From Hannover to Portimão – The GT Radial Experience

Making an appearance at the brand’s big Ride and Drive event, GT Radial Performance Centre (GTPC) dealers from across the UK were given the opportunity to push their latest tyres to the limit and experience GT Radial’s innovations first-hand. The event took place in Portimão, Portugal.

A collaboration with exclusive distributor Micheldever Tyre Services (MTS), the event took place at the start of September and was hosted at the Autodromo Internacional do Algarve circuit. Each representative present was invited to take part and, in true GT-fashion, Experience the Performance.

All of GT Radial’s tyres are engineered at the Giti Tire European Research & Development Centre in Hannover, Germany. However, a select few patterns were taken to Portugal to be taken to their limits at the event.

Some of the tyres sampled included the GT Radial SportActive 2 – a set of which were fitted to a Mercedes AMG A45S, BMW M3 and Honda Civic Type R for the racetrack experience. Each attendee was invited to partake and experience the circuit’s rapid laps in the various vehicles while they were driven by the experienced drivers from Giti Tire’s MIRA facility.

The GT Radial FE2 was also featured, and was fitted to a Toyota GT86 for the Handling Experience, while a set of GT Radial Savero SUVs provided stability on a BMW X1 and X2, a Mitsubishi L200 as well as a VW Amarok. This was for the Off-Road Experience.

Brian McDermott, County Manager for Giti Tire UK said: “After an enforced two-year hiatus it’s great to back at one of Europe’s best circuits with some of our most dedicated GT Radial stockists. The feedback was nothing but positive, not only for the driving but having access to the whole Giti team.”

“When dealers have the opportunity to take our tyres to the very limit of their capabilities it gives them the utmost confidence to recommend and fit them for their customers. Our tyres’ performance across all four driving experiences was nothing short of fantastic.”

Meanwhile, Darren Peacock, of Northern Battery service based in Huddersfield stated: “The experience and performance of the tyres was unbelievable. The trip was also very educational and I have met a fantastic bunch of people too.”

“Running a tyre shop it helps to have confidence in a product, and with the GT Radial SportActive 2 we have just this,” added Stuart Ellis of Romiley Fast Fit. “As our now main selling tyre, and thanks to its competitive price, performance and wide range of sizes it keeps our customer base extremely happy.”

As per the event, Stefan Fischer, Managing Director for Product Technology and Fabio Pecci-Boriani, Senior Product Manager PCR, SUV, Light Truck for Giti Tire (Europe), delivered a comprehensive presentation which covered a multitude of innovation topics.

Virtual Development, Ultra-Low Rolling Resistance Technology, Advanced Wet Technology and Eco-Sustainability were all covered within the presentation. This give attendees a thorough oversight of how the GT Radial range is set to evolve in the coming years and over the course of their consistent innovations.

To view our full range of GT Radial tyres, click here.