Continental Tyres has introduced the MaxContact MC7 tyre, a high-performance tyre designed to meet the needs of drivers in the Asia Pacific region. Developed by a team of engineers and material experts, the MC7 offers precise steering, dynamic handling, and maximum control for urban driving.
The MC7 prioritises control and stability, enabling drivers to make sharper turns and navigate corners with confidence. The Cornering Macroblocks and ReFlex Compound work together to maximise the contact area with the road, ensuring a stable and controlled drive.
Safety is a key focus of the MaxContact MC7, particularly in wet weather conditions common in the APAC region. The tyre features 3D Laser-cut Sipes for enhanced grip and braking performance on wet roads, reducing the risk of aquaplaning. The silica technology in the ReFlex compound improves braking distances on both dry and wet surfaces.
Additionally, the MaxContact MC7 offers a quieter driving experience, thanks to the upgraded Two-in-1 Noise Breaker 3.0, which minimises sound waves and reduces noise in the car cabin.
The MaxContact MC7 is part of Continental’s Gen7 product lineup, representing the latest generation of tyre technologies tailored for APAC drivers. Available in sizes ranging from 16” to 21”, the MC7 is designed to provide exceptional performance and driving experiences for customers across the region.
For fleet operators who have many vehicles to maintain and run, manage operating costs is of great importance. They constantly need to ensure their vehicles are in good order, operational costs are minimized and goods are delivered on time. If savings can be achieved for one vehicle, they can also be replicated for other vehicles in the fleet and reduce costs, especially for fuel.
Continental Tyres has developed Conti360º solutions that can help commercial vehicle operators who face multiple challenges in managing large sized fleets. Being a tyre company, the area where they can help most is the tyres which play an important role in a vehicle’s running efficiency. With tyres specifically, proper tyre inflation will result in the optimum fuel consumption, optimum mileage and better tyre casing value for operators. Continental estimates that a vehicle which travels 100,000 kms with the tyres just 10% under-inflated could increase fuel and mileage costs alone by up to RM3,100 annually.
A survey conducted by Continental in Malaysia showed that 20% of fleet tyres are severely under-inflated while 38% were moderately under-inflated. This could lead to tyre damage, worse fuel consumption, reduced tyre life and an increased risk of tyre breakdowns while on the road. The latter would, of course, affect delivery schedules and upset customers. According to the Malaysian Institute of Road Safety Research (MIROS), one of top 5 reasons in crash occurrence in heavy commercial vehicles were tyre-related issues.
Conti360º offers 3 services and solutions for fleet operators to address these challenges and the complexity of tyre management so they can focus on their core business. The three offerings – Core Services, Advanced Services and Digital Solutions – cover a variety of services and solutions including training, on-site support, and real-time tyre monitoring to help fleet managers operate more efficiently.
With Conti360º Core Services, the Continental technical team conducts an analysis on operators’ fleet tyres to provide feedback on tyre performance, sharing industry-best tyre maintenance practices on efficient tyre handling and assisting in specialized driver training. The training modules for drivers focus on the importance of driver behaviour, good tyre usage and maintenance practices, and the significance of good pressure maintenance.
Conti360º Advanced Services provides fleets with ContiFleetCheck, a comprehensive health-check solution where the Continental technical team will perform routine inspections using advanced digital tools which relay data to proprietary systems for in-depth analysis of tyre conditions including pressure and tread depth. This active engagement provides managers with an overview of their fleet’s tyre efficiency, identifies trends and patterns of common causes of failures observed in the tyres, identifies areas for cost reductions and provides recommendations to be taken to further increase tyre life.
Finally, Conti360º Digital Solutions is an end-to-end completely automated offering with sensors that enable 24/7 monitoring of tyres on the road. Fleet managers are then kept abreast and alerted via an online portal and analytics dashboards on potential punctures, pressure loss, tread depth and so on, to help them manage tyres, prolong tyre life and increase vehicle safety on the road.
“Though tyres contribute only 5% to a fleet’s costs, they do influence around 50% of the fleet’s operational costs through fuel consumption, repairs and maintenance, and administration. Conti360º is designed specifically to minimize these costs and caters to the diverse needs of our customers depending on their fleet size and operating conditions,” said Winson Khoo Han Kee, National Sales Manager of Trucks & Tyres at Continental Tyre Malaysia.
“Customers who implemented Conti360º solutions have realised savings in the form of reduced fuel expenses by up to 3%, and increased tyre mileage by 20% while seeing significant increase in vehicle and driver safety,” he added.
According to Andrea Somorova, Managing Director of Continental Tyre Malaysia, the aim of Continental is to move beyond the transactional relationship so often associated with commercial tyres, and transcend into a technology-backed, value-added services and functional partnership with our commercial fleet customers.
“The technology within Conti360º will help our customers maximise their investments on tyres while deriving benefit from long-term after sales technical support and performance monitoring. Conti360º solutions is the next step in fleet management operations. Our investment in the development of these technologies, is our continuous commitment to our commercial and fleet customers to address real challenges so they can better meet their business goals,” she said.
Following the success of the Formula E all-electric single-seater championship that began in 2014, plans are underway for another all-electric racing series and this one will be off-road. To be called ‘Extreme E’, testing began earlier this month at the Chateau de Lastours off-road proving grounds in the south of France.
How well the car and tyres are working together was one of the questions looked into during the test runs but the testers were also looking for any potential weaknesses in the electric race car’s physical and technical design, and not least in its motor. The tests lasted several days and were run by Continental tyres and Spark Racing Technology.
“The off-road conditions here are perfect and the entire team can’t wait to get out there and finally put the cars through their paces,” said Mikaela Ahlin-Kottulinsky, who had a very specific role in the initial test phase in this remote corner of southern France. The Swede comes from a family of successful racing drivers and is the only woman to have won a race in the Scandinavian Touring Car Championship.
At the proving ground, her role was to test Continental’s new high-performance tyres. “The tests will show how close we are to achieving our vision of an off-road electric racing series in some of the remotest locations in the world,” she said. “Overall, I’m pretty confident that the results will be positive.”
Locations around the planet
Continental became an Official Partner of the Extreme E off-road electric racing series in January 2019. The races will take place all over the world in locations – rainforest, desert, the freezing Arctic, high altitude and ocean islands – that have been chosen to raise awareness of the environmental issues facing humanity. Promoters Formula E Holdings Ltd. expects 10 teams to take part in the first season, which is scheduled to begin in December 2020. The first two locations have been confirmed as Greenland and Brazil.
Continental is already a Founding Partner of the series and will become a Premium Partner in 2021. The technology company will also be equipping all the vehicles involved in the races with tyres for the diverse and extremely demanding conditions that they will encounter.
Raising awareness of climate change
One of the main goals shared by Extreme E’s founders, partners and participants is to raise awareness among spectators of the challenges facing society as a whole, such as climate change, humankind’s interaction with the environment and the protection of threatened animal and plant species.
According to Continental’s Extreme E project leader, Sandra Roslan, “This new racing format is an opportunity for us to show that our high-performance tyres keep delivering even under extreme conditions. But Extreme E is also a radical new initiative for raising awareness of the challenges facing the modern world. It is this unconventional mix of adrenaline, entertainment and sustainability that makes this series so exciting. That is why we became Founding Partners and sponsors of the series in January and why we are really looking forward to the test phase.”
Continental, a leading tyre manufacturer, has been recognised by the Auto Express Tyre awards 2017. It bagged two accolades for both its summer and winter tyres, namely The Continental ContiPremiumContact 5, and the WinterContact TS 860.
Auto Express’ tyre tests, have for years, been considered the benchmark for actua; tyre performance in the UK. The company’s findings are published to highlight the ones that offer the best performance, quality, safety, desirability and value. Many regard the data, as a stamp of approval of the respective tyre, providing consumers with the proper insight.
Speaking about the winning performance, Auto Express said, “The PremiumContact 5 continues to lead the field in summer tyres, delivering high quality performance across multiple testing disciplines. With sharp handling in wet and dry, the PremiumContact 5 continues to be a hard act to follow.”
The ContiPremiumContact 5 builds upon the test success of its predecessor by winning the Auto Express ultimate tyre test 2017. The TS860 won the winter tyre test and is said to be able to handle twists and turns as well as a great deal of braking, very well, even in harsh conditions.
Continental says the latest victories are an excellent endorsement for Continental’s continued ambition to improve driver safety as part of its VisionZero initiative. And judging from what we have heard so far, Continental will continue to produce competitive tyres for the foreseeable future.
