raising the couple’s four boys.

TireReview.com 39


TIA Draws Crowds for Education Offerings

TIA’s educational seminars – TPMS@10, Truck Tires@10and Tires@2 – drew large crowds of attendees. Each seminarhighlighted ways to improve tire dealers’ businesses, includ-ing the “Successful Tire Dealers Share Their Secrets” Tires@2session, led by (from left) Marc Pons of 2012 TIRE REVIEW TopShop winner Chapel Hill Tire Car Care Center; as well asDan Nothdurft ,Gary Michaels and Dale Nothdurft of 2010Top Shop Winner Tires, Tires, Tires. TIA’s Kevin Rohlwing,senior vice president of training, moderated the session.

Nankang Uses Flash Mob to Launch New Look

Nankang Rubber Tire Corp. took the Las Vegas Conven-tion Center South Hall Lobby by storm on Oct. 30 with aflash mob dance routine that wowed Global Tire Expo atten-dees. The local troupe of 35 professional dancers, all wearingred Nankang shirts and caps, busted their moves for a five-minute routine to help the Taiwanese tiremaker launch itsnew logo and look. A few Nankang marketing staff mem-bers even stepped up toward the end of the dance.

Nitto Celebrates Milestones Nitto Tire USA Corp. celebrated having recently reached

two million ‘Likes’on Facebook with aguest appearance byelectronic dancemusic DJ and pro-ducer Steve Aoki(pictured here to theright of Tomo Mizu-tani, Nitto president).Show attendees en-joyed cake and re-ceived autographed posters while Aoki’s tracks played inthe booth. The event marked the countdown to Aoki’s birth-day bash concert on Nov. 21, which was sponsored by Nitto.The tiremaker’s partnership with Aoki, designed to expandbrand awareness and fan engagement, kicked off this sum-mer with an exclusive track remixed for Nitto’s fans, titled,“Come With Me (Doorly Remix) Fueled by Nitto.”

“

Exclusive GTE PhotosFor a first-hand look at the show floor,

check out the exclusive photo album on

TIRE REVIEW’s Facebook page at

facebook.com/tirereview.

By the NumbersThe 2012 Global Tire Expo, which was housed in theentire lower level of the South Hall of the Las Vegas

Convention Center, met – and surpassed – attendanceexpectations. Some 2,250 companies exhibited at theSEMA Show, including more than 500 first-time ex-hibitors. The event welcomed 135,000 overall atten-

dees, of which 60,000 were buyers and 3,000 weremembers of the media, according to SEMA.

Alliance Tire Group released its newGalaxy EXR 300 E3/L3 constructiontire, which the company said lever-ages a new, big-block tread design todeliver added traction, stability andperformance life to heavy equipmentused in construction, mining and mu-

nicipal appli-cations.Large centerlugs maxi-mize groundcontact formaximumstability,while aggres-sive treadblocks alongthe shoul-ders of the

tire ensure a strong grip in a wide va-riety of ground conditions, accordingto the tiremaker. With a rugged com-pound and 20-ply construction, theGalaxy EXR 300 is available in size23.5-25 to fit a wide variety of loaders,earthmovers and dump trucks.

ASA Automotive Systems displayedthree next-generation technologymodules – a new scheduler, a mobilewarehouse quick order entry system,and general ledger – which havebeen completed as part of the com-pany’s new technology rewrite. Withthe look and feel of a Microsoft Out-look-type calendar, including colorcoding and drag and drop capabili-ties, ASA’s Scheduler allows dealersto book appointments from a workorder or the calendar, view appoint-ments by date, location, bay, techni-cian and other user defined re-sources, as well as email service re-minders. The Mobile WarehouseOrder Entry module empowers re-mote salespeople to quickly and eas-ily search inventory and order tiresonline, as well as capture signatureselectronically, according to ASA. Theweb-based General Ledger is the firstaccounting module that’s beenrewritten with full integration to theTireMaster family of products, incor-porating new functionality with en-hanced drill down and reportingcapabilities.

Bartec introduced two new TPMStools – the Tech200 and Tech500 –

and new TPMSmanagementsoftware, TPMSHUB. TheTech200 TPMSActivationTool’s compactand rugged de-sign, coupledwith Bartec soft-ware, allows forfast and easyTPMS sensor

testing. It features wireless Bluetoothto transmit sensor information to acomputer or printer. The Tech500features a rugged, ergonomic enclo-sure design and like its predecessor,the Tech400SD, its all-in-one designincludes built-in OBD functionality,as well as wireless Bluetooth and Wi-Fi technology. TPMS Hub includessensor searches, TPMS tool work in-structions, re-learn procedures andBartec Tech Tips, the companyadded.

Bosch Group unveiled the Tech 2Pro Optima scan tool package, whichincludes the General Motors Tech 2,CANdi module and 32MB program-ming card. The Bosch Tech 2 allowstechnicians to diagnose and repairmany GM vehicle manufacturedfrom 1992 to current with the excep-tion of those vehicles that are cov-ered by GM’s GDS 2. In addition,Bosch updated its Mastertech VCI(M-VCI) scan tool with expanded, in-depth vehicle coverage with its newESI[tronic] 2.0 diagnostic software.The software, which provides trou-bleshooting instructions, vehiclemaintenance schedules and technicalservice bulletins, is sold as a M-VCITrio Package consisting of the M-VCIscan tool bundled with a laptop PCand USB wireless adapter, or the VCI2 package, which includes the M-VCI scan tool and USB wirelessadapter with software that can beloaded on an existing PC.

Chicago Pneumatic introduced 20new high-performance air tool mod-els. The CP7748 Brute Force 1/2-inchimpact wrench offers 922 foot-pounds of maximum real torque inreverse and extremely fast run-off,making it ideal for the tire industry.

The CP7759Q 1/2-inch impactwrench, which features Side-to-SideTechnology (S2S) that allows the op-erator to easily change between for-ward and reverse with one hand,delivers 780 foot-pounds of maxi-mum real torque. Rugged new mod-els have been added to the to theCP77X9 family: the CP7769 3/4-inchheavy-duty impact wrench is engi-neered to be compact, well-balancedand lightweight, with 1,440 foot-pounds of torque. These heavy-dutyimpact wrenches feature dual socketretention, with friction retainer ringand hole retainer for additional

socket se-curity. Thenew CPNano Se-ries rotaryscrew aircompres-sor is builtfor high-efficiency,continuousoperationand re-

duced operating costs in a compact,workspace-saving design. The seriesincludes five models ranging from 3to 15 hp with stable air output at 125or 150 psi standard with high-effi-ciency air ends/elements that pro-duce drier, cooler air, the companysaid.

Double Coin Holdings and theChina Manufacturers Alliance in-troduced three new tires. The newOptiGreen Series FD425 Super Wide,which the tiremaker said is an “ultra-premium, fuel and weight efficientdrive position tire,” features ad-vanced tread compounds; a wider,low profile design; and less weightsavings for greater mileage. TheSmartWay-verified tire is available insize 445/50R22.5, load index 161.The new RSD3 ultra-premiumon/off-highway drive tire is opti-mized for severe winter driving con-ditions, engineered with specificfeatures to enhance ice and snowtraction and performance, the tire-maker added. The RSD3 is availablein sizes 11R22.5, 295/80R22.5 and315/80R22.5, with more sizes tocome in 2013. The Double Coin



GTE/SEMA PRODUCT SHOWCASE

Bartec Tech500

CP7759Q 1/2-inch impact wrench

Galaxy EXR 300

REM-28S radial OTR tire, designedfor loaders, graders and mobilecranes in winter applications, fea-tures a wide footprint for excellentflotation; and zigzag siping and atread block design that increase win-ter performance. The tire is availablein sizes 385/95R24 (grader), 17.5R25and 20.5R25 (loader), and 385/95R24(high speed mobile crane), withmore sizes to come in 2013.

Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. showed anumber of new products. With alaunch targeted for early to mid-2013, the all-season CS3 Touring fea-tures the tiremaker’s “StabilEdge”technology for dry handling stability,crisper steering response and im-proved ride comfort, according toCooper. It offers a five-rib tread pat-tern for improved wet and lightsnow traction; a tread pitch and pat-tern design for a smooth, quiet ride;and a tread compound and profilethat promotes even wear and longtread life. The CS3 Touring replacesthe Lifeliner GLS and will come in 58

T, H and Vspeed ratedsizes. TheMastercraftCourserAXT, avail-able now in50 LT-met-ric and P-metric SUVsizes rang-ing from15- through20-inchwheel di-ameters,

features “a progressive five-rib treaddesign, aggressive off-road capabili-ties, confident highway control andwear, and balanced all-season per-formance,” as well as wide centertread elements with an open groovedesign and an aggressive buttressshoulder design for better off-roadtraction, Cooper added. Also dis-played were new commercial trucktires: the Roadmaster RM230 WB, anon-/off-road tire with damage-resis-tant tread suited for cement mixers,dump trucks and haul applications,available in sizes 385/65R22.5 and425/65R22.5; the Roadmaster RM254

regional drive tire, with treadwearand traction required for frequentstops and acceleration, available insix load range H and G sizes; and theRoadmaster RM851, a SmartWay-verified regional and long-haul drivetire designed to boost fuel efficiency,available in four load range G sizes.

Doublestar Tire Corp. showed itsColor Tire, which the tiremaker saidcomes in four colors – red, yellow, blueand green – and offers the same per-formanceand tread-wear as itsregularblack tires.Madethroughnew man-ufacturingtechnol-ogy, Doublestar said its current pas-senger and truck/bus radials can bemade in color based upon customerrequest.

EnerSys unveiled its new OdysseyPerformance Series line of batteriesand rebranded its existing line ofOdyssey batteries as Odyssey Ex-treme Series batteries to differentiate

betweenthe exist-ing prod-uct lineand thenew line,which isdesignedfor con-sumer ap-plications.

Designed with the same rugged con-struction as the Extreme Series bat-teries, EnerSys said the new Perf -ormance Series batteries offer equiv-alent deep cycling capabilities, longservice life and high reliability.Odyssey Performance Series batter-ies are constructed of a polypropy-lene case and cover that resists oil,cleaners and gasoline, in the sameblack/orange color scheme as theExtreme Series batteries, EnerSysadded.

Falken Tire Corp. introduced the lat-est generation of its all-season per-

formance tire forluxury SUVs andlight trucks, theZiex S/TZ05. Keyto the character ofthe S/TZ05 is itsadvanced M+S-rated, all-season,non-directionaltread design. Thetire also featuresdouble-taperedtread blocks andstaggered shoul-der lug groovesfor a smooth, quiet ride; doubletaper-cut tread blocks that intensifynoise reduction and water evacua-tion; a solid center rib for improvedlateral handling and highway stabil-ity; and wide shoulder blocks foradded tread stiffness and perform-ance, according to Falken. TheS/TZ05 is available in popular SUVand light truck wheel fitments rang-ing from 20 to 24 inches.

Greenball Corp. displayed its Tow-Master Summer Solution, a new and

improved specialtytrailer tire that fea-tures revised com-pounding to imp-rove heat dissipa-tion and allow forcooler running tem-peratures. Key areasof the tire, such asthe inner liner andbelt edge package,have been re-engi-neered for more reli-able operation,according to thetiremaker. The com-

pany also is expanding its line oflight truck tires with the CentennialTerra Commander, an all-terrainhigh-traction tire for pick-ups andSUVs that will be available in early2013.

Hankook Tire America Corp. intro-duced its latest UHP all-season tire,the Ventus S1 Noble2, made from anew silica tread compound for im-proved wet grip and lower rolling re-sistance. The new tire features atriple-radius profile that maintainsmaximum grip, as well as offering




CS3 Touring

Color Tire

Centennial Terra Commander

Odyssey Performance Series

Falken ZiexS/TZ05

lower rollingresistance forincreased fuelefficiency,Han kook said.The tire offersuniform con-tact pressureon its centerand shoulderblocks for se-cure brakingperformance,while straightrib blocks on

the outside of the tire reduce roadnoise. The Ventus S1 Noble2 will beavailable in March 2013 in 40 sizesranging from 16- through 20-inch fit-ments.

Hercules Tire & Rubber Co. pre-viewed the new Hercules Terra TracR/S on-/off-road light truck tire andIronman RB-12 all-season touringtire, both due out the first quarter of2013. The Terra Trac R/S (ruggedsurfaces) replaces the former TerraTrac A/W,featuring asimilartread pat-tern andupdatedstyling.The tire isaggressiveand versa-tile, accord-ing toHer cules,with alow-voidshoulderand wide footprint for enhanced sta-bility. Built for all-season perform-ance, the Terra Trac R/S offerspuncture protection and advancedsidewall construction to protectagainst sidewall impact, and is de-signed for rugged commercial appli-cations, the tiremaker added. TheM+S-rated tire will be introduced in10 popular sizes. The Ironman RB-12will launch in 21 T, H and V speedrated sizes covering 13- to 16-inchwheel diameters. The tire features asymmetric, five-rib tread design witha larger footprint for stability and

performance; slotted shoulders,moderate siping and wide groovesfor enhanced water evacuation; anda variable tread design for drivercomfort and reduced road noise,Hercules said.

Hunter Engineering Co. introducedits SmartWeight Touch balancer,which features a touchscreen inter-face, eCal Auto-Calibration thatdoesn’t require operator input, andCenterCheck for proper centering.The balancer, which handles up to30-inch wheel diameter tires, alsoprovides training videos and TPMSreset procedures. Hunter alsodemonstrated its Fully IntegratedAlignment, claiming its HawkEyeElite Alignment System and RX Liftcan help technicians present resultsin 90 seconds by eliminating time-consuming trips around the vehicleand trips to the console. The systemuses Hunter’s CodeLink sensor thatlinks the vehicle OBD-II to thealigner and WinAlign software, themaker added.

Ingersoll Rand said the latest addi-tion to its IQV20 Series cordless toolfamily, the W5130 3/8-inch 20V Mid-Torque Impactool, offers high per-formance,long-lastingdurabilityand the ver-satility toaccess tightspots inmultiple lo-cations. TheW5130boasts 190foot-poundsof torqueand alength ofjust 6.6inches from tip to tail. According tothe maker, the IQV20 Series batteryplatform allows the W5130 power lev-els rivaling a pneumatic tool packedinto the convenience of cordless.

Ken-Tool announced several newproducts. Its ReCore Sensor Saver Sys-tem offers everything tire techs needto repair corroded TPMS valves – in-

cludingnickel-plated re-placementvalve stemsand capsthat willnot fail dueto galvaniccorrosion,

the company said. Techs work directlyon the damaged valves, removing thecorroded stem, tapping new threadsand torqueing in the replacementstem without the need to remove thetires fromthe vehicle,rebalancethe tires,and reset orrelearn theTPMS sen-sor. Ken-Tool said itsnew earth-mover andag tire infla-tion cage,made fromheavygauge steeltubingwelded to a steel base, measures48x72x89 inches and guards techni-cians and the shop environmentagainst injury and damage from theexplosions that stem from blown lock-ing drums on large tires. Lastly, Ken-Tool said its new Dual WheelSeparator makes removing stuck orfrozen dual steel wheels quick andeasy. Ideal for use on nearly any dualsteel wheel truck, bus or van, the sep-arator slips between the frozen wheelsand uses the power of a screw-drivenpusher to force them apart. Techni-cians can drive it easily with an im-pact wrench, the maker added.

Mickey Thompson PerformanceTires & Wheels debuted two hybriddesign light truck tires, both ofwhich will be available the first quar-ter of 2013. The Baja ATZP3 is a com-bination all-terrain/mud-terrain tirefeaturing an extra-wide footprint,large tread blocks and scallopedshoulder lugs designed to provideon- and off-road traction. The tire




Hercules Terra Trac R/S

W5130 3/8-inch 20V Mid-Torque Impactool

Earthmover and ag tireinflation cage

ReCore Sensor SaverSystem

Ventus S1 Noble2

also offers deep side-biters for im-proved protection; multi-draftgrooves for self-cleaning and im-proved wear; and a new tread com-pound with improved cut and chipprotection, the company said. Thetire will be released in 20 sizes withwheel diameters ranging from 15 to20 inches. The tiremaker also addedthe Fun Country hybrid all-terrain/ -mud-terrain tire to its Dick Cepektire line. The tire shares many fea-tures with the ATZP3 and will beavailable in 20 sizes with wheel di-ameters ranging from 15 to 20 inches.

Optima Batteries added the OptimaChargers Digital 400 12V PerformanceMaintainer and Battery Charger to itsnew line of battery charging products.

The tool iscompact andis compatiblefor use in au-tomotive,truck, ma-rine, motor-cycle, power sport, lawnand garden,and RV ap-plications.The producthas a chargerate of up to

four amps on large batteries and threeamps on small batteries and can beutilized to keep all 12V AGM andflooded batteries healthy during stor-age, the maker said.

OTC released a family of water-proof-grade LED work lightsequipped with a lithium-ion batterydesigned for making a technician’swork environment safer and moreproductive. Each unit within theSpectrum series provides 50,000hours of light and is equipped with ahang hook, magnetic base, pivotingbody, face light and a top light. Witha rubberized coating for an easy grip,the Spectrum lights also are impactand water resistant, and come withboth AC and DC chargers, the com-pany said.

Progressive Automotive Systemsshowed enhanced features of its R.O.

Writer Shop Management Softwarethat allow the user to accurately iden-tify required parts and labor to buildan accurate estimate and maximizemargins, the maker said. Its enhancedparts sourcing through NAPA Pro-Link allows the user to compare pric-ing and automatically calculate profitmargins, while the new multi-storemanagement option enables users toinstantaneously access vehicle repairinformation from multiple locations.

Schrader introduced its EZ-Tire tire-mounted TPMS sensors. Using thesame programmable sensing technol-ogy as its valve-mounted EZ-Sensor,the EZ-Tire sensor is enclosed within

a small, circular rubber fitment pack-age that easily adheres to the inner-liner of the tire. Schrader said givenits location, the EZ-Tire solution ex-pands the benefits of TPMS to a widerange of new applications. EZ-Tire isprogrammable across diverse TPMSprotocols and vehicle platforms, sav-ing installation time, cost and inven-tory requirements, according toSchrader.

Tenneco announced plans to acceler-ate its “Continuous Launch” productprogram in 2013 with a significantnumber of new Monroe shock ab-sorber and strut SKUs, as well as ag-gressive expansion of its MonroeQuick-Strut product line. The newprogram enables Tenneco customersto access the latest Monroe part num-

bers on a quarterly basis, rather thanwaiting until the end of the year. Newcoverage will include an expansion ofthe Monroe OESpectrum shock andstrut offering for late-model Asianand European applications, as well asmore than 50 additional MonroeStrut-Mate mounting kits for populardomestic and foreign applications.Tenneco also launched Monroe Pro -Solution brake pads, a “premiumtechnology available at a mid-rangeprice.” The pads feature premium-grade friction formulations and paddesigns, yet are priced to help shopsattract and retain budget-minded cus-tomers. A vast majority of ProSolu-tion pad sets come complete withnoise reducing pad installation hard-ware, Tenneco said.

Toyo Tire USA Inc. unveiled its newiPad app, which provides easy accessto Toyo’s product information, in-cluding training, videos, sizes andspecifications, brochures and more,according to the company. The app isdesigned to help train dealers on thecompany’s products, while dealerscanuse ittotraintheirownstaffand tosell intheshow-room. Users can access informationsuch as a product overview, productfeatures and benefits, size informa-tion and specifications, and multi-media, Toyo said.

Vredestein North America dis-played its latest two Giugiaro De-sign-enhanced summer tires. TheVredestein Ultrac Vorti carries a Yspeed rating and “excels in terms ofgrip, handling and braking on bothdry and wet surfaces,” the tiremakersaid. The Vredestein Sportrac 5 is thesuccessor of the Sportrac 3, and “of-fers excellent handling on both wetand dry surfaces,” the companysaid. ■




Optima Chargers Digital400 12V Performance

Maintainer and Battery Charger

EZ-Tire tire-mounted TPMS sensors

Monroe ProSolutions Brake Pads

Toyo’s iPad App

Zero pressure, self supporting,run-on-flat…whatever themoniker each tire manufacturer

gives to its run-flat tires, the generalidea is the same: consumers can con-tinue driving for 50 miles at up to 50miles per hour on what would ordinar-ily be a flat tire.

And while cost and ride comforthave long been seen as negative as-pects of run-flat tires, today’s modelsoffer technologies that can save con-sumers money while offering distinctsafety advantages, according to tire-makers.

While still making up only a smallfraction of the total replacement pas-senger tire market – no more than acouple of percentage points, accordingto the companies polled for this article– run-flats are an important inventoryitem for dealers who service certain ve-hicle models that are fitted with thetires as original equipment.

According to Robert Saul, UHP andrun-flat product manager for Bridge-stone Americas, the longest-runningand most popular models that featurerun-flats as OE include the BMW 3 Se-ries, Mini Cooper and Chevrolet Cor -vette.

“BMW and Mini hold a command-ing share of the OE run-flat market asthey have gone almost 100% run-flatfor their vehicles, and they hold thecrown of the top selling run-flat-equipped vehicle in the U.S. with the 3

Series,” agrees Yokohama’s Kevin Hin-ton, manager of product planning.“Mercedes is focusing heavily on thistechnology, as well, and we expect tosee a growing share of its vehicles out-fitted with run-flats in the future.”

He adds that General Motors’ Cad -illac luxury brand is making a come-back with run-flats, and the automakeris looking to equip more of its modelswith this technology in the comingyears, as well. Toyota also features run-flat tires on two of its popular vehicles:the RAV4 CUV and Sienna minivan.

Hinton explains the run-flat marketis expected to grow as automakersbegin to fit more run-flats on new vehi-cles. “We expect the growth rate of run-flat-equipped vehicles to outpace thegrowth rate of vehicles fitted with con-ventional tires in the coming years,” headds.

Henry Kopacz, public relations andproduct marketing specialist for Han-kook Tire America Corp., says salesand shipments of run-flat tires have in-creased from roughly 1.5 million unitsto 1.9 million units over the past coupleof years. He estimates the segment will


TIRES

Despite perceived issues, run-flat tires offer peace of mindto drivers and profit opportunities to dealers

Flat Out

FEATUREDENISE KOETH

Managing Editor

>TAKEAWAYS

• REQUIRES FUNCTIONING TPMS

• DON’T MIX RUN-FLATS WITH

STANDARD TIRES

• FOLLOW MANUFACTURER

GUIDELINES FOR PUNCTURE

REPAIR, SERVICE

• FOLLOW SPEED, DISTANCE

REQUIREMENTS

see an increase of roughly 20% over the next few years.“W and Y speed rated products have been the most pop-

ular for the OEMs and we expect that trend to continue,”Yokohama’s Hinton says. “We also expect growth to occur inV rated tires. Tires in 17- to 19-inch sizes will continue tomake up about 90% of all run-flats on new vehicles. Run-flattires have been a technology that has been fitted mainly on

sports and luxury cars, and we expectthat trend to continue, as well.”

Run-Flat Pros and ConsThe perceived negatives of run-flat

tires are that they don’t perform as wellas their non-run-flat counterparts andthat their purchase cost is too high, Han-kook’s Kopacz explains.

“A great deal of research and designhas gone into the latest generation ofrun-flat tires and consumers have cometo appreciate the improved performanceof the tires,” he notes.

The ability to drive up to 50 miles at50 miles per hour after a full pressureloss allows motorists to drive to a serv-ice station in order to have their vehiclesinspected and serviced – a valuableasset to consumers, Kopacz says.

“Changing a flat tire on the side of aroad can be very challenging and stress-

ful,” says Travis Roffler, director of marketing for ContinentalTire the Americas. “Run-flat tires can provide convenienceand peace of mind for a consumer by essentially eliminatingthe need for roadside tire changes.”

Aside from peace of mind, run-flats also offer financialpositives, according to Yokohama’s Hinton, who says, “For


■ FEATURE: TIRES

Run-flat tires, like those offered by Bridgestone (left) and Yokohama, among other tire-makers, let drivers travel for 50 miles at up to 50 mph after a loss of air pressure.


example, if pressure is lost with a con-ventional tire, wheel damage can occur,which can be very expensive.”

Sales and ServiceThere are several considerations for

tire dealers to keep in mind regardingrun-flat tires, including TPMS, vehiclemanufacturer guidelines and properrecommendations for customers.

Bridgestone’s Saul says tire dealersmust ensure the vehicle has a function-ing TPMS and that the tire is free ofdamage that would compromise itsrun-flat function. “Pay attention to theTPMS and heed any warning withprompt attention to tire pressure,” henotes. “In the event the tire is losing air,driving should be minimized and driv-ers should get the tire inspected assoon as possible.”

“TPMS is necessary since it is difficultfor a driver to notice when a run-flat tireis without air pressure,” ad vises Conti-nental’s Roffler, who added, “Con -tinental self supporting run-flat (SSR)tires may only be fitted on vehicles forwhich they are approved by the vehicle

manufacturer and that are equippedwith TPMS.”

He also notes that run-flat tiresshould not be mixed with standardtires on the same car – even whenpaired on the same axle.

Puncture repair also should be con-sidered, according to Yokohama’s Hin-ton, who says, “Yokohama ZeroPres sure System tires are not to be re-paired following a puncture or anyother tire disablement. They are cov-ered under our standard limited war-ranty, which provides a replacementtire on a prorated basis based on the re-maining tread depth when a tire hasbeen damaged due to a tread areapuncture within the repairable areaand limits defined by the RMA.”

In terms of offering advice to run-flat customers, dealers should reminddrivers to use “extreme caution whendriving at zero pressure” and to “avoidaggressive handling actions and anyunusual service condition, such astrailer towing or hauling heavy loads,”Hinton adds.

Dealers also should stress the needto follow vehicle and tire manufacturer

instructions on maximum speed anddistance for driving on a run-flat tirewithout air pressure. “When the TPMSdetects low air pressure, avoid extremedriving conditions such as sudden orerratic braking, acceleration, steeringmaneuvers, etc., and have them visit atire dealer as soon as possible to havethe air pressure checked,” Hinton says.

Stocking considerations vary be-tween different markets, so through itsGold program, Continental works withdealers to analyze local markets andhelps them determine which productsand sizes to stock, Roffler adds.

Yokohama’s Hinton estimates adealer could stock 20 run-flat sizes andcover about 70% of the U.S. run-flatmarket.

Fewer SKUs reflect the small per-centage of the overall replacement tiremarket that is comprised of run-flats.But in order to service many luxury ve-hicles – and an increasing amount ofmainstream models as automakers addmore OE run-flat fitments – tire dealersneed to keep up on the trends andservice recommendations of this seg-ment. ■


■ FEATURE: TIRES

Rapid Response: 800-928-1184 ext. 45122 �

TireReview.com 53

SERVICEFEATURE

When engineers came upwith the idea of puttingthe wheel speed sensor

(WSS) and tone ring inside a sealedwheel bearing hub assembly, itsounded like a great idea. Thesealed environment would helpprotect the sensor and make it lessvulnerable to damage or contami-nation from the outside world.

The first applications date backto 1999 on Chevy/GMC and Fordtrucks. Since then, the sealed wheelbearing hub assemblies with theintegral ABS wheel-speed sensorshave been used on a growing num-ber of other cars and trucks.

But, there have been some prob-lems. In late 2004 and early 2005,GM in Canada had to recall 1999-

2002 model year Chevrolet Silver-ado, Tahoe, Suburban and Avalan -che trucks, GMC Sierra and Yukon,and Cadillac Escalade models be-cause of problems with the WSS inthe sealed hubs.

Unlike other WSS setups wherethe tone ring is on the outside ofthe outer CV joint housing, axle orhub, the WSS tone ring is built intothe wheel bearing assembly. On thelater applications, the WSS tonering is exposed and very vulnera-ble to corrosion from road salt androad splash.

The tone ring also can be dam-aged if somebody uses a pry bar toseparate a halfshaft from the steer-ing knuckle, or drops the halfshafton the floor. A difference of only a

Replacing hubs equipped with wheel speed sensors

Wheel Bearing Hubs

LARRY CARLEY

Technical Editor

IN THE CASE OF

SEALED ASSEMBLIES

WITH THE WSS AND

TONE RING INSIDE,

THE HUB PROVIDES

PROTECTION AGAINST

EXTERNAL CORROSION

– OR AT LEAST IT IS

SUPPOSED TO.

� Rapid Response: 800-928-1184 ext. 45123


■ FEATURE: SERVICE

few thousandths of an inch in theheight of the teeth on the tone ringcan affect the WSS signal.

The signal pulse is generatedwhen a tooth passes under themagnetic tip of the sensor. Thetooth passing through the sensor’smagnetic field causes the sensor toact like a little generator and pro-duce an alternating current signalthat increases in frequency andamplitude in direct proportion towheel speed. If you look at the sig-nal on an oscilloscope, it shouldlook like a nice, even sine wavewith all the up and down humps inthe waveform evenly spaced and atthe same height.

Magnetic sensors also can pickup metallic wear debris from therotors and pads, causing the sen-sors to read erratically and confusethe anti-lock brake system. Clean-ing the sensors and resetting theair gap often can restore normaloperation. But, if the tone ring iscorroded or damaged, it must bereplaced.

In the case of the sealed hub as-semblies with the WSS and tonering inside, the hub provides pro-tection against external corrosion –or at least it is supposed to. Butnothing is perfect, and when mois-ture seeps into the hub, it corrodesthe tone ring. The result is an un-even WSS signal that confuses theABS system.

The fix was to pull out the sen-sor, clean the sensor and tone ring,and dump some zinc anti-corrosiontreatment into the hub to preventfurther corrosion.

ABS CodesThe first signs of trouble may be

the ABS system kicking in whenbraking at low speed, and/or theABS warning light coming on.Until you hook up a scan tool andpull the codes, though, there’s notelling why the light is on. Thefault may be a bad WSS or it might

be something else, so don’t jump toconclusions – especially if there areno codes to guide you.

Reading ABS codes requires anABS code reader, scan tool or scan-ner software that can access theABS system. An inexpensive OBDII code reader or an entry-levelscan tool designed for a do-it-your-selfer won’t work here. You need aprofessional tool designed for ABSdiagnostics, or a digital storage os-cilloscope to look at the WSS wave-forms.

If the ABS light is on and you

If one wheel bearing is loose or noisy, pay close attention to all of the other hubs.Chances are some of the other bearings may be going bad.




find a code for a WSS, check thesensor wires for breaks or a loose/ -corroded connector. Broken wiresprobably are the leading cause ofWSS-related failures.

On some vehicles, the wires tendto be brittle and break as a result offatigue from road vibration and/orsteering maneuvers. Replacing theWSS wiring harness usually is therecommended fix for these situa-tions. You could try to patch thebroken wire, but crimp connectorsare vulnerable to road splash andcorrosion, and solder is usually toorigid and will crack again. Better toreplace the wiring harness than torisk a comeback.

If there are no codes, but the ve-hicle owner complains about theABS system engaging when brak-ing (noise, vibrations and pedal

pulsations), the problem is likely abad WSS. But which one? That’swhere a scope can really help youidentify which sensor is acting up.Connect the scope to the sensorleads and spin the tire by hand. Ifyou get a good, clean signal, moveon to the next WSS and so on, untilyou find the one that is generatinga bad signal.

Bearing DiagnosisYou also can measure bearing

play by placing a dial indicatoragainst the hub and turning thewheel. Refer to the vehicle manu-facturers’ specifications but, as arule, no more than 0.005 inches ofplay is allowed for most sealedwheel bearing and hub assemblies.

If one wheel bearing is loose ornoisy, pay close attention to all ofthe other hubs on the vehicle, espe-cially if the vehicle has a lot ofmiles on it, has been driventhrough axle-deep water, or hasbeen flooded. Chances are some ofthe other wheel bearings also maybe going bad.

Hub ReplacementYou need to make sure you have

diagnosed the fault correctly on ve-hicles with the sealed hub and ABSWSS because the replacement partsare not cheap.

Hub replacement is fairly sim-ple. Remove the wheel, caliper androtor, then remove the wheel bear-ing and hub assembly from thespindle or axle. Do not use an im-pact wrench for removal or installa-tion. Use a torque wrench andtighten all bolts and nuts to specifi-cation.

Many hub units for FWD appli-cations come with a new hub nut.Use it, and be sure to torque it tospecification with a torque wrench– never an impact wrench.

After repairs have been made,confirm the problem has been fixedby clearing any ABS codes anddoing a short test drive to makesure the ABS light does not comeon and there is no bearing noise. ■


The signal pulse is generated when atooth passes under the magnetic tipof the sensor.



58 December 2012 | TireReviewRapid Response: 800-928-1184 ext. 45076Rapid Response: 800-928-1184 ext. 45058

When should the coolant in a cus-tomer’s vehicle be replaced? Well, likemost service requirements, it dependson the age of the vehicle, the type ofantifreeze in the cooling system andhow many miles a year the vehicle isdriven.

All late-model vehicles (with a cou-ple of minor exceptions) are factory-filled with ethylene glycol-basedantifreeze. Though the coolant maybe dyed orange, yellow, red, pink,blue or some other color, they containone of two basic types of corrosion-in-hibiting additive formulas: organicacid technology (OAT) or hybrid or-ganic acid technology (HOAT).

OAT-based antifreeze uses chemi-cals such as carboxylate, sebacate and2-EHA (ethylhexanoic acid) to preventcorrosion. Antifreeze manufacturerswon’t reveal the exact makeup oftheir OAT additive packages becausethey are proprietary. But the chemicalsare typically slow-acting so they can

neutralize corrosion inside the engine,radiator and cooling system over along period of time.

Most manufacturers of OAT-basedantifreeze claim their products have aservice life of five years or 100,000 to150,000 miles – whichever comes first(that’s the important part).

HOAT-based antifreezes also con-tain an OAT additive package, plus anadditional dose of silicates. These arechemicals that contain silicon andother metals for protecting aluminumsurfaces. Silicates are fast-actingchemicals that form a protective coat-ing on aluminum surfaces. However,as the coolant ages, some of the sili-cates may drop out of the solution.

These particles can have an abra-sive effect as they circulate in the cool-ing system, accelerating wear onwater pump seals and plastic im-pellers, plastic radiator end tanks orinside metal heater cores with sharplycurved tubes.

To avoid these kinds of problems,most HOAT-based antifreezes use sta-bilizers to keep the silicates in solu-

tion, and they contain only a smallamount of silicates. HOAT-based an-tifreezes that claim to be “low silicate”formulas should meet the ASTMD6210 standard (which is a require-ment for most late-model diesel en-gines).

Like-OAT-based antifreezes, HOAT-based antifreezes also have a claimedservice life of five years or 100,000 to150,000 miles – whichever comes first.

So, regardless of which type ofcoolant is in a cooling system, or thebrand of the coolant, it’s important tochange any “long life” coolant afterfive years of service, regardless of themileage on the odometer.

Coolant ReplacementIntervals Revealed

Tire retreading has been aroundnearly as long as there havebeen new tires. According to

TRIB, tire retreading began in 1904and continued with few changesuntil the 1940s.

The development of syntheticrubber and the shortage of tires dur-ing World War II were major factorsin the growth of retreading. The U.S.military even operated its own re-tread plants, including portableplants near the front lines.

By the late 1950s, the market hadshrunk to the point that there were12,000 retread plants in the U.S.,most of them passenger tire plantsand most of those directly connectedto specific retail dealers.

Since then, the number of plantscontinued to drop drastically. Re-markably, the amount of rubber usedin retreading remains nearly thesame. Today’s retread plants aremuch larger and cost millions of dol-lars to outfit and operate. In 2011,there were an estimated 680 truck re-tread plants in the U.S.; 18 plantswere producing large OTR retreads,and five were producing aircraft re-treads.

But there were only four produc-ing passenger retreads.

One of the most successful retreadapplications today is in the aviationindustry. All commercial airlines,and the military, use retreaded tires.Nearly 80% of all aircraft tires now inservice in the U.S. are retreads. Morethan 100,000 aircraft retreads areused annually, with an average treadlife of 270 takeoffs and landings pertread.

The major shortages of new OTRtires over the past 10 years wouldhave been disastrous for the miningand construction industries if not forthe availability of OTR retreads. OTRretread plants wereable to greatly expandproduction and supplymuch of the demand.

Undoubtedly, themainstay of today’s re-tread industry is com-mercial truck retread-ing. Truck retreadplants produce almostone-half of the replace-ment tires used annu-ally in the truckingindustry. A total of 15.3million truck retreadswere produced in 2011,with a market value of$3.1 billion.

Retread SpecificsWhat exactly is a

retread? In general,retreading is theprocess where worntires, called “casings,” receive a newtread. The worn tread is buffedaway and a new tread bonded to thecasing.

In “bead-to-bead” retreading, aretreaded tire also has a new rubberveneer applied to the sidewalls (pri-marily as a cosmetic improvement)and often is called a remolded or re-manufactured tire. Incidentally,within the retread industry, the term“recap” is seldom used anymore.

Tires that are candidates for retread-ing are first subject to visual inspec-

tion, often aided by non-destructiveinspection equipment. The accept-ance rate for truck tires is higherthan passenger tires because of thestronger construction of truck tires

(typically designed for retreading)and the better care that fleet opera-tors give tires. The reject rate for pas-senger tires is as high as 85%.

After inspection, tires are trued toa specified diameter and have theirremaining tread mechanically re-moved by extremely accurate high-speed buffers.

The non-destructive testing ma-chinery now used by all of the majorretread manufacturers and manyother retread plants has changed theway tires are retreaded for the better.


RevisitingConsumerRetreads

Retreads remain key in

some segments, but are

they a viable option for

consumer tires?

TIRES TIRE TECH

RICH ASHLEY

Contributing Editor

Goodyear’s UniCircle retread tire machine.

Much like a CT scan or MRI allowsphysicians to make better diagnoses,retreaders can determine if steelcords are damaged or rusted, or if atire has been run underinflated to thepoint it shouldn’t be retreaded.

“Mold cure” and “precure” are thetwo systems used to apply the newtreads. Both systems have advan-tages and can produce quality fin-ished products. Similar to the processused in new tire construction, a com-bination of time, heat and pressure isrequired by both systems to vulcan-ize the new rubber to the tire.

In the precure system, the buffedtire has a thin layer of cushion gumwrapped around the tread area andthe precured tread rubber with itsnew tread design is then applied. Thetire is then placed in a curing cham-ber and the tread is adhered to thetire through the vulcanizing process.

In the mold cure system, unvul-canized tread rubber is applied to thebuffed tire. The tire is then placedinto a mold that includes the newtread design. The mold is heated andthe rubber in the tread area vulcan-izes and adheres to the tire with itsnew tread design. Bead-to-bead re-treads all use the mold cure systemand the vast majority of passengercar retreads are mold cured.

The U.S. Department of Trans-portation has established standardsfor passenger tire retreading requir-ing that a plant DOT code and “R”symbol (along with the additionalidentifying information) be stampedor branded on the sidewall of all pas-senger retreads manufactured orsold in the U.S.

Most truck tire retread plants inNorth America are affiliated withmajor brands that establish stan-

dards and provide technical assis-tance. When proper manufacturingand quality control procedures arefollowed, retreaded tires can be assafe as new tires and have similaradjustment percentages. Passengertire retreaders, however, are gener-ally not affiliated with a new tireproducer.

’Green’ and Cost AdvantagesRetreading enjoys some signifi-

cant environmental advantages. Anew passenger tire typically containsseven or eight gallons of oil, but onlytwo to three gallons are used in mostretreads. A new truck tire requireswell over 20 gallons of oil; retreadingthat same tire may take only seven.Also, since retreads are made up ofas much as 85% recycled materials,retreading keeps millions of tires inuse for thousands of additional miles– and out of landfills.

Historically, the biggest advantageof retreads has been cost. Retreadstypically cost around 40% less thannew tires and save the commercialand military aircraft industries morethan $100 million a year. Retreadingtruck tires saves the trucking indus-try over $3 billion each year.

However, in the passenger car andlight truck car market, the presenceof inexpensive radials (primarily im-ported from low cost productioncountries) has reduced this cost ad-vantage to around 10%. The resultover the last three decades has been acontinual downward trend in theuse, both domestically and interna-tionally, of passenger and light truckretread tires.

The rising cost of new tires, alongwith the environmental advantagesof retreads, has led to speculationover whether the passenger car andlight truck retread market is on theverge of resurgence.

To be sure, there are hurdles. Ac-cording to Dave Stevens of TRIB, thefirst is the continuing presence of in-expensive new tires. Additionally, theproliferation of tire sizes forces re-treaders into expensive investmentsin molds for the mold cure processused for almost all passenger tires.

Also, the quality of repairs to pas-senger/light truck tire casings ismore varied compared to truck tires,making it hard for retreaders to evenfind decent casings.

Rick Thomas, program managerof retreading for Goodyear Commer-cial Tire Systems, emphasizes theproblem of adequate supplies of cas-ings. One of the results of higher tireprices has been more activity byused tire resellers. Many sound usedtires that might otherwise be candi-dates for retreading are bought upand resold on the used tire market,which has grown in recent yearsthanks to the poor economy.

Since most passenger and lighttruck tires are not designed for re-treading, there are just not enoughretreadable casings available to sup-port a large increase in the market.Thomas has seen some increase in re-treading of commercial light trucktires for fleet use where the tires havebeen designed for retreading.

Tires with higher rates of tread-wear, such as winter and performancetires, often are the best candidates forretreading because the casings areusually newer. In Europe, for exam-ple, bead-to-bead retreaded wintertires are well accepted and are a sub-stantial part of the winter tire market.

The high cost of the capital equip-ment needed to manufacture moldcure passenger tire retreads is an-other limit on the potential expan-sion of the market.

With today’s proliferation of sizes,it’s important for a retreader to docareful market research to identifythose sizes with sufficient volume po-tential to make a reasonable profit –assuming reliable sources of casingscan be identified. The most likelycandidates for retreading today arethe larger sizes commonly found oncrossovers and SUVs. These tires areexpensive enough that the lowerprice of a retread may be attractive tosome vehicle owners.

The most optimistic predictionmay be that of Harvey Brodsky ofthe Retread Tire Association. Whileacknowledging that the market forpassenger tire retreads is unlikely toever approach the size it was in the1950s, he thinks the market is begin-ning to show signs of rebirth.

Brodsky expects that growth tocontinue as more consumers realizethe financial and environmental ben-efits of retreads, but emphasizes thatit will be in bead-to-bead retreads inselected sizes. ■

■ TIRES: TIRE TECH

>TAKEAWAYS

• TRUCK TIRE RETREADING

THE LARGEST SEGMENT

• LOW-COST RADIALS, SIZE

PROLIFERATION HURT

• LIMITED CONSUMER

RETREADING TODAY

TireReview.com 61

It is hard to believe that 2012 willsoon be history and 2013 is withinsight. This time of year is very im-

portant to your future success andgrowth for the New Year.

While it’s a great time to spendwith family and friends – and hope-fully relax from the hectic year that ispassing – now is the time when youneed to work the hardest in order foryour customers to be prepared forthe New Year, as well. Taking thetime to implement all the programsthat you have been discussing withyour accounts will definitely build asolid base for long-term growth.

Winter is a good time to inspectthe OTR tires on your customers’equipment, plus what is in the scrapand spare tire pile. By doing a com-plete tire survey, you can then decidewhat needs to be pulled for retread-ing, repair and rotation, or for replac-ing or changing out the rim areacompounds that have been dam-aged.

Step 1: Meet With the CustomerMany customers are looking to

save money, especially since businessgenerally has been slow and manytire budgets have been trimmed.They know good tires are critical forproduction and maximizing the lifeof their tires is a sure way to helpthem stay within their annual tirebudgets.

Before you start the survey, meetwith the customer to find out whattheir business outlooks are for 2013.This will help you to understand thepotential demand that will be put onthe equipment and tires. For exam-

ple, if they have a new project thatrequires the equipment to travellonger distances with good under-foot conditions, you may want torecommend a shallower tread (E/L3)vs. a more expensive, deeper tread

(E/L4), especially if they are runningarticulated dumps. This will help tomake their tire budget last longer.

Step 2: Tire & Wheel InspectionThe next step is to complete a

thorough tire and wheel inspection.Start your inspection in the same lo-cation (generally left front) for eachtruck/loader and inspect each wheelposition in the same order for eachtruck. Always have a tire marker(yellow or white) to write your find-ings on the tire. This will help you toknow that each tire was completed

and the information recorded is cor-rect.

Checking the tires and wheelsshould include, but not be limited to:

• Tire size, new or retread, brandname, type, compound and serial

number by wheel position• Record the tread depth for each

tire• Check both inside and outside

tread depth in three places aroundthe tire

• Current tire pressure and condi-tion of the valve stem, including cap

• Overall tire condition (cuts,tread wear, mismatched duals, etc.),along with pictures of your findings

• Inspection of the wheels andhardware; make notes as to whatneeds to be replaced

If you’re using a tire recordkeep-


Year-EndOTR TireStrategies

Set up an inspection

and recommendation

plan to start 2013 on

the right path

TIRES OTR

TIM GOOD

Contributing Editor

After a site visit and thorough tire/wheel inspection, you should have enough information to make some decisions and recommendations for your OTR customer.

ing program, print off the surveyforms in advance of your inspectionfor the equipment to be surveyed.This way, you will be able to double-check that the tires shown on the re-port match what is on the equip ment,plus this allows you to easily updatethe information.

If you have not yet started with atire-tracking program, use a fleet in-spection form to help keep yourfindings organized. The informationgathered could then be entered in atire program you have selected thatcan help better prepare your recom-mendations to the customer. Thereare many different tire-tracking pro-grams in the market that are excel-lent and easy to work with. Checkwith your tire supplier(s) or talkwith other OTR tire dealers to deter-mine what might be the best pro-gram to fit your needs.

Once you have a program set up,maintaining and updating the infor-mation will be much easier. The in-formation available will provideyour customer and you with a veryclear picture of the tires in the fleet.The reports available can show whatis working regarding the tires beingpurchased – whether they are new orretreads – the best rotation procedureand what your customer will need tospend on tires and tire service inorder for their equipment to delivermaximum uptime. After all, the bot-tom line is not the upfront cost, butwhat the total cost is to the customerwhen the tire is finally removed fromservice.

Step 3: Analyze InformationAfter completing the site inspec-

tion and inputting the findings, nowcomes the next important step – ana-lyzing the data. With the inspectioninformation gathered and knowingwhat the equipment will be doing inthe future, you should be able tomake some decisions and recom -

men dations. My suggestion is to takea couple of good options to your cus-tomer. After all, you do not want togive them “sticker shock” with justone option of what needs to be done.It always is best to outline whatneeds to be addressed now to miti-gate higher costs later. Having an or-ganized monthly step-by-step planwill ensure minimal downtime – andcosts – for your customer.

Pulling your thoughts togetheralso should involve your tire and re-tread suppliers and anyone else di-rectly involved in servicing that OTRfleet.

• Work with your new tire sup-plier to put together the best tire foreach piece of equipment. It is impor-tant not to oversell what is required,but offer what is needed to match uptheir actual requirements now.

• Talk to your OTR retreader justlike you would the new tire supplierto select the proper tread design. Getcommitments on turn-around time incase a piece of equipment will needto be on blocks while the casings arebeing retreaded or tires repaired. If acasing cannot be retreaded, be surethere is another alternative (alongwith the cost), so you can includethat in your proposal.

• Put together a timeline – withpricing – to implement your recom-mendations. Organizing different op-tions will allow your customers tochoose which program would bebest for them based on their situationand forecasted requirements.

• Prepare your presentation in aprofessional format. This will taketime, but it is time well spent. UsePowerPoint or a similar program tohelp you walk through your findingsand suggested recommendations.

• Start with an overview of whatthe customer would want to achievebased on the information gatheredfrom the customer and the tire sur-vey. Include actual pictures of issues

discovered with the tires.• Offer an action plan (along with

costs) as to how you are going to ad-dress their tire requirements for thenext year.

• Outline training suggestionsbased on what you found or infor-mation that should be shared withthe operators to help maximize tireperformance.

• With the final slide, ask for theorder with a firm start and finishdate.

Step 4: Present Findings &Recommendations

Being prepared is important inmaking a solid OTR tire and servicepresentation. Do not over sell orfocus on one issue for too long. Keepthe presentation moving and to thepoint, knowing that you are trying toget approval to proceed with one ofyour recommendations. If required,ask for support from your new tiremanufacturer and/or retreader; hav-ing another person with you canhelp to address specific questionsthat may be asked by the customer.

We all like to be sold, and an OTRtire customer is no different. If thepresentation clearly shows need andsolid recommendations, it will beeasier for the customer to choose thebest program for their requirements.

Remember – your customers arelimited on time, so knowing whatthey require, giving them the factsand pricing, and a detailed processto complete the project will maketheir decision easier and faster. Goodluck and good selling in the NewYear. ■

TireReview.com 63

■ TIRES: OTR

>TAKEAWAYS

• REVIEW CUSTOMER’S BUSINESS PLAN, OUTLOOK

• CREATE AND PERFORM A UNIFORM INSPECTION PROGRAM

• USE RESULTS TO CREATE MULTIPLE OPTIONS

• TAILOR PRESENTATION FOR EACH CUSTOMER

Product Spotlight

SOLUTIONS SPOTLIGHT

Shocks and Struts

ARNOTT Arnott recently released the rebuilt OE front air shocks for 2007-12Mercedes-Benz S-Class sedans. According to the company, theshock features a new rubber air spring bladder manufactured byContinental Contitech. New features include an improved upperseal design and O-ring sealing technology, rather than the originalepoxy that cracked, causing leaks and other damage. Each shock iscovered under a lifetime warranty, Arnott added. arnottindustries.com Rapid Response: www.TRRapidResponse.com/45150Or call 800-928-1184 – Ext. 45150

When it’s time to replace shocks and struts, some of the latest parts you’ll find offer superiorcomfort and the ability to adjust to the road without any disruptions in the ride or handling.Many brands cover an array of vehicle models and provide extensive warranties to get themost out of the product. Some current options are included on the following pages.

FEDERAL MOGUL Federal Mogul said its Moog steering and suspension brandoffers complete strut assemblies to help tire dealers save timewhile performing comprehensive, high-quality repairs. Moogcomplete strut assemblies are fully pre-assembled for fast,easy, bolt-on installation and feature a premium nitro-gen gas-charged strut engineered specifically forthe corresponding application, according to Fed-eral Mogul. To help shops avoid leakage concernsassociated with many lesser quality struts, Moogengineers developed a unique triple piston rodseal design that helps lock out contaminants andprevent fluid loss. Each strut also features ahighly polished, hard-chrome finish pis-ton rod for superior strength and sealingperformance, and a sophisticated valvingtechnology that provides OE-style ridequality and control, the company added.federalmogul.com Rapid Response: www.TRRapidResponse.com/45152Or call 800-928-1184 – Ext. 45152


BILSTEIN Bilstein Street Rod shocks are designed to providethe ultimate ride with superior comfort and perform-ance. Each shock is 100% hand-assembled in the U.S.and is independently valved, front and rear, for thespecific application, according to Bilstein. Coil-over orsmooth-body aluminum and steel body models areavailable for stock to fully-custom applications, inboth coil-over and non coil-over options. bilstein.com Rapid Response: www.TRRapidResponse.com/45151Or call 800-928-1184 – Ext. 45151

KYB According to KYB, its Gas-A-Just shocks use higher gaspressure to keep tires glued to the road. The Gas-A-Just shocks’ velocity-sensitive valving system adjustsquickly to changing road conditions for maximum com-fort in any situation, the company said. Additionally,their monotube configuration eliminates aeration andfoaming; their micro-smooth, hard-chromed pistons ex-tend life; and their seamless cylinders and eyeringscompletely eliminate seam failures.kyb.com Rapid Response: www.TRRapidResponse.com/45154Or call 800-928-1184 – Ext. 45154

MONROEFully guaranteed Monroe Quick-Strut replacement strutassemblies are available with an exclusive damping tech-nology that enables tire dealers to meet the unique de-mands of today’s domestic and foreign nameplatevehicles, according to the manufacturer. Quick-Strut as-semblies for foreign nameplate vehicles feature the Mon-roe brand’s revolutionary OESpectrum struts, whichprovide exceptional control without the unwanted noise,vibration and harshness commonly encountered in vehi-cles with lighter-weight suspensions and low-profile tires,the company added.monroe.com Rapid Response: www.TRRapidResponse.com/45155Or call 800-928-1184 – Ext. 45155


■ SOLUTIONS: SPOTLIGHT


GABRIEL Gabriel said its newly expanding ReadyMount line is one ofthe broadest lines available, growing by more than 50 SKUsto almost 200 SKUs. Forty of these premium pre-assembledstruts are new/first-to-market applications that can’t befound anywhere else, according to the maker. All newGabriel pre-assembled ReadyMount designs are precisionengineered, component and unit tested, then fit and ridetested to ensure quality, durability and performance, thecompany added. gabriel.com Rapid Response: www.TRRapidResponse.com/45153Or call 800-928-1184 – Ext. 45153

TireReview.com 67

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TireReview.com 69

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Christmas tree beside Santa’s sleigh.But the Buick was not in the holidayspirit, and finally Beanie scampered offto find a tow truck. Tooner and Basildirected traffic while Quigley sat aloneat the back of the float, flashing histree lights on and off like a traffic flare.

Finally, Dutchy pulled up in front ofus with his deck truck, and as Ireached in the driver’s window of theBuick to put the car in neutral, I no-ticed that the key had been left in the‘On’ position. On a hunch, I tried theignition, and to my surprise, the Buickfired up and ran like a dream. “Great,”I thought, “now we really look likefools.”

Back at the shop, everybody calmeddown over some of Basil’s specialeggnog. I took Beanie’s mug and re-filled it. “How about checking forcodes and doing a little web surfing tosee what you can find, Bean.”

Half an hour later, he returned witha funny look on his face, and it wasn’tjust the eggnog. “Turns out to be a

common problem,” he said glumly.“The car has a history trouble code ofP1629, right? Well, that’s the anti-theftsystem. Somehow, we’d set it off.”

Tooner scratched his itchy face.“Okay, so how come it runs now? Wedidn’t do anything.”

“Oh, yes, we did,” replied The Bean.“I left the key on, remember? That’show you relearn the alarm system; youleave the key turned on for 10 min-utes, until the flashing light on thedash goes out.”

Basil helped himself to more ‘nog.“I’d like to know what caused theproblem in the first place.”

There were a number of possibilities,including a loose battery connection, adirty pellet in the ignition key (clean-able with a pencil eraser), or a break inthe tiny wires inside the ignitionswitch. In our case, it was the tinywires that had grounded Santa and hishelpers on parade day.

“That was a costly bit of communityinvolvement,” I said later. “A free carrepair – since it was donated – and

Dutchy’s fee for a service call.”“Good!” said Tooner in relief. “That

means no more parades, right?”I cleared my throat. “Actually, we’re

already booked for the Valentine’s Dayparade. According to Mayor Dewgood,we’re a big crowd pleaser, so he wantsus back.” I pulled out my clipboard.“Now, to keep the budget down, I’vealready pre-booked our costumes.Tooner, you get to be Cupid…”

Tooner’s eyes bugged out. “ButCupid wears nothin’ but a piece of rib-bon!”

“Exactly,” I replied. “And that fitsmy budget perfectly.” ■

TireReview.com 71

■ COMMENTARY: THE CAR SIDE

Continued from page 72

Rick Cogbill, a freelance writerand former shop owner in Sum-merland, B.C., has written TheCar Side for a variety of trademagazines for the past 14 years.“A Fine Day for a Drive,” his firstbook based on the charactersfrom this column, is now availablefor order at thecarside.com.

This is embarrassin’, mutteredTooner, flapping his arms tokeep warm. “If anyone finds

out it’s me under this fake beard, myreputation will be ruined.”

“Oh, quit scowling, Santa, you’llscare the kids.” I glanced down thestreet where throngs of people stoodwaiting for the Christmas parade tobegin. “Besides, a little communityspirit is good for your image. It’llsmooth out some of your roughspots.”

“Those ain’t rough spots,” he re-torted. “They’re character traits, an’I’ve earned ‘em fair and square.”

Basil squirmed uncomfortably inhis reindeer suit. “If you want to seerough, wait until this zipper bursts. Ibarely had room in here to leave myskivvies on!” Basil’s undersized cos-tume had put a serious crimp on hisusual donut intake. He was a littleon the grumpy side without hisdaily sugar fix.

“Yeah, well, that’s what happenswhen you call the costume rental storeon the night before the parade – thereain’t much left to choose from.” Iglared at Quigley, who was dressed likea Christmas tree as punishment forgetting us into this predicament in thefirst place.

“Sorry, boss.” Quigley brushed sometinsel out of his eyes. “But you put mein charge of advertising, and I figuredthe Kids Christmas Parade would begood for our corporate image.”

Corporate image had very little ap-peal to me at that exact moment. You

could say I was downright cool to theidea as I stamped my feet in an effortto keep warm on a blustery Saturdaymorning. “Why can’t they have Christ-mas parades in August?” I complainedto no one in particular.

Right about then Beanie came run-ning up to our float with some wel-

come news. “The parade marshal sayswe got two minutes ‘til show time.Shall I start ‘er up?”

“Hey, nice elf costume,” said Tooner.“I ‘specially like the curly slippers.”

Beanie mumbled a few choice elfishwords and climbed into our tow vehi-cle. It was a 1996 Buick Skylark with a3.1-liter V6, borrowed from one of ourcustomers at the last minute, mainlybecause it had a trailer hitch and tail-light wiring that actually worked.

Once we got started, it became clear

that Tooner’s reputation as a grouchwas perfectly safe; nobody paid theslightest attention to him. Instead, mycostume had become the crowd favo -rite, and I beamed as I tossed bagfulsof candy to my adoring fans. “Theylove me, guys! They’re calling myname!”

Basil snickered. “I don’t believethe phrase ‘Slim’s a Grinch, Slim’s aGrinch’ would classify as a term ofendearment.”

Before I could think of a come-back, everything ground to a halt.The high school band was doing anencore of “The Twelve Days ofChristmas,” and they weren’t leav-ing a single day out.

“Hey, Twinkle Toes,” I hollereddown from the sleigh. “Turn off theengine, will ya? We’re dying fromthe fumes back here.”

Beanie did as he was told, butonce things got moving again, thecar wouldn’t budge. It would start,run for two seconds, and then quit.“Get it movin’, Beanie,” growled

Santa, as boos and catcalls startedcoming from the crowd. “The nativesare getting restless.”

“Get moving yourself!” our pointy-eared apprentice hollered back in des-peration. “I need some help downhere!”

Looking back, it must have beenquite a scene to see Santa and Rudolphworking frantically over a hot enginewhile the Grinch berated a cowering


How theBuick StoleChristmas

Anti-theft dilemma

brings parade and

corporate image

campaign to a halt

COMMENTARY THE CAR SIDE

RICK COGBILL

aka Slim Shambles

Contributing Writer

Continued on page 71

Tire Review, 12.2012

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