TIRES * Europe - Study: 71% of european drivers need more air in their tires

(The Bridgestone study checked 38,000 cars in 9 European countries)

London,EN,UK -Gizmag, by Bridget Borgobello -April 27, 2011: ...  a very effective way to reduce fuel consumption and cut emissions is right in front of us – air. A study recent study by tire manufacturer Bridgestone suggests that it's not only easy to forget, most of us do forget. The company checked 38,000 cars in 9 European countries during 2010 with results showing that 71% of the drivers were driving on under-inflated tires... Bridgestone equates the 71% figure to wasting €2.8 billion per year (2 billion liters) due to improper tire usage. And the environmental impact – 4.8 million tons of additional and preventable carbon emissions per year or 1.8g/km for every car on the road... Low tire inflation means poor tire rolling resistance, which is a major factor in how much fuel a car uses. Bridgestone estimates that taking into account road and weather conditions, tire rolling resistance represents 18% to 26% of the total force on a car. Low tire pressure also impacts on safety by reducing a vehicles' handling ability, increasing drifting and making tires wear out faster...  Other key findings of the study include:
 

• 7.5% of vehicles checked were using seriously under inflated tires (0.5 % severely under inflated)

• 1 out of 14 motorists are putting their safety at risk due to seriously under-inflated tires and/or worn out tires

• 2% of the tires checked have 30% reduced mileage due to under inflation

• 11.7% of tires checked had a tread depth below the legal level of 1.6 mm

• 12.2 million tires are lost because of premature wear

• 7.5% of checked drivers face significantly higher fuel consumption because of low inflation pressure.

* France - Michelin’s Sales Jump 28% on Higher Truck Demand

Paris,France-Bloomberg/TTNews -22 April 2011: -- Tire maker Michelin & Cie. said its first-quarter revenue rose 28%, led by surging demand in truck tires and a general economic rebound... Sales rose to 5.05 billion euros ($7.36 billion) from 3.94 billion euros a year earlier, France-based Michelin said in a statement... It forecast a full-year volume gain of at least 6.5% as the economic recovery boosts sales to European trucking operators...  The company said tire price increases, announced or already implemented, will offset about 80 percent of the estimated full- year costs through higher raw material costs... (Image from Michelin)