As much of Britain basks in a heatwave, spare a thought for the people of Warsop who have been plagued by a tyres blaze that has been burning for a month.

Up to 400,000 old tyres went up in smoke in the inferno at the end of last month, but fire fighters had no choice but to allow it to burn itself out.

However, worried householders who live nearby to the site are concerned that the fumes from the fire are affecting their health and continuing impact on their everyday lives.

Ken Hornsby told reporters he had been full of praise for the fire service since the blaze broke out at Robin Hood Environmental Ltd, but insists more should now be done to finally extinguish the flames.

He said: “If the wind is blowing this way, we get the fumes blowing into our garden. You cannot sit out in your garden and have a barbecue or hang your washing out.

“The smell has been really aggravating, it is such a horrible smell and it hits the back of your throat. Everyone has been complaining about the ash fumes.

“I know they are containing it but it flares up every now and again and at night time you cannot have your windows open because the fumes come in.”

Ken Clark, who also lives nearby has called on the town’s community leaders to help resolve the problem.

“I know it’s hard but if the fire keeps going for a few more weeks, it will not be worth living around here,” he said. And his wife Veronica revealed how her asthma had deteriorated since the fire.

“My asthma is getting worse and worse, it is just cough, cough, cough all the time and it is especially bad in the morning –– something needs to be done,” she said.

A Health Protection Agency spokesman advised residents affected by the smoke to stay indoors where possible and keep their doors and windows closed to minimise the exposure.

Denna Bowman, Head Office

By Denna Bowman

Duties of up to 55 per cent could be imposed on Chinese tyres imported into the US in a bid to protect the domestic industry.

The US International Trade Commission voted 4-2 in favour of charging additional tariffs on passenger car and light commercial vehicle tyres imported from China.

The extra duties, on top of the existing tariffs of less than 4 per cent, would be imposed for a three-year period, starting at 55 per cent of the tyres value for the first year and dropping to 45 and 35 per cent respectively.

The proposal comes after the United Steelworkers union petitioned the ITC to intervene over the sale of cheap tyres imported from China, because it claimed they were damaging the domestic tyre manufacturing industry.

The union said a surge in Chinese tyre imports had overwhelmed domestic producers and cost almost 7,000 US jobs.

Four of the six ITC commissioners agreed that the domestic market had been disrupted and suggested that the US impose tariffs on £1bn of Chinese tyre imports for three years.

The ruling presented the first clear-cut test of Barack Obama’s approach to trade relations with Beijing and the president has until September to decide whether to act on the advice.

Hot on the heels of accepting an award for being a Best Employer for Healthy Lifestyles, Michelin tyres has landed another coveted plaudit.

The French tyres manufacturer has been given Ford Motor Company’s highest honour for Corporate Responsibility at the 11th Annual World Excellence Awards.

Michelin North America is one of 36 production and non-production suppliers Ford is recognising in 2009 for helping the company achieve superior quality, delivery and cost performance, along with initiatives that improve customer satisfaction.

The Recognition of Achievement-Corporate Responsibility award was presented to Michelin for demonstrating innovation in reducing the environmental impact of Ford’s products and for leadership in three key areas: environmental and social considerations in business; human rights and working conditions; and corporate governance.

Jan Skinner, Michelin North America’s vice president of global sales-passenger car and light truck original equipment tyres, said: “Michelin is committed to sustainable development and receiving recognition from Ford for our efforts is truly an honour.

“Ford’s broad and effective approach toward improving fuel economy and CO2 emissions demonstrates the importance they place on sustainability.

“Likewise, Michelin has served as an important partner to Ford in support of the collective goal to improve our eco-footprint through corporate initiatives and low rolling resistance technology.”

Katherine Clarkson, National Accounts

By Oliver Hall

A new law which requires tyres dealers to provide tyre aging information on sales contracts has been slammed by a leading industry group.

The new bill would do nothing but provide misleading information to consumers, while putting tyres dealers at a competitive disadvantage to auto dealers, according to the Rubber Manufacturers Association (RMA).

If the bill is passed into law all tyres dealers in California would be required to provide age information on every tyre they sell or face a $250 for each violation.

The bill also gives tyre buyers the explicit right to sue tyre dealers that don’t provide tyre age information.

The RMA set out its objections in a letter to the California Senate Committee on Business, Professions and Economic Development ahead of a hearing into the proposed bill on 6th July.

Daniel Zielinski, RMA senior vice president, said in the letter that the bill “will become a vehicle for lawsuit abuse at the expense of the tyre industry while doing nothing to promote motorist safety.”

He added that a tyres chronological age is only one of many factors that affect its performance – excessive heat, under-inflation and overloading are all more crucial than age.

Mr Zielinski also argued that the bill is burdensome not only to tyre dealers, but to their customers who would have to take the time and trouble to sign a disclosure form that they know the chronological age of the tyres.

And the RMA also protested that by exempting auto dealers and private sales of vehicles, the bill puts tyre dealers at a considerable competitive disadvantage.

Mr Zielinski said that the exemptions in effect confirmed that chronological age is not a tyre hazard.

By Denna Bowman

Michelin is turning to Facebook as part of a “very aggressive” approach to marketing its new generation of green tyres.

The French tyres manufacturer has announced the move as part of its advertising campaign to launch the new Energy Save A/S passenger car tyre range.

Michelin stated: “In an effort to target a very unique consumer with distinctive driving habits and lifestyle choices, Michelin is taking a very aggressive digital and social media approach to marketing the Michelin Energy Saver A/S tyre, in addition to traditional marketing.”

To coincide with an aggressive digital and social media communications approach, Michelin will launch its first Facebook application: Michelin Life Balance.

Jennifer Smith, digital communications manager for Michelin North America, added: “Michelin Life Balance allows us to digitally interact with consumers by providing them an opportunity to express who they are.”

The Facebook application engages users by asking them to formulate their life balance by selecting from dozens of everyday life experiences (from “having more dogs than people in the car” to “spending time with the kids”).

Once the experiences are chosen, users complete the equation, post it, share it and let the world know they stay in balance.

The TV advert for the BMW Z4 has been axed from screens in Australia after viewers complained it promoted “reckless and menacing driving”!

It’s hard to believe it’s just the advert where the car slips and slides around a white floor laying down tracks with paint-covered tyres.

The painted tyres tracks are clearly intended as a display of artistic creativity as part of the “Expression of Joy” campaign series.

But the complainers have triumphed and the Australian Advertising Standards Bureau has invoked the Advertising Code of Practice and canned the commercial.

In its response to the complaints, BMW said that it believed the ad to be fully compliant with the Code of Practice, and that it was clearly a work of fantasy - not petrol-headed impulse.

“We believe our TV and Online commercial fully comply with the FCAI Voluntary Code of Practice for Motor Vehicle Advertising and can be clearly distinguished by the viewer as an artistic performance and not reality,” said BMW’s official response to the complaints.

“The performance takes place in a controlled environment (a studio warehouse) which is clearly shown at the beginning of the TVC. The car drives across the canvas creating patterns with paint – it does not suggest a real-life driving situation.

“It is clear from the driver’s expression that he is concentrating on creating a specific result and not driving recklessly.

“There is no sign of the driver being out of control… art is the context of the campaign.”

Alex Kapadia, Operations Team

After a glorious weekend and with more blazing sunshine on the way, it’s worth remembering hot weather can affect your car tyres.

Hot weather makes air expand which raises the pressure inside the tyre making it less reliable on the roads.

It’s critical to have properly inflated tyres, as this assures the best possible contact between the tyre and the road.

Read your owner’s manual to find the correct tyre pressures, and, if necessary, adjust pressures to compensate for the hotter operating conditions — especially if you’re doing lots of high-speed driving on a day trip or summer driving holiday.

Properly inflated tyres will also last longer and improve fuel mileage.

Because of summertime’s higher temperatures, the air pressure in a warm tyre rises. Why? Because air is a gas, and gas expands when it heats up.

Keep this in mind if you are checking tyre pressures. The given tyre pressure specifications are for when the tyres are cold, therefore the pressure should ideally be checked when the tyres are cold.

Also, an improperly inflated tyre can heat excessively, potentially leading to a blow-out on the highway.

Denna Bowman, Head Office

By Denna Bowman

Michelin have launched a new tyre which offers motorists fuel-efficiency without compromising performance.

The Michelin Energy Save A/S tyres are designed for exceptional levels of fuel-efficiency, according to French firm, while delivering an environmentally-friendly performance package that is unprecedented in the industry.

The tyre manufacturer claims it is one of the first all-season tyres to combine low levels of rolling resistance with superior levels of wet braking and all-season performance.

Michelin Energy Saver Construction technology keeps the tyre cooler, helping the engine to improve its fuel-efficiency.

Rob Cunningham, brand category manager for Michelin North America, said: “We developed this tyre to meet a very distinctive consumer need and break the performance compromise of other competitive fuel-efficient tyres.

“The Energy Saver A/S tyre not only delivers the best fuel efficiency, it does so while lasting longer and stopping shorter than other fuel efficient tyres.”

According to Parmeet Grover, brand director, Michelin North America, “The Energy Saver A/S is another concrete example of our commitment to provide consumers the highest possible value from their tyre purchase by ensuring they do not have to sacrifice key benefits including safety, longevity and fuel-efficiency.”

The technology engineered into the Michelin Energy Saver A/S tyre is the result of more than 16 years of Michelin’s research and development in the area of rolling resistance and fuel-efficiency.

With the new Energy Saver A/S tyre, Michelin engineers were able to achieve and deliver increased fuel-efficiency by decreasing the levels of rolling resistance - or energy loss in the tyre.

For the consumer, this equates to increased fuel-efficiency, while maintaining other key tyre features that are most important to everyday driving.

By Oliver Hall

The European replacement tyres market declined again in May for the 14th consecutive month, according to a new report.

The sale of truck tyres nosedived between January and May by 32 per cent compared with the same period last year.

The report, compiled by ETRMA, the European Tyre and Rubber Manufacturers’ Association, also noted that the 24 per cent decline in May “confirms the strong deterioration of tyre demand”.

According to industry statistics, approximately 600,000 truck tyres were sold Europe-wide during the course of the month.

The European passenger car tyre sales also decreased eight per cent during the January to May period, and decreased 9% in May to around 12 million units.

However, the UK market suffered a much greater drop during the month, declining 26 per cent in May.
Some European markets, buoyed by national market support measures, experienced increased sales during the May period, including France, where passenger car sales rose 12 per cent.

The ETRMA comments that, “after a mitigated first part of the year 2008, the agricultural tyre market eventually got affected as well from August by the international crisis and the decrease of the tyre demand.”

The organisation points out that this decrease is particularly visible from October, and the market has remained negative since this time.

More and more motorists are looking for ways to become greener drivers - without having to buy a hybrid - and one of the easiest things you can do is change your tyres.

The Sunday Mirror’s excellent motoring columnist Quentin Willson was asked today to recommend the most environmentally friendly tyres on the market and here’s what he had to say:

Q - I’m about to change the tyres on my car and read somewhere that you can buy ecotyres that improve economy. Who makes them and where can I get them? - Gary, Derby

A - Michelin do a range of Energy Saver tyres which have been officially tested over 10,000 kilometres. The fuel saving over the competition works out at 5 per cent and they also last 1.5 times longer than budget rubber. They’re available from most tyre suppliers, and at roughly £10 more than some of the cheapest equivalents, they’re a nobrainer. More at www.michelin.co.uk.