Tyres, etc

Hankook Tyre UK has confirmed its continued partnership as the official tyre partner for Supercar Fest 2025, marking the sixth consecutive year of collaboration. As a flagship supercar event on the UK calendar, Supercar Fest promises thrilling experiences for automotive enthusiasts, featuring plenty of action-filled spectacles and photo opportunities throughout the day.

Forget flowers and chocolates this Valentine’s Day, the gift you really should give is a few minutes of your time. Nothing makes a set of tyres feel more loved than a driver who regularly spends time together with them, paying attention to tread, sidewall and air pressure. UK road safety charity TyreSafe points out that most motorists fail to do this, with only a third checking their vehicle’s tyre tread at least once a month – the minimum frequency recommended by road safety experts.

Pirelli’s second test session of 2025 got underway yesterday at the Barcelona-Catalunya circuit, the track located near the Spanish town of Granollers. Having already taken part in the two-day session at Paul Ricard, McLaren F1 Racing was again working with Pirelli on 2026 tyre development, joined this time by Scuderia Ferrari HP.

With the winter weather now in full swing, Kumho is adding its voice to calls for motorists to ensure their vehicles are equipped with tyres to handle the harsh conditions of the season. The colder months bring freezing temperatures, prolonged wet weather and the risk of snow, which make tyre safety even more crucial. Ensuring vehicles are fitted with tyres which are capable of providing optimal traction, excellent wet handling and superior durability can be the difference between a safe journey and a hazardous one.

Concluding the first 2025 test session for its next generation of rain tyres at Circuit Paul Ricard in France, Pirelli comments that it has acquired reams of data essential to its further development work. The focus of this joint testing with the McLaren F1 Team was the wet and intermediate tyres for the 2026 season, when the regulations will stipulate the same 18-inch rim diameter as the current ones, but with a slightly smaller width and external diameter on both the front and rear axles.

Between November 2023 and February 2024, there were total of 90,852 breakdowns on British roads – an 11.3 per cent increase from the same period a year before (81,617 total). Of these, tyres have been reported as the most common cause of winter breakdowns (November to February) in the UK for three years running.

The USA is headed back to the Moon in a couple of years and several other countries have landed vehicles on the lunar surface. Pirelli hasn’t been there and – as far as we know – isn’t planning a mission, but the Italian brand comments that the Pirelli tyres used over the course of the 24 Grands Prix in this longest ever Formula 1 season covered a distance that almost would reach the Moon “on an imaginary road linking our planet to its only natural satellite.”

When seeking out the company which first marketed a tyre intended for winter conditions, it makes sense to start your search in a region that’s no stranger to snow and ice. Finland fits the bill nicely, and Nokian Tyres has long occupied the superlative first place in the winter tyre world with its Kelirengas – literally ‘weather tyre’. But was it really first?

TyreSafe, the UK’s tyre safety charity, is running its ‘Keep Your Tyres in Good ‘Elf’ campaign for a second year this December. The initiative features Santa’s elves performing a range of tyre checks and providing fun and engaging reminders about the importance of road safety during the festive period. In 2023, the ‘Keep Your Tyres in Good ‘Elf’ campaign appeared on bus backs, websites, and social media thanks to the participation of TyreSafe supporters. Winter driving poses heightened risks, from slippery surfaces to heavier vehicle loads. While light-hearted in approach, the campaign emphasises a critical message – road users must ACT on tyre safety.