GT Radial Expands Tire Portfolio in European Region
Europe: The renowned tire brand, GT
Radial has expanded its product portfolio for European region. The company, recently,
launched FE1 City tire, specifically designed for the A-C segment urban cars in
Europe.
Giti introduced its new range
of GT Radial tire throughout Europe, following its initial launch on Giti
Tire’s stand at Reifen 2016. The new range FE1 City tire range will be
manufactured in 16 varied sizes, with rim ranging from 13-16”, section width ranging
from 145 to 195 and series size ranging from 55 to 80 that embarks a silhouette
of Cologne to depict its European R&D credentials. The GT Radial FE1 City
tire has been designed in Hannover, Germany at the company’s R&D centre.
Giti sells GT Radial tires’ across
various markets, with features such as long life, vigorous wet & dry
handling, stronger rugged carcass & tread design to protect against typical
forms of driving damage, etc. Moreover, Giti targets front wheel drive, A-C
segment OEM vehicles such as Fiat 500, Ford Fiesta, Volkswagen Fox and Polo.
Brian McDermott, sales and
marketing director – Europe for passenger car and light truck of Giti Tire said,
“We would class the GT Radial FE1 City as our first proper European urban tyre,
in that it replaces the more generic all-round Champiro VP1 with a specific
product for city living and shorter travelling distances. Coupled with the popular
FE1, our all-round premium passenger car tyre aimed at performance C and D cars
with rim sizes from 15-17”, we have created two products which cover the
specific requirements of over 95% of their target automotive markets and
end-user needs.”
As per TechSci Research, the
launch of new tire range is expected to support the rising demand for tires, emanating
in the European market, in a more competitive way. Also, as per Giti, the
company is likely to increase its penetration in the OEM segment of European
tire market by joining hands with various popular car brands in the region.
According to a recent report published by TechSci Research, “Europe
Tire Market Forecast and Opportunities,
2021’’, tire market in Europe is projected to
cross $49 billion by 2021 on account of anticipated stabilization of crude oil
price, expected rise in the vehicle sales and expanding vehicle fleet. The
vehicle fleet in the region is dominated by the passenger car segment, followed
by the commercial vehicle segment. Consequently, the passenger car tire segment
held the largest share in Europe’s tire market in 2015, and its dominance is
anticipated to continue during the forecast period. Growing per capita income
and anticipated increase in the launch of new vehicle models are few of the key
factors expected to drive demand for passenger car tires in Europe over the
next five years. Though traditional retail stores are the most preferred mode
of selling tires in Europe but with the increasing internet penetration &
advantages offered by online tire selling websites, car owners in the region
are increasingly inclining toward online channels for purchasing tires.