Two new products are on the horizon for Continental Tire the Americas, set to be available in North America this June.
Continental introduced its two new tires – the TrueContact Tour and the all-new PureContact LS – at its 2018 GOLD Dealer Program meeting and reward trip April 9-13 at the Paradisus Playa Del Carmen resort in Mexico, 40 miles south of Cancun. The company also shared updates to dealer incentives and its marketing plans at the meeting.
During the introduction of the TrueContact Tour, Continental cautioned dealers not assume that it’s the same tire as its predecessor, the TrueContact. It may share the same tread design. But its subtle changes are actually significant product enhancements engineered into its compounding and internal structure. Inspired by customer feedback, Continental switched the tire’s compounds allowing it to offer longer mileage, resulting in a 27% improvement in tread wear.
“We heard the questions about the mileage around TrueContact, so we believe we’ve solved that issue,” says Roffler. “There wasn’t really a job to be done on pattern – we knew the pattern was delivering everything it needed to. The question was in construction, and ultimately in compound. We have a brand new compound that will really push this tire over the top to the next level.”
The TrueContact Tour also includes:
- Strong, all-season performance with high marks in dry, wet and snow conditions
- Consistently quiet road manners
- “Robust” construction enhancements, including lower sidewall height sizes and up to 30% improvement in impact resistance to better handle potholes and similar road hazards
- Continental’s “Total Confidence Plan” and a 60-day customer satisfaction trial
- Availability (in June) in 45 sizes from 15- to 19-inch rim diameters, 45-65 aspect ratios, T-, H- and V- speed ratings and up to a 70,000-mile limited mileage warranty.
The all-new PureContact LS, is designed for luxury vehicle owners interested in performance in all-season conditions. Its new tread pattern that delivers a 10% improvement in wet performance and similar dry and snow performance as the TrueContact, with traction grooves designed for improved snow performance. Noise reductions were engineered to improve from 74dB to 71dB, with a 23% improvement in wear, thanks to new compounds used.
Similar to the TrueContact Touring, the new PureContact LS products feature:
- “Robust” construction enhancements, including lower sidewall height sizes and up to 30% improvement in impact resistance to better handle potholes and similar road hazards.
- Continental’s “Total Confidence Plan” and a 60-day customer satisfaction trial.
- Availability (in June 2018) in 29 sizes from 16- to 20-inch rim diameters, 40-60 aspect ratios, H- and V- speed ratings and up to a 70,000-mile limited mileage warranty.
The event also showcased the latest release of three General Tire products, the Grabber APT (short for “all-purpose-terrain”), the Grabber A/TX designed for off-road enthusiasts, and the G-Max RS, the brand’s first foray into the summer tire market.
The G-Max RS is a summer tire designed for sport enthusiasts looking for high quality and performance but at a better price point. The new design is competitive with others in its class on dry pavement but is designed to stand out when surface conditions are wet.
“It all starts and ends with the product,” says Roffler. “We can do all of this song and dance and build up the brand, but if the product doesn’t perform for you and for your customers, we’ve failed in the end. We’re really proud of what we’ve done in the products that we’re putting out into promotions and enthusiasm. We’re building behind both of these brands moving forward.”
