The tyres strategy will once again play an important role in deciding the outcome of the Bahrain Grand Prix tomorrow morning.

Bridgestone’s super-soft and medium tyres have been allocated for the fourth race of the season and with an ambient temperature of 40 degrees centigrade, the teams finally got to drive on a hot and dry track.

Soft compound tyres were the prime choice in qualifying today with all teams running on them for the extra grip needed in the Bahrain circuit.

Italian veteran Jarno Trulli seized pole position for Toyota, with his team-mate German Timo Glock sitting comfortably behind him in second place.

Sebastian Vettel, who took the title in rain-drenched Shanghai last week for Red Bull, is starting third, with the British pair of Jenson Button for Brawn and Lewis Hamilton for McLaren in fourth and fifth respectively.

Button said: “It’s a long race and it’s bloody hot. If you’re not looking after your tyres you are going to struggle.

“We’ve definitely got a consistent pace with a long run whereas others, after four or five laps, their times are going sky high.”

Alex Kapadia, Operations Team

By Denna Bowman

The European Parliament’s decision to strengthen the mandatory labelling on tyres law has been applauded by a leading speciality chemicals manufacturer.

Lanxess AG welcomes the strict regulations relating to tyres as a means of significantly reducing road generated carbon emissions.

The regulation, which requires the disclosure of information about fuel efficiency, wet grip and rolling noise, will come into effect from 2012 onwards.

Axel C. Heitmann, chairman of the board of management at Lanxess AG, said: “With our modern high-performance rubber products, we can enable the tyre industry to comply already with the EU’s strict requirements on safer, environmentally friendly tyres.

“Because the number of vehicles worldwide will double within the next 25 years, the widpespread use of innovative tyre technologies is essential if we are to use fuels more efficiently and slow down climate change.”

According to Brussels Commission figures, around a quarter of CO2 emissions in the EU come from vehicle traffic.

Tyres are, specifically, responsible for about 20 to 30 per cent of a car’s fuel consumption.
The legislation is continuing its passage through the European Parliament. The draft text awaits the scrutiny of the Council of Ministers, the body representing the 27 EU member states, later this year.

If you want to join the green car revolution, but haven’t got £10,000 knocking around for a new hybrid, you can still jump on the bandwagon without trading in your old motor.

Just follow a few simple steps, like checking your tyres pressure or opt for ‘green’ tyres, to cut your carbon emissions.

Properly inflated car tyres will help you burn less fuel and reduce CO2 output. In the US they reckon if every motorist had properly inflated tyres they could save around 2 billion gallons of gas each year!

And the best part is it’s free, because many garages don’t charge for using their pressure gauges. Check your vehicle handbook for the correct air pressure recommended by your car manufacturer.
You can also find the figure on the panel in the driver’s side door jam.

If you want to go a step further, check out low-rolling resistance tyres when your old car needs replacements.

These ‘green’ tyres are being fitted increasingly as ‘original equipment’ by car manufacturers, because they also cut help to reduce CO2 emissions.

The EU is in the process of passing new regulations which will make low-rolling resistance tyres mandatory on all new vehicles.

Oliver Hall, Operations Team

By Katherine Clarkson

Car buyers should be vigilant when purchasing second hand vehicles to make sure they are roadworthy, from the tyres to the brake lights.

The warning comes from etyres, the UK’s largest online tyres retailer, after 22 vehicles were taken off dealers forecourts across Leicester in a crackdown on unroadworthy cars for sale.

Bald tyres and faulty brake lights were just some of the defects that were discovered during the investigation.

The dealers will have to repair the vehicles and pass them through MOTs before they can be advertised for sale.  If they try to sell them without the repairs, they could be fined £20,000.

The legal minimum tread depth for tyres is 1.6mm, but anything less than 3mm is going to need replacing in the relatively near future and is not giving the buyer value for money.

Also check the manufacture date for the tyres, it is on the sidewall, because even if they are not heavily worn, tyres that are more than six years old have already reached a level of deterioration which could lead to accidents.

Employees at Goodyear Dunlop tyres are celebrating after they smashed a fundraising target – eight months ahead of schedule.

It’s great news for the tyres manufacturer staff who have raised a staggering £52,000 to build a new playground at Birmingham Children’s Hospital.

Fidelis Hynam, the hospital’s corporate fundraising manager, said: “We have been exceptionally impressed by the fund raising efforts and commitment of Goodyear Dunlop and its employees and it is no surprise they have smashed their target so early.

“For the CAMHS patients and their families this dedicated outdoor space is a dream come true.

“With the average stay of a CAMHS patient being six months it is very important to have their own space where they can let off steam and importantly have fun. We cannot thank Goodyear Dunlop enough.” 

The tyres firm staff bust their £50,000 target by £2,000 through employee fund raising, company match funding and public events.

Since April 2008 fundraisers threw themselves behind the cause, organising a range of activities taking place including a charity ball, dress down days, truck tyre rolls and a bicycle ride from the company’s head office in Birmingham to Paris.

Denna Bowman, Head Office

By Oliver Hall

Michelin tyres have teamed up with the “Clean Air Green Tour” to spread the message to motorists about the benefits of environmentally-friendly products.

Parmeet Grover, brand director for Michelin North America, said: “Many consumers do not realise the impact tyres can have on the environment.

“Our goal in partnering with the Clean Air Green Tour is to reinforce our message that tyres make a difference.”

Michelin are keen to drive home the message that tyre performance plays a significant role in reducing the world’s environmental footprint.

For more than 16 years, Michelin has been committed to the research and development of energy-efficient tyres, aimed at offering consumers increased levels of energy-efficiency and lower CO2 emissions.

The 60-city US Clean Air Green Tour will cover more than 30,000 miles in a solar powered bus fitted with Michelin X One super wide tyres, and is expected to attract an average of 1,500 consumers per roadshow.

The tour will hold tree planning ceremonies in five cities and host a community clean-up day.

With duststorms more likely than downpours, the Brawn GP team are confident the heat in Bahrain will see them return to the top of the podium.

Their championship leading driver Jenson Button struggled to get heat in his car tyres in Shanghai, but that shouldn’t be a problem in the blistering desert temperatures this Sunday.

Tyres strategy and managements will play a key role again in the fifth race of the season on the Sakhir circuit with the super-soft and medium compounds wheeled out. 

These tyres will apparently favour the Brawn team, which makes less aggressive use of its rubber than most of its rivals.

Button, who won the first two races, but lost out to Red Bull drivers’ Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber in the third at Shanghai last weekend, is feeling confident.

“It’s going to be very hot, very different to most circuits and the tyre temperatures are going to be high,” Button told reporters.

“What we suffered in China with the tyre temperatures, hopefully we will have the opposite here.”

If the sandstorms blow up and cause the race to be called off, it will be the fourth consecutive Grand Prix to have been disrupted by the weather.

In Australia, the light was a problem; in Malaysia the race was abandoned due to the rain and darkness and in China torrential rain caused mayhem on the track.

Alex Kapadia, Operations Team

By Denna Bowman

President Barack Obama has grabbed the opportunity to return to a key issue from the 2008 presidential campaign – properly inflated tyres.

He diverted from a speech challenging American’s to do more to conserve energy on Earth Day earlier this week, to drive home his message again about how checking the pressure in tyres can help the environment.

“When gas was real high, I suggested during the campaign the one small step Americans could take would be to keep their tyres inflated.  Everybody teased me,” Obama recalled.

“They said, “Oh, look!  Look! That’s Obama’s Energy Policy!  My opponent sent around tyre gauges.”

However, he told the audience in Newton, the American people are ready to participate in a “national effort” to transform the way energy is used in the US.

“I think the American people are ready to be part of a mission. I believe that,” Obama said.

“It’s not just keeping your tyres inflated. If each one of us just replaced one ordinary incandescent light bulb with one of those compact fluorescent light bulbs — you know, the squirrelly ones — that could save enough energy to light three million homes.”

By Katherine Clarkson

European lawmakers have toughened up legislation leading to strict new labelling by tyres manufacturers.

The EU has added fuel performance to the list of information, including grip and noise level, which must be displayed on tyres from November 2012.

MEPs voted overwhelmingly in support of many of the other recommendations from the parliament’s industry committee in Strasbourg yesterday.

The new tyre label will use a fuel-efficiency classification similar to the EU Energy Label for washing machines and fridges, with rates performances from “A” to indicate the best to “G” to highlight the worst.

The draft text for the tyres still needs the approval of the Council of Ministers, which represents the 27 EU member states.

The proposals for the mandatory tyre efficiency and noise label, which will have to be adopted by manufacturers like Michelin and Continental, are expected to be adopted in the second reading “under the next legislature” which will begin in the autumn.

Hard-pressed motorists were dealt another blow yesterday when the Chancellor slapped an extra 2p a litre on fuel tax from September.

But drivers can claw back some of the extra cost by making sure their car tyres are properly inflated.

Making sure your tyres have the right amount of air in them can save vehicle owners up between 8-10 per cent on their annual fuel bill.

Tyres are also more likely to wear out prematurely if they are over or under-inflated, which is an additional expense for motorists to bear.

Check the manufacturer’s vehicle handbook or the doorjam on the driver’s side to find the correct pressure recommendation.

It is better to take a pressure reading when the tyres are cold and should be done at least once a week, according to the Highway Code.

If the tyres are above or below the recommended pressure, adjust immediately.

If drivers get into the habit of checking their tyre pressure now, they can save money immediately and ease the pain of the VAT rise which takes effect on 1^st September.

And the chancellor Alistair Darling had even more bad news for motorists – the VAT hike will continue to rise by 1p a litre every April between 2010 and 2013!

Oliver Hall, Operations Team