Continental Tyres has launched its latest tyre, the ContiPremiumContact 5. It’s been designed for use on a wide spectrum of vehicles that use rims in 14 to 17” sizes. Having already undergone a number of tests by independent magazines, it’s been awarded a Best Buy by Which? magazine in the UK. The ContiPremiumContact 5 features a range of innovative tyre engineering attributes which result in excellent performance in wet and dry conditions. One of its key features is its macro-block technology which enhances the tyre’s cornering ability, it also has 3D edges which provide greater contact with the road and aqua grooves that help to lessen the risk of aquaplaning.
In coincidence with the launch of Continental’s new tyre comes the announcement that the new EU Tyre Label will be compulsory for all 27 EU member states from November 2012. All tyres sold in the EU must have this label on them, it specifies the rolling resistance, wet braking performance and external tyre / road noise. There will be a validation operation in Spring 2016, where the EU tyre label will be reviewed. Commenting on this announcement Paddy Murphy, General Manager of Continental Tyres Ireland, said: “We welcome the new EU tyre label as it provides consumers with much greater information on the performance of a tyre in terms of safety and fuel consumption before purchase. Whilst this is far more information than a motorist might normally see when buying tyres, we still see a need for more information to aid drivers, as the new tyre label only specifies three important tyre properties but fails to highlight a number of other criteria that are just as important, for example resistance to aquaplaning, handling and dry braking distances”. The labels must be displayed on the tyres, but where the tyres are not on display the retailer must show the values to the customer during the sales process, and given with or put on the invoice.
