Half a World Away
Like his American counterparts, Tire Town Komaoka store manager Yuji Asuke puts in long hours – 12 to 14 Monday through Saturday. But unlike many one-store American dealers, Asuke pulls in $1.3 million in annual sales with just himself and two other full-time employees.
The Teeter-Totter
The earth stopped rotating on its axis Jan. 22. Time stood still. Sub-zero Ohio went sub-tropical. Animals spoke. Athletes rejected gazillion dollar contracts. Tiremakers turned away mass merchants. In an unbelievably lucid legal moment, a judge threw out a frivolous lawsuit that claimed McDonald’s food caused health problems in two well-overweight New York girls. U.S.
Sensible Safety
For most in the commercial trucking business, the first couple months of the year are typically less hectic than several of the preceding months and, therefore, is a good time for reflection. The old saying "made it through another one" begins to evolve from a trite expression to an air of determination, resolve and grit.
Reinventing the Wheel
Companies on the leading edge of the wheel industry are always taking chances and coming up with hot new ideas. This month, we’ll take a closer look at what is arguably one of the hottest design concepts since the invention of the wheel itself. I’m talking about the various types of free-spinning or constant-motion wheels
Cutting the Tape: What the TREAD Act Means to You … Today
What the TREAD Act Means to You … Today Elected officials love to jump on consumer safety issues. It’s the best job security strategy around. In November 2000, that’s precisely what Congress did when the Firestone recall and Ford Explorer debacle gave them the motive and opportunity to create and pass into law a
The Other Side
Looking at Jobber Relationship Problems Could Provide Answers We receive many comments from tire dealers regarding their relationships with suppliers – tire companies, wholesalers and parts jobbers alike. Recently, Gary Goms, owner of Midland Engine Electronics & Diagnostics in Buena Vista, Colo., and a contributing writer for our sister magazine, Counterman, discussed such relationship problems
Making It Stick: Getting the Patch to Stick is What Tire Repair is All About
People who insist on using the correct terminology for everything will probably not approve of the subtitle I’ve chosen. They would prefer something more proper like, “Achieving Repair Unit Vulcanization.” Many of them might admit that both titles send the same message, but they just can’t bring themselves to say the words “patch” and “stick”
Time To Grow: New Home, New Products, New Focus Mannino Says Now is The Time
A year ago this month, Gaetano "Guy" Mannino, 45, became president and CEO of Pirelli Tire North America, and in a whirlwind 12 months he has reshaped Pirelli’s presence in North America. New headquarters and automated manufacturing in Rome, Ga., have given PTNA a fresh start. The end of its alliance with Cooper gave it
Got Air?
Got Milk? Pork – The Other White Meat. Beef – It’s What’s For Dinner. Ahh, The Power of Cheese. These all-too-familiar catch phrases have been seared into our memories because the Dukes of Dairy, Princes of Pork and Barons of Beef figured it out: There really is no "I" in "Team". Back in the All-About-Me
Torque and Re-torque
Torque and Re-torque Although we usually discuss tires and tire-related issues in this column, this month’s subject is the next closest thing – wheels. Specifically some important guidelines for remounting tire/wheel assemblies. What’s so different or difficult, you may ask, about the simple task of mounting a wheel on a medium or heavy-duty highway truck?
What’s Caster Got to Do With It?
What’s Caster Got to Do With It? Experts tell us that caster is the most difficult of the three major alignment angles to understand and that improper caster settings are less likely to be felt by drivers of today’s front-wheel-drive vehicles. Of course, then they say irregular tire wear cannot be directly attributable to caster,
Capitalizing on TPMS
Looking for ways to pump up winter tire and wheel sales? How about selling tire pressure monitoring systems (TPMS)? There are several designs now on the market, or about to be introduced, that offer a tremendous opportunity for dealers to make a good profit. Whether you’re ready or not, you will have to be prepared