Yokohama recently held a special track day event at the Nurburgring F1 Track in Germany to launch three new tyre patterns, the ADVAN Sport V107, ADVAN Neova AD09 and Geolandar X-AT into their product portfolio in the Ultra High Performance and Off-Road sectors.
Established partner tyre dealerships from the UK and Europe were invited to the three-day event to test these outstanding new additions to the range. The event also marked a new extensive European brand image campaign by Yokohama.
The dealers were given the opportunity to drive and test the new patterns on especially adapted tracks with “Speed Handling” on part of the Grand Prix track comparing the ADVAN Sport V107 UHP tyre with the ADVAN Neova AD09 Sport & Track while the individual “Wet & Dry/Slalom Handling” testing was carried out on the nearby Driving Safety Center 2 track where the ADVAN Sport V107 was compared with a competitor’s tyre and the ADVAN Neova AD09 was matched against the ADVAN AD08RS pattern.
The completely new, ground-breaking ADVAN Sport V107 tread pattern has been uniquely divided into two halves with the outer section adopting an asymmetrical design giving improved pattern rigidity through the shoulder along providing greater road contact for impressive handling in dry conditions and significantly strengthening wet surface driving performance. The inner pattern section incorporates wide straight grooves to enhance drainage performance on wet roads, giving exceptional hydroplaning resistance at high speeds.
Additional features and benefits of the ADVAN Sport V107 include the use of the Matrix Body Ply structure to enhance steering stability and precision without any compromise to ride comfort. An angled carcass is positioned close to the tread for increased rigidity in circumferential direction and a premium new sidewall design made possible using special tooling processes in the moulds, contributes to the development of a new attractive ‘dark design’. The ADVAN Sport V107 is currently available in 60 sizes.
The ADVAN Neova AD09 has been specifically manufactured as an advanced street sports tyre for drivers of high powered salon cars wanting to race on the track. It offers a similar dual tread pattern arrangement, with the inside half incorporating wide circumferential grooves with long lugs cutting across and a rounded groove design for superior water displacement. The outside half has narrow circumferential grooves placed close to the inner side for increased ground contact.
Other equally important features and benefits include a further improved contact patch guaranteeing control and grip when cornering at speed and increased casing rigidity to ensure tread stability. The tyre provides new high levels of dry grip and wear resistance along with overwhelming strength and exceptional design features. The ADVAN Neova AD09 tyre will become available in a number of popular sizes from September.
The dealers were also subjected to a challenging ‘off road experience’ on a specially prepared rough terrain course to experience the durability and versatility of the Geolandar X-AT tyre. This heavy-duty two in one aggressive pattern offers a number of impressive off-road features and benefits including a special tough block pattern for continuous drive performance and comfort. Twin shaped shoulders and centre block give unrivalled traction and steering control and a sipe,shallow groove combination contributes towards outstanding traction on wet and slippery surfaces and significantly combats against uneven wear.
Hiroyuki Shioiri, Chairman of Yokohama Europe, Gregorio Borgo, President & CEO and Aleksandar Gramatikov, Executive Vice President & Chief Commercial Officer were present throughout the track event. Mr Borgo said, “It was obvious by the continual enthusiasm of our dealer guests that everyone thoroughly enjoyed the long overdue experience of testing our latest tyres on the track and off-road.”
For more information: www.yokohama.eu.en
Source: Tyretradenews
