Modern Tire Dealer - December 2023 by EndeavorBusinessMedia-VehicleRepairGroup

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TIRES TOOK CENTER STAGE AT SEMA SHOW THE LATEST ON WHAT’S NEW TO THE MARKET WHAT DEFINES A TIRE’S TIER? IS IT PRICE, TECHNOLOGY, MARKETING, INFRASTRUCTURE – OR SOMETHING ELSE? EXCLUSIVE AG TIRE BRAND MARKET SHARE

DOWN, BUT NOT OUT Suppliers see blue skies ahead for ag tire market December 2023 | Vol. 104, No. 12 | $10 | www.moderntiredealer.com

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The Industry’s Leading Publication December 2023, Volume 104, Number 12

New tires were unveiled at the 2023 SEMA Show, which included the Global Tire Expo. Find out more, starting on page 20.

F E AT U R E S

DEPARTMENTS

20 Tires took center stage

4 Editorial

What defines a tire’s tier? Is it price, technology, marketing, infrastructure — or something else?

6 moderntiredealer.com News and navigation tools for MTD’s website

8 Industry News

Truck tire plant helps drive Yokohama’s growth ‘We’re in pursuit of new business,’ says CEO Barna

16 Numbers That Count Relevant statistics from an industry in constant motion

18 Your Marketplace

Retail sellout turns negative Market reverts to ‘soft momentum’

56 Business Insight

How to get an early start on your 2024 success Be realistic, proactive as you prepare for another great year

58 Dealer Development

Lowering the heart rate Why you need to create a more professionalized customer experience

59 EV Intelligence

The power of ‘what if?’ What if you became an EV service expert?

60 Mergers and Acquisitions

Auctions versus negotiations Introducing a new term — ‘Negotiauctions’

61 Focus on Dealers

McMahon’s Best-One rolls out ‘life-changing’ benefits ‘Feeling appreciated’ is key to employee engagement, says dealer

62 Focus on Dealers

Young woman finds joy in the tire industry Hannah Townsend overcomes challenges, inspires others with passion for hands-on work

63 TPMS Nissan Altima — 2022

at SEMA Show

The latest on what’s new to the market

34 A robotic answer to a call for help

Creamery Tire places hopes in technology

38 Empowering through education

Westside Tire & Service educates customers through car care clinics

40 How tire dealers are using AI

New tech could be a game changer, says ITDG’s Jason Rook

Commercial Tire Dealer™

42 Down, but not out

Suppliers see blue skies ahead for ag tire market

46 Exclusive ag tire market share 48 ‘Bread and butter customers’ Dawson Tire & Wheel keeps its focus on farmers

50 Tire dealers swap best practices for safety

Lone worker safety, cameras and RIST are all on the table

52 AG Tire Talk: Duals versus

super singles on combines What should be recommended — and when?

55 Commercially Viable

66 Ad index Modern Tire Dealer is a proud member of: on the cover: 1272620606 | eric1513 | gettyimages.com

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Editorial

What defines a tire’s tier?

IS IT PRICE, TECHNOLOGY, MARKETING, INFRASTRUCTURE — OR SOMETHING ELSE? By

Mike Manges

ike MTD’s editors, I’m sure you are closely watching events surrounding the possible application of tariffs on medium truck tires that are exported from Thailand to the U.S. A hearing involving representatives from the United Steelworkers (USW) and a tire company that brings in truck tires from production facilities in Thailand took place on Nov. 7. During the day-long hearing, there was some discussion about whether tiers of tires exist. As we all know, the answer is, “Yes. Different tiers of tires exist.” However, one thing that I think has become much less conclusive over the years is how tiers are defined. What determines a tier? In my opinion, that’s one of the more intriguing questions facing our industry, albeit more of an internal question. I’m not just talking about commercial truck tires, which are in focus right now. I’m talking about consumer tires, ag tires, OTR tires and even retreads. (By the way, for an in-depth look at what was discussed during the early- November TBR tariff hearing, I strongly urge you to read MTD Managing Editor Joy Kopcha’s excellent report, which can be found on page 12 of this issue.) What are the “ingredients” that make up a tier-one tire? What constitutes a tier-two tire? How do we define a tier-three tire? What confers tier-four status on a tire or brand? Is it a function of: Price? Are tiers determined solely by their sellout, retail price point — in other words, what the end user, whether an individual customer or a fleet, shells out for the product? How does the sell-in price from the manufacturer to the dealer or distributor factor into the equation or does it at all? Research shows that many cashstrapped consumers continue to gravitate toward less expensive tires. Others prefer more expensive products. Is this a function of perceived brand or product quality, simply finding a product listed at the right price at the right time or a mix of both? Technology? All tires sold in this market, to earn Department of Transportation (DOT) approval, must meet certain standards of safety and performance. Therefore, it’s a given that DOT-approved tires contain a certain level of technology achieved through a certain level of research and development, brought into existence via a certain degree of manufacturing expertise and capability. We also know that the aforementioned factors can vary from manufacturer to manufacturer. To what extent do these differences help define tiers? Marketing? Advertising has been part of the tire industry since day one. (You should see some of the ads in the early issues of Modern Tire Dealer!) Does marketing influence a tire or brand’s tier status? Can a good marketing campaign enhance tier perception? I would argue yes, but as stated above, the tire is still required to pass certain “muster,” according to the government, accepted industry standards and the toughest critic of all, the customer. It’s safe to say that aggressive marketing hampered by poor product

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Will there ever be a universally agreed-upon definition of what constitutes a particular tier of tire? Photo: MTD

technology or lackluster performance is probably not a recipe for repeat business or long-term profitability. Infrastructure? You can also call this factor “support.” Is there a credible resource that a tire dealer, distributor or end user can turn to in the event of a product issue, a shipping/delivery problem or another complication that might arise? I believe that back-office infrastructure and support — or lack thereof — certainly can determine the perceived tier status of a tire or brand. But how much support is required? Do suppliers need to build and maintain a massive, multi-layered organization to support their customers and products? Is such a structure a “must-have” or simply a “nice-to-have?” I believe that all of the dynamics listed above contribute to a tire or brand’s tier designation, though if you were forced to depict how they stack up against one another — say, in the form of a pie chart — it could be challenging to assign specific values to each. One thing that cannot be overlooked is the tire dealer’s role in defining tier. An enterprising tire dealer certainly can take what many would label as a second or third-tier brand or product and make it a top-tier offering within his or her local market. We’ve seen countless, very successful examples of this over the decades and I believe it isn’t contingent on how customers define tiers. In fact, I believe that very few, if any, retail tire buyers think in terms of “tiers.” They do believe, however, in the credibility and expertise of their local, preferred tire dealer. And maybe that’s the ultimate determinant of “tier” in our industry? I’d like to hear your take on the subject. We may not figure out this whole tier thing in one, two or even five conversations, but it will at least be an interesting discussion. ■ If you have any questions or comments, please email me at mmanges@endeavorb2b.com.

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ModernTireDealer.com DIGITAL RESOURCES FOR THE INDEPENDENT TIRE DEALER

Stay tuned to MTD’s podcast! The Modern Tire Dealer Show is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, Audible and MTD’s website. Download it today!

Sign up for Modern Tire Dealer’s eNewsletters to receive the latest tire news and our most popular articles. Go to www.moderntiredealer.com/subscribe.

3515 Massillon Rd., Suite 200 Uniontown, OH 44685 (330) 899-2200, fax (330) 899-2209 www.moderntiredealer.com PUBLISHER Greg Smith gsmith@endeavorb2b.com (330) 598-0375 EDITORIAL Editor: Mike Manges, (330) 598-0368, mmanges@endeavorb2b.com Managing Editor: Joy Kopcha, (330) 598-0338, jkopcha@endeavorb2b.com Associate Editor: Madison Gehring, (330) 598-0308, mgehring@endeavorb2b.com PRODUCTION Art Director: Erica Paquette Production Manager: Karen Runion, (330) 736-1291, krunion@endeavorb2b.com

Nebraskaland Tire Inc. ranks as the 20th largest independent commercial tire dealership in the U.S. It operates stores under the Nebraskaland, Kansasland and Coloradoland Tire brands, as well as McWhorters Tire and Service. Photo: MTD

Exclusive rankings rate high with readers Three times a year, Modern Tire Dealer publishes rankings of independent tire dealers and even though our October list is the shortest — with just 25 entries — it clearly is an important piece of research for the industry. The October list ranks the largest independent commercial tire dealers in the U.S. and it closes MTD’s 2023 year of lists. Up next: the April list of the nation’s largest retreaders and then in July, we rank the largest overall tire dealerships in the land. Here are the other stories you and your peers were reading this month: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

Who are the biggest commercial tire dealers? Michelin to end tire production in Oklahoma Photos: Scenes from the 2023 SEMA Show Sullivan Tire forms ESOP MTD Top 25 commercial tire dealer list: Fast facts USW wants tariffs on TBR tires from Thailand Photos: An inside look at Yokohama’s U.S. truck tire plant Why it’s time to rethink your alignment pricing How Telle Tire became an acquisition expert Goodyear loses $89 million during third quarter

DIGITAL EDITION Check out MTD’s digital edition at the top of our website’s homepage.

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SOCIAL MEDIA Like us Facebook:

facebook.com/ ModernTireDealer

twitter.com/ MTDMagazine @MTDMagazine

ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES Darrell Bruggink dbruggink@endeavorb2b.com (608) 299-6310 Marianne Dyal mdyal@endeavorb2b.com (706) 344-1388 Sean Thornton sthornton@endeavorb2b.com (269) 499-0257 Kyle Shaw kshaw@endeavorb2b.com (651) 846-9490 Martha Severson mseverson@endeavorb2b.com (651) 846-9452 Chad Hjellming chjellming@endeavorb2b.com (651) 846-9463 MTD READER ADVISORY BOARD Rick Benton, Black’s Tire Service Inc. Jessica Palanjian Rankin, Grand Prix Performance John McCarthy Jr., McCarthy Tire Service Co. Inc. Jamie Ward, Tire Discounters Inc. CUSTOMER/SUBSCRIPTION SERVICE (877) 382-9187 moderntiredealer@omeda.com ENDEAVOR BUSINESS MEDIA, LLC CEO: Chris Ferrell President: June Griffin CFO: Mark Zadell COO: Patrick Rains CRO: Reggie Lawrence Chief Digital Officer: Jacquie Niemiec Chief Administrative and Legal Officer: Tracy Kane EVP Transportation: Kylie Hirko VP Vehicle Repair: Chris Messer VRG Editorial Director: Matthew Hudson

Modern Tire Dealer (USPS Permit 369170), (ISSN 0026-8496 print) is published monthly by Endeavor Business Media, LLC.1233 Janesville Ave., Fort Atkinson, WI 53538. Periodicals postage paid at Fort Atkinson, WI, and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Modern Tire Dealer, PO Box 3257, Northbrook, IL 60065-3257. SUBSCRIPTIONS: Publisher reserves the right to reject non-qualified subscriptions. Subscription prices: U.S. ($81.25 per year). All subscriptions are payable in U.S. funds. Send subscription inquiries to Modern Tire Dealer, PO Box 3257, Northbrook, IL 600653257. Customer service can be reached toll-free at 877-382-9187 or at moderntiredealer@omeda.com for magazine subscription assistance or questions. Printed in the USA. Copyright 2023 Endeavor Business Media, LLC. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopies, recordings, or any information storage or retrieval system without permission from the publisher. Endeavor Business Media, LLC does not assume and hereby disclaims any liability to any person or company for any loss or damage caused by errors or omissions in the material herein, regardless of whether such errors result from negligence, accident, or any other cause whatsoever. The views and opinions in the articles herein are not to be taken as official expressions of the publishers, unless so stated. The publishers do not warrant either expressly or by implication, the factual accuracy of the articles herein, nor do they so warrant any views or opinions by the authors of said articles.

MTD December 2023 11/28/23 3:45 PM

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Industry News

Truck tire plant helps drive Yokohama’s growth

‘WE’RE IN PURSUIT OF NEW BUSINESS,’ SAYS CEO BARNA

okohama Tire Corp.’s (YTC) West Point, Miss., medium truck tire plant will continue to play a critical role in the company’s growth. The one million-square-foot plant, which began production in October 2015, is on track to manufacture nearly 810,000 medium truck tires this year “and we’re setting a target for 840,000 (units) next year,” Jeff Barna, CEO and president of YTC, revealed during a recent open house event that marked the 10th anniversary of the factory’s groundbreaking. Without the Mississippi plant, “YRC and (parent company) Yokohama Rubber Co. Ltd. would be nowhere near the level of success we’ve achieved,” said Barna. “And the plant is still in its infancy.” Commercial medium truck tire sales currently make up around 20% of YTC’s revenue in North America. That percentage “increased since the plant arrived,” said Barna, who verified that more than 90% of the tires made at the plant are sold in the United States. “Prior to the Mississippi plant, being reliant exclusively on off-shore production made it difficult to really capitalize on market opportunities. Now, with the plant being here and its responsiveness, we can reduce inventory levels and increase speed to market. “We’re in pursuit of new business. Before the plant, it was an allocation type of environment. We had to be very specific about who we did business with, without addressing incremental growth opportunities.” (Prior to the Mississippi plant, most of the truck tires YTC sold in the U.S. were imported from Yokohama Rubber’s commercial truck tire plant in Japan. Yokohama Rubber’s third medium truck tire plant is located in Thailand.) The Mississippi plant manufactures the following Yokohama brand truck tires: 109L, RT617, 715R, RY023, 709ZL, 109R, TY517, 712L, 504C and 114R, and produces more than 40 SKUs across five sizes: 11R22.5, 295/75R22.5, 11R24.5, 285/75R24.5 and 255/70R22.5. The factory’s highly targeted size range is by design, according to Barna. “When you talk about a plant being in its infancy, one thing you want to do is to try to feed it long-run production SKUs. By identifying the high runners, (you) can make sure the plant can operate as efficiently as possible. That was important to us. “I would say, however, that we’ve gone from a very limited number of SKUs — I would say 14 to 15 — to now comfortably producing” many more, “so there’s more diversity, in terms of production, than ever. Part of what I like about Yokohama is our agility,” which he called “a byproduct” of the company’s size. “We compete against giants and when you think about us as being a $1.5 billion to $2 billion company here in North

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“We have the ability to pivot quickly with any turn of the environment, customer make-up and the economic scenario of the moment,” says Jeff Barna, CEO and president of Yokohama Tire Corp. Photo: Yokohama Tire Corp.

America, we have the ability to pivot quickly with any turn of the environment, customer make-up and the economic scenario of the moment. That’s kind of our superpower right now — being light on our feet and highly agile.” At the moment, capital investments at the Mississippi plant “are spread widely, but I wouldn’t call them major,” noted Barna, who added that the facility is still in its first phase of development. “I think there’s another 10% to 15% of additional headroom, in terms of capacity. I think we could get into the mid-800,000s (and) maybe even close to 900,000” tires produced at the plant each year. “At that point, we’ll need to start talking about whether we need to investigate phase two and bring the bulldozers out again. But I think that’s a two- to three-year horizon.” (During 2021, the plant produced around 625,000 truck tires.) According to Barna, “a lot” of the facility’s potential “is being unlocked because of the culture finally coming together. And as production levels have increased, we’re seeing a lot of progress in our cost-per-unit.” YTC’s medium truck tire orders “are picking up,” Barna told MTD. “But it’s still a grind. You still have to go out there and earn it. I think that based on informal projections, we’ll outperform” the U.S. Tire Manufacturers Association’s medium truck tire shipment predictions for 2023. “This year, we started out slowly. A lot of our biggest customers were super-high on inventory. We’re now seeing a better balance between demand and supply.” — Mike Manges

W P B

W n w f a h

T y t

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THE DEFINITION OF

PREMIUM

ACCESSIBILITY ILIT WE DON’T BELIEVE PREMIUM P R O D U C T S S H O U L D O N LY B E F O R T H E F E W. We hear you, and your customers. They need to maximize every dollar, and you want to make sure customers leave fully fitted with a complete set of new tires and add-ons. We’re here to help you make that happen. Together, we can offer premium tires to all your customers, at a price that will leave them with money to polish their rims.

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Industry News

Bites Rice Tire opens location Frederick, Md.-based Rice Tire Co., one of the country’s largest commercial tire dealerships, has opened a new commercial tire center in Camp Hill, Pa., that will serve the central Pennsylvania market. The new outlet, which opened in August, features three service bays and spans around 9,000 square feet. It’s Rice Tire’s 13th location overall. The store is managed by Joe Gillis.

STTC buys Giant Tire Bethlehem, Pa.-based Service Tire Truck Centers Inc. (STTC) has acquired Giant Tire Service in Hawthorne, N.J. The deal gives STTC the ability to cover the entire state of New Jersey from eight locations. Walt Dealtrey, president and CEO of STTC, says Giant Tire Service “has been widely recognized for its exceptional truck and earthmover services” for decades.

Soft sales hurt Monro High inflation is causing consumers to defer new tire purchases. In the latest financial period at Monro Inc., that added up to an overall 10% decrease in total tire units. However, Michael Broderick, Monro’s president and CEO, recently said the company’s stores are stocked, staffed and ready for a winter weather event that would reverse that trend. Monro’s comparable store sales were down in the company’s most recent quarter.

Nokian works on D/C Construction of Nokian Tyres’ new distribution center in Dayton, Tenn., is on schedule. The facility is slated to open next summer. It will have the capacity to hold up to 600,000 tires to help Nokian meet growing demand in North America. The center will join the company’s network of nine warehouses throughout the United States and Canada.

A win for Right to Repair Maine has become the second state where voters have overwhelmingly approved Right to Repair legislation. On Nov. 7, voters approved a ballot measure that will require auto manufacturers to share access to certain vehicle diagnostic information with vehicle owners and independent repair facilities, including tire dealerships. More than 84% of voters in the state of Maine cast ballots in favor of the legislation.

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Kramer to exit Goodyear, OTR and Dunlop may follow

ich Kramer, longtime chairman, CEO and president of Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. will retire in 2024. And the Akron, Ohio-based tiremaker is looking to divest its OTR tire business, its Dunlop brand and its chemical division. These moves are all part of the new Goodyear Forward plan, which was unveiled last month. Goodyear took a net loss of $89 million during the third quarter of 2023 versus net income of $44 million during the same period last year. In a call held after Goodyear Forward was announced, Christina Zamarro, Goodyear’s chief financial officer, told analysts that the company’s OTR tire business is much more severable than other assets, while Kramer added that Goodyear’s OTR tire competitors have larger scale and that ramping up to that size would take a “significant” investment. Zamarro noted that such an investment would not be achievable for Goodyear in the near future. (Goodyear builds OTR tires at its Topeka, Kan., plant and a plant in Japan, plus others.) Kramer called the Dunlop brand “very attractive” and said parties have expressed interest in acquiring it. An analyst asked if Sumitomo Rubber Industries Ltd. would be a likely buyer, given that the two companies had an alliance, which when unwound in 2015, involved Sumitomo acquiring Goodyear’s Dunlop plant near Buffalo, N.Y. Zamarro noted that the Dunlop brand includes around seven million tires sold, with five million sold in Goodyear’s Europe, Middle East and Africa region and another halfmillion Dunlop brand commercial truck tire units sold. Zamarro said that half of Goodyear’s chemical business sales are Rich Kramer, chairman, CEO and to third parties. The other half is president of Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., will retire in 2024 as part of the new sold back to Goodyear. Goodyear Forward plan. Goodyear officials also said the Photo: Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. company “has identified opportunities in North America to optimize brand and tier positioning; rationalize SKUs; increase customer and channel profitability; and enhance coverage in premium product lines.” The brand and tier positioning plays into Goodyear’s ongoing work to combine its Cooper operations into the fold. Initially, that work focused on internal and back-end savings, but moving forward, Zamarro said the company will also work on its brand and tier strategy — positioning the Goodyear brand as its top-tier product and the Cooper brand as its mid-tier brand. Zamarro also announced the company will reduce non-Goodyear-brand SKUs by 20% and increase Goodyear-brand SKUs by 10%. This will help simplify the company’s operations, she said. Overall, the Goodyear Forward plan will result in more than $1 billion in cuts. On behalf of Elliott Investment Management, one of Goodyear’s largest investors and the entity driving the aforementioned changes, Senior Portfolio Manager Marc Steinberg and Portfolio Manager Austin Camporin said, “We believe the Goodyear Forward transformation plan represents a significant set of steps toward a stronger and more profitable Goodyear.” MTD December 2023 11/28/23 3:45 PM

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A LONG WAY

TOGETHER

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Industry News

Bites 1-800 EveryRim adds D/C 1-800 EveryRim OEM Wheels is expanding its warehouse capacity with the addition of a new facility in Santa Fe Springs, Calif. “We just took on an 8,000-square-foot building to expand our inventory,” says Billy Eordekian, the company’s president. The new facility is 1-800 EveryRim OEM Wheels’ second distribution center. Its other warehouse, a 23,400-squarefoot facility, also is located in Santa Fe Springs. Eordekian says the company is rapidly expanding its inventory, “buying everything we can get.”

Feldman wins WTC honor Hank Feldman, president of Performance Plus Tire, has received the Specialty Equipment Market Association’s Wheel & Tire Council Lifetime Achievement Award. Feldman received the award during the SEMA Show in Las Vegas, Nev. Dennis Feldman, vice president of Long Beach, Calif.-based Performance Plus Tire, says it was fitting to nominate his father, Hank, “for the contributions he’s made to the wheel and tire industry over the course of his career.”

ATD adds Steer to Radius American Tire Distributors Inc. (ATD) is adding Steer’s customer relationship management (CRM) tool to its new Radius digital hub. “This partnership will bring first-class marketing technologies to ATD’s new digital hub, Radius, and allow customers to streamline their marketing operations,” note ATD officials. Radius was unveiled during last month’s SEMA Show.

CMA to build for Turbo A new partnership between Turbo Wholesale Tires LLC and CMA LLC/Double Coin will see CMA/Double Coin manufacture a full line of TBR tires under Turbo’s Rolling Big Power brand. The new Rolling Big Power line will feature 40 sizes. Tires will begin shipping in early 2024.

Bridgestone donates Bridgestone Americas Inc.’s retail business has donated $100,000 to the TechForce Foundation, a non-profit that promotes careers in automotive service. Funds will provide grants and scholarships for students who are pursuing careers as auto service technicians and also will provide resources for graduates seeking auto service jobs.

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USW, tiremaker discuss tiers at tariff hearing

In an initial hearing on whether tariffs should be levied against TBR tires from Thailand, two key arguments kept popping up in hours and hours of testimony. Do tire tiers exist and what’s the current state of U.S. tire manufacturing? On Nov. 7, parties representing both sides of the tariff issue met with International Trade Commission (ITC) staff in a hearing, which functioned largely as a question-and-answer session. The ITC commissioners were not present and no vote was taken, nor was a decision made. The hearing served more as a fact-finding mission and as a springboard for both sides to provide additional documentation and data for the commission to consider later. In this case, the side favoring tariffs was represented by the United Steelworkers (USW) and their attorneys. The USW filed the initial petition asking the government to impose tariffs on TBR tires from Thailand. The USW maintains that imported tires from Thailand have been “fueled by Chinese investments” and during the hearing, USW attorney Elizabeth Drake said the number of tires imported had more than doubled since 2020. She said the value of those imported tires had reached almost $1.8 billion. Five USW presidents — each one representing a unionized TBR plant in the U.S. — took the stand to paint a picture of current production levels in their factories. Those opposed to tariffs were represented by Prinx Chengshan Tire North America Inc., a tiremaker that builds its truck and bus tires in Thailand to serve the U.S. market. Samuel Felberbaum, president of Prinx Chengshan Tire North America, and Ken Coltrane, the company’s vice president of marketing and product development, spoke during the meeting. The Prinx team said there isn’t direct competition between domestic tiremakers and those importing products from Thailand. Attorney Lynn Fischer Fox said union representatives want the commission to ignore market conditions and the conditions of competition, as well as the financial conditions of domestic tiremakers. She noted that tiremakers with U.S. operations performed well throughout the period under review: 2020 to 2022. Felberbaum pointed out that domestic tiremakers and tiremakers in Thailand aren’t always competing for the same business. The U.S. tire producers compete for OE fitments, though not every plant produces tires for the OE market, he noted. Still, Felberbaum said Prinx doesn’t sell in the OE market and added that he doesn’t believe any of his Thai counterparts do either. Additionally, Felberbaum said Prinx and other Thailand-based tire manufacturers aren’t selling to large fleets and aren’t capturing government contracts. He estimated the fleet and government businesses “make up roughly 80% of premium brands’ sales.” Instead, he said Prinx sells its tires to independent tire dealers. (Prinx doesn’t maintain its own warehouses in the U.S. to store inventory.) The USW alleges tires made in Thailand are being dumped in the U.S. market at below-market prices, thus injuring the domestic market. Felberbaum said this is where it’s important to note the competition strategies of the domestic and Thailand-based tire producers. He says domestic producers typically are offering a “more extensive package” of services around a tire. “These are comprehensive contracts that cover the price of the tire and the associated services.” Tire tiers are often a point of contention in these tariff investigations and again in this hearing, there were many questions related to the tiers. Felberbaum used the industry standard language of describing good, better and best tire options and even took a stab at defining some brands in the top two tiers, or those in the better and best categories. “In the most simple and high-level terms, we think of the tiers as branded versus unbranded,” Felberbaum said. He ranked Bridgestone, Goodyear and Michelin in the top tier or best category. His tier two included Continental, BFGoodrich, Yokohama and Sumitomo. “Prinx and other Thai importers are generally considered tier three or tier four, or ‘good.’ We do not compete with the premium brands in tier(s) one and two.” Drake, the attorney for the USW, said she doesn’t believe in tiers since there doesn’t appear to be a clear definition for them. — Joy Kopcha MTD December 2023 11/28/23 3:45 PM

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Industry News

Bites VIP gives to school Auburn, Maine-based VIP Tires & Service has made a $3,030 donation to Lowell Public Schools in Massachusetts as part of its “Oil Changes For Education” program. “The funds can and will be used by the Lowell school community, with no strings attached,” according to VIP Tires & Service officials. The dealership opened a store in Lowell last summer.

Damon wins AAPEX award Greg Damon, general manager at St. Charles, Mo.-based Sparks Tire & Auto, is the AAPEX Service Advisor of the Year. “Damon has been in a service advisor role for 25 years and holds nine ASE certifications, plus the ASE C1 Service Consultant certification,” say AAPEX officials. “He completes 80 hours of training annually and is best known for his dedication and determination to help people.”

Sullivan Tire forms ESOP

n Oct. 31, the Sullivan family, which has owned Norwell, Mass-based Sullivan Tire Co. Inc. for nearly 70 years, turned the reins over to their nearly 1,500 employees via a new employee Norwell, Mass-based Sullivan Tire Co. Inc. stock ownership plan (ESOP). Transferring ownership to its Is now 100% employee-owned. employees makes Sullivan Tire an Photo: Sullivan Tire Co. Inc. even stronger company, says Paul Sullivan, the dealership’s vice president of marketing. As part of the ESOP, Robert Sullivan and Paul will remain with the company in their current roles, while Joe Zaccheo will continue as president and CEO of Sullivan Tire. (Robert, who was MTD’s Tire Dealer of the Year Award recipient in 2012, is the dealership’s chairman.) Formation of the ESOP was a “proactive” move, rather than a reactive one, Paul recently told MTD. “We have a great name, a great customer base and we’re still growing in all channels, which is quite rare.” The ESOP also reinforces the Sullivan clan’s “employees-first” philosophy, which Paul said stretches back to Sullivan Tire’s founding. “In the last couple of years, there’s been an awful lot of consolidation in the tire industry. We had people — including (our) employees — calling us and saying, ‘What about Sullivan? Are we going to be stable? What’s the future for me here?’ That was a big, big concern. We came back to the same answer: it’s all about your people.”

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MTD December 2023

11/28/23 3:45 PM

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www.yokohama-oht.com

HERE’S WHAT OUR CUSTOMERS ARE SAYING:

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Jake Rice of AA Quarry runs a CAT 982M loader with up to 15 tons of limestone shot rock and gravel on cycles of up to a mile. Other brands cracked under pressure, so AA Quarry switched to 875/65R29 Yokohama RT41s. “The stability of them just amazed me,” says Rice. “We’ve got 1,300 hours on them and we don’t have a crack on them yet. It’s an even wear pattern, no separation, a lot less cuts from the rocks due to the design of the sidewall. They’re just a really good tire.”

Ask your tire dealer about Yokohama OTR tires for loaders, excavators, haul trucks, and more, call us at (800) 343-3276, or visit www.yokohama-otr.com.

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NumbersThatCount

Relevant statistics from an industry in constant motion

600

Number of Sam’s Club locations in 2022 Source: MTD Facts Issue Photo: Walmart Inc.

22.3 MILLION

42%

Estimated global production of passenger cars and light commercial vehicles in the third quarter of 2023

Percentage of total sales in 2022 that tire dealers expected to derive from auto service Source: MTD Tire Dealer Automotive Service Study

Source: Continental AG

Photo: Moore Tires

28 MILLION

Photo: American Honda Motor Co. Inc.

In units, size of the 2022 medium truck replacement tire market

Percentage of independent tire dealer stores located in Tennessee, Alabama, Kentucky and Mississippi

Source: MTD Facts Issue

Photo: MTD

16 2312MTD_16-17_Numbers.indd 16

MTD December 2023 11/28/23 3:45 PM

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Yo u r M a r ket p l a ce

Retail sellout turns negative MARKET REVERTS TO ‘SOFT MOMENTUM’ By

John Healy

ur recent industry checks with tire dealers indicate that retail sellout trends have returned to negative territory. On average, dealers saw retail unit sales fall 1.9% on a year-over-year basis in October 2023, following a small gain in September. On a year-to-date basis, just two months in 2023 have seen positive sellout. Looking more closely at volume, we note that only the Northwest region saw positive sellout, up 1.3% year-over-year. The Northeast region saw the softest trends, down 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. From our view, we see this as consistent with recent commentary from Monro Inc., which has a big presence in the Northeast market. During its recent earnings call, Monro noted that its October same store sales trends on a month-to-date basis were down 5.4%. While a month ago we noted that green shoots were appearing in the replacement tire market, it appears the market is reverting to the soft retail momentum seen during the majority of 2023. In analyzing specific catalysts to this soft performance, dealers continue to note that inflation and macroeconomic fears are driving consumers to defer auto maintenance. Separately, dealers noted that milder-than-expected weather in certain areas of the country has worked against tire sales. Looking forward, given soft year-ago

comparisons and used vehicle affordability pressures forcing consumers to hold onto their current vehicles longer, we would not be surprised to see an uptick in winter weather serve as an accelerator to demand trends as we head into 2024.

DECLINE IN MILES DRIVEN

Given volatile industry conditions due to cost inflation and other macroeconomic factors, we look at several data points to access the health of automobile travel demand, which correlates to tire usage and wear. Looking to miles driven over the last month, which has a significant correlation with the need for a new set of tires, trends fell slightly, following a seven-month streak of positive miles driven. In analyzing monthly trends, we note our miles driven momentum index registered a 1% year-over-year decline in October 2023, which followed a streak of positive monthly miles driven trends from March through September 2023. While one month does not make a trend, we do note the monthly result is a bit surprising given the fact the year-ago compare was quite soft, as October 2022 saw a large 7.2% year-over-year decline in miles driven. While difficult to pinpoint the exact reason for the decline, we believe year-todate miles driven trends remain largely healthy. Given the strength seen in our proprietary miles driven index for the

Snapshot of Dealer’s PLT Tire Volumes (Year-Over-Year Change) Aug22

Sept22

Oct22

Aug23

Sept23

Oct23

Average

Increase

33%

43%

50%

33%

55%

20%

40%

Flat

21%

20%

44%

17%

20%

27%

Decline

67%

36%

30%

23%

28%

60%

33%

Total

100%

SOURCE: NORTHCOAST RESEARCH ESTIMATES

18 2312MTD_18-19_Healy.indd 18

majority of the year, we still believe the tire replacement industry and broader auto aftermarket are seeing a healthier backdrop compared to this time a year ago. Based upon this, we still see positive data points supportive of a recovery in sellout trends exiting 2023 and into 2024.

WHAT’S UP WITH RAWS?

Turning to raw material costs, the basket of raw materials to make a basic replacement tire fell an average of 4.5%, year-over-year, during October, following an average 13% decline during the third quarter. Holding raw material costs constant, this would equate to a 2% yearover-year decline in input costs during the fourth quarter of 2023 to build a tire and a 4.2% sequential increase from the third quarter of 2023. We note aggregate costs amongst raw materials have declined on a year-over-year basis each month during 2023 as inflationary pressures cooled. In analyzing specific input costs, we’ve seen natural rubber prices climb 14.9% on a year-over-year basis, given rising oil prices amid tensions in the Middle East. We note oil prices grew an average of 9.3% in October 2023 compared to the previous month. Among other price movements, we note synthetic rubber costs fell an average of 14.3% on a year-over-year basis in October, while carbon black costs fell 1.1%, year-over-year, and tire fabric/cord costs fell 12.6% on a year-over-year basis. Despite steady year-over-year declines each month during 2023, we note the past four months have seen increases in aggregate raw material costs. ■ John Healy is a managing director and research analyst with Northcoast Research Holdings LLC, based in Cleveland, Ohio. Healy covers a variety of subsectors of the automotive industry. If you would like to participate in the monthly dealer discussions, contact him at john.healy@northcoastresearch.com.

MTD December 2023 11/28/23 3:45 PM

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SEMA Show

Tires took center stage at SEMA Show THE LATEST ON WHAT’S NEW TO THE MARKET By

MTD Staff

any tire companies used the 2023 SEMA Show, which included the 2023 Global Tire Expo — Powered by TIA, as a vehicle to introduce new, profitabilityenhancing tires. Here’s an exclusive report from last month’s events, part one of two. (Stay tuned for a look at new equipnent and other products unveiled during the event in the January 2024 issue of MTD.) American Kenda Rubber Co. Ltd. showed off its new Klever H/T 4S tire and Klever A/T Trail tire. Both tires are 3-Peak Mountain Snowflake-certified and will be available during the late second quarter of 2024. The Klever H/T 4S is a “true fourseason tire” and is made for light trucks, vans, crossovers and sport utility vehicles, according to Ryan Lewis, marketing manager of automotive for Kenda. Its symmetrical tread design features four large circumferential grooves with independent tread blocks. The grooves

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allow water to flow freely and increase hydroplaning resistance. The tire will be available in 34 P-metric and LT designations, offering a 60,000-mile limited treadwear warranty on P-metric sizes and 50,000 miles on LT sizes. The Klever H/T 4S will replace the Klever H/T2. The Klever A/T Trail tire is the “inbetween tire” of Kenda’s Klever H/T and the Klever A/T, according to Kenda officials. The product is for off-road driving and is engineered for light trucks, small SUVs and CUV applications. Its symmetrical tread design offers wet, dry and winter performance, while still maintaining “size-specific low noise optimization. The Klever A/T Trail tire will initially be available in 15 T-/H-/V-rated sizes, featuring a 60,000-mile limited tread warranty. American Tire Distributors Inc. (ATD) introduced two new tires, the Hercules Roadtour Connect AS, a touring allseason tire, and The Terra Trac Cross-V AW, an all-weather tire.

The Kenda Klever H/T 4S is a “true four-season tire” and is made for light trucks, vans, crossovers and sport utility vehicles, according to Ryan Lewis, marketing manager, automotive for Kenda. Photo: MTD

“People are looking for more and more of an all-season tire, rather than a snow tire,” says Nakia Medlin, director of marketing, proprietary brands for ATD. MTD December 2023 11/28/23 3:45 PM

The 2023 SEMA Show, which included the 2023 Global Tire Expo – Powered by TIA, took place last month at the Las Vegas (Nev.) Convention Center. Photo: MTD

The Terra Trac Cross-V AW has 3-Peak Mountain Snowflake (3PMS) certification, which was a result of dealers voicing their needs for a 3PMS-certified tire. It replaces the Terra Trac Cross-V, which is one of the highest-selling Hercules tires, says Medlin. “So we wanted to keep up with that momentum and those features people like, so it has all the features of that (Terra Trac Cross-V) tire, but with the 3PMS certification.” The tire is for CUVs, SUVs and light trucks and comes in new 19-, 20- and 21-inch sizes. “When people think of the Hercules brand, the Terra Trac is synonymous with light truck and crossover tires and the Roadtour brand is synonymous with touring or passenger and all-season tires,” says Medlin. ATD officials are also expanding the Hercules TIS line to offer a new R/T (rugged terrain) tire that will be a mix of traditional mud tires and all-terrain tires. “We hear about more and more R/T tires coming into the market, so we wanted to make sure we were in that market, as well, which is why we focused on creating an R/T tire,” says Medlin. The tire will come out in 2024. Atturo Tire Corp. rolled out new sizes for its AZ850 ultra-high performance, AZ600 all-season touring and Trail Blade ATS all-terrain tires. w w w . M o d e r n T i r e D e a l e r. c o m 2312MTD_20-33_2023SemaShowV2.indd 21

“You’re seeing us broaden our spectrum of applications,” says Michael Mathis, president of Atturo Tire Corp. Photo: MTD

“Designed for superb street performance, tight and controlled cornering and superior grip, the AZ850 now boasts additional sizes catering to high-performance vehicles, including EVs that demand higher load capacity and excellent traction for modern high-torque vehicles,” say Atturo officials. Potential applications include luxury and performance vehicles, such as BMW 5

and 6 series, Cadillac CT6, Chevrolet Corvette, Lexus IS, Mercedes-Benz C-Class and CLS-Class and Tesla Model 3 and Model Y. New AZ850 sizes include 245/35R19, 285/30R19, 235/35R20, 275/30R20, 255/35R21 and 275/35R21. The AZ600 all-season touring tire “continues to cement its place in the market with expanded sizes to keep today’s daily drivers of SUVs, CUVs, and more rolling in quiet confidence.” Its new sizes include 235/65R18, 225/55R19, 235/55R19, 245/55R19, 235/50R19, 235/45R19, 235/55R20, 245/50R20, 255/50R20, 255/55R20, 275/50R22 and 285/45R22. The Trail Blade ATS all-terrain “is expanding into five new and popular sizes that cater specifically to the SUV and CUV customers who want a tire that has the looks and the brawn. Potential vehicles in this category include Chevy Colorado, Equinox, Trailblazer and Trax; Ford Bronco, Ranger, Maverick and Escape; GMC Terrain; Jeep Cherokee, Compass and Renegade; Subaru Crosstrek, Forester and Outback; and Toyota RAV4 and Highlander.” New si z es i nclude 225/60R17, 225/65R17, 225/60R18, 245/50R20 and 255/55R20. “With these additions to our product range, we’re solidifying our commitment

21 11/28/23 3:45 PM

SEMA Show to meeting the diverse needs of our customers,” says Karl Becker, vice president of sales and operations, Atturo. “Our expanded product offerings ensure a wider range of fitments, while maintaining great profitability for our dealer and distributor partners.” Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. has added to its Cooper brand with the Cooper ProControl all-season and Cooper Cobra Instinct, as well as the Discoverer Road+Trail AT tire. The Cooper Discoverer Road+Trail AT fits SUVs and half-ton trucks, according to Jenny Paige, senior product manager for Goodyear. “This tire comes in hard-metric sizes. Now, if you get into heavy-duty trucks, that’s what we would call ‘light truck’ and this tire doesn’t go up that big.” This tire replaces the Cooper Discoverer AT34S tire, which lacks some of the features the new tire possesses, including tread that extends down the sidewall “50% further” and is “twice as deep as the old tire was,” says Paige. This allows the tire to grip diverse types of terrain. “This is important because this tire is for road and trail, which means it has the comfort of on-road driving, but the capability of off-road driving,” continues Paige. This tire came out in August of 2023 and has a 65,000-mile treadwear warranty. “We are seeing a lot of smaller vehicle owners (who) are taking off the OE highway tires and putting on the all-terrain tires to be able to get more grip.” Because of this, the Road+Trail AT is available in smaller sizes to fit crossover vehicles and because of that, V speed ratings were introduced to the tire. The Cooper Cobra Instinct is an ultrahigh-performance tire, which replaces the Cooper Zion RSG31. “We named it Cooper Cobra because we have had a long legacy of Cooper Cobra on American muscle cars and so we’ve taken that name and brought it to the present for modern muscle cars,” she says. The sidewall has a snakeskin look to feed into the Cooper Cobra name and it has an asymmetrical tread pattern with lateral grooves that help evacuate water.. The tire is available in 25 sizes. The Cooper ProControl came out this spring and is a “mass market, everyday tire.” “It’s for people who want peace of mind and confidence while driving,” says Paige. The tire is made for SUVs. It replaces

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The Cooper Discoverer Road+Trail AT, which fits SUVs and half-ton trucks, has both on-road and off-road capabilites, according to Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. officials. Photo: MTD

The Kontio Whitepaw Classic will be available in new 14-inch and 15-inch sizes to make up an expanded line. Photo: MTD

The Kanati Overland RTX from Greenball Corp. sports an advanced rubber compound for optimal longevity, multi-direction sipes for enhanced traction on dry and wet surfaces and other features. Photo: MTD

The Razr AT-S tire from Maxxis is expected to launch in the first quarter, with more sizes due during the second quarter of 2024. Photo: MTD

the Cooper Discover SRX Cooper CS5. Greenball Corp.’s Kanati Overland RTX targets owners of pickups, SUVs, CUVs and Jeeps who enjoy going off-road. “With over a decade of research and experience behind (its) optimized construction and reformulated rubber compound,” the Kanati Overland RTX is the Kanati line’s “most advanced and best-performing tire, to date,” according to Greenball officials. The tire features an advanced rubber compound for optimal longevity, multidirection sipes for enhanced traction on dry and wet surfaces, a multi-angled tread block design that has been engineered for noise minimization, a balanced tread void ratio and more.

It’s available in two 15-inch sizes, three 16-inch sizes, 10 17-inch sizes, two 18-inch sizes, seven 20-inch sizes and four 22-inch sizes. An additional 16-inch size, another 18-inch size, two 20-inch sizes and three 22-inch sizes will be available soon. Hankook Tire America Corp. displayed its new Dynapro HPX all-season touring tire for SUV applications. Available in Januar y 2024, the Dynapro HPX will be available in 39 sizes, fitting wheels ranging from 16 inches to 22 inches in diameter, with speed ratings up to V. The tire comes with a 70,000-mile limited tread wear warranty. “Dynapro is Hankook ’s f lagship offering for SUVs, offering performance MTD December 2023 11/28/23 3:45 PM

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SEMA Show and reliability to drivers in a variety of driving conditions and scenarios,” says Rob Williams, president of Hankook Tire America Corp. “The Dynapro HPX builds on our success in this category by providing drivers with an all-season touring option that delivers extended tread life, enhanced safety and outstanding comfort.” The Dynapro HPX features a variety of innovations, including a new, all-season compound “to spread ground pressure,” according to Hankook officials; the company’s 3D GripKontrol sipes for improved snow braking, wet braking and handling versus its predecessor; knurling technology; and optimized, multi-pitch sequencing for enhanced driver comfort. With the launch of the Dynapro HPX, Hankook’s Dynapro line now includes five tires for SUVs and light trucks. These include the Dynapro HT, an allseason highway tire; the Dynapro AT2 Xtreme, an all-terrain tire; the Dynapro XT, for rugged-terrain driving; and the Dynapro MT2, “for the toughest, muddiest environments,” according to Hankook officials. “The SUV segment continues to grow and drivers are looking for a versatile product,” Williams told MTD. “Market demands are very clear. A lot of the SUVs you see... everybody is entering that segment (and) looking for that premium product and diversity within the product. We want to make sure we fit the majority of the market.” The Crossmax AT-1 boasts a variety of features, including wide and deep grooves with switchback tread blocks for optimal traction. Photo: Horizon Tire Inc.

Horizon Tire Inc. has rolled out its latest product in its Crossmax line, the AT-1, which is available in 15 popular sizes. “Th is aggressive, all-terrain tire is engineered to dominate any terrain, regardless of conditions,” say Horizon officials. “It is designed to take on the

24 2312MTD_20-33_2023SemaShowV2.indd 24

American Tire Distributors Inc. highlighted its new Hercules Roadtour Connect AS tire and the Hercules Terra Trac Cross-V AW tire at the SEMA Show. Photo: MTD

Hankook Tire America Corp. returned to the 2023 SEMA Show for the first time since 2017 and launched the newest product in the Dynapro lineup for SUVs. The Dynapro HPX will be available in 2024. Photo: MTD

toughest off-road challenges and rocky terrains with unwavering confidence.” The Crossmax AT-1 boasts a variety of features, including wide and deep grooves with switchback tread blocks for optimal traction. The product is backed by a 50,000mile treadwear warranty and “will be available for factory direct orders.” Available sizes include LT265/70R17, LT 2 85/70R17, LT 2 65/75R16 a nd 275/55R20.

The Kontio WhitePaw Classic has doubled its size range, says Dennis Feldman, vice president of Performance Plus Tires, which distributes the line in the United States. The Whitepaw Classic whitewall, which was designed in Finland, will be available in new 14-inch and 15-inch sizes. “The size expansion completes the line,” says Feldman. Performance Plus Tires is based in Long Beach, Calif., where it has a distribution MTD December 2023 11/28/23 3:45 PM

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SEMA Show TIA hosts star-studded events

Tire Industry Hall of Fame inductions, Right to Repair/EV Forum were highlights

he Tire Industry Association (TIA) hosted a number of event s before the official start of the SEMA Show. Among them were Tire Industry Hall of Fame inductions and a special Right to Repair/ EV Forum. Sumitomo Rubber Nor th America Inc.’s (SRNA) Richard Smallwood and scrap tire recycling champion Mary Sikora joined the Tire Industry Hall of Fame. Both Smallwood and Sikora were inducted on Oct. 30 during a special ceremony. Smallwood is the retired

at SRNA, formerly known as Falken Tire Corp. “First, always do the right thing. If you want to earn the trust and respect of others, they have to know that you will always do the right thing.” The second lesson? “Always take care of your people and treat them with respect,” he said. “Employees aren’t assets. You don’t buy, sell and dispose of people.” Next, “don’t ever underestimate the impact you have on other people’s lives. Don’t waste that opportunity.” And finally, “say thank you.

Eric Snyder, senior director of federal government affairs for SEMA (left, seated next to TIA CEO Dick Gust), discusses the importance of the Right to Repair movement. Photo: MTD

president and CEO of SRNA and remains chairman of the company. He also serves on the board of Sumitomo Rubber U.S.A. and is an advisor of Sumitomo Rubber Industries Ltd., SRNA’s parent. Sikora, a longtime advocate of scrap tire recycling, is the publisher, editor and owner of Scrap Tire News/Recycling magazine. Dur ing his accep t ance speech, Smallwood shared four things that he learned during his 35 years in the tire industry, including 22 years

26 2312MTD_20-33_2023SemaShowV2.indd 26

A simple thank you can make a big impact on another person’s life.” TIA’s Right to Repair/EV Forum, also held on Oct. 30, drew a standing room-only crowd. “Right to Repair is the most critical problem in our industry today,” Dick Gust, CEO of TIA, told forum attendees, who represented independent tire dealerships, mass retailers and other tire outlets. The association says its call to action on the Right to Repair issue is to get legislation passed. “We need to get something

passed if we want to get anything done,” continued Gust. According to Roy Littlefield IV, TIA’s vice president of government affairs, a federal coalition is needed, but will be tough to achieve. “If we can have a law (that covers) all 50 states, that is what we need to fix this,” said Littlefield. Stopping the spread of misinformation about Right to Repair has been another concern for TIA. Littlefield told attendees TIA believes car manufacturers have spent $89 million on efforts to fight Right to Repair through advertisements and other initiatives. “This is David versus Goliath,” said Eric Snyder, senior director of federal government affairs for SEMA, which is working with TIA. “The (car) dealers are going after this with everything they have. This is hand-to-hand combat. “Each and every business” at the TIA Right to Repair/EV Forum “has a vested interest in this issue. We want people to have a choice “It’s scary the way things are going,” he said, but added there is strength in numbers. “Lawmakers listen when you are organized and have a consistent message,” he said. Gust agreed that grassroots initiatives are the best way to lobby for Right to Repair. TIA said its members also can support the Right to Repair movement through supporting states’ efforts; supporting TIA’s congressional efforts; staying informed; and documenting experienced problems when servicing electric vehicles.

Sumitomo Rubber North America Inc.’s Richard Smallwood (pictured) and tire recycling advocate Mary Sikora were inducted into the Tire Industry Hall of Fame. Photo: MTD

The conversation about Right to Repair then segued into a discussion around EV tire repair. TIA said it created its Electric Vehicle Advisory Council (EVAC) to focus on educating and training tire dealers on the proper service techniques and procedures for EVs, establishing potential safety protocols when working on them and delivering best practices for EV service and maintenance. Mark Ferner, senior manager, of technical operations for Bridgestone Retail Operations, is the chair of EVAC. The council is working on documents that will provide information on how to properly lift EVs; safely work with highvoltage systems; and other concerns. “You can service EV tires,” Ferner told attendees. MTD December 2023 11/28/23 3:45 PM

center. The company’s other distribution center is located in Oak Ridge, Tenn. The distributor also owns the Boyd Coddington custom wheel brand. Maxxis International-USA said it will add to its light truck tire lineup in early 2024 with the Razr AT-S, an “A/T sport” tire that the company says will deliver what enthusiasts want most: all-weather traction, tough wear and a comfortable ride. The tire is designed for light vehicles and will feature a next generation allterrain compound designed to enhance tread wear, as well as cut and chip resistance to improve overall mileage. The S-shaped center blocks of the tread are made to enhance stability and improve traction on all surfaces. Saw-toothed circumferential grooves will aid snow traction and water evacuation, while the tread’s jagged lateral grooves will help to disperse water, sand and snow to improve handling, well as braking performance. The tire is 3PMS-certified and comes with a rugged looking sidewall that also offers protection during both off- and on-road encounters. It is expected to launch in the first quarter, with more sizes due in the second quarter of 2024. With the new Baja Boss XS, Mickey Thompson Tires & Wheels has combined the tread pattern and technology of the brand’s Baja Boss M/T tire with the competition tire the Baja Boss X. The result is a new DOT-certified, four-ply reinforced tire coming in January 2024. Ben Anderson, senior product manager for light truck tires at Mickey Thompson, says “The Baja Boss XS is a hybrid of the X and M/T.” The company calls it “the most rugged DOT-approved tire Mickey Thompson has ever made.” The tire features an asymmetric tread pattern, extreme “side biters” and silica-reinforced compound from the mud-terrain tire. Its high-void tread pattern is made for tackling extreme rocky terrain. It will be available in three popular flotation sizes: 35x12.50R17LT, 37x12.50R17LT, and 40x13.50R17LT. Prinx Chengshan Tire North America Inc. highlighted a new all-weather tire and a new four-season tire at the show. The Prinx HiSeason 4S HS1 all-weather is a passenger tire with 3-Peak Mountain Snowflake certification that will launch in the first quarter with 23 sizes, and will include 61 sizes by the end of 2024. w w w . M o d e r n T i r e D e a l e r. c o m 2312MTD_20-33_2023SemaShowV2.indd 27

The Mickey Thompson Baja Boss XS is DOT-certified for highway use and will be available in three popular flotation sizes: 35x12.50R17LT, 37x12.50R17LT, and 40x13.50R17LT, says Mickey Thompson Product Manager Ben Anderson. Photo: MTD

“We’ve always had Delinte PLT products,” says Nick Gutierrez, sales director for Sentury Tire USA. “Customers asked us, ‘When are you coming out with Delinte TBR?’” Photo: MTD

Ladder-shaped grooves between tread blocks will enhance stiffness to aid in driving stability, Prinx officials say, while increased sipe density and “snow plow” units at the bottom of the lugs will boost traction on snow-covered surfaces. The company says the tire “is designed to be a game changer” and will “revolutionaize the value tier all-weather tire category.” The new year will also usher in the launch of the Fortune Climaflex 4S, a four-season tire designed with the “Fortune Four” tread pattern, which provides both aesthetics and performance.

Qingdao Doublestar Tire Industrial Co. Ltd. is bringing four new commercial medium truck tires to the U.S. Photo: MTD

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SEMA Show The Prinx HiSeason 4S HS1 tire is an all-weather passenger tire that will debut in 2024. By the end of the year it will be available in 61 sizes. Photo: Prinx Chengshan Tire North America Inc.

The Fortune Climaflex will come in sizes ranging from 15 inches to 22 inches, with the first 23 sizes coming in the first quarter, and 19 more sizes following in the second quarter, plus 19 more in the third quarter of 2024. Both tires from Prinx Chengshan come with a 65,000-mile limited treadware warranty. Qingdao Doublestar Tire Industrial Co. Ltd. is bringing four new commercial medium truck tires to the United States. They include the Doublestar DMA 188, which has been developed for on/ off-road applications and is available in size 295/80R22.5, and the Doublestar DLS918, which comes in 19 sizes and is engineered for both long-haul and regional applications.

Tire Group International LLC’s Cosmo Rockit R/T features a deep tread and grooves to expel rocks and water more easily during operation. Photo: MTD

Also new are the Doublestar HLS915, a long-haul/regional product that is available in sizes 11R22.5, 11R24.5, 285/75R24.5 and 295/75R22.5; and the

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Doublestar DLD812, which is available in the same size range as the HLS915 and has been designed for heavy-load applications. Sentury Tire USA displayed its recently refreshed Delinte brand TBR lineup at the SEMA Show. Seven new Delinte TBR tires include an open shoulder drive regional tire, a tire for logging and construction applications, a closed shoulder drive regional tire, a long-haul trailer product, a regional all-position tire, a standard all-position mixed-service product and a wide all-position mixed-service tire. Sentury Tire USA officials describe the new Delinte TBR offerings as “a comprehensive range” that meet “diverse requirements.” “We’ve always had Delinte PLT” products, says Nick Gutierrez, sales director for Sentury Tire USA. “Customers asked us, ‘When are you coming out with Delinte TBR?’” Sentury Tire USA also showcased new Groundspeed-brand TBR tires. Recently unveiled Groundspeed TBR tires include an open shoulder drive regional product, an open shoulder drive construction/mixed-service tire and all-position mixed-service tire in sizes 385/65R22.5 and 425/65R22.5, both 20-ply. Tire Group International LLC (TGI) is introducing its Cosmo Stray Kat specialty trailer tire and a Cosmo brand EV tire. The company also has introduced its El Jefe Van II, III, IV and V tires. The Stray Kat trailer tire comes in six different sizes, has a deep tread and provides enhanced lower rolling resistance. Th is tire is available now. TGI also is coming out with an EVcompatible tire, the Current. Th is tire will be available in early 2024 and will be offered in 17 SKUs during its fi rst phase. The Cosmo Current will be produced with advanced mold technology, including spring-loaded injectors, which will enhance the tire’s appearance and overall quality. It has been engineered to provide “ultra-low rolling resistance” and a smooth, quiet ride, says TGI CEO Tony Gonzalez. The tire also features narrower grooves and diagonal sipes to keep road noise down. In addition, the Cosmo Current features a battery symbol on its tread, which acts as a treadwear indicator that will allow the customer to easily see when the tire needs to be replaced.

The Haida HD869, a mud-terrain high performance off-road tire available from Trimax Tire, is now available in two new 28-inch sizes — 37x14.50R28LT and 40x15.5028LT — plus two new 30-inch sizes. Photo: MTD

The El Jefe Van tires are built with an “innovative tread design” to help in wet and dry conditions. Deep tread depth and reinforced sidewalls allow the tires to have a longer life, according to Gonzalez. The new El Jefe tires have earned mud and snow certification, too. Also coming down the pike in 2024 are the Cosmo Gripit XT tire and the Cosmo Rockit R/T tire. The Cosmo Rockit R/T has deep tread and grooves to expel rocks and water more easily. “Th is will add close to 35 SKUs to our line,” says Gonzalez. He adds that both the Cosmo Gripit XT and Rockit R/T will be available in early 2024. All of these products and more are featured on Cosmo Tire’s new website, which went live recently. “Our website is a lot more user-friendly and is focused on the customer experience. We have our tires split into sections for consumers to look through, depending on the type of driving they do.” Toyo Tire U.S.A. Corp. is breaking new ground with its Open Country A/T III EV, an electric vehicle-specific, allterrain light truck tire. Toyo highlighted the tire inside its Toyo TreadPass area, between the South Hall and Central Hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center. “Designed and manufactured in the U.S.A., this on/off-road all-terrain tire is engineered from the ground up to align with the unique requirements of MTD December 2023 11/28/23 3:45 PM

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SEMA Show “Tires at 2” delivered real-world advice Dealers shared secrets of their success

he Tire Industry Association’s (TIA) Successful Tire Dealers panel at this year’s SEMA Show featured representatives from two past MTD Tire Dealer of the Year honorees. This year’s panelists included Jeremy Benton, vice president of commercial division and manufacturing, and Frankie Underwood, director of sales, of Whiteville, N.C.-based Black’s Tire Service Inc. They were joined by Joe Dunlap, who leads the retail efforts at Batesville, Miss.-based Dunlap & Kyle Co. Inc.

Tire dealer panelists included Black’s Tire Service Inc.’s Jeremy Benton, (second from right) vice president of commercial division and manufacturing, and Frankie Underwood, (second from left) director of sales, Black’s Tire, plus Joe Dunlap (far left) of Dunlap & Kyle Co. Inc. Photo: MTD

Benton’s father, Ricky Benton, was MTD’s Tire Dealer of the Year in 2015 and Dunlap’s father, Bob Dunlap, was MTD’s Tire Dealer of the Year in 2022. The panel focused on what makes the two dealerships successful and when asked, the panelists’ responses were similar: the right people, digital marketing and community support. “We take care of our employees and in turn, they take care of our customers,” said Underwood.

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Benton and Underwood said hiring people you can trust helps your business overall. Benton noted that the first employee his father hired is coming up on his 45th anniversary at Black’s Tire. “You can’t operate without good people,” said Dunlap. Both companies have enacted successful employee recruitment and retention strategies. “We’ve created an apprenticeship (program) and we work with technical colleges in the area to try and bring awareness to more young people about the automotive and tire industry,” said Benton. Benton added that Black ’s Tire encourages its employees to bring their family and friends into the dealership as customers and potential employees. “We have business cards we pass out at other businesses, where it says, ‘Excuse our candor, but you impressed me with how you interact with customers. Black’s Tire is always looking for more people like you. Feel free to reach out if you would be interested,” said Underwood. Black’s Tire also uses an app called Workable Software, which provides an applicant tracking system. It interacts with LinkedIn, as well. “We try to keep people by understanding them,” said Dunlap. “You can’t operate without good people, so you need to accommodate your employees because that’s who your business is.” Dunlap said that giving back to employees is important at Dunlap & Kyle. At the end of every year, half of the company’s retail store profits are given back to the employees as a bonus. “And when we have some stores that struggle or some years we struggle and we don’t make a ton of profit, we cheat and give all the profit to our employees, instead of keeping it for ourselves,” he added. Underwood said Black’s Tire is using social media to market itself. The dealership has strayed away from print ads, but still does some radio advertising.

“We have a dedicated person to our social media marketing pages,” he said. Dunlap said Dunlap & Kyle doesn’t do much marketing anymore, but agrees that every tire dealership needs to have a presence on social media. Both dealerships closely monitor their Google reviews and respond quickly to negative ones. Underwood and Dunlap agreed that negative reviews need to be taken care of “before the sun goes down.” Underwood suggested calling the customer who wrote the negative review to see what went wrong and to try to find a solution that appeases both parties. “After we get the issue resolved, we always ask them to take the review down or we make a point to reply back to their negative review, letting other customers know that the issue has been taken care of and we didn’t just ignore it,” he continued. Online tire selling also was discussed during the panel. “You don’t even have to leave your couch” to buy tires, said Dunlap. “You can order tires online for a reasonable price and as the world becomes more ‘self-service,’ those online tire buying platforms are becoming more popular.” SKU proliferation was another topic of conversation. “There is the proliferation of SKUs and so many different tire sizes and the most popular sizes just keep getting bigger and bigger,” said Underwood. He described tire technicians as doctors. Everyone expects techs to know how to diagnose every vehicle. “Tire techs have thousands” of models to be aware of, “because each vehicle is different.” Underwood continued by saying having resources like those provided by TIA is extremely helpful for Black’s Tire. He encouraged others to join the association. “Become a member of TIA and get educated, get connected with others in the industry and it will help you in the long run.”

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SEMA Show

Tilani brand ag tires from ZC Rubber are now available in the U.S. (Pictured from left to right, Chan Phothisane, OTR national sales director, ZC Rubber, and Richard Li, marketing director, global, ZC Rubber, at the SEMA Show).

strong, rigid tread pattern that provides a robust grounding area “with sturdy performance to resist impact from the road,” according to Trimax officials. The X/T tire’s tread also features longitudinal and crosswise pattern grooves for optimal traction on mud, snow and gravel-covered surfaces. In addition, the tire boasts high impact resistance in its shoulder and a rigid sidewall for enhanced cut and tear resistance, plus other features. The Haida HD877’s size range extends from LT235/70R16 up through 33x12.50R20LT. The Haida HD869, a mud-terrain high performance off-road tire, is now available in two new 28-inch sizes — 37x14.50R28LT and 40x15.5028LT — and a new 26-inch size. The product also is now available in two 30-inch sizes: 42X13.50R30LT and 42x16.50R30LT.

Photo: MTD

electric-powered vehicles, including instant torque, rapid acceleration, the additional weight and range efficiency,” say Toyo officials. “Building on the impressive performance of the current Open Country A/T III, the all-new EV version delivers exceptional off-road performance, as well as confidence-inspiring on-road handling and ride comfort. It also qualifies for the severe snow service traction rating and is equipped with the 3-Peak Mountain Snowflake symbol for all-weather driving confidence.” Features include Toyo’s sidewall AeroWing, plus high-contrast lettering and chamfered shoulder blocks to help reduce wind drag, while maintaining all-terrain performance and the aggressive appearance that consumers seek. “An optimized tread pattern and advanced tread compound provide reduced rolling resistance, improved durability and long tread wear life.” “The first question (we hear from customers) is, ‘Why all-terrain? That doesn’t seem possible,’” says Todd Bergeson, senior manager of product planning and technical services at Toyo. “And that’s why we did it.” EV tires for light truck applications “is blue ocean category. It’s brand new. “To our knowledge, we’re the only ones

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doing it on the replacement side.” The new Open Country A/T III, whose first size, LT275/60R20, will be available in February 2024, targets popular electric light trucks like the Ford F-150 Lightning. “It would be a lot easier to develop a highway-terrain tire, but anyone can do that,” says Bergeson. “We wanted to lead with an all-terrain (tire) because it’s something we know. We’re pretty good at it. And we’ve learned that ‘s what folks want.” Other LT and P-metric OE and plus sizes have been developed and are planned for release later in 2024 and will target vehicles like the Rivian R1T/ R1S and GMC Hummer EV, as well as, in the future, the Tesla Cybertruck and Chevrolet EVs. “Toyo Tires will continue to roll out more sizes as this segment grows, with new vehicles becoming available in the future,” say Toyo officials. Trimax Tire spotlighted its new Haida HD877, which is now available in eight popular sizes. And Trimax has added new sizes to its Haida HD869. The new Haida HD877 features a

The Mastertrack M-Trac HP will be available in 11 sizes, fitting wheels ranging from 17 inches to 20 inches in diameter, and will come with a 50,000-mile limited treadwear warranty. Photo: Unicorn Tire Corp.

The Haida D869’s entire range spans more than 30 sizes. “30-inch LT tires are a niche,” says Chris Tolbert, director of sales, Trimax. “But when everyone isn’t doing it, that’s an opportunity for us.” Unicorn Tire Corp. is adding seven passenger and light truck products to its Mastertrack line, including the Mastertrack M-Trac HP high performance tire. The Mastertrack M-Trac HP will be available in 11 sizes, fitting wheels ranging from 17 inches to 20 inches in diameter, and will come with a 50,000mile limited treadwear warranty. The Mastertrack M-Trac Tour passenger line will consist of 20 sizes that fit wheels up to 17 inches in diameter and will come with a 55,000-mile limited treadwear warranty. In the SUV/CUV category, Unicorn will launch the Mastertrack M-Trac MTD December 2023 11/28/23 3:45 PM

Toyo Tire U.S.A. Corp. is breaking new ground with its Open Country A/T III EV, an electric vehicle-specific, allterrain light truck tire, which was on display in Toyo’s TreadPass area. Photo: MTD

CUV, which will come in 22 sizes, and the Mastertrack M-Track HT highway, a highway SUV and light truck product with 16- and 18-inch sizes. Unicorn also is addressing the allterrain, rugged-terrain and mud-terrain segments with new tires. The Mastertrack Badlands AT allterrain tire will be available in 28 sizes for wheels ranging from 15 inches to 20 inches in diameter and will come with a 50,000-mile limited treadwear warranty. Meanwhile, the Mastertrack Badlands RT, a rugged-terrain tire, will consist of 16 sizes and the Mastertrack Badlands MT, an aggressive mud-terrain tire, will be available in 17 sizes, ranging from LT285/75R16 to 37x13.50R24LT. All of the above tires are rolling out in the U.S. during the fourth quarter of 2023. Combined, they represent 187 total SKUs. Phase two of the line expansion “will include a dedicated all-terrain tire for CUVs ... as well as a high-rim (diameter) UHP tire,” say Unicorn officials.

Zhongce Rubber Group Co. Ltd. (ZC Rubber) brought its Tianli brand ag tire line to the SEMA Show. “We have a few distributors who are (already) selling it,” says Richard Li, marketing director, global, ZC Rubber. Radial tractor and harvester application tires include the Ag-R 80/85/95 Series, the Ag-R 70/75 Series, the Ag-R 60/65 Series, the Agri King, the Genesis, the AG RS and the Paddle-11, plus several more. The Tianli ag line also contains three radial flotation tires for agricultural trailers, the Agro Grip, Ride King and FR/FR-1; three radial implement tires, the G-K-F, R100 and R305; and others. In addition, ZC Rubber is introducing a new solid press-on tire under its Westlake brand. “And we’re upgrading our Arisun brand PLT tires,” says Li. “We had 40 sizes. Now we’re expanding to 80 sizes.” (For even more details about new tires and other products unveiled during the 2023 SEMA Show, visit www.moderntiredealer.com.) ■

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Creamery Tire

“Until I get everybody trained on (RoboTire’s automated tire installation machine), it’s not getting used as much as what we’d like it to be,” says Jim Shainline, owner of Creamery Tire Inc. in Creamery, Pa. “We’re hoping within the next few months to get some more guys trained on it to the point where it’s being utilized every day, all day.” Photo: RoboTire

A robotic answer to a call for help CREAMERY TIRE PLACES HOPES IN TECHNOLOGY By

Joy Kopcha

he legacy of Creamery Tire Inc. begins in a home garage with tires stored inside and friends’ and family members’ tires serviced outside. Fast forward 35 years and today, the company is using robots to change tires. “We’re kind of techie, but we’re not normally early adopters,” says owner Jim Shainline. “I would say this is the first thing that we went all out and said, ‘We want to get in on the ground floor.’” Before there were robots, Creamery Tire started with family. Like so many other second-generation tire dealers, Jim says he grew up watching his dad in the business. Dick Shainline was first a tire wholesaler. His youngest son remembers being six or seven years old and riding along with his dad delivering tires in the 1970s.

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By the mid-1980s, the elder Shainline wanted to transition into retail and he started with that shop at home. Creamery Tire, in Creamery, Pa., got its official start in 1988. Dick’s older son, Rich, joined him and eventually the duo outgrew their shop space at home. In 1993, they acquired property and built a store and Creamery Tire moved to Creamery Road in Creamery, Pa. As the business continued to grow, Jim joined his brother and dad at work. On two separate occasions, they doubled the size of the Creamery Road location and for a couple of years were selling 70,000 to 80,000 tires from that store. After their dad retired, the Shainline brothers decided to expand their ownership circle to include a pair of key employees: Joe Franklin and Tom Rambo.

And as time went on, they added three more stores in Chalfont, East Norriton and Phoenixville. All are located north of Philadelphia.

CLOSURE IN THE FACE OF SHORTAGE

Expansion has been a goal, but also a slow process. Jim Shainline says in 2019, the company was finalizing deals to add both the East Norriton and Phoenixville locations. “Then of course, 2020 hit and everything stopped.” It was anything but an ideal time to open additional stores, but he says the company had already made deals and had begun work on the buildings. “At that point, there was no way to back out of them. So we just went forward.” The Phoenixville location opened in August 2020, while the East Norriton MTD December 2023 11/28/23 3:45 PM

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Creamery Tire store opened in May 2021. “But our East Norriton location definitely picked up quicker,” he says. As time went on, staffing pressures worsened and Jim says the company realized “we didn’t have enough people (to keep all four stores open.)” They could have shuffled some personnel between stores, but customer demand at the Creamery, Chalfont and East Norriton locations remained steady and the team decided it didn’t make sense to complicate those stores’ operations by cutting staff. So about a year ago, Creamery Tire closed the doors of its Phoenixville location. The company moved the staff that did remain there to its other stores to help share the workload in the busier locations.

recruiting for me. We’re trying to keep our other locations fully staffed. “There’s always a need for tire techs. That’s our main thing — getting people to actually change tires. All that we do is tires. I don’t do any mechanical work or anything like that. It’s hard to find people who want to bust tires all day. We’re always looking for that. “I probably need five more people and I could get that location open, but we need to find five of the right people to do it.” The search for those who want to do manual labor in a hot and humid tire dealership in the summer is especially difficult. Jim says he hears it from other business owners who need people to do physical jobs, too.

In the beginning, Jim Shainline says there was some trepidation among employees thinking, “’They’re going to replace us with robots,’” he says. “But we quelled that pretty quickly. We’re not doing this to replace anybody.” Photo: RoboTire

“(Phoenixville) was doing well, but it wasn’t as busy as the other locations. So it made more sense for the couple of people that we still had there to spread them out to the other locations. We didn’t actually lose any employees. We just had to incorporate them into (the other locations.)” The company still lists the Phoenixville store on its website, but notes the outlet is “temporarily closed.” Jim says, “Unfortunately, I don’t have any expectations right now (of when it might reopen.) It’s still to be determined. We’re seeking (employees) every day. I have someone who’s actually doing

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“We’re trying to get people who don’t mind going out there and sweating for eight or nine hours a day. It’s definitely not easy work.”

TURNING TO ROBOTIC TECHNOLOGY

The search for employees — and especially the need for employees who can physically lift and handle tires all day long — brings us back to robots. “That’s one of the reasons we started this whole thing with RoboTire,” a Detroit, Mich.-based company that claims its automated tire installation machine can bolt on four tires in less than 20 minutes.

“I can have that robot change tires with one person running an entire bay,” rather than Creamery Tire’s typical strategy, which is to assign two tire technicians to each vehicle. “If I can have one guy run a full bay and do tires where I normally would need two to three guys, that helps with my labor shortage a lot.” Jim Shainline says the RoboTire system at Creamery Tire is the first one that is “fully integrated with the tire changers and balancers.” Discount Tire, which has invested in RoboTire, has installed the system at stores in Arizona and Texas, but those are set up with robotic arms to “take the tires off and put the tires back on (the vehicle,)” then a technician will take the tires for service work. Creamery Tire’s system is all-encompassing, with a tire changer and balancer from Hunter Engineering Co. built into it. Jim says the tire dealership hadn’t used Hunter equipment previously, so there was a slight adjustment to using a new brand of equipment. But “it wasn’t anything where it took a lot of training or anything like that to get used to them. “The robot takes the tire off the car and brings it over to set it right on the tire machine to change the tire. You hit the pedal and it changes the tire for you,” he says. “You’ve got to take the old tire off, put the new tire back on,” and then after pressing the pedal, “it mounts it back up for you and then the robot takes the tire off the tire changer (and) puts it on the balancer. You spin it. You put the weights on it. The robot comes over, pulls it off the balancer and puts it back on the car. “It does all the lifting. It takes all the grunt part out of it, so the technician doesn’t have to spend all that energy.” He says most of the tire technicians he hires are in their 20s and have the energy and stamina required to change multiple tires a day. “By the time somebody is in their 30s and 40s, it’s tough to get down and change tires. It takes a toll on you.” Jim Shainline says he’s 53 “and I can work on it all day and not even get tired. It takes that much of the physical effort out of changing the tires.” Creamery Tire talked with RoboTire officials for more than two years before ultimately purchasing their robotic system. It was installed at the company’s largest and busiest store, in Creamery, the week before Christmas 2022. And because the technology is so new, MTD December 2023 11/28/23 3:45 PM

the tire dealership knew its investment came with a role to play in the research and development phase. Just like the installments at Discount Tire helped RoboTire work out glitches with the system’s robotic arms, Jim says Creamery Tire is ready to help with the integrations of the tire machines and balancer. “It wasn’t an impulsive thing. It was a good two to two-and-a-half years of conversation back and forth with (RoboTire). We really think we can make this work. With all the AI (artificial intelligence) stuff going on with driverless cars, this is the way that everything’s going to go — more computer-oriented and roboticsoriented. We thought it would be kind of neat to get on the ground floor of this and help somebody design a system.” And so far, the RoboTire system is living up to expectations. Jim says not every technician has been trained on how to manage the system yet, so that stands in the way of it being used non-stop, every day at Creamery Tire. “We try to use it at least a few times

every day. It’s not as fast as doing it the conventional way. They say that it will change four tires in 20 minutes and it may get there. It’s not quite there yet. There’s still some work that needs to be done on it. One guy can change four tires in 30 minutes with very little effort.” That time is improving, he says. RoboTire has made updates to software and adjustments to the robot’s movements throughout the process, and as a result, installation time “has definitely decreased by a good 15 minutes.” Jim says even if RoboTire doesn’t hit its stated goal of four tires in 20 minutes, he thinks eight tires in 60 minutes puts Creamery Tire in a good position. “If I can, with one guy, turn two cars an hour, I’d be happy with that,” he says. “Your best tire technician might be able to change four tires, depending on what kind of car it is, in 30 minutes. But he’s not going to do that all day. “For the first two, three or four cars, he could probably keep that speed going, but after six or seven hours, you’re not going

to be able to do that all day, whereas the robot is going to be able to consistently do that all day, every day. The hardest part (for the technician) is walking back and forth from one side (of the vehicle) to the other.” Two big questions when automating tasks like those performed by trained tire technicians center around what those employees think of the system and if they consider it a threat to their livelihoods. Jim says the reaction from his employees has been mostly positive. In the beginning, there was some hesitation, with employees thinking, “’They’re going to replace us with robots,’” he says. “But we quelled that pretty quickly. We’re not doing this to replace anybody. “We still need people to run the robot. We’re still going to need people in the other bays. “We’re not going to set all of our bays up with robots. We knew that wasn’t going to happen. Once (the system) got here and they actually saw how it worked, they realized this isn’t replacing anybody.” ■

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Car care clinics

Empowering through education WESTSIDE TIRE & SERVICE EDUCATES CUSTOMERS THROUGH CAR CARE CLINICS

Madison Gehring

bout six or seven years ago, Lisa Walters, co-owner and vice president of the three-location, Youngstown, Ohio-based Westside Tire & Service, read an article about hosting car care clinics for female customers on AskPatty.com, a company whose goal is to help women feel more comfortable when buying and repairing vehicles. Walters took the idea to her brother and Westside Tire co-owner, Rich Rogenski, and they decided to “made it happen,” she says. Westside Tire & Service hosted its first car clinic for female customers in 2018. The event was a success, bringing in around 10 people. Since then, Walters says many changes have taken place to improve the clinics. “Every year, we try to make it better, so we’ve kept what we like and we’ve eliminated what wasn’t relevant.” For example, Walters says her team likes to get the clinics wrapped up in about 75 minutes. Westside Tire used to stage two-hour-long clinics. Those proved to be too long for participants. Westside Tire & Service also opened the clinics to men a few years ago. “When we first started the clinics, we called them ‘car care clinics for women.’ Women, in particular, when they have to visit a shop, it can be a very intimidating experience for them.

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Westside Tire & Service began hosting car care clinics in 2018. The events typically last less than 90 minutes. Photo: Westside Tire & Service

“We want them to feel more comfortable and we feel that providing them with that knowledge will empower them. “But we had some men come in and joke with us that it was ‘women-only’ and we realized we needed to make it non-discriminatory, which is why we call them (simply) ‘car care clinics’ now.” Regardless of the participants, Walters says the dealership tries to keep the clinics “informal,” noting that when subject matter becomes too technical, it’s hard for attendees to stay engaged.

A WESTSIDE EVENING

The clinics usually have around 12 to 20 people in attendance and though the events are free, Walters says participants have to sign up for them. “We ask that they register in advance because we get the clinics catered,” says Walters, who explains that she likes to provide a “comfortable and relaxed” environment by providing food and drinks. “The evening begins with Rich welcoming everyone and then we (as a team) introduce ourselves. While everyone eats, Rich talks about vehicle safety and we have some informative handouts passed around, like maintenance schedules.” During the clinic, Westside Tire & Service’s team shows participants wornout parts, including hoses and brake components.

“Rich usually holds up a $20 radiator hose and tells them the price and then a $120 radiator hose and tells them price,” says Walters. “We always get a few ‘oooh’s and aaaah’s’ out of that. “Everyone’s favorite part of the clinics is when we take the participants to their own vehicles, which we already have in the shop, and have a team member by their side as the participants try to find things on their vehicles, using a checklist (that) we gave them.” Westside Tire & Service supplies rubber gloves for participants and all attendees get a free tire gauge. Clinic participants learn how to open the hood of their own vehicles, check their oil, where to find the sticker that contains their vehicle’s recommended tire pressure information and more. “Now they know their tire size, their vehicle identification number and what their air pressure should be.” Lisa says most customers “are pretty fascinated” that the sticker on their car’s door jamb contains so much information “because they don’t pay attention to that. They can’t believe it.”

LOGISTICS OF CLINICS

“Another thing I think the participants in the clinic really appreciate is that we take the time to answer any and all questions — and we encourage that,” she says. MTD December 2023 11/28/23 3:45 PM

“We want them to know that no question is a stupid question. Rich always says women ask really good questions.” At the end of the clinic, when the dealership’s service advisor or one of its technicians works one-on-one with participants, customers can ask specific questions about their vehicles. “It’s more effective if we give them that one-on-one (time) and if we give them the opportunity to learn about their own vehicles,” she says. Walters says that each Westside Tire & Service location has approximately seven employees and “everyone has a role to play” during the clinics. “Since we’ve been doing this for a few years, we have our system down pat,” she continues. “We have so many people willing to help, it takes less time than it used to.” Westside Tire & Service promotes the clinics at its locations. The company’s store managers and service advisors are “really good at talking with customers.”

The clinics are hosted only at the dealership’s Niles, Ohio, location, which is its biggest store. Westside Tire & Service’s website also has a tab called “events,” where more information about the clinics can be found. The company does promotion through Facebook and in the past, radio, as well. “We also hand out flyers to businesses where you typically find a lot of women working, like the bank or the grocery store,” says Walters. The company holds only one clinic per year, in October, “to align with Fall Car Care Month,” says Walters. “There was talk of having another clinic in April for National Care Car Month, but we found April to be a busy time for customers.”

‘VERY POSITIVE FEEDBACK’

“We get very positive feedback” about the clinics “and our customers are so appreciative we hold the event,” says Walters,

who advises other tire dealers to “not hesitate” in doing something similar. “Make sure your team is on board. The more help you have, the easier it will be.” She also recommends partnering with suppliers. “For example, Fisher Auto Parts is our primary parts supplier. They support us and it helps us a lot.” Walters says the clinics have generated numerous new customers for Westside Tire, but the appreciation shown by the dealership’s customers is her favorite outcome. “Community involvement is really important to us and this is one of our favorite ways to give back,” she says. “We benefit by knowing we have helped (customers) in small ways and their appreciation and their feedback make us realize it is all worth it. “It always helps to meet people faceto-face and get to talk to them, so they know we have their best interests at heart. And this clinic gives us the opportunity to do so.” ■

We had an amazing time showcasing our latest tire innovations at SEMA! Introducing the incredible Prinx HiSeason 4S, the game-changing Fortune ClimaFlex 4S and the newest additions to our TBR lines – say hello to Fortune: FFH130ET and FTH102, as well as Prinx: PSL1ET and PTL1. It was a pleasure to meet with other industry professionals and we can't wait for dealers and customers to see our newest products for themselves!

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FORTUNE CLIMAFLEX 4S

11/17/23 12:45 PM

11/28/23 3:45 PM

Artificial intelligence

How tire dealers are using AI

NEW TECH COULD BE A GAME CHANGER, SAYS ITDG’S JASON ROOK By

Madison Gehring

rtificial intelligence (AI) is becoming a hot topic within the tire industry. In this MTD exclusive, Jason Rook, president and CEO of the Independent Tire Dealers Group LLC (ITDG), discusses the benefits of AI within the tire industry and shares examples of how tire dealers are utilizing this new technology. (The following interview consists of excerpts from a full-length interview that was originally conducted as part of The Modern Tire Dealer Show, MTD’s podcast, which airs every other week.) MTD: What does AI look like in the tire industry and what are its benefits to independent tire dealers? Rook: I do have the luxury of being able to talk to a lot of dealers. Fast access to hard information has been a game-changer for some dealers already. For example, original equipment manufacturer (OEM) repair info or step-by-step repair instructions are available at the push of a button or in voice-activated systems these days, which makes a huge difference. I was managing an auto repair shop about 20 years ago and half of my time was probably spent looking up the correct parts and things like that. With a vehicle identification number scanner that puts that hard information in a place you can access quickly, (it) makes a big difference. AI can also be used for information lookup on the back end. If you inventory tires (and) if you inventory parts, it can help you with purchase processing on the inventory sellout side. It can help with scheduling. I talked to one dealer who has taken the… process beyond, where it’s a suggestive, sell-based process, and the AI makes the first move. So if a customer walks into a tire dealership and needs an air filter change and they refuse, this system is going to keep that information

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for later. In the old days, you would have to inspect the air filter again the next time the customer comes in, taking up more of your tech’s time. Now, with AI, the customer comes in and the system says, ‘This person needs an air filter. They needed one three months ago.’ And you can get your schedulers to then initiate those things. MTD: What is the overall feeling from tire dealers about AI? Rook: I think if you talk about AI on the surface, hesitancy is there. Now, the tire industry, in general, as an industry — we are used to change and we are used to volatility. We are constantly adapting, but we are not always the early adopters. Once we see the benefits and we see those proven, that’s when we get on board. When I say there’s hesitancy on the surface, it’s because if you ask a tire dealer what they think about AI, they are probably going to tell you they are waiting to see how well it works out before implementing it. MTD: Are there drawbacks to using AI? Rook: Yes, there are drawbacks to this, too. AI is not all-incredible and I think everything can be overused. There’s no ‘set it and forget it’ in a safety-based service industry like tires. And I’m sure there will be someone who attempts this — who puts (information) in AI systems and then just lets it run customers around and not close deals. AI won’t ever close a deal, I’ll tell you that. I’ve played with it enough and tried to get AI to sell me stuff and it does not sell me stuff. It tells me everything I want to know, but it won’t sell me anything. You still need a tech turning that wrench. You need a salesperson to stand at the counter, take the (customer’s)

“There’s no ‘set it and forget it’ in a safety-based service industry like tires,” says Jason Rook, president and CEO of the Independent Tire Dealers Group LLC. Photo: ITDG

information and use emotional intelligence to know that the customer who just told me they lost their job and is down on their luck right now should not be upsold. AI doesn’t have that emotional intelligence yet. MTD: Do you know many tire dealers who are using AI and having success? Rook: This whole conversation started when I was at a function … and having dinner with Darrin Mallet, president of Texas-based Kilgore Tire Center. This kicked off the conversation (about) AI. MTD December 2023 11/28/23 3:45 PM

Since then, I have talked to other dealers. Garth Williams, president at Direct Discount Tire in Stillwater, Okla., is in ITDG and he has been using autonomous inspection tools for three or four years, at least. I remember seeing them in his shop. He is in a small town in Oklahoma and runs a big business and you drive into his shop and your car gets scanned as you drive into the bay. You sit down in the waiting room and on the screen in the waiting room, it will tell you everything about your vehicle. He has a screen in his waiting room and it will say the customer’s name and it will tell you the information that came up on (the customer’s) car. It’s not a hard sell. It just says. ‘Hey, you need an alignment. This is what your alignment is now.’ Dennis Dossett, owner of C & D Tire in east Tennessee, has always been an early adopter and he has been leading the ADAS (advanced driver assistance system) charge. He’s one of those guys out there who is putting it into practice.

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He’s calibrating people’s cameras — he ‘s doing all these things... (and) he’s taking advantage of it. I talked to Fat Boys Tires & Auto in Wyoming. They are one of our longtime members and they automated their appointment setting to the point where they have done presentations on how to help other tire dealers automate appointment settings. The more people adopt (AI), they’ll see they are not just making more money, but servicing their customers better, which really goes hand in hand when you are an independent tire dealer. MTD: What do tire dealers need to keep in mind about AI? Rook: I t hink t hat if AI were an employee, it would be a generalist — a person who is good at a lot of stuff, but maybe isn’t great at anything. AI is not going to replace salespeople or technicians or tire dealers. But I do believe that salespeople, technicians

and tire dealers who use AI are going to replace the ones who do not use AI and that’s just because of the incredible efficiency. Log on to a chatbot or an AI tool and try to have it sell you a set of tires. It will tell you everything you need to know about whatever you’re talking about, but it does not have the emotional intelligence of saying, ‘Maybe it’s time to get a new set of tires.’ It doesn’t color outside that line. And generalist employees are good to have, too. I am not knocking them. There is an assistant manager in every store who is so incredibly able to do a million tasks and they are capable of all those things. That type of generalist is going to become, I think, a more valuable employee as things moves on. As the generalist role becomes a more popular type of employee, obviously, AI, as a generalist, is going to become more popular, too. I am excited to see what the future holds for dealers with this. ■

2/22/23 10:27 AM

11/28/23 3:45 PM

Commerci al T ire De aler™

DOWN, BUT NOT OUT

SUPPLIERS SEE BLUE SKIES AHEAD FOR AG TIRE MARKET By

Mike Manges

indered by larger-than-desired inventory levels, rising input costs, high interest rates and other impediments, the North American ag tire market is down, but definitely not out. In fact, many ag tire manufacturers see blue skies ahead if a few factors swing their way. In this MTD exclusive, ag tire manufacturers and suppliers provide an indepth look at the current state of the ag tire market and what they expect to see in the coming year. MTD: Can you describe the state of the North American ag tire market? What is demand like right now? MARSHALL GILLESPIE, commercial tire director, American Tire Distributors Inc. (Hercules): Our view is that the ag market has been flat to down, depending on the segment. But as a newer brand into the ag space, Hercules continues to see growth year after year in both radial and bias. RUUD NIJLAND, general manager, off-highway tires, Apollo Tyres Ltd. (Vredestein): Following its unprecedented high peak (in) 2021 and 2022, the market has pulled back in 2023. We estimate the market will end this year at (plus or minus) 80% of its latest peak, but still at a high level in a five-to-seven-year cycle.

Also in CTD Ag tire market share.........................46 Dawson Tire focuses on farmers.......48 Dealers swap safety best practices........................................50 AG Tire Talk looks at tires for combines......................................52 Commercially Viable.........................55

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“Our survey with our ag distributors shows that 42% believe that the North American ag tire market has declined (in) 2023,” says Alan Eskow, vice president, BKT USA Inc., who describes the ag tire market as a “rollercoaster.” Photo: BKT

Despite the market decline, we expect to see further sales development, thanks to the extension of our product lines and growth of our distribution network. ALAN ESKOW, vice president, BKT USA Inc.: Our survey with our ag distributors shows that 42% believe that the North American ag tire market has declined (in) 2023. Thirty percent believe that it has marginally increased. In 2023, the ag tire market has been a bit of a rollercoaster ride, but for BKT, this year was flat over 2022. 2023 started off with high inventory levels, hence the opportunity to get new orders was difficult. Because of harsh weather conditions earlier in the year, farmers have been hesitant to purchase new equipment and components, like tires, due to the expectation of low crop yields. If farmers have a successful harvest, then they will be more inclined to make new purchases. TONY ORLANDO, president, Bridgestone Integrated Agricultural Tire Business, Americas, Europe, Middle East, India,

Africa, Bridgestone Americas Inc.: We’re seeing softness in the North American ag tire market this year compared to 2022 and we’ll likely see further softening in 2024. There are a few reasons for this. First, the ag economy continued to be challenged. Falling crop prices, high interest rates and rising input costs are pressuring farmers and causing reluctance to spend. Second, the good sales we saw as dealers and (original equipment manufacturers) built up inventory in 2022 have resulted in lower demand this year. RYAN LOETHEN, president, CEAT Specialty Tires North America: The market this year is regionalized. Canada is up and the Midwest is starting to pick up. The West Coast and East Coast have been sluggish. The North American ag tire market is continuing to recover from the whiplash of post-COVID-19 shipping rates dropping rapidly and global production quickly filling backorders. This created overpriced inventory. Distributors and dealers are essentially operating warehouses with two different price levels. MTD December 2023 11/28/23 3:44 PM

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11/28/23 3:44 PM 11/14/23 8:48 AM

Ag tires

David Graden, global account manager, agriculture, for Michelin North America Inc., says that “overall, the ag tire market remains very stable. The amount of land and equipment in use experiences slow, longer-term changes.” Photo: Michelin North America Inc.

The ag tire segment usually deals with scarcity issues, but that’s certainly not been the case this year. TONY CRESTA, director of product management, CMA LLC: Like many industries, we are seeing a return to normal in the North American ag tire market. In 2022, farm profits in the U.S. broke records. 2023 is going to be a down year in comparison, but only through the lens of 2022. Reports are showing that farm profits in 2023 actually will be (around) 22% above the 20-year average, even when adjusting dollars for inflation. 2022 gave supply chains and domestic inventory some whiplash. Last year at this time, we were still coming out of high ocean freight pricing and lengthy transit times.

GREG GILLAND, vice president, global agriculture, Maxam Tire North America Inc.: 2023 growth rates are stronger than the last eight years, but did not reach the peaks achieved in 2021 and 2022. The continuing market shift from bias to radial tires is evident, thanks to increasing, year-over-year radial demand compared to bias products. In addition, the demand for tires in the above-100 hp (equipment) segments remains positive versus a year ago. The below-100 hp market has severely contracted as utility machinery sales have slowed down due to market inflation, rising operating costs and higher interest loan or bank rates. DAVID GRADEN, global account manager, agriculture, Michelin North America

“Demand is strong among farmers, but there are plenty of tires on dealers’ racks right now to meet that need,” says James Crouch, national segment manager, agriculture and forestry, Yokohama Off-Highway Tires America Inc. Photo: Yokohama Off-Highway Tires America Inc.

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Inc.: Overall, the ag tire market remains very stable. The amount of land and equipment in use experiences slow, longer-term changes. However, the mix between original equipment (OE) and (replacement tires) does fluctuate from year to year. In 2023, we experienced significant growth in the OE tire market and a subsequent decline in the (replacement) market. PAUL HAWKINS, senior vice president, aftermarket sales and marketing, Titan International Inc.: Ag tire market sales have experienced a decline compared to the previous tear. However, this year is still going to be one of our strongest in the aftermarket over the past decade. Current demand is steady as inventories are supplying farmers’ harvest needs and dealers restock for spring needs. JAMES CROUCH, national segment manager, agriculture and forestry, Yokohama Off-Highway Tires America Inc. (Alliance): We’re still seeing the effects of inventories that built up in the wake of COVID-19 supply disruptions. Tires that were back-ordered in 2020 and 2021 turned into inventory last year and that’s still in dealerships’ and distributors’ warehouses. Demand is strong among farmers, but there are plenty of tires on dealers’ racks right now to meet that need. This inventory has led to some lower orders placed to manufacturers this year versus previous years. MTD: What will the market in 2024 look like? MTD December 2023 11/28/23 3:44 PM

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Ag tires GILLESPIE (ATD/Hercules): We see continued growth in the value tier space due to improved product quality and willingness of farmers to try new products due to changing market conditions. NIJLAND (Apollo/Vredestein): Nobody really knows, of course, but we believe it can be expected — even if the economy falls further into a recession — that the market will stay flat compared to 2023 or show a slight increase. We further expect to see growing customer focus on the financial return on investment in their tire purchases and growing interest in tires that offer higher performance. ESKOW (BKT): Over the last couple of months, distributors’ inventory levels have started to return to normal and purchases have started to increase. In the first quarter of 2024, we expect that purchases will remain flat. But from the second quarter of 2024 onwards, farmers will need to evaluate their need to maintain their equipment, which will help grow the ag tire market. For BKT, we expect double-digit growth in 2024. ORLANDO (Bridgestone): We’re seeing two similar trends in the North American ag tire market, which we expect to continue going into 2024. There is a propensity for what we call ‘local for local,’ meaning local markets want local supply. In North America, this trend is continuing to be very important among our farmers and is partly a result of what happened during the COVID-19 pandemic, with supply chain interruptions and expensive import/export costs. Farmers also are seeking more premium technology for agricultural tires. With the drive for more productivity, we see farmers adopt advanced increasedflexion (IF)/very high flexion (VF) radial tire technologies that are ideal for large, heavyweight tractors and farm equipment. LOETHEN (CEAT): Oversupply is working its way through the system and I anticipate pricing to ease its way back up in 2024. How the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East are resolved is the big wild card in 2024. The Ukraine war disrupted the European market this year and contributed to oversupply here in North America. Demand will increase substantially once the Ukraine war is resolved. The Middle East war could

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2023 Ag Tire Market Share by Segment and Brand RADIAL REAR OE

BIAS REAR OE

Estimated shipments: 209,310

Estimated shipments: 352,520

Firestone

37.5%

Titan

32.5%

Goodyear

29.0%

Firestone

29.0%

Michelin

15.5%

Goodyear

22.0%

BKT

7.5%

Alliance

8.0%

Titan

4.5%

BKT

5.5%

Alliance

4.0%

Trelleborg

1.5%

Trelleborg

1.0%

Others

1.5%

Others

1.0%

Total

100.0%

Total

100.0%

SMALL REPLACEMENT Estimated shipments: 1.3 million

SMALL OE Estimated shipments: 320,380

BKT

22.0%

Goodyear

24.5%

Firestone

22.0%

Titan

19.0%

Goodyear

14.0%

Firestone

17.5%

Titan

14.0%

BKT

15.0%

Harvest King

8.5%

Alliance

11.5%

Carlisle

7.5%

Carlisle

8.5%

Alliance

6.0%

American Farmer

2.0%

Ascenso

2.5%

Trelleborg

1.0%

American Farmer

1.0%

Others

1.0%

Deestone

1.0%

Total

100.0%

Trelleborg

1.0%

Others

0.5%

Total

100.0%

BIAS REAR REPLACEMENT Estimated shipments: 398,970

BKT

37.5%

RADIAL REAR REPLACEMENT

Firestone

22.5%

Estimated shipments: 298,680

Alliance

13.5%

BKT

27.0%

Goodyear

6.5%

Firestone

25.5%

Harvest King

5.0%

Michelin

14.0%

Titan

4.5%

Goodyear

11.5%

Ascenso

4.0%

Alliance

9.0%

CEAT

3.0%

American Farmer

1.0%

Titan

4.5%

Carlisle

1.0%

Ascenso

4.0%

Trelleborg

1.0%

CEAT

3.0%

Others

0.5%

Trelleborg

1.0%

Total

100.0%

Others

0.5%

Total

100.0%

All MTD estimates as of Nov. 10, 2023

MTD December 2023 11/28/23 3:44 PM

have a negative impact on the production of larger ag tires and IF/VF tires, in particular, out of Israel. CRESTA (CMA): Looking into our crystal ball and more accurately, our conversations with our ag dealers and partners, 2024 will continue to improve from where we started in 2023. 2022 ended with higher than normal domestic warehouse supply levels in the ag tire segment and many other segments. For the first half of 2023, this excess inventory became a concern, amplified by interest rate hikes and some delays in planting seasons. As we get to the end of 2023, we are seeing the available domestic inventory return to normal, pre-2022 levels. As a manufacturer, this gives us hope for a strong 2024. GILLAND (Maxam): If farm operating costs — such as fertilizer, fuel and seed — remain at the high 2022-2023 price peaks, we will see the agricultural tire market mirror 2023 levels as crop production and global demand will remain strong. The support side of the ag tire business — mostly managed by smaller radials and/or bias tires — will remain challenged due to higher interest loan or bank rates. GRADEN (Michelin): In 2024, we expect to see the start of a shift towards (replacement.) While net farm income is expected

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“The ag economy continued to be challenged,” says Tony Orlando, president, Bridgestone Integrated Agricultural Tire Business, Americas, Europe, Middle East, India, Africa, Bridgestone Americas Inc. “Falling crop prices, high interest rates and rising input costs are pressuring farmers and causing reluctance to spend.” Photo: Bridgestone Americas Inc.

to remain high, it will likely pull back a bit and borrowing costs for new equipment should remain high. And both will dampen the OE market. HAWKINS (Titan): Market conditions for large ag are poised for continued positive momentum into the near future. Despite current challenges — grain prices, input and interest costs — farmers will still be expected to fuel and feed the world. Aftermarket sales could benefit, as many farmers choose to utilize existing equipment that will need to be maintained. The macro environment is showing strong signs of stabilization and

guidance for 2024 suggests a continued solid performance. CROUCH (Yokohama Off-Highway/ Alliance): I think 2024 will be a challenging year for farm tire manufacturers for two reasons. Dealers and distributors will still be clearing out built-up inventory and farmers will be more cautious about purchases in an election year. Election cycles always create uncertainty and a sense of risk, so farmers tend to tighten up and try to cut back on their expenditures. We’re also currently waiting on a farm bill, so if that process bleeds into next year, it will put farmers even more on edge.

11/14/23 9:52 AM

11/28/23 3:44 PM

Ag tires

‘BREAD AND BUTTER CUSTOMERS’ DAWSON TIRE & WHEEL KEEPS ITS FOCUS ON FARMERS

Madison Gehring

ric MacPherson says he got into the tire business because he couldn’t be a cowboy. “I grew up on a farm in Nebraska and wanted to be a cowboy, like any other boy,” says MacPherson who is now the CEO of Dawson Tire & Wheel, a three-store dealership that’s based in Gothenburg, Neb. MacPherson started working on a farm under his uncle and had just gotten married in 1998. With his first-born on the way, he realized he couldn’t work on someone else’s farm forever. “I asked my uncle if I would ever take over the farm one day and he said he had kids of his own, so I’d better look for something else.” MacPherson started thinking about what he wanted to do and found a tire dealer in Gothenburg who was ready to sell his business. “One day, I got up and fed the cattle on the farm in the morning and then at 1 p.m., I spoke to the owner of the tire dealership and by 4 p.m. that same day, I had bought” the business, laughs MacPherson. “I didn’t know anything about (the tire) business.” Dawson Tire & Wheel has been in business for 25 years.

‘TRIAL AND ERROR’

MacPherson says that he learned how to operate a tire dealership by “trial and error” and that he had some friends in the business who taught him. Around five years after opening Dawson Tire & Wheel, he got a call from a man who said he had an overstock on irrigation wheels and asked if MacPherson wanted them. “I knew there were a lot of irrigation spots in Nebraska, so I took them,” says MacPherson. “I (then) put a price together and put an ad in the newspapers. “We were selling all over Kansas,

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Farmers are Dawson Tire & Wheel’s “bread and butter,” says Eric MacPherson, the Gothenburg, Neb.-based tire dealership’s CEO. Dawson Tire & Wheel has three stores, plus a distribution center, all of which sell ag tires. Photo: Dawson Tire & Wheel

Nebraska and Illinois because our prices were so good.” From that moment, MacPherson says he realized that ag tire and service would be the dealership’s specialty. So in 2012, Dawson Tire & Wheel moved away from passenger and light truck tire sales and service, as well as oil changes and alignments, to focus on ag tires. Th is worked well for the dealership for a number of years. Then COVID-19 hit.

BACK TO THE BASICS

When the pandemic hit, MacPherson got back into the retail business and opened a shop in North Platte, Neb., about 30 miles up the road from his Gothenburg location. The Gothenburg store soon started selling consumer tires again. Dawson Tire & Wheel then acquired its Wisner, Neb., location in May 2020. Dawson Tire & Wheel now has three retail locations and a distribution center. “We (still) really focus on the farmer and the ag producer. They are our bread and butter.” Currently, 98% of Dawson Tire & Wheel’s sales are ag tires and wheels. The company has around nine service

trucks and does farm service in-field, but not on the side of the road. “We don’t have that high of a population and (we are) are located near the interstate,” says MacPherson. On the retail side, MacPherson says his revenue is 15% tire service and 85% tire sales.

THE RIGHT FIT

“One of our value propositions is that we do not specialize in one type of ag tire,” says MacPherson. “We are brand agnostic. Different companies offer different tread designs and load capacities. “We are really focused on providing the right tire for the right application and equipment.” MacPherson says tires are the third most commonly worn-out piece of farm equipment, so it’s important to recommend the correct fitment. It’s also crucial for MacPherson and his team to keep up with the times. “In the ag world, the machines have just gotten bigger, heavier and faster,” he says. “The technology and size of the tires has had to grow to keep up with the new equipment. We have to stay smart and stay on top of it all.” ■ MTD December 2023 11/28/23 3:44 PM

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ALMOS SOLD O T UT

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Tire service safety

TIRE DEALERS SWAP BEST PRACTICES FOR SAFETY LONE WORKER SAFETY, CAMERAS AND RIST ARE ALL ON THE TABLE

Joy Kopcha

afe practices for tire service are one thing, but those in charge of safety protocols at some of North America’s biggest tire dealerships are worried about more than just eye protection, proper footwear and what equipment is stowed on a service truck. Noise levels, isolated workers who hop from one job site to another and all the dangers of working while on the road are among the big concerns tire dealers are managing. For a day-and-a-half, safety leaders from some of the nation’s largest tire dealerships gathered to brainstorm and share information on how to keep their employees and teammates safe. And MTD had an exclusive seat at the table. The fourth edition of the Safety Leadership Summit brought together its largest group yet, with about 50 safety officials representing 20 different tire dealerships and national truck stops, as well as two tire manufacturers and representatives from select safety-minded providers. And while this group was the brainchild of representatives of two of the largest commercial tire dealerships in the country — Wilkes-Barre, Pa.-based McCarthy Tire Service Co. Inc. and Fort Mill, S.C.-based Snider Tire Inc. dba Snider Fleet Solutions — this year the group branched out to cover some of the safety issues facing the retail tire industry, as well. The event was hosted by Bridgestone Americas Inc. Hal Williams, senior health and safety manager for Bridgestone’s nonmanufacturing facilities, talked about the tiremaker’s eye on protecting its OTR tire technicians and operations. “What are the needs with our off-road business? What can we do this year that we haven’t done or that we got half-way done, but never finished all the way?”

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Representatives from 20 tire dealerships in the U.S. and Canada, plus two tire manufacturers, truck stop companies and other safety equipment providers, participated in the fourth Safety Leadership Summit, held in Nashville, Tenn. Photo: MTD

Williams said one of the topics that has emerged is “lone workers.” At Bridgestone, this term applies to OTR tire service personnel who work alone for more than 30 minutes or an employee who works without another person within a clear line of sight. The tiremaker created a standard, which it deployed beginning in August, and requires that the employee takes a visual risk assessment of every work area before any work is begun. Williams says if it’s not safe, the employee is instructed to “move or stop work.” If the technician can fix the hazard, they should do so. If they can’t, he or she is to call someone or move to another location to mitigate the risk. “The premise is the technician needs to take a few minutes at the beginning of the shift,” said Williams. There’s a list of other factors to consider, too, ranging from the time the worker will be alone, time of day, the nature of the work, what tools are used and how fatigue may increase risks. If a

worker is going to be on site and alone for more than two hours, there’s a communication process to follow and checkins with that employee are documented. Williams said if a high-risk task is on the agenda, a buddy is required. Why is documentation important? “We thought it was the right thing to do. When we do store assessments, we want there to be evidence that we’re following this process.” The issue of protecting the safety of lone workers is present in other industries, too. Erin Butler, account director for AlertMedia, said her company’s mobile app is used in other businesses, including medical caregivers who travel to patients’ homes. She said the goal is “to give your distributed workforce a faster way to get help 24/7, wherever they are — in the office after hours, at an isolated job site or alone in a workplace.” Sean Galiano, a 32-year veteran of Norwell, Mass.-based Sullivan Tire Co. Inc., said his dealership is focusing on the RIST procedure for all tire service work — in both retail and commercial. MTD December 2023 11/28/23 3:44 PM

That has included equipping locations with all of the necessary tools and also implementing an in-house torque wrench calibration procedure. Each torque wrench has a unique ID number and there’s a record of inspections and calibrations. “We’ve posted RIST procedure posters in our showroom to educate customers.” He admits “it takes a little bit to explain the process” to customers. Gailiano said sometimes Sullivan Tire even brings the wheel from the service bay to the front counter to show corrosion buildup to a customer. The discussion around another safety topic, in particular, has evolved since the initial Safety Leadership Summit in 2019 — the use of in-truck dashcams. In 2021, only one tire dealership in the room, Edenton, S.C.-based Colony Tire Corp., had cameras in its fleet. But in the two years since, nearly every tire dealership represented at the event has adopted the use of dashcams. Some, like Colony Tire, have this equipment in

every vehicle in their fleet. Others are still in the early or testing phases. Tony Mullen, director of risk management for Snider Fleet Solutions, said his company had drivers involved in seven accidents in March 2023. “The camera exonerated us in six of those. The seventh was our fault. The cameras paid for themselves.” Russ Devens, director of safety and risk management at McCarthy Tire Service, said his company has adopted cameras and even hired an extra person whose sole duty is to monitor and manage the fleet of cameras. McCarthy Tire Service also has created a driver of the month award using the driver analytics and scorecard provided by its camera vendor. He believes cameras are improving driver behavior, as evidenced by drivers whose scores have improved over time. “Our No. 1 (service truck) driver has been No. 1 since the beginning. Devens says, “He never speeds. We had another driver who was near the bottom,

with a score in the 70s, who is now in the 90s.” Jeremy Fuhrman, safety director at Tire Guys Inc. dba Tire-Rama, which has stores throughout Washington, Idaho, Montana and Wyoming, said it’s the open dialogue between tire dealerships’ personnel that makes the Safety Leadership Summit a great asset. He appreciates the discussions about issues happening in tire dealerships and their stores, warehouses and production facilities. Fuhrman said he also appreciates the diversity within the group, with some dealerships having hundreds of locations and others operating single locations. “Our company is somewhere in the middle and I feel this is the easiest place to get the best ideas. “Being a safety professional isn’t the most glamorous, but in reality, it is one of the most important aspects of many companies. If I can help improve the safety and leadership at a location, I can feel proud of the job we are doing.” ■

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AG T ire Talk

DUALS VERSUS SUPER SINGLES ON COMBINES WHAT SHOULD BE RECOMMENDED — AND WHEN?

Modern Tire Dealer has partnered with AG Tire Talk to provide answers to insightful questions that farm tire dealers have about farm tire technology. This is the next installment in our ongoing series, which is designed to help farm tire dealers better connect with their customers. A trending question, followed by answers, will appear in our Commercial Tire Dealer section every other month. For complete answers, click on www.agtiretalk.com.

Photo: Yokohama Off-Highway Tires America Inc.

QUESTION: On combines, when do you recommend duals or super singles? What specific applications are best for each and what performance benefits/drawbacks can producers anticipate receiving from each setup? NICK PHILLIPPI, technical support and product development, North America, Ascenso Tires North America: Recommending a fitment for a specific harvester is difficult from a 30,000-foot level, whether being a manufacturer or wholesale distributor. Then when you talk about all the variables to consider — soil types, moisture condition, stubble issues, transport width, tracking down the row, local tire dealer support, customer preference and others — it gets even tougher. Certainly, these four application basics must be met: load capacity, speed rating, size tolerances and wheel fitment. The second set of parameters includes budget, length of time of

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ownership left, past problems to solve and satisfaction with current setup. Generally speaking, if the correct field air pressure is maintained with load tables on the largest dual fitment, then we believe straddle duals will make the case of the best overall option. DAVE PAULK, manager, field technical services, BKT USA Inc.: Duals work well on combines in moist to dry conditions. Duals can help carry more load and help distribute that load over a wider area to minimize soil compaction with the correct air pressures. In wet conditions, duals are more likely to cause ruts and collect mud between the duals. In muddy conditions, it is necessary to keep the mud cleaned out between duals to decrease the possibility of stalks and rocks damaging the sidewalls of the tires. If the field is too wet and ruts are deep, it takes some time to repair the soil from the compaction caused. MTD December 2023 11/28/23 3:44 PM

Super singles work well on combines in dry soil and have better flotation in moist and wet soil than duals. In moderately dry soil, super singles have a much wider footprint to distribute the weight of the machine and load and minimize soil compaction. Some super singles are increased flexion (IF) or very-high flexion (VF) tires and can carry larger loads at slower speeds. Super singles do not cause ruts as bad or as deep as duals in wet and muddy soil. However, depending on the type of soil, super singles may not clean out as well because of the width of the tires. If they don’t clean out as well as they should, similar to duals, they can become slick and lose traction. This could cause deeper rutting, damage to the soil from spinning and possible damage to the tire. In a perfect world, if no-till or minimum-till farming is used, it’s best to stay off the field in muddy conditions to minimize the possibility of compacting the soil.

It takes a while to repair this compaction, once this is done. Unfortunately, it isn’t always possible when a crop must be taken out. GREG GILLAND, vice president, global agriculture, Maxam Tire North America Inc.: It is often argued by farmers and growers that the most important platform in their fleet of equipment is their combine-harvester. This is the vehicle that ultimately allows them to harvest their crop to sell in the market and achieve sustainable business profits. But harvesters, whether owned or leased, tend to be the least-used piece of equipment on a farm. Harvesters also are typically the longest-lasting piece of equipment in terms of total hours of use, as their wear and tear only occurs during harvest, when comparing to the service or working hours experienced by tractors or selfpropelled sprayers. In some instances, depending on the care or maintenance of

the equipment, it can take up to 10 years to consume the original, factory-mounted tires. The overall key market drivers for tires or tracks employed on a harvester are listed below: • Farmers or growers own an estimated 88,000-plus combines in North America; • Currently, custom harvesters account for about 3,000 to 5,000 harvesters operating across both the U.S. and Canada; and • Combine harvesters are used for an average of 300 to 400 operating hours per year, regardless of crop or application, and immediately after the harvest, the vehicle is parked and prepared for the following season’s harvest. Sought-after performance benefits include the ability of the tires to resist stubble or tread damage; long-term tire wear rate to deliver longer product life or performance; tire casing durability over the

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AG T ire Talk life of the tires; the ability to operate at lower tire pressure to increase flotation and to reduce overall soil compaction; the ability to deliver traction and grip to lower machine slip resulting in increased productivity; increased mobility with improved flotation and tread grip; and the ability to travel over the field, delivering the necessary footprint to avoid field rutting that can lead to greater ground compaction. Ultimately, it’s the size of the farm, type of crop and how the equipment is utilized — or the inherent operational requirements — that will determine the

transmitted to the soil. As you reduce air pressure in the tire, you are reducing pressure to the soil and reducing soil compaction. BLAINE COX, national product manager — agriculture, golf and turf, Yokohama Off-Highway Tires America Inc.: There are a number of variables to consider when deciding between duals and large singles on combines — ranging from the size and capacity of the machine to the soil type, moisture levels and even the width of local roads. In most situations, except very wet soils, properly inflated

‘Duals can help carry more load and help distribute that load over a wider area to minimize soil compaction with the correct air pressures.’ — Dave Paulk, manager, field technical services, BKT USA Inc.

type of combine-harvester used and the size or type of tires required. The biggest driver of combine-harvester tire choices will be dictated by the type of crop and farming practices. DAVID GRADEN, global account manager, agriculture, Michelin North America Inc.: Often, I get asked this question by producers looking to minimize their downtime during the harvest season, first and foremost. Second to that, they want to reduce their machine’s impact on the soil, especially in wet conditions. Unfortunately, many folks think large single/floater tires always offer the best flotation. While that may be true, in some cases, it doesn’t guarantee flotation and traction. In wet conditions, these wide tires can pack with mud and completely lose their tractive capacity. As these tires spin, they can create massive ruts, compact your soil and dig themselves into a hole. The easiest way to compare tires in regard to soil compaction is by evaluating field air pressure, choosing the product with lowest inflation pressure able to carry the load at the speed they are traveling. Why? Air pressure reductions equate to fewer pounds per square inch

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tires can deliver equivalent traction and minimize soil compaction. Dual configurations can spread the load over a larger surface, which is obviously effective for reducing soil compaction force. However, if you are using the combine in gumbo, sticky mud or muck, the space between the duals can fill up with mud, reducing overall performance. VF tire technology has also dramatically changed farmers’ options when it comes to tire performance in combines. Since inflation pressure is such an important part of performance, it’s worth considering also investing in a central tire inflation system (CTIS), which allows the operator to adjust inflation pressure on the go. That ensures a low, compactionminimizing inflation pressure on the field and a quick switch to a higher pressure for better roading. Optimizing inflation pressure ensures optimal performance and can add significantly to tire life. Just as important as the tires is how you use the combine. If compaction is a concern, consider not filling up the grain tank. Instead, off-load grain sooner, while minimizing cart or semi traffic “shortcuts” across the field. Make sure your grain cart tires are also high-flotation and that they are inflated properly to minimize compaction.

CHRIS NEIDERT, ag marketing, training and development manager for Trelleborg and Mitas tires, North America, Yokohama TWS: When looking at the U.S. combine market’s needs and preferences, we can divide them in two large groups based on the crop they harvest: super singles (small grain) and duals (large grain). Many harvesters will harvest wheat and small grain. Super singles is the predominate choice of tires versus a dual set-up. The main reason would be ease of transport from one customer’s field to the next, as most of these combines are transported on trucks and the outer duals would have to be dismounted, requiring additional equipment to handle them. Small grain crop stems are weaker, reducing the possibility to damage the tires. Popular sizes are 800 or 900 crosssections that can handle the weight of most small grain headers. (Usually a header on a wheat harvesting combine will be lighter and the single tire setup will be OK.) Duals will be mainly (used for) combining corn and soybeans. Different (than) small grains, corn and soybean maturity is more concentrated in time, not allowing for custom harvesters to have a long harvest run. These combines are most often used locally and not transported on trucks. Here a dual fitment is the setup of choice. Using duals, the grower will enjoy better lateral stability in the field and when roading the combine. Many times, the header stays on the machine, even when roading. This dual configuration provides additional load capacity for the combine, especially when fitted with corn headers that are heavier than a soybean header. Most popular dual combine sizes vary between 520, 580 and 620 cross-sections. Corn or soybean headers are usually heavier, sometimes up to double the weight. Running a dual setup will be able to handle that additional weight on the front of the combine. Running duals (also) will (result in) less stubble damage because the tires can possibly go in between the rows and help minimize stubble damage. Super singles will have to travel over the stubble and additional stubble damage can occur. ■ MTD December 2023 11/28/23 3:44 PM

Commercially Viable Prinx rolls out long-haul steer tire

Yokohama Off-Highway expands Galaxy line

Prinx Chengshan Tire North America Inc. has debuted its all-new Prinx PSL1ET Enhanced Long Haul Steer Tire for longhaul applications. The Prinx PSL1ET carries SmartWay verification. The new tire has an increased load index and a 16-ply rating and has advanced features like continuous shoulder technology and decoupling grooves, groove siping, stone ejectors, an advanced casing to endure multiple retreads and more. The new tire is available in two sizes, 295/75R22.5 LRG and 295/75R22.5 LRH. The following SKUs are currently in development: 11R22.5/LRG/LRH; 11R24.5 LRG/LRH and 285/75R24.5 LRG/LRH. PRINX CHENGSHAN TIRE NORTH AMERICA INC. www.prinxtireusa.com

Yokohama Off-Highway Tires Inc. has added two new, deep tread Galaxy brand L-5 radial wheel loader/ dozer tires. The all-steel Galaxy LDSR 500 and Galaxy LDSR 510 radial L-5 both feature extra-deep tread with cut-resistant compounds, top-ofclass tread rubber depth for longer wear, high turn-up construction that reinforces their sidewalls for stability and comfort, buttressed shoulders and hefty, two-star load ratings. The Galaxy LDSR 500 is available in sizes 20.5R25 and 23.5R25. The Galaxy LDSR 510 comes in sizes 17.5R25, 20.5R25 and 23.5R25. YOKOHAMA OFF-HIGHWAY TIRES INC. www.yokohama-oht.com

Ascenso adds harvester tire Ascenso Tires North America has introduced its new steel belted harvester tire, the HRR 200. The tire’s pattern was made for quiet operation and its carcass provides stability on the road and when maneuvering. The HRR 200 also features high loadcarrying capacity, according to Ascenso officials. The following sizes can be ordered in factory-direct containers: 620/75R26, 650/75R32, 800/65R32 and 900/60R32. ASCENSO TIRES NORTH AMERICA www.ascensotiresna.com

Michelin launches truck tire data app Michelin North America Inc. has turned the Michelin Truck Tire Technical Data Book into an online, on-the-go tool with the release of the Michelin MyTechXpert app. The app gives tire dealers and fleet operators quick access to tire performance analysis, plus data to help them select the best tire for the application. It also features tire diagnosis images and technical expertise from the Michelin Service Manual. The Michelin MyTechXpert app is compatible with Android and iOS devices and is free to download from Google Play or Apple’s App Store. MICHELIN NORTH AMERICA INC. www.michelinman.com w w w . M o d e r n T i r e D e a l e r. c o m 2312MTD_55_CommercialViable.indd 55

Hunter introduces Hawkeye XL Hunter Engineering Co. has introduced its new Hawkeye XL alignment system for commercial vehicles. According to Hunter officials, the aligner provides measurements in four minutes or less and features new camera technology. It also features three-dimensional XL targets that are non-electric; high-definition cameras that display live alignment readings; an extended range that allows the system to align with 53-foot trailers; and more. The new Hawkeye XL system offers optional, fully integrated alignment with Hunter’s L494HD alignment rack or FIA-compatible turnplate kits to streamline processes. HUNTER ENGINEERING CO. www.hunter.com

ATD expands Ironman truck tire line American Tire Distributors Inc. (ATD) has expanded its Ironman truck tire line with the new I-Series Gen 2, which replaces the current Ironman I-Series medium truck tire line. The new models will roll out in two phases, with the remaining four set to launch in mid-2024. The four tires made available immediately include the Ironman Gen 2 I-19A All-Position M+S; the Ironman Gen 2 I-37D Open Shoulder Drive Regional/Urban M+S; the Ironman Gen 2 I-48T Long Haul Trailer; and the Ironman Gen 2 I-61S Long Haul Steer. AMERICAN TIRE DISTRIBUTORS INC. www.ironmantires.com

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Business Insight

How to get an early start on your 2024 success

BE REALISTIC, PROACTIVE AS YOU PREPARE FOR ANOTHER GREAT YEAR By

Dennis McCarron

his was another banner year for independent dealers. Most dealerships experienced strong tire demand and very strong service sales against a strong 2022. This trend has been fueled by several factors, including increased prices for tires and service; increased prices for new and used vehicles, which is keeping customers in their vehicles longer; and a return to a more normal miles driven since the pandemic. The demand side has been robust. The supply side — in regard to parts, tires and qualified labor — continues to be a pain point. The parts and tires situation is better than it was during the pandemic, but has not been completely solved. Qualified labor — in the form of technicians and skilled advisors — continues to be the biggest threat to tire dealership profitability. What to do about it is the big question. Tire dealerships today need to present themselves as a professional and exceptional option. When your pricing is premium, your service needs to reflect that. While your dealership does not need to look like a fivestar hotel, it does need to be clean, tidy and painted every few years, especially the outside. Any landscaping needs to be kept up with and any displays like banners or lawn signs need refreshing, as well. This not only helps convince customers that this is a destination of choice, but it also helps convince potential employees that this is a shop they would want to come to every day. But it doesn’t stop there. A clean, well-lit shop with no clutter is only the beginning. To attract the best, you have to lead the best. Lead, coach and motivate employees likes it’s 2024, not 1994. That means staying positive and solving problems with employees — not finding fault first. Hold employees to high standards. Those who don’t make the cut shouldn’t work there. Hire the right attitude and use your record profits to train employees properly. Looking forward to 2024, I see a lot of mixed signals. I don’t own a crystal ball, but I know the data and the history of this business and can apply it in a logical manner. Traditionally, national general election years are not great years for the tire industry. In election years, consumers typically pull back on non-budgeted spending. Why? I’m not really sure, other than it’s been a very solid pattern. (Maybe negative political ads worry customers?) In light of this, I urge you to be realistic regarding budgets and setting bonus plans. Make sure that everyone in your shop knows that adjustments to bonuses are subject to change. Also now is the time to set yearly reviews. They don’t all need to be done in a day or week. Feel free to space reviews out, but they should be completed by January, if you are a single shop, and by February if you have a multi-store operation.

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Tire dealerships today need to present themselves as a professional and exceptional option. Photo: MTD

Remember, employee reviews should not be a surprise. Your employees should know exactly what you will say because you’ve been saying it all year. If you dropped the ball, that’s OK. The review simply turns into a goal-setting session. If you haven’t already separated reviews from pay increases, this is the year to do so. If an employee review ends on whether or not that employee gets a pay increase, the employee will be solely focused on the end of the conversation and will retain little from the beginning and middle parts of the conversation. Pay increase discussions work best on employee anniversaries. This spreads it out over the whole year, plus you don’t have the “Did you get a raise?” gossip among employees. It also improves communication. Barring a complete meltdown of the economy, this should be a solid year for our industry. You may not break another record in 2024, but your business should be on solid footing. We will likely start off the year with some solid snowfall and cold temperatures in several regions, according to meteorologists, so that should get many dealerships started early with tire and battery sales, among other items. In addition, analysts continue to show global tire demand will increase through 2030. The U.S. and Canada markets should be no different. Congratulations on serving your community another year and providing paychecks to help support the local economy. Sometimes this is a thankless business. The good days are great, but sometimes the bad days can really get to you. Shake it off and prepare for a successful new year. ■ Dennis McCarron is a partner at Cardinal Brokers Inc., one of the leading brokers in the tire and automotive industry (www.cardinalbrokers.com.) To contact McCarron, email him at dennis@cardinalbrokers.com.

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2312MT

SUPPORT RIGHT TO REPAIR! Now is the Time for Action! Tell your lawmaker to ensure consumer choice and safeguard a free and fair repair market by supporting Right to Repair legislation for our industry.

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11/28/23 5:23 PM 11/21/23 1:17 PM

Dealer Development

Lowering the heart rate

WHY YOU NEED TO CREATE A MORE PROFESSIONALIZED CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE By

Randy O’Connor

once heard that our customers’ heart rates peak as they enter our facilities. Given that we know purchases in our industry are largely viewed as stressful, that comment doesn’t seem inconceivable. And for professional leaders in our industry, that fact should sting — a lot! By and large, our homes are our largest investment, with our vehicles coming in second. Taking care of our homes — that is to say, investing in them — is generally much more pleasurable than making an investment in our vehicles. That doesn’t seem to make much sense given that the emotions associated with a new car purchase rank right up there with a new home purchase. After all, our purchases are mostly emotional.

Our customer service team members are expected to perform a 360-degree set of skills at a high level. Photo: MTD

Dollar for dollar, the vehicle purchase may actually be more emotionally rewarding — at least until it’s time for service. If I told you that the retail tire and auto service industry trails behind advancements in other retail industries, would you be surprised? Likely not. Our industry has sustainably advanced at a much slower rate than consumers have expected it to. Other segments of retail have passed us by — not to mention we’ve had years of stress-inducing purchase environments thrive before the one we have now. While the reasons for this are many — some of which we may never understand — I can definitively share with you one very significant, inexcusable reason that these facts exist. Unlike other retail spaces, our customer service team members are expected to perform a 360-degree set of skills at a reasonably high level. The roles that we ask our customer service team members to fulfill involve a broad spectrum of personality skills. Those of you who have ever had that one new front counter person come

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in and change your store’s performance in very short order have experienced this firsthand. The reality is we all have given strengths in our personal toolboxes. Very few of us have the Taj Mahal of personal toolboxes that cover all the various behaviors we expect of our customer service teams. We expect them to excel in one high-stress, long-hour, daily grind of a job.

‘You, your teams and your customers deserve a more professionally developed experience.’ We expect our customer service team members to be strongwilled and results-oriented, while also enthusiastic and highspirited, and also even-tempered, accommodating and patient, plus systematic and precise. That’s four distinctly different sets of personality profiles/skill sets. To stretch from one profile to the next takes great effort for most — if it’s even possible — and it often isn’t very sustainable. And we ask all of that for an income barely worthy of the median these days. So what gives? Well, we run lean — often super-lean, merging one set of roles and responsibilities into another. (That’s assuming you have your roles and responsibilities defined at all.) Our approach to professional development and defining our businesses by the development we professionally procure is, at best, lackluster. My perspective — with over 300 rooftops as part of my 20 Group — all of which are outperforming the industry average and whose owners believe that professional development is largely a serious topic — is that we, as an industry, have a long way to go when it comes to professionally developing our teams. Training technicians, for those who invest in it, has a clear path by way of ASE certification. Training customer service/ management has no such standard. The standards are whatever we determine them to be. You, your teams and your customers deserve a more professionally developed experience. It’s up to each of us to professionalize our industry so that heart rates walking through our doors aren’t quite so extreme. ■ Tire and auto industry veteran Randy O’Connor is the Owner/Principal of D2D Development Group (Dealer to Dealer Development Group.) He can be reached at randy@d2ddevelopmentgroup.com. For more information, please visit www.d2ddevelopmentgroup.com.

MTD December 2023 11/28/23 5:13 PM

EV Intelligence

The power of ‘what if?’

WHAT IF YOU BECAME AN EV SERVICE EXPERT? By

Craig Van Batenburg

emember when you specialized only in tires? Well, times change, consumers change and we have to change with them. We know that more customers are searching the internet for price. When price becomes the number one factor, our honest dealings, good workmanship and quality are diminished in the customer’s eyes. Is there any way out of this? There are only two ways to grow your business that have long-lasting and beneficial results. One is to be unique and the other is to be the best. Let us examine what it means to be unique. The auto manufacturer Subaru of America comes to mind. Subaru was unique in the 1970s. It was affordable and offered all-wheel drive, which was unique. New England, where I live, has harsh winters, lots of snow and many hills. The weather here benefited Subaru. The second reason for sustained growth is quality. Being the best is not as easy as being unique. Were Subaru cars the best in the ‘70s? Not by a long shot. But they were good enough. Owners loved them and kept fixing their older cars as they wore out. To this day, Subaru vehicle owners keep the company in business. By the way, have you noticed most Subaru commercials talk about love, not how great their vehicles are? They also sometimes mention the percentage of Subarus still registered. If you love something, you will take care of it. (Advertising is a subject of its own.) So what about quality? In 1974, a book went on sale that was quite popular. Its title, “Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance,” spoke to me. Quality is a major theme in this book. Quality can be many things to many people. To know what quality is, you must ask your customers and yourself. Once you know, make sure all your staff knows, too, and then deliver it. What does all this have to do with specializing? If your tire store once only sold tires, then you were a specialist. Once you added “and automotive service” to

the end of your company’s name, you lost that specialization. Do you want to be a specialist again? What if you changed your business model? What if you specialized in electric cars and electric trucks? You can keep doing what you do now, but what about adding electric vehicles to your business and by that, I mean going all-in? What if it worked out in the long run? In the end, the choices you make today will impact your future and all those who trust your leadership. Back in school, I was taking a physics course when the teacher held up a large

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book and then dropped it. The book hit the floor with a bang. Then she said, “Gravity doesn’t care if you believe it or not.” Electric cars and trucks don’t care what you think of them, either. But they’re here and they represent a great opportunity for you and your business. ■ Craig Van Batenburg is the CEO of Van Batenburg’s Garage Inc., dba Automotive Career Development Center (ACDC), which is based in Worcester, Mass. A 50-year automotive service industry veteran, Van Batenburg provides training for facilities that service — or want to service — electric and hybrid vehicles. For more information, see www.fixhybrid.com or email him at craig@fixhybrid.com.

11/16/23 3:01 PM

11/28/23 5:14 PM

Mergers and Acquisitions

Auctions versus negotiations INTRODUCING A NEW TERM — ‘NEGOTIAUCTIONS’ By

Michael McGregor

his M&A business will drive you crazy. It’s more like a sport than a business. Besides perseverance, optimism and competence, the most important quality for longevity is having a thick skin. I recently learned that two separate tire/service chains I had met with over the years had each transacted with single buyers that knocked on their doors in what we call a “negotiated” transaction. Now neither of these businesses was performing anywhere close to their potential, so it’s fair to say that they likely had a bit of “hair” on them. Nevertheless, they were in Texas, one of the big five states. I can easily see how at least 25 strategic buyers and maybe 25 private equity groups — half in Texas — might have signed non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) to look at each business and we might have generated maybe seven solid offers for each, had we been hired. But we weren’t. That’s disappointing. I suppose when I don’t get disappointed about losing out on opportunities like that, it’s time for me to hang it up. I’m channeling my disappointment into understanding why a seller would choose to deal with only one buyer, as opposed to — here’s my spin — believing in the free market, competition and auctions. In the public markets, the use of public auctions for business sales is commonplace. We saw how in 2019, Les Schwab Tire Centers publicly announced that they hired Goldman Sachs to sell the company. They had no problem letting the whole world know. Now, in the private capital markets, sellers are more concerned with confidentiality, so no one finds out a business is for sale. We use what are called confidential private auctions. An example of a private auction was when my firm was hired to sell Nokian Tyres’ U.S.-located Vianor stores to strategic buyers. We developed a package describing the business and reached out to an approved list of buyers that happened to include the preferred buyer who acquired the chain, Gill’s Point S. Nokian could have chosen a “negotiated’ transaction with Gill’s Point S, but decided to use market forces to get closer to a market price. A negotiated transaction is a bilateral and often exclusive negotiation, with only one buyer at a time. To help me understand this issue better, I looked at 15 published academic research studies dealing with this topic. In “Auctions versus Negotiations” by Bulow & Kemperer (American Economic Association, 1996), the authors write that the value of negotiating skills is small, compared with the value of having additional competition. “Our analysis indicates that if the board expects at least one extra serious bidder to appear, then it should generally not negotiate and should directly begin an auction.” In 2009, the authors further declared in another paper that “sellers will generally prefer auctions and buyers will generally

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prefer sequential mechanisms,” like negotiations. In 2023’s “Auctions or Negotiations: A Theory of How Firms are Sold,” the University of Houston’s Rajkamal Vasu observes that in negotiations, “the competitive pressure is across the table between the seller and the buyer, in contrast to an auction, where the competitive pressure is between buyers who are on the same side of the table among buyers.”

‘With exclusive negotiations, transaction value decreases as the seller’s risk aversion increases.’ Vasu incorporates the variable of risk into his equations and finds that “more risk-averse sellers choose auctions more often,” which I interpret as auctions are considered the safer way to get the best price. He also finds that “the average transaction price in auctions is greater than in negotiations, if and only if the seller’s risk aversion is above a certain threshold.” In Vasu’s model, he observes that with exclusive negotiations, transaction value decreases as the seller’s risk aversion increases because a more risk-averse seller is willing to accept lower bids. “However, in the case of auctions, the buyers bid the same, irrespective of the seller’s risk aversion.” The final word goes to “Negotiation, Auction or Negotiauction?!” by Liu, Officer & Tu of Iowa State, Loyola Marymount and Southern Illinois University, published in October 2022. The authors studied 322 public deals between 2014 and 2019 that totaled more than $2.4 trillion in value. They found that in the real world, 29% of deals are auctions involving 10 or more buyers, 28% were negotiations with only one buyer and the 43% remaining were “negotiauctions” involving two to nine bidders, which started as an auction and morphed into negotiating with only one buyer. The key takeaway for me was that 72% of their deals had multiple competing bidders early in the process, even though many ended by negotiating with only one buyer. Guhan Subramian in his book, “Dealmaking: The New Strategy of Negotiauctions,” points out that an auction helps “create the perception of competition when there isn’t any.” Many auctions are run with only one bidder and as long as that bidder believes they are competing with somebody else, it can still work out just fine. ■ Michael McGregor is a partner at Focus Investment Banking LLC (focusbankers.com/automotive/tire-and-service). He advises and assists multi-location tire dealers on mergers and acquisitions. For more information, contact him at michael.mcgregor@focusbankers.com.

MTD December 2023 11/28/23 5:15 PM

Focus on Dealers

McMahon’s Best-One Tire rolls out ‘life-changing’ benefits

‘FEELING APPRECIATED’ IS KEY TO EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT, SAYS DEALER By

Mike Manges

ell-compensated employees are happier, more productive and will contribute even more to your bottom line. That’s what the owners of McMahon’s Best-One Tire believe. They’re putting that theory into practice — with positive results. Kim McMahon, Bubba McMahon and Randy Geyer, owners of the 11-location, Fort Wayne, Ind.-based dealership, recently rolled out significant wage hikes and benefit upgrades for nearly 40 employees who joined the company through an acquisition. The compensation improvements have been “life-changing” for many, says Kim. When informed of the medical insurance plan McMahon’s Best-One Tire offers, one new employee, who had been working a second job to afford her previous insurance premium, “started crying. She quit her (other) job immediately.” Another employee, upon joining McMahon’s Best-One Tire, received what amounted to a 50% raise. “She didn’t believe it at first,” says Kim.

MORE MONEY, SHORTER WEEK

The enhancements are the latest in a line of decisions made by McMahon’s Best-One Tire to show appreciation to employees and create an even more successful, attractive business. In 2021, the dealership raised its minimum wage to $15 an hour. The increase was well-received by McMahon’s BestOne Tire employees. “And it helped a lot with recruiting new people,” says Kim. “We saw a sizable increase in our number of new applicants. Since then, a lot of (employers) in our area have followed suit” by implementing their own wage hikes. w w w . M o d e r n T i r e D e a l e r. c o m 2312MTD_61_McMahons_Best-One.indd 61

“But we were the first around here to do it. If you’ve been out and have changed a tire or worked on a vehicle, you know it’s not easy work. And not just physically, but also making sure you get the right oil, the right filter, the right brake parts — there are so many things that can go wrong. “If a wheel comes off a vehicle, someone can die. If you’re paying someone $10 an hour to work on cars, you’re just asking for trouble.” The dealership also has adjusted its days of operation. Earlier this year, it switched to a Monday-through-Friday schedule at its seven retail stores and wholesale distribution center. The company’s three commercial tire locations are still open on Saturday. Kim was inspired by another tire dealer, Aaron Telle, president and CEO of Webster Groves, Mo-based Telle Tire & Auto Service, who was on a 2022 SEMA Show panel discussion with her. “He discussed why (his company was) closed on Saturday and how it made the company run better,” says Kim. “So we came back and began asking our employees, ‘What do you think of this? Would this be good?’ And across the board, everyone was excited about it.” The decision to close on Saturday was not made without some trepidation, according to Kim, who says she initially worried about losing revenue. “So I went back and looked at our sales on Saturdays. I saw a lot of tire repairs and rotations, but there wasn’t a lot of revenue generated on that day, as a whole.” Kim says the company’s newest employees “literally cheered” when she told them they don’t have to work on weekends.

“Quality employees bring in customers and happier employees are more invested” in the business’ success, says Kim McMahon, co-owner of Fort Wayne, Ind.-based McMahon’s Best-One Tire (with co-owners Randy Geyer, left, and Bubba McMahon.) Photo: McMahon’s Best-One Tire

“I was a little concerned because so many people are used to working on Saturdays, especially technicians, who can get a lot done that day. A few of them said, ‘I’ve always worked from eight until noon on Saturdays. This is part of my life.’ Well, it took about two weeks before they told us, ‘This is the best thing ever!’”

GREATER EXPECTATIONS

Compensation improvements and a shorter work week come with greater expectations by the owners of McMahon’s Best-One Tire, according to Kim. “It’s a trade-off. You have to have the right people in place. We’re paying them more, but our expectations are higher. But quality employees bring in customers and happier employees are more invested” in the business’ success. “It all comes from our employees liking where they work and feeling appreciated. I’m firmly convinced of that.”

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Focus on Dealers

Young woman finds joy in tire industry HANNAH TOWNSEND OVERCOMES CHALLENGES, INSPIRES OTHERS WITH PASSION FOR HANDS-ON WORK By

Madison Gehring

went y-f ive-yea r-old Ha nna h Townsend says she never thought she would end up working in the tire industry. However, after graduating college and entering the workforce, she decided she wanted a job that was more “hands-on” and “different every day.” In October 2022, Hannah started working in her current role at Matlock Tire Service & Auto Repair, a five-store dealership that’s headquartered in Knoxville, Tenn. “It’s not what I expected it to be, but I am really glad it’s not,” she says of her job.

ENTERING THE WORKFORCE

After graduation, “I started in the food service industry and moved to an office job, where I did a lot of desk and office work,” says Hannah. “I was at the computer all day, just sending out emails or talking on the phone.” She says that this work caused her to get bored and she realized she would be “happier in a job where it’s really hands-on and I can provide people with something.” Hannah’s father, Mike Townsend, is the owner of Townsend Strategies, a sales and leadership training company that advises independent tire dealerships on how to improve their processes and profitability.. He and the owner of Matlock Tire Service & Auto Repair, Jimmy Matlock, are friends. “I was actively looking for another job and Mr. Matlock and my dad have known each other for years and were making small talk one day when my dad made a passing comment about me looking for another job,” says Hannah. “Mr. Matlock told my dad I should interview at Matlock — and I did and got the job!” Hannah works in customer service and moves interchangeably between all five of the busy Matlock Tire Service &

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Twenty-five-year-old Hannah Townsend of Matlock Tire Service & Auto Repair never imagined herself working in the tire industry, but is happy to be here. “It’s always nice to surprise people with the knowledge that I have (gained) so far,” she says. “If a customer comes to me and asks to speak with someone else, I will try and solve (the request) for them first instead of just passing them off.” Photo: Matlock Tire Service & Auto Repair

Auto Repair locations that are located in Tennessee. “I answer phones, I schedule appointments (and) communicate with customers and mechanics,” she says. “There are a few things I can advise on and at least at a glance, I can tell people if they need new tires or not.” Before working at Matlock Tire Service & Auto Repair, Hannah said that she had no knowledge of tires or vehicle maintenance. “Anything related to vehicle maintenance I’ve always just left up to my dad to do.”

GAINING GROUND

Hannah says she is learning from the experienced tire technicians working around her. “I always try and ask questions,” she says. “I just asked a gentleman yesterday, ‘Are a motor mount and engine mount the same thing?’

“And it turns out they are! He was happy to explain it to me and teach me.” Asking questions and showing she is willing to learn allows her to feel more comfortable in a male-dominated industry. Hannah says men are the primary demographic she deals with and she noticed a “little push-back here and there, especially when I was just learning.” However, that was short-lived. “For the most part, all the men I work with are married and have children,” she says. “They’re all very kind and as long as I show them I’m open to learning and I’m going to make mistakes, but learn from them, they appreciate that.” One of her favorite things about being a woman in a male-dominated industry is surprising customers. “It’s always nice to surprise people with the knowledge that I have (gained) so far,” she says. “If a customer comes to me and asks to speak with someone else, I will try and solve (the request) for them first instead of just passing them off.” Hannah says she wants to stay in the tire industry long-term and is eager to learn more about cars and tires. “I think what I would like to learn most is just different things about cars, here and there,” she says. “I’m very thankful I get to work around a lot of kind people, who are always willing to answer my questions when they see I want to learn or I’m curious. “I’d like to learn a few more things — just enough to be dangerous!” Hannah’s status as a woman in the tire industry is important to her. She says she would love to help as many people as she can, especially other women. “If there’s any other woman going into the tire or auto industry, don’t lose heart. God is in control and when you get into it and get nervous, pray, take a deep breath and know you can always hand the phone to someone else,” she says with a laugh. MTD December 2023 11/28/23 5:16 PM

TPMS

Nissan Altima – 2022 DESCRIPTION & OPERATION

The tire pressure sensor is integrated with a valve and installed in each wheel. The sensor detects tire air pressure and tire temperature and transmits the detected air pressure and tire temperature in the form of a radio signal to the BCM. WARNING: Radio waves could adversely affect electrical medical equipment. Those who use a pacemaker should contact the electrical medical equipment manufacturer for possible influences before use. The low tire pressure warning lamp blinks for one minute, then turns ON when any malfunction occurs except low tire pressure. Erase the self-diagnosis memories for Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS), or register the ID to turn low tire pressure warning lamp OFF. ID registration is required when replacing or rotating wheels, replacing the tire pressure sensor or BCM. When inflating the tires, park the vehicle in the safe area. Read and understand the easy fill tire alert function prior to use. Inflate the tires one at a time. If there is no response for approximately 15 seconds or more after inflating the tires, cancel the use of the easy fill tire alert function or move the vehicle approximately 3.2 feet backward or forward to try again. The air filler pressure may be weak or out of service area. Despite the high-precision TPMS pressure sensor, an indicated value may differ from that of the pressure gauge. Air pressure is measured rather high due to the rise in tire air temperature after driving. If TPMS is malfunctioning, the easy fill tire alert is unusable. Replace the screw, the tire pressure sensor, the valve, the valve core, and the valve cap as a set when replacing each tire. Do not apply excessive force to the valve and tire pressure sensor when adjusting tire pressure. Because the tire pressure sensor conforms to North America radio law, the sensor may be used only in North America and used only for the specified method. It should not be disassembled or modified. The TPMS does not function if the specified Genuine Nissan tire pressure sensor is not installed. w w w . M o d e r n T i r e D e a l e r. c o m 2312MTD_63-65_TMPS.indd 63

1.4 (0.14, 12)

Always replace after every disassembly. N-m (kg-m, ft-lb) N-m (kg-m, in-lb) Should be lubricated with oil. Sealing point Select correct part. Apply multi-purpose grease.

These diagrams show the sensor components, as well as torque specifications.

MEMORIZING THE TIRE PRESSURE SENSOR ID

113 (12,83)

Work Procedure

This procedure must be performed after replacement of a transmitter or BCM. TPMS ID registration can be performed using one of the following procedures: Tr a n s m i t t e r Ac t i v a t i o n t o o l [KV48105501 (J-45295-A)] using CONSULT (preferred method); Signal Tech II tool [- (J-50190)] using CONSULT (preferred method); Signal Tech II tool [- (J-50190)] without CONSULT; CONSULT only.

TPMS REGISTRATION WITH TRANSMITTER ACTIVATION TOOL [KV48105501 (J-45295-A)]

1. Ignition switch ON. 2. Select “ID REGIST” in “Work support” mode of “AIR PRESSURE MONITOR”. 3. Select “Start” on “ID REGIST” screen. 4. Hold the transmitter activation tool [KV48105501 (J-45295-A)] (1) against the side of the left front tire, near the valve stem. 5. With the tool held at a 0 to 15 degree angle to the tire, press and hold the transmitter activation tool button until the indicator lamp turns OFF (approximately five seconds). 6. Repeat steps 4 and 5 for the remaining tires in this order: right front, right rear and left rear. 7. When ID registration is complete, check the following pattern at each wheel (Front LH/Front RH/Rear RH/

Rear LH): Two blinks on the turn signal lamp, “Yet” (red) on Consult and “Done” (green) on Consult. 8. After the ID registration procedure for all wheels is complete, press “End” to finish ID registration. 9. Test drive the vehicle to ensure that the TPMS lamp is OFF and no warning messages are present.

TPMS REGISTRATION WITH SIGNAL TECH II TOOL [- (J-50190)]

NOTE: The Signal Tech II must be updated with the newest software version in order to perform these procedures. The Signal Tech II soft ware updates can only be downloaded from a CONSULT unit. Other versions will not show the updates. 1. Adjust the tire pressure for all tires to the recommended value. 2. Ignition switch ON. 3. Select “ID REGIST” in “Work support” mode of “AIR PRESSURE MONITOR”. 4. Select “Start” on “ID REGIST” screen. 5. Turn on the Signal Tech II tool [- (J-50190)]. 6. Hold the Signal Tech II against the side of the left front tire, near the valve stem. 7. With the tool held at a 0 to 15 degree angle to the tire, select “Activate Sensor” from the main menu, then press and release the “OK” button to activate the sensor. Once the sensor

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TPMS is activated, the vehicle parking lamps will flash and the sensor ID will appear on the CONSULT screen. 8. Repeat steps 6 and 7 for the remaining tires in this order: right front, right rear and left rear. 9. When ID registration is complete, check the pattern at each wheel from step seven in the previous section. 10. Once all sensors have been activated, select “End” to finish ID registration. 11. Test drive the vehicle to ensure that the TPMS lamp is OFF and no warning messages are present.

WITHOUT CONSULT

1. Adjust the tire pressure for all tires to the recommended value. 2. Turn on the Signal Tech II tool [(J-50190)] and select “TPMS Check” from the main menu. 3. Select vehicle model and year. 4. When prompted, hold the Signal Tech II against the side of the left front tire, near the valve stem. 5. With the tool held at a 0 to 15 degree angle to the tire, press and release the “OK” button to activate the sensor. Once the sensor is activated, the tool will sound a tone and the tire pressure will be displayed. 6. Repeat steps 4 and 5 for the remaining tires in this order: right front, right rear and left rear. 7. When prompted, connect the tool to the data link connector. The tool will connect to the BCM, read the VIN, read sensor IDs and check for TPMS DTCs. Along with DTCs detected, one of the following will be displayed next to each wheel: • N/A: Not applicable because no ID found by the tool; • OK: Wheel and sensor are in original position; • NEW: New ID found (when compared to BCM); • RT: Wheel has been rotated; • Low Press: Low tire pressure. 8. If no DTC is present or the repair has been completed, press the “OK” button to register the IDs and clear DTCs. 9. Test drive the vehicle to ensure that the TPMS lamp is OFF and no warning messages are present. 10. Print a Signal Tech II Audit Report for your records. Refer to the Signal Tech II User Guide for instructions.

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The tire pressure sensor should be 270 degrees from the mounting/ demounting head.

TPMS REGISTRATION WITH CONSULT ONLY

1. Adjust the tire pressure for all wheel positions to match the list below: • Front LH 35 psi • Front RH 32 psi • Rear RH 29 psi • Rear LH 26 psi 2. Ignition switch ON. 3. Select “ID REGIST” in “Work support” mode of “AIR PRESSURE MONITOR.” 4. Select “Start” on “ID REGIST” screen. 5. Drive the vehicle at a speed greater than 25 mph for three minutes or more. 6. After ID registration for all wheels is complete, press “End” to finish ID registration. 7. Adjust the tire pressures for all tires to the recommended value. 8. Test drive the vehicle to ensure that the TPMS lamp is OFF and no warning messages are present.

TIRE PRESSURE SENSOR REMOVAL AND INSTALLATION REMOVAL

1. Remove the wheel and tire using power tool. NOTE: If the tire is to be reused, apply a matching mark on the tire in line with the position of the valve hole in the wheel for the purpose of wheel and tire balance adjustment after installation. 2. Remove the valve cap and the valve core to deflate the tire. CAUTION: Do not use silicone lubricant. Use of silicone lubricant will deteriorate the tire and wheel. Do not damage the wheel. 3. Lubricate the tire outside bead with a suitable non-silicone lubricant and separate the outside bead from the wheel. 4. Lubricate the tire inside bead with a suitable non-silicone lubricant and

Cut the inner end of the valve using a suitable tool.

separate the inside bead from the wheel. NOTE: To avoid damage to the vehicle, the tire must not slip or spin on the wheel when demounting or mounting a tire’s outer bead. Damage to the wheel or the tire pressure sensor could result. 5. Carefully lift and set the wheel and tire onto the tire changer turntable so that the tire pressure sensor is at the bottom. Position the wheel and tire so that the tire pressure sensor is 270 degrees from the mounting/ demounting head. 6. Remove the tire from the wheel.CAUTION: Do not drop or strike the tire pressure sensor. Replace the tire pressure sensor if it has been dropped from higher than one meter. 7. Remove the screw and the tire pressure sensor from the valve. 8. Cut the inner end of the valve using a suitable tool. CAUTION: Do not damage the wheel. Pull the valve straight through the wheel hole. 9. Remove the valve from the wheel.

INSTALLATION

CAUTION: Do not loosen the screw if the tire pressure sensor and the valve are being replaced as an assembly. Make sure there are no burrs, foreign substances, or indications of damage to the wheel. 1. Clean the valve hole in the wheel. 2. When reusing the tire pressure sensor, install the tire pressure sensor to the valve using the following procedure. (Do not reuse the valve.) a) Install the tire pressure sensor to the roll pin of the valve. b) Install the screw to the tire pressure sensor and tighten to the specified torque. CAUTION: Do not reuse the screw. 3. Apply a suitable non-silicone lubricant MTD December 2023 11/28/23 3:44 PM

TPMS 12. Install the valve core. (Do not reuse the valve core.) 13. Inflate the tire. 14. Install the valve cap. (Do not reuse the valve cap.) 15. Balance the wheel and tire. 16. Install the wheel and tire in the appropriate position on the vehicle. When replacing the tire pressure

Information for this column comes from the tire pressure monitoring systems data in ProDemand, Mitchell 1’s auto repair information software for domestic and import vehicles. Headquartered in San Diego, Mitchell 1 has provided quality repair information solutions to the automotive industry since 1918. For more information, visit www.mitchell1.com.

Keep the four REDI-Sensors™ on hand, and you’ll have coverage for almost every customer. No need to wait for a sensor delivery. Plus, REDI-Sensor needs no cloning or programming, so you save even more time.

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sensor, perform the “TIRE PRESSURE SENSOR ID REGISTRATION.” ■

4 sensors = coverage for 225 million vehicles.

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to the surface of the valve that touches the wheel and to the valve hole in the wheel.CAUTION: Do not use silicone lubricant. Use of silicone lubricant will deteriorate the tire and wheel. Do not allow lubricant to contact the air pressure detection hole. 4. Position the tire pressure sensor assembly on the wheel. CAUTION: Do not damage the tire pressure sensor. Do not allow lubricant to contact the air pressure detection hole. The tire pressure sensor must be oriented tangentially to the rim of the wheel. 5. Install the tire pressure sensor assembly to the wheel. CAUTION: Do not damage the wheel. Install the valve all the way to the wheel. Make sure the valve seats properly in the valve hole in the wheel. 6. Check the tire pressure sensor assembly position. CAUTION: Do not damage the wheel or the tire pressure sensor. The tire pressure sensor must be oriented tangentially to the rim of the wheel. If the tire pressure sensor unit position is not correct, rotate the unit to the correct position. 7. Apply a suitable non-silicone lubricant to the tire inside bead. 8. Install the tire inside bead onto the wheel in the position shown. CAUTION: Do not damage the wheel or the tire pressure sensor. Do not allow the tire beads to make contact with the tire pressure sensor. Do not touch the tire pressure sensor with the mounting head. 9. Place the wheel on the turntable of the tire machine. Make sure that the tire pressure sensor is 270 degrees from the mounting/dismounting head. 10. Apply a suitable non-silicone lubricant to the tire outside bead. Do not allow lubricant to make contact with the tire pressure sensor. NOTE: If the tire is being reused, align the matching mark applied on the tire with the position of the valve hole in the wheel for the purpose of wheel and tire balance adjustment after installation. To avoid damage to the vehicle, the tire must not slip or spin on the wheel when demounting or mounting a tire’s outer bead. Damage to the wheel or the tire pressure sensor could result. 11. Install the tire outside bead onto the wheel as normal.

REDI-Sensor.com

65 10/24/23 8:35 AM 11/28/23 3:44 PM

Ad Index WHEN YOU CONTACT ONE OF OUR ADVERTISERS PLEASE BE SURE TO MENTION YOU SAW THEIR AD IN MODERN TIRE DEALER ADVERTISER

PAGE

WEBSITE

ACDC

www.fixhybrid.com

Aftermarket Auto Parts Alliance Inc.

www.autocareadvocacy.org

American Omni Trading

www.american-omni.com/cropmax

Ascenso Tires North America

www.ascensotiresna.com

Atturo Tires

www.atturo.com

Autel

www.autel.com

BKT USA Inc.

www.bkt-tires.com

Bridgestone Affiliated Retailer Nationwide Network

www.affiliatedretailer.net

Cardinal Brokers

www.cardinalbrokers.com

Continental Corporation

www.redi-sensor.com

Continental Tire

www.smartchoiceintires.com

GT Radial

www.gtradial.com

Hunter Engineering Company

www.hunter.com/hawkeye-xl

K & M Tire Inc.

www.kmtire.com/mrtire

Ken-Tool

www.kentool.com

Kenda Tires USA

IBC

www.kendatractionrewards.com

Maxxis Tires

www.maxxis.com

Milton industries

www.miltonindustries.com

Nitto Tire U.S.A. Inc.

OBC

www.nittoenthusiastcircuit.com/apply

Prinx Chengshan Tire North America Inc.

www.prinxtireusa.com

Radar Tires

www.radartires.com/premium

Sentury Tire USA

www.delintetbr.com

Tire Industry Association

www.tireindustry.org/events/otr

Transamerica Tire Company Ltd.

IFC

www.predatortires.com

Vredestein Tires

www.vredestein.com

Western Tires Inc.

www.jktyre-usa.com

WheelerShip LLC

www.wheelership.com

Wrenchers LLC

www.wrenchers.com

Yokohama Off-Highway Tires America Inc.

www.yokohama-oht.com

ZC Rubber America Inc.

www.arisuntires.com

66 2312MTD_66-C4_AdIndex.indd 66

J P

L a

MTD December 2023 11/28/23 3:44 PM

2302M

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Premium Performance at a Value Price for Consumers

Dealer Locator on KendaTire.com

Strong Margin Opportunities for Dealers

Enhanced Dealer Performance Dashboard

Full Product Screen: Ohio-Designed for North American Market

‘Double Dollar’ Promotions Flexible Payment Options

Kenda Traction Payout Chart Tier 1

Improved Mobile Access US-Based Sales Support & Warranty Team Trade Area Management for Dealer Success Realistic MAP Policy

Tier 2

Tier 3

Quarterly Unit Purchases

250

400

Annual Unit Purchases

240

1000

1600

Traction Dollars per Tire

$1.00

$2.00

$3.00

Purchases are tracked and reported by your distributor so all you have to focus on is how you’re going to spend your rewards.

Learn more about becoming a Kenda Traction associate dealer at KendaTractionRewards.com.

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