Continental named Top Choice for Range Rover Sport
Toyo Smashes Own 4x4 World Speed Record
Finalists Announced for Bridgestone E-reporter
Bridgestone to Build Fourth Tyre Plant in China
New Toyo Advertising Campaign
Nokian Sales and Profit Up in First Quarter
Bridgestone Earns Supplier of the Year Award from General Motors
Continental provides World Cup Comic Relief
Bridgestone Claims Top Award for Run-flat Technology
Total Fitness Join Forces in Fulda Challenge
Bridgestone to Sponsor World Golf Championships

Continental named Top Choice for Range Rover Sport

Continental is to supply its ContiCrossContact UHP and Conti4x4SportContact tyres to Land Rover as Original Equipment (OE) for its new high performance model - the Range Rover Sport.

The Range Rover Sport - which goes on sale in June - aims to be the best performing, best-handling vehicle that Land Rover has ever produced and will ensure that the Midlands-based manufacturer is able to compete in one of the fastest growing sectors of the market.

Commenting on the news Richard Durance, OE Automotive Engineering Manager at Continental Tyres, said: "Receiving engineering approval to supply OE for such an incredible vehicle really is a fantastic endorsement for the technical competitiveness of our products."

The Range Rover Sport has the broadest capability of any Land Rover to date - offering a focussed on-road drive, yet retaining its off-road ability - making tyre selection a crucial decision.

Richard Durance continued: "The Range Rover Sport will be equipped with ContiCrossContactUHP or Conti4x4SportContact tyres depending upon vehicle specification and wheel rim size."

Being approved to supply tyres for the Range Rover Sport continues a long-standing partnership between Continental and Land Rover - its Conti4x4Contact is approved as OE on both the Discovery 3 and Freelander models, whilst ContiCrossContact UHP is also fitted to the flagship of the product line-up - Range Rover

Toyo Smashes Own 4x4 World Speed Record

'The Fastest SUV' in the world, with an unprecedented speed of 308.435 km/h is now the proud title held by the Porsche Cayenne Turbo SP600M, prepared by Swiss tuner, SPORTEC, equipped with Toyo tyres and piloted by driver Andreas Hodel. Comprehensively beating the previous record of 282km/h set by Kleeman's Mercedes ML55K in 2003, Toyo Proxes S/T tyres were chosen to break both World Records.

Toyo's UK Marketing Manager, Mike Rignall, was elated with the results. 'This is field testing in the extreme. Almost 200mph in machinery like this calls for a powerful combination of outstanding performance, predictable handling and assured stability. The Proxes S/T has once again proved itself to be the only serious choice for high performance SUV's'

The Record was set at the high speed oval course at the ATP, Automotive Testing Patenburg, North Germany. Chosen as one of the most modern independent industry proving grounds in the world. The perfect setting to demonstrate the poise, balance and feel of the Proxes S/T.

Finalists Announced for Bridgestone E-reporter

Following the San Marino round of the 2005 FIA Formula One World Championship which took place in Imola recently, Bridgestone has announce the seven finalists for the Bridgestone e-reporter competition.

The pan-European competition, for aspiring young journalists, has received an overwhelming response from students across Europe. The high level of entries was supported by an impressive standard of writing, which presented the panel of judges - chaired by ITV's Formula One Studio Analyst Tony Jardine - with the difficult task of selecting the chosen few. Entries were judged on the demonstration of not just writing ability, but also background research, an appreciation for the target audience, eye for a good story, enthusiasm for the sport, and creativity.

Making it through to the next stage of the competition, and invited to attend a European Grand prix to report on the all-new GP2 Series for Bridgestone Europe and GP2 websites, are the seven worthy finalists:

Dorian Patynowski Lublin, Poland
Reijo Savolainen Jyväskylä, Finland
Guy-Lionel Loew Kingersheim, France
Dieter Lenaerts Rijkevorsel, Belgium
Laurence Edmondson Bristol, UK
Mike Channell Wakefield, UK
Russell Atkins Warwick, UK

An overall winner will then head to Japan to cover a major international Bridgestone event. In addition, they will be equipped with a state of the art laptop computer to aid their reporting and future career.

Bridgestone to Build Fourth Tyre Plant in China

Bridgestone Corporation has announced plans to build a plant in the city of Huizhou in China's Guangdong Province to produce radial tyres for trucks and buses. The plant, scheduled to begin operation in January 2007, will be the company's fourth tyre plant in China. Bridgestone produces passenger car tyres at plants in Wuxi and Tianjin and truck and bus tyres at a plant in Shenyang.Investment in the Huizhou construction project will total about $300 million.

The new tyre plant will operate as Bridgestone (Huizhou) Tire Co., Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of Bridgestone Corporation. The plant's production capacity is planned to reach 5,000 tyres a day by the first half of 2009.

New Toyo Advertising Campaign

Toyo is to launch a new, £600,000 advertising campaign. The new campaign, which bears the name "Vital" is the latest in a list of campaigns aiming to position Toyo as "the thinking driver's alternative to ordinary tyres". The campaign features a series of images from inside the human body. Toyo tyres are depicted as parts of the body vital to life, such as blood cells. The campaign was developed by Northampton based advertising agency Engine.

Nokian Sales and Profit Up in First Quarter

Nokian Tyres have announced rises is sales and profits during the first quarter of the 2005 financial year. The Group's net sales were up by 14.6% to EUR 129.4 million (EUR 112.9 million in the corresponding period in 2004). Operating profit amounted to EUR 14.6 million (EUR 11.9 million).

Bridgestone Earns Supplier of the Year Award from General Motors

Bridgestone Corporation has announced that it has earned a Supplier of the Year award from General Motors Corporation for the tenth year in a row. The award is for excellence in tyres and related service provided to General Motors globally in 2004 by Tokyo-based Bridgestone Corporation and by its subsidiaries, including Nashville, Tennessee-based Bridgestone Americas Holding, Inc., and Brussels-based Bridgestone Europe NV/SA.

Bridgestone Corporation vice president and senior officer Tatsuya Okajima accepted the award on behalf of the Bridgestone Group at an April 23 ceremony at the General Motors Vehicle Engineering Center in Warren, Michigan.

The GM Supplier of the Year award began as a global programme in 1992. Selecting the award winners is a global team of executives from purchasing, engineering, manufacturing, and logistics. The team evaluates award candidates on the basis of performance in quality, service, technology, and price. This year it selected only 78 winners including the Bridgestone Group from among some 3,500 GM suppliers worldwide.

Continental Provides World Cup Comic Relief

Continental Tyres official partner of the 2006 FIFA World Cup™ donated a once in a lifetime prize to Radio 1's Comic Relief Rally fundraiser by offering a footballing masterclass with its Brand Ambassador Alan Shearer to one lucky Radio 1 listener and three friends. Broadcast during the Chris Moyles Show - the UK's second most popular breakfast show - the competition helped to raise over £50,000 towards a grand total of £600,000.

The Rally itself involved Chris Moyles and members of the breakfast team driving a series of iconic cars from John O' Groats in Scotland to Lands End in Cornwall. Vehicles driven throughout the rally included the A-Team Van, K.I.T.T. from the Knight Rider series and the 1969 Dodge Charger used in the Dukes of Hazzard.

Guy Frobisher, Marketing Director, Continental Tyres, said: "We are delighted to have been in a position to offer Chris Moyles and his 7 million listeners a great prize that helped to raise valuable funds. The money generated by people's text entries and Continental's generous donation of £1,000 will go towards worthy causes in the UK and overseas."

Bridgestone Claims Top Award for Run-flat Technology

Bridgestone has scooped a prestigious tyre industry award for its development of run-flat technology. The company's newest generation run-flat tyre, the Potenza RE050 RFT, helped it win the Product Innovation category in the inaugural Tyre and Fast Fit (TAFF) awards distributed by the National Tyre Distributors Association (NTDA).

"It's a tremendous honour to win this award," said John McNaught, managing director at Bridgestone UK, "and it demonstrates how we are leading the way in the development of this breakthrough technology. "An increasing number of high-performance and executive-class cars are fitting run-flat tyres as standard, and we are now seeing the technology on high-volume cars such as the Vauxhall Astra and the BMW 1-Series - both of which fit the Bridgestone Potenza RE050 RFT. "We believe that run-flat tyres will soon become a standard fitment on most cars sold in the UK, and we are continuously working to further develop the technology, and, together with the leading car manufacturers, make the extensive benefits of run-flat tyres available to all motorists," added McNaught.

The Bridgestone Potenza RE050 RFT is one of the most technologically advanced tyres in the marketplace, and is original equipment on a number of prestigious vehicles including the Ferrari 612 Scaglietti, the Mercedes S-Class and the BMW 6-Series. Two key design elements of the Potenza RE050 RFT are its rigidity and heat resistance, allowing the tyre to support weight when it is rotating with total air loss. Its sidewall is constructed with reinforced rubber, so it can carry the vehicle's weight at zero pressure, while a special bead filler with low heat generation is used, meaning that a tyre with no air pressure still fits securely to the rim. And with a bead configuration the same as standard tyres, it can be fitted to conventional wheel rims too.

Total Fitness Join Forces in Fulda Challenge

The search for competitors for the 2006 Fulda Challenge has commenced and fitness enthusiasts from all over the UK are now being encouraged to apply. Health and Fitness chain Total Fitness, the market leader in exercise and training, has joined forces with event organisers to help find the UK team for the annual arctic adventure. Application forms are currently available in each of its 21 gyms throughout the UK.

The chain is also inviting people to take part in the Total Fitness Trials, which will be held in Wilmslow on 28 May and Hull on 29 May 2005. Athletes will be asked to take part in four15-minute exercise sessions, which have been designed to test stamina and endurance. The top male and female athlete will be invited to attend the Fulda Challenge UK selection event at the Commando Training Centre Royal Marines in Lympstone, Devon. This will take place over the weekend of 18-19 June 2005.

The 2006 Fulda Challenge will take place early next year, in the Yukon Territory of Canada. The weeklong challenge includes events such as marathon and mountain running, mountain biking, ice climbing, cross-country skiing and 4x4 driving.

Bridgestone to Sponsor World Golf Championships

The International Federation of PGA Tours has announced that Bridgestone Sports Co., Ltd. has become an Official Sponsor of the World Golf Championships for 2005. Bridgestone Sports is a worldwide leader in manufacturing and marketing premium golf equipment including balls, clubs and accessories. The agreement will allow for Bridgestone to advertise and leverage on-site relationship building benefits around each of the three remaining 2005 World Golf Championships events.

The next World Golf Championships event is the NEC Invitational, August 16-21 at Firestone CC in Akron, Ohio, followed by the American Express Championship at San Francisco's Harding Park Golf Course, October 4-9 and the Algarve World Cup in Portugal, November 15-20 at the Victoria Clube de Golfe-Vilamoura, in the Algarve region of Portugal. The first World Golf Championships event of the year, the Accenture Match Play Championship, took place in February at La Costa Resort and Spa in Carlsbad, California and was won by David Toms.