Frigid Temps Don't Slow Giti Winter Tire Rollout - Tire Review Magazine

Frigid Temps Don’t Slow Giti Winter Tire Rollout

At a certain point, there is little difference between -5 degrees F and -20 degrees F. Cold is just cold, and warmer shelter is the only sane answer.

Unless, of course, you’re banging around a parking lot trying out some winter tires. the quebec exposition center rink provided an ideal proving ground for the studdable gt radial champiro icepro, which already has been out for one winter season.Adrenaline pumps with every twitch, helping keep the body temp in check. And each lap brings another chance to go just a bit harder to see if you can make the vehicle break loose.

Quebec City in early February is just plain cold. It is when the city’s world famous Winter Carnival is held, and every conceivable winter activity is on display, from ice skating in the park to a hockey tournament in area rinks to horse-drawn sleigh rides and cross-country skiing along the St. Lawrence seaway.

For Giti Tire USA and Giti Tire Canada, it was the perfect backdrop to roll out their latest winter tire offering – the Champiro WinterPro – and get North American dealers and media some valuable seat time over sets of Champiro IcePro radials. In all, some 50 dealers were represented, most from Canada.

It was the second driving event for Giti Tire in the last eight months; last August the company launched its Champiro HPY HP line in blistering 106F temps in Phoenix. Talk about working the extremes.

Tom McNamara, vice president of sales, gave attendees an overview of Giti Tire USA and its parent company Giti Tire, which has been a hard charger in the North American market over the last couple of years. With a development focus on safety, fuel efficiency, comfort and handling, Giti Tire has tech centers in U.K. and China, and proving grounds in U.K., China and the Netherlands.

Export production is executed at five plants in China, with a combined capacity of 142,000 tires per day. The company has two tire plants in its home country of Indonesia, but those produce tires for domestic consumption only. The China-made tires are exported and sold in China; Giti Tire exports to some 100 countries, McNamara said.

A new face at Giti Tire is Dave Shelton, director of marketing, who joined the company late last year. Shelton gave attendees a rundown on the new tire, and the planned three-station driving event.

The Champiro WinterPro – which was not used in the driving event, but was the actual new tire being introduced – features a tread compound with the company’s NanoTek Silica technology and rubber polymers that help maintain grip in frigid temperatures. According to William Estupinan, director of technical services, the special formula in this new tire is designed for optimal performance between 14F to 41F.  

The Champiro WinterPro’s elliptical tread grooves help pump water and slush away from the contact patch, while hundreds of sipes also help remove water while adding traction edges for wet, snow and ice grip.

The WinterPro is available in 33 sizes covering 13- through 16-inch wheel diameters and T and H speed ratings, which Giti Tire said would fit most popular cars, pickup trucks, SUVs, CUVs and vans.

“Our message to drivers is: If you live in the snow belt, put on a set of purpose-built winter tires like the GT Radial Champiro WinterPro or IcePro for the winter,” said McNamara. This year’s harsh winter across much of North America may give drivers cause for pause and get them thinking about changing over to proper winter tires next season.tom mcnamara, vice president of sales

But McNamara warns drivers that four tires is the way to go. “Putting winter tires on only the front or back axle is dangerous because one end of the vehicle will have a lot more traction than the other, causing understeer or oversteer.”

Winter Stud
The Champiro IcePro has been out for one winter season already, Shelton said, and is designed for the type of severe winter driving common in Canada and some parts of the U.S. The directional IcePro is studdable with an aggressive winter tread, and event guests had ample opportunity to put the tire through its paces.

The program had three segments: the first station had matching BMW 325is to demonstrate how the IcePro performs on high-torque RWD cars; the second had studded IcePros on Toyota Rav4s to show front wheel drive capability; and on Ford Focuses on the Quebec Exposition Center rink to demonstrate braking and cornering in ice conditions. In each case, the Champiro IcePro went head-to-head with the Firestone Winterforce.

Despite the bitter, stinging cold (thanks to wind gusts), dealers and media pounded out lap after lap. The goal, said Shelton, was to show that the Champiro IcePro was a competent winter tire, at least as good as a recognized mid-level tire.

 A lateral groove pattern was designed to remove slush and ice from the contact area, and Giti’s NanoTek Silica technology in the tread compound aids traction.
The Champiro IcePro features a studdable design, with distribution that
“The studs in the GT Radial Champiro IcePro provide very aggressive grip when you are dealing with severe ice and snow conditions,” Estupinan said.  

The Champiro IcePro comes in 28 sizes covering 14- to 18-inch wheel diameters, all with a T speed rating.

“Our GT Radial winter tires are great performers at a value price,” McNamara said. “There’s no excuse for drivers not to make the switch and gain some peace of mind during the winter.”

Tire/Wheel Option

Few people know that Seyen Wheel is part of the Giti Tire family, and now the company plans to export a line of GT wheels paired with winter tires to Canada and the U.S.

These are not just “plain Jane” steel wheels, these are OE-quality alloy wheels. Seyen Wheel holds numerous OE contracts around the world, including in North America. With the upcoming 2011 winter season, Giti Tire USA and Giti Tire Canada both plan to import complete tire/wheel packages, giving dealers a unique tool to offer customers.

The company operates two wheel plants near Shanghai that will produce a combined 5.3 million wheels per year by 2013. In addition to the new winter wheel, Giti Tire is considering offering replacement alloy wheels in North America if business conditions are favorable.

You May Also Like

Hankook features SmartLine TBR tires at TMC 2024

Hankook said both the SmartLine AL52 and SmartLine DL52 include hidden groove technology, which adjusts tread patterns as the tire wears.

Hankook-TMC-2024

Hankook Tire unveiled its SmartLine AL52 and SmartLine DL52 truck bus and radial (TBR) tires as part of the 2024 Technology & Maintenance Council (TMC) showcase hosted by the American Trucking Association (ATA) in New Orleans from March 4-7. In addition to its latest TBR products, Hankook Tire showcased its tire-mounted sensor technology (TMS) and Fleet Management Solution (FMS) designed for commercial vehicle operators.

Apollo Tires showcases longhaul truck tire range at TMC Expo

Apollo Tires’ steer tire EnduMile LH front, drive tire EnduMile LHD and trailer tire EnduMile LHT are fully available across the US.

Apollo-Tires-TMC-24
Goodyear adds the RSA ULT, RTD ULT to its RangeMax tire line

Goodyear said the all-position tires help deliver range efficiency through low rolling resistance and long miles to removal.

range-max-RTD-angled
Cracking the case of the cracked loader tire casing

Let’s evaluate how loader operators spec tires.

Yokohama-Cracked-Casing-OTR-Tires-Yard-1400
Hankook launches new Winter icept iZ3 studless winter tire

The manufacturer said its Winter icept iZ is designed for compact and full-size sedans, while the icept iZ X is designed for the SUV segment.

Hankook-Winter_icept_iz3

Other Posts

Maxam releases new sizes for its AgilXtra I-3 implement tire

Maxam said its AgilXtra radial tires are designed with a steel-belted construction utilizing a directional tread design.

MAXAM-agilxtra_th
Pirelli releases Scorpion Zero AS Plus 3 all-season UHP tire designed for SUVs and light trucks

Pirelli said the tire combines the sporty performance of its Zero product line with the durability of the its Plus line.

pirelli Scorpion Zero AS Plus 3
Vredestein’s Ultrac chosen as OE tire for BMW X2, 5 Series

Vredestein said Ultrac tires will be available on the replacement market as well as via franchised dealers of the BMW Group.

Vredestein_BMW_5Series-1400
Yokohama Tire to expand available sizes for two commercial tires

Yokohama’s 124R was designed for regional pick-up/delivery fleets and the 714R was designed for urban pick-up/delivery applications.

Yokohama-Tire-714R-124R-Combo-Image-1400