Roger Sanders

It’s a fact of life that if you don’t get to your appointment, you can’t clinch the deal or make the delivery or give the presentation. And no matter how valid the excuse, it just doesn’t look good. So when your car develops a puncture miles from your scheduled meeting, your heart sinks. You’re faced with changing the tyre yourself or waiting for breakdown services. Either way you’re going to be late.

But not if you’ve got Goodyear RunOnFlat tyres. Cars fitted with RunOnFlat tyres will tell you that you’ve had a puncture – but because the tyre doesn’t collapse like a normal tyre, you can keep on going. You’ll have to slow down a bit to 50mph and drive carefully, but by taking these simple precautions you’ll be able to keep driving for at least another 50 miles without having to stop, or pull over. So you’ll get to your meeting, or somewhere it’ll be easy to have the tyre changed quickly and hassle-free.

Ben Crawley, Goodyear Brand Support Manager says: “We believe RunOnFlat tyres have real benefits to business in particular. Not only will your staff get to the meeting unstressed, they’ll avoid a potentially dangerous blow out and retain control in the event of a puncture. You’ll also save the potentially expensive replacement of alloy wheels where the rims have become damaged through driving on flat tyres.”

So how does it work? Simple really. Goodyear RunOnFlat tyres have unique sidewalls that are reinforced with resilient rubber inserts that mean the tyre doesn’t collapse in the event of a puncture. This means that heat build-up is minimised so that you can remain completely in control of your car.

Unsurprisingly, RunOnFlat tyres are becoming increasingly popular with business drivers. Research by Goodyear shows that:

• 82% of motorists would rather have RunOnFlat than carry a spare tyre
  
  
• Seven out of eight motorists rate RunOnFlat tyres above any other automotive technological innovation
  
  
• 25% of drivers are unable to replace a flat tyre by themselves
  
  
• 50% of drivers have experienced more than one flat tyre or puncture.

James Bailey, Corporate Communications Manager at Goodyear, is looking to a bright future for RunOnFlat. “By 2008, we anticipate that over a quarter of UK cars will be fitted with run-flat tyres,” he says. “As pioneers of the technology, Goodyear RunOnFlat tyres are fitted as original equipment on more and more vehicles – from the likes of Rolls Royce, BMW and Mercedes, to more recently Ford, who now fit RunOnFlat tyres on the new generation of S-Max and Galaxy.” It seems that pretty soon changing a tyre by the side of the road will be a thing of the past.

Look after your business by looking after your drivers

Winter’s coming. The nights are closing in and there are all the usual seasonal nasties like rain and sleet and slush and snow. All the more reason for busy business motorists to be well prepared for adverse conditions. Rain is a particular hazard at this time of year – research has shown that 50% of reported traffic accidents at night happen in wet conditions and not in ice or snow. There’s not much any of us can do about darker evenings, but Goodyear has developed an innovative solution to driving in the wet. Their DynamicDrainTRED technology, featured in its HydraGrip tyres, provides unrivalled wet braking and aquaplaning safety without compromising its performance on dry roads.

As Ben Crawley, Goodyear Brand Support Manager, says: “For businesses with a responsibility to the welfare of their staff, the unparalleled safety of HydraGrip tyres in the wet is a real plus. Given that nobody likes driving in heavy rain, anything we can do to make that journey less stressful is going to mean staff arrive at their appointment in better shape to do business.”

When Goodyear put its HydraGrip technology to the test against its major rivals, the results were impressive. Leading German magazine Auto Motor und Sport tested 11 tyres with the result that Goodyear scored 95 points out of a possible 100 and topped a list that included tyres from Michelin, Pirelli, Bridgestone and Continental. The top five were:

Ben Crawley, Goodyear Brand Support Manager, is also keen to stress that testing new tyres isn’t the end of the story. “HydraGrip actually maintains its competitive edge as the tyre wears and demonstrates a 7% improvement in wet stopping distances when worn compared to tyres such as the Michelin Primacy and Continental PremiumContact.” HydraGrip is just a part of Goodyear’s commitment to driver safety. As well as pioneering safety through innovation, Goodyear also recognises that no amount of technology can make up for poor driving habits. It has recently teamed up with a number of leading motoring organisations to launch the Drive Home Safely Initiative, which gives drivers helpful advice on good driving techniques through its website www.drivehomesafely.com and a roadshow.

It’s clear that Goodyear knows businesses have enough to worry about without the added stress and strain of missed appointments or difficult driving conditions. By developing products such as RunOnFlat and HydraGrip, Goodyear has put the latest technology to work, keeping your staff safe and helping your business run smoothly.

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