Press Release
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Tire performance is the critical factor in transferring
forces to the road and maximizing overall grip
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That’s why driver assistance systems depend on tires with maximum grip
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Braking distances reduced by up to 20 percent since 2000
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Premium tires boost safety, driving pleasure and economy
Hanover, June 2015. Over the last 15 years, tires have been responsible for significant
improvements in active safety. To this end, premium tire manufacturers in particular,
including Continental, have developed more advanced compounds, brought the construction
of their tires into line with the state of the art and optimized their tread patterns. As a result,
braking distances have become much shorter, handling precision has improved immensely
and rolling resistance has been significantly reduced. True, when comparing a new tire with
its direct predecessor, the development engineers can usually claim “only” single-digit
improvements in percentage terms. But comparing a tire from 2000 with a current model
reveals what remarkable progress has been made. When the wet braking performance of a
current tire and a tire with the old design were compared, the difference was almost 20
percent.
Continental conducted this unusual comparison at the Continental TechShow 2015. In the test,
a model year 2015 BMW 1 Series model was fitted with ContiPremiumContact passenger tires
from model year 2000 with the construction and tread typical of that tire at the time. Then the
test engineers fitted a car from model year 2000 with the latest ContiPremiumContact 5 tires.
When the two cars were tested back-to-back on the wet handling course at the Contidrom, the
15-year-old car showed a marked improvement in performance as the greatly improved grip
enabled braking and steering commands to be executed more safely and precisely. This
allowed the car to make up, at least in part, for the absence of electronic stability control. The
performance of the new car on the old tires dropped away substantially, however. It seems
that even the most advanced driver assistance systems are not able to offset the development
progress made between the old and new tire models.
Tires bear a large share of responsibility for active safety. Only technologically advanced
premium products can guarantee short braking distances, a high level of steering precision
Your contact
Klaus Engelhart, Phone: + 49 (0) 511 938 2285
Press Release
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and strong directional stability, and ensure aquaplaning is avoided. That is why Continental
recommends fitting premium tires even on older passenger cars, to help offset the absence
of the latest safety and assistance systems. The comparison test also highlighted that even
new vehicles equipped with an array of assistance systems will only achieve maximum
performance if their tires can transfer the dynamic forces to the road and translate them
effectively into grip.
Your contact
Klaus Engelhart, Phone: + 49 (0) 511 938 2285
Press Release
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Continental AG
Continental develops intelligent technologies for transporting people and their goods. As a reliable
partner, the international automotive supplier, tire manufacturer, and industrial partner provides
sustainable, safe, comfortable, individual, and affordable solutions. In 2014, the corporation generated
preliminary sales of approximately €34.5 billion with its five divisions, Chassis & Safety, Interior,
Powertrain, Tire, and ContiTech. Continental currently employs approximately 200,000 people in 53
countries.www.continental-corporation.de
Tire Division
The Tire Division currently has 24 production and development locations worldwide. The broad product
range and continuous investments in R&D make a major contribution to cost-effective and ecologically
efficient mobility. As one of the world's leading tire manufacturers with more than 47,000 employees, the
Tire Division achieved sales of €9.8 billion in 2014.
Passenger and Light Truck Tires
Continental is one of the leading manufacturers of passenger and light truck tires in Europe and the
world's fourth largest passenger tire manufacturer in the original equipment and replacement market.
The product development focus of the Continental premium brand is to optimize all safety-relevant
characteristics, while simultaneously minimizing rolling resistance.
www.continental-reifen.de
Media Database
www.mediacenter.continental-corporation.com
Contact:
Alexander Bahlmann
Head of PR, Passenger and Light Truck Tires
Continental AG
Tire division
Büttnerstrasse 25, 30165 Hanover, Germany
Tel.: +49 (0) 511 938 2615
Fax:
+49 (0) 511 938 2455
alexander.bahlmann@conti.de
www.continental-reifen.de
Your contact
Klaus Engelhart, Phone: + 49 (0) 511 938 2285
Klaus Engelhart
Press Spokesman, Passenger and Light Truck/TwoWheel Tires
Continental AG
Tire division
Büttnerstrasse 25, 30165 Hanover, Germany
Tel.: +49 (0) 511 938 2285
Fax:
+49 (0) 511 938 2455
klaus.engelhart@conti.de