Modern Tire Dealer - September 2018

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THE INDUSTRY’S LEADING PUBLICATION

IT’S ALL ABOUT

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JOHN QUIRK

IS MODERN TIRE DEALER’S 2018 TIRE DEALER OF THE YEAR

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The Industry’s Leading Publication September 2018, Volume 99, Number 9

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DEPARTMENTS 4 Editorial

F E AT U R E S 26 How adhesive weights are changing tire balancing

Marketing genius: Two ad campaigns that have stood the test of time

6 moderntiredealer.com

News and navigation tools for MTD’s website

8 News/Views The pros and cons of Trump’s tariffs

20 On the Rise

Tire Dealer of the Year

30 ‘The goal is to be the best tire and service provider in the country’

Jeremy James, Tires To Your Spot, Leesport, Pa.

22 Your Marketplace Low unemployment rate and high GDP are helping the retail tire market

In order to accomplish that, VIP Tires & Service has reinvented itself, with John Quirk leading the way.

That is why he is the 2018 Tire Dealer of the Year

24 Numbers that Count Relevant statistics from an industry in constant motion

76 Business Insight Wage and hour violations: There are targets on the backs of tire and auto service industry members

60 When to repair or

replace shop equipment

78 Mergers and Acquisitions

Preventive maintenance is a key factor, say 5 Tire Dealers of the Year

What matters about your business to a strategic or financial buyer

79 European Notebook European tire technology: onwards and upwards! Nonpneumatic passenger car tires are one innovation to watch

68 Big Brother is watching — have you become Big Brother?

82 Customer Loyalty How to continually earn loyalty: Do you have loyal customers? Are you sure?

The law permits electronic surveillance of employee emails and phone calls, but only within a limited framework or federal, state and local rules, and not without serious ethical and business concerns

Focus on Industry 80 The importance of Tier 2 vs. Tier 3 Why building a consumer tire plant in the U.S. is challenging for overseas manufacturers

84 From the track to the street Race tire experience helps develop consumer tires

86 Current and future issues to be tackled in Global Tire Expo educational sessions

72 Autonomous vehicles: niche vs. mainstream 12 obstacles that need to be addressed before a volume rollout will occur

90 TPMS Winter tires and TPMS systems: Follow proper procedures to maintain functionality

96 TPMS

68

2011-2018 Ford Edge and Lincoln MKX

104 Products 112 Ad index 113 Classified

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ON THE COVER: PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY OF RANDY HAZELTON PHOTOGRAPHY

Modern Tire Dealer is a proud member of:

w w w . M o d e r n T i r e D e a l e r. c o m

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Editorial

Marketing genius

TWO AD CAMPAIGNS THAT HAVE STOOD THE TEST OF TIME By

Bob Ulrich

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very person nominated for our Tire Dealer of the Year Award is judged on their marketing skills. There have been 26 Tire Dealers of the Year, and without a strong marketing presence in their market areas, I’m not sure any of them would have won.

That includes John Quirk, chairman and CEO of VIP Inc., which does business as VIP Tires & Service in New England.

You can read about why he is our 2018 Tire Dealer of the Year starting on page 30.

Marketing is a skill, however, and some of the dealers are more adept at promoting their businesses than others. Two of them, Barry Steinberg and the late Bruce Halle, come to mind. Their operations continue to rely on decades-old advertising campaigns that have stood the test of time.

In Steinberg’s case, he recognized a can’t-miss marketing slogan when he heard it. As owner of Direct Tire & Auto Service in Watertown, Mass., he had just signed a one-year deal for a billboard on the Massachusetts Turnpike, and needed something catchy to advertise his business in metropolitan Boston.

As Steinberg explains it, a pair of local advertising agency interns asked him what part of his business he wanted to promote.

“I said, ‘We really want to promote the brake business because there’s a huge growth market there.’

“The next week they come over with three storyboards. They show me the first two and I didn’t like them. The third one was ‘We’ll fix it so it brakes.’

“I put that up on the billboard within two weeks and have been using it ever since.” That was some 30 years ago. The catchphrase is now registered in all 50 states, although Steinberg’s four outlets cater to customers in metropolitan Boston.

Since then Steinberg, who was our first Tire Dealer of the Year, has added another copyrighted slogan, “We’ll brake, shock and exhaust you.”

Halle, our 22nd Tire Dealer of the Year, opened his first Discount Tire store in 1960 in Michigan. As the owner and only employee, he had to market his retail operation to survive.

In 1975, a friend of Halle’s, Bob Natkin, shot a 10-second ad centered on a little old lady rolling a tire.

“If ever you’re not satisfied with one of our tires, please feel free to bring it back,” says a voice-over. Then the lady throws the tire through the window of the store. The narration concludes with “Thank you. Discount Tire Co.” The little old lady has since died. But the 43-year-old ad is still running and is featured in the Guinness Book of World Records as the world’s longest-running TV commercial. It also earned a certificate from the Hollywood Radio and Television Society for being one of the “World’s Best Broadcast Advertisements of 1976.”

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Barry Steinberg wants drivers to know his four Direct Tire & Auto Service stores will “brake, shock and exhaust” them.

Today, Discount Tire is the largest independent tire dealer in the U.S., with nearly 1,000 stores. When I interviewed Halle in 2014, he told me only once had a customer actually thrown a tire through a store window.

“It happened in Grand Rapids, Mich.,” he said. “Back in the late ’80s, a customer came to the store on a Saturday and was upset about something. He left, then came back with a tire and wheel, all mounted, and he says, ‘I’m going to throw this through your blank, blank window.’ So the manager says, ‘Well, let me get people out of the showroom, because there is going to be glass all over the place.’ He gets everybody out, but in the meantime, somebody had called the police. The police report went out on the wire services, so reporters arrived.

“The police called me and told me what he was doing and said they were going to arrest him. And I said, ‘You’ll do nothing of the sort. You’ve got to make him the happiest man in the world.’

“The guy is about 10 or 15 feet from the window and thinks he’s Superman. He thinks he can throw the tire and wheel that far, but he can’t. He throws it and it bounces, and he’s really upset.

He gets closer, and he does throw it through the window. But it’s all on film. In those days, there were no computers, and the news hit the wire services all over the country.

“We gave him a new set of tires. We couldn’t begin to pay for that kind of publicity. It was worth a fortune to us. In fact, it made the front page of the Pittsburgh daily newspaper, and that really disappointed me because we didn’t have any stores there!” ■ If you have any questions or comments, please email me at bob.ulrich@bobit.com.

MTD September 2018

ModernTireDealer.com DIGITAL RESOURCES FOR THE INDEPENDENT TIRE DEALER

HOME OFFICE 3515 Massillon Rd., Suite 350 Uniontown, OH 44685 (330) 899-2200, fax (330) 899-2209 Website: www.moderntiredealer.com

PUBLISHER Greg Smith, ext. 2212 Greg.Smith@bobit.com

EDITORIAL Editor: Robert J. Ulrich, ext. 2211 Bob.Ulrich@bobit.com

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Interest rates high for second quarter, first half results

Senior Editor: Ann Neal, ext. 2218 Ann.Neal@bobit.com

Tire companies’ second quarter, first half financial results grabbed readers’ attention last month on www.moderntiredealer.com. Impacting factors included higher raw material costs and increased manufacturing costs, the companies noted. Read how the manufacturers are planning to boost profits going forward as presented in our top 10 items.

PRODUCTION

1. Goodyear tire prices are on their way up 2. More on ATD’s reorganization in Huntersville, N.C. 3. Construction is underway at Nokian’s U.S. tire plant 4. Monro names 2 senior leaders 5. Jack Williams Tire opens a 3rd store in Lancaster 6. Goodyear earns $157 million in 2Q 2018 7. Cooper Tire’s 2Q profits, sales and unit volumes are down 8. Pirelli continues to rely on high value tires 9. Bridgestone posts flat results in North America in 1H 10. Max Finkelstein adds Falken and Ohtsu brands

Karen.Runion@bobit.com

Art Director: Vince Taroc, (310) 533-2547 Vincent.Taroc@bobit.com

Production Manager: Karen Runion, ext. 2210

SALES South and Texas: Greg Smith Greg.Smith@bobit.com (330) 899-2200, ext. 2212

Midwest: Bob Marinez Bob.Marinez@bobit.com (330) 899-2200, ext. 2217

West Coast: Marianne Dyal /The Dyal Company Marianne.Dyal@bobit.com (760) 451-9216

Automotive Aftermarket: Dan Thornton

MTD digital edition You can view MTD’s monthly magazine at, http://mtd.epubxp.com/t/22225 or use your smartphone’s QR Code reader (right)

djtinc@gmail.com (734) 676-9135, mobile (313) 410-0945

Classified Sales: Bob Marinez Bob.Marinez@bobit.com (330) 899-2200, ext. 2217

Reprint Sales: Karen Runion Karen.Runion@bobit.com

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MODERN TIRE DEALER (ISSN 00268496) (CDN IPM #40013413) (USPS #369-170) is published monthly by Bobit Business Media, 3520 Challenger St., Torrance, California 90503-1640. Periodicals postage paid at Torrance, CA 90503-9998 and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to MODERN TIRE DEALER, P.O. Box 3312, Northbrook, IL 60065-3312. Please allow 6 to 8 weeks for address changes to take effect. Subscriptions in the U.S. and its possessions, $65; Canadian, $99; Int’l surface mail, $99; Int’l airmail, $198. Single copies, $10, except the January Facts Issue, $30. Address all subscription correspondence to MODERN TIRE DEALER, P.O. Box 3312, Northbrook, IL 60065-3312. Please allow 6 to 8 weeks to receive your first issue. Please address Editorial and Advertising correspondence to MODERN TIRE DEALER, 3515 Massillon Road, Suite 350, Uniontown, OH 44685-6217. The contents of this publication may not be reproduced either in whole or in part without consent of Bobit Business Media. All statements made, although based on information believed to be reliable and accurate, cannot be guaranteed and no fault or liability can be accepted for error or omission. For your information: We sometimes make our subscriber information (i.e. fax, e-mail or mailing address) available to carefully screened organizations whose products and services may be of interest to you. If you prefer not to have your information made available, please write MODERN TIRE DEALER, P.O. Box 3312, Northbrook, IL 60065-3312.

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MTD September 2018

News/Views

The pros and cons of Trump’s tariffs RETREADERS WANT RELIEF IN TRUCK TIRE MARKET

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he issue of trade remains a hot button in Washington, D.C., and leaders in the tire industry are taking an active role in trying to shape the discussion.

As President Donald Trump continues to press the need for additional tariffs on imported products from China, U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer has published lists, in three waves, of imported products that ought to be subject to tariffs.

There are thousands of items on the lists, spanning many industries. Every kind of tire is represented, as are hundreds of automotive parts.

As the investigation moves along, parties are submitting public comments and testifying at hearings — and not always from the same side of the argument.

David Stevens, managing director of the Tire Retread & Repair Information Bureau (TRIB), testified that the U.S. retread industry needs protection from low cost imports. “Every other type of tire being imported from China into the U.S. faces some type of duty, whether passenger, agricultural, or large off-the-road tires.

“Multiple other countries around the world have already implemented tariffs on Chinese truck and bus tires being imported into their countries and the European Commission has recently recommended countervailing duties as high as 82 Euros per commercial truck and bus tire.”

Stevens said retreading has long represented 50% of the commercial tire replacement market in the U.S., but in 2017 it slipped to 42%, which he said implied a loss of 2.45 million retreaded truck tires.

“This decline in the retread industry is completely driven by low-cost, lowquality Chinese truck tire imports. Retread manufacturers and supporting industries have had to lay off employees, reduce hours, and close their businesses in the face of this unfair competition.” Stevens said tariffs would protect the men and women in the small- and medium-sized retreading businesses across the country.

Tire manufacturers in the U.S. also are seeking protection of their part of the industry. Tracey Norberg, senior vice president and general counsel for the U.S.

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Tire Manufacturers Association (USTMA), wrote that domestic tire manufacturing “is poised for growth and an expansion of its footprint,” but that a stable supply chain is critical.

The USTMA is concerned that products targeted for tariffs “could stifle the growth of domestic tire manufacturing” by affecting access to raw materials and factory equipment. “This uncertainty could have cascading impacts on domestic tire manufacturing.”

CHINA PLAYS A SIGNIFICANT ROLE IN U.S. TIRE PRODUCTION. And it would come on top of tariffs already levied on the imported steel needed for tire production. “Already, our suppliers are experiencing shortages that will affect our manufacturing operations in the U.S.” One USTMA member explained the potential effect on tire manufacturing in its own comments.

Continental Tire the Americas LLC submitted comments in conjunction with two of its fellow business units, Continental Automotive Systems Inc. and ContiTech USA Inc. Collectively, Continental said it supports the Trump Administration’s effort to persuade China to change its ways related to intellectual property rights, technology transfers and other anti-competitive activities. But the company doesn’t believe

imposing tariffs on automotive goods will accomplish that goal.

“Continental relies upon many raw materials, machinery, and tooling that comes from China, which is unable to be sourced in the United States. As Continental continues to invest in current domestic plant expansions and a new facility in Jackson, Miss., these tariffs compromise our ability to deliver those growth promises on time and within budget. Additionally, Continental anticipates retaliatory actions

by China against U.S. industries, including the automotive industry.”

The Mississippi plant will be Continental’s third tire factory in the U.S. (The others are in Sumter, S.C., and Mount Vernon, Ill.) The company said the entire industry relies on “a global supply network developed over several decades.” As part of that, China “plays a significant role in that network by supplying a number of specific materials, components and tooling that are not available in the U.S. or North America.”

“Sourcing an alternative for China in the global supply chain from the growing number of covered products being proposed, if possible, would take years. The time required to seek, vet and transition to alternative supply sources, separate from those established over two decades, is an extensive process.”

Here’s a specific example. In the planning of its third U.S. tire plant, Continental said the process of modeling and designing machinery began two years before there was an agreement to build the plant. At the time, that machinery wasn’t subject to tariffs, but it would be when it’s delivered. “These machine builds are proprietary and part of a state-of-the-art manufacturing ecosystem which is currently under production by one exclusive vendor in China. Significant lead time to build, test and integrate within our processes is required.”

Continental said if the machinery does become subject to tariffs, it would hamper the company’s ability to progress on time and within budget. Production of commercial truck tires in Mississippi is to begin by the end of 2019. —Joy Kopcha MTD September 2018

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News/Views

Bites Tire prices are rising Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. (as much as 3%) and Michelin North America Inc. implemented consumer price increases on Sept.

1. Michelin’s “price adjustment” applied to selected Michelin and BFGoodrich product lines. Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. will increase passenger and light truck tire prices up to 4% beginning Oct. 1.

2Q: a success for Titan Titan International Inc. posted net income of $5.7 million on net sales of $429 million for the second quarter ended June 30, 2018.

That compares to a net loss of $6.3 million on sales of $365 million for the same period last year. The company’s income-to-sales ratio was 1.3%. Operating income was up 268%.

Falken earns OE fitment Subaru of America Inc. has selected the Falken Ziex ZE001 All-Season as an original equipment fitment for the redesigned 2019 Forester. The tire, in size P225/55R18 98H, will be manufactured at Sumitomo Rubber Industries Ltd.’s Thailand plant. The Forester will be built in Japan.

AAPEX tackles tariffs Political strategist Karl Rove is one of two opening day speakers at the 2018 Automotive Aftermarket Products Expo (AAPEX).

“Breakfast with John King and Karl Rove: How Trade and the Elections Could Impact the Aftermarket” will be held Oct. 30 from 7 a.m. to 8:45 a.m. in the Palazzo Ballroom at The Venetian. It is a ticketed event.

Bridgestone promotes two Bridgestone Americas Inc. recently promoted two executives to positions in Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations LLC. Amber Holm will be vice president of consumer and customer engagement marketing. Jeffrey Lack will be vice president of consumer tire marketing. Both will cover the U.S. and Canada.

Ateq awards tools Ateq TPMS Tools LC has awarded tire pressure monitoring system diagnostic tools to three high schools as part of its “Back to School” Facebook contest. They are located in Illinois, Florida and Texas. Ateq collaborated with Jeff Buckley, owner of My Father’s Shop in Midlothian, Texas, to sponsor the contest, which was open to high schools, technical centers and colleges.

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Wild tigers and tires NEW UNIROYAL INITIATIVE INCREASES BRAND AWARENESS

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hree years ago, Uniroyal dealers told Michelin North America Inc. the Uniroyal brand needed to be strengthened and refreshed. Based on the feedback, Michelin started a series of initiatives that have come to fruition this year.

The most recent is a five-year partnership between the Uniroyal brand and the World Wildlife Fund (WWF). Partially inspired by the Uniroyal Tiger Paw tire line, the Michelin initiative is part of the global effort to double the number of tigers in the wild by 2022.

Consumers who buy four Uniroyal passenger car or light truck tires at participating dealers in October will not only be eligible for a $40 mail-in rebate, but Consumers will receive “Save Tiger” kits when they buy also receive a co-branded “Save the Tiger” kit, which the Uniroyal tires in October. includes a plush tiger toy, a species card and a reusable tote bag.

“Dealers wanted to see a new program — a replacement for the soccer program Uniroyal had — that was a turnkey and easy to deploy for them,” says Phil Watson, consumer public relations director for BFGoodrich and Uniroyal brands.

Michelin also will donate $20 to the WWF’s Tx2 program for every Uniroyal tire rebate redeemed during the promotional period, with no set limit and a minimum commitment of $150,000 a year for five years. The Tx2 program’s goal is to increase the dwindling count of wild tigers.

There are 13 countries that host wild tiger populations. The WWF estimates there are as few at 3,900 tigers left in the wild from a high of 100,000 a century ago. The Tx2 initiative hopes to reverse that by reducing poaching, habitat loss, and illegal trade in tiger parts.

“The initiative is just a fun way to engage our dealers and consumers in inviting everyone to help save the wild tiger population, and… help further strengthen the Uniroyal brand,” says Alonso Tiscareno, Uniroyal brand director.

The new Uniroyal marketing program follows two products launched earlier this year: the ultra-high performance Uniroyal Tiger Paw GTZ All-Season 2 and the all-terrain Uniroyal Laredo AWT 3.

“All the initiatives that… we’re starting to deploy now, and there’s more to come in the future, are in direct relation to the feedback that we got from our dealers,” says Tiscareno.

To learn more about Uniroyal’s World Wildlife Fund partnership and promotion, visit http://www.uniroyaltires.com. – Bob Ulrich

3 Big O franchisees rise to the top

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here are nearly 450 Big O Tires LLC stores in 23 states, but franchisees in Colorado, Utah and California earned the company’s top award for their performance in 2017. The Franchisees of the Year are: • Brian and Chad Cunningham, multistore owners in Colorado. Big O says the Cunninghams focus their business on the needs of their customers to ensure each one leaves happy.

• Kent and Kory Coleman, multi-store owners in Utah. The Colemans believe the recipe for success lies in investing in their business, their people, their

facilities and their community to create a long-term impact.

• Chris Monteverde, a multi-store owner in California. He says training is essential for continual growth, and he has a dedicated training room for associate development opportunities.

The top 40 Big O Tires stores are eligible.

The program recognizes franchisees that have implemented best practices, succeeded in the industry, and have given back to both their fellow franchisees and their communities.

Recipients were recognized during the Big O Tires annual convention.

MTD September 2018

A LONG WAY

TOGETHER

FL 693 93M M

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Road oriented Steel belts Excellent self-cleaning features Fuel economy High speed

News/Views

Chemicals in tires may not require warning labels in California

Bites Cooper says Tread Wisely Cooper Tire & Rubber Co., through its Tread Wisely program, and DoSomething.org have launched a national tire safety campaign for young drivers. The new “Pump It Up” campaign will be active through Sept. 30, 2018.

Yokohama launches app Yokohama Tire Corp.’s free Rallio app is designed to help tire dealers publish and personalize Yokohama-created social media content. Marketing Director Alan Holtschneider says the app eliminates the need for dealers to spend hours creating social media content. It also gives them the ability to monitor and respond to all of their online reviews.

Association hires Hopkins The Auto Care Association has hired Gabrielle Hopkins, a Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration executive, to lead its government affairs department as vice president, federal affairs. The new role will task Hopkins with identifying legislative initiatives for the association to pursue and recommending advocacy efforts on both Capitol Hill and with federal agencies.

Bartec re-hires Ed Jones Bartec USA LLC has re-hired Ed Jones as national sales manager for its Eastern Region.

He was most recently at JS Products Inc. “Ed was integral part of our growth and success during his first tenure at Bartec, and we are looking forward to his assistance with the new opportunities that are ahead,” says CEO Scot Holloway.

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everal changes to the California Proposition 65 regulations went into effect Aug. 30, 2018. Both the U.S. Tire Manufacturers Association (USTMA) and Tire Industry Association (TIA) have addressed concerns about those changes.

The California Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986, commonly referred to as Proposition 65, requires businesses in California to provide warnings to consumers about exposure to chemicals known to cause cancer or birth defects or other reproductive harm. This list, which must be updated at least once a year, has grown to include approximately 800 chemicals since it was first published in 1987.

In a response to tire retailers’ questions regarding compliance of consumer tires with Proposition 65, USTMA and its members affirmed that the new requirements do not create a need for a warning label.

“The mere presence of a chemical known to the state to be a carcinogen or reproductive toxicant does not require a warning label. Rather, the average daily exposure to the Proposition 65 listed chemicals in the product must exceed the Proposition 65 safe harbor exposure level for that chemical to require a warning,” said USTMA. Based on the cumulative information available to tire manufacturers on the

USTMA reports 81% of scrap tires produced are re-used

Rotary says ‘lower to locks’ Rotary Lift, a Vehicle Service Group (VSG) brand, explains the importance of lowering lifts to their locks in a 90-Second Know How instructional video, “Lowering to Locks.”

Ron Lainhart, manager of service network excellence, says lowering the lift to the locks is not just a safety precaution. “It also helps protect the lift from premature wear.”

Sears supports Amazon.com Sears, Roebuck and Co. has expanded its tire installation program with Amazon.com.

The service initially covered 47 Sears Auto Center locations and included the purchase of any brand of tire, including DieHard, on Amazon.com. Now, Sears Auto Centers in all 50 states offer tire installation and balancing for Amazon shoppers. Sears says response has been “extremely positive.”

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composition of tires, other available sampling, relevant exposure assumptions, daily exposure calculations, and expert advice, USTMA and its members affirm the new requirements do not create a need for a warning label.

TIA had its lawyer, Peter Gunst of Astrachan Gunst Thomas P.C., issue a memorandum in response to USTMA’s document.

“The new California regulation relating to the responsibility to provide consumer product exposure warnings… places the warning requirement on the manufacturer or supplier, not the retailer,” writes Gunst in the memorandum.

“The manufacturer or supplier may satisfy the warning requirement either by providing a warning on the product label itself or by providing written notice to the retailer identifying the listed chemicals and including all necessary warning materials, such as labels and the like.”

Gunst says the sole exceptions where the retailer bears warning responsibility are: 1. when the retailer is selling a product under a trademark that it owns or licenses; or 2. if the retailer has introduced a listed chemical into the product.

Gunst concluded by saying the USTMA response “is inapplicable to those exceptions by their very nature.”

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n 1990, there were close to 1 billion scrap tires stockpiled in the U.S. That total is down 94%, to 60 million, according the 2017 U.S. Scrap Tire Management Summary.

Produced by the U.S. Tire Manufacturers Association (USTMA), the scrap tire summary began tracking tires culled from scrap tire collection entering domestic passenger and light truck used tire markets in 2009 by including used tires as a market for scrap tires.

But each year’s findings are more of a “snapshot in time” than point of comparison, said John Sheerin, director of end of life tires at USTMA and the primary author of the report. For example, more than 81% of the nearly 250 million scrap tires produced in 2017 were re-used in products such as tire-derived fuel, rubber modified asphalt and other products. If the tires baled or disposed of in landfills are taken into account, then the percentage is close to 100% every year.

“Scrap tire management in the U.S. demonstrates an environmental success story, one that not enough people know about,” says Anne Forristall Luke, USTMA CEO and president. “Over the past 30 years, USTMA has worked with state partners to find uses for scrap tires. This success is reflective of the commitment to environmental responsibility from our industry.

MTD September 2018

News/Views

Credit where credit is due

Bites

SHOUT OUTS TO THE TIRE DEALER OF THE YEAR JUDGES AND ADVERTISERS

Firestone ag tire price hike The price of select Firestone ag tires will go up 4% in the U.S. and Canada effective Oct. 1, 2018. Bridgestone Americas Inc. says the price hike is “in response to rising raw material costs and other market dynamics.”

Tire Discounters wins again Tire Discounters Inc. has added another “Best of” award to its mantle. The most recent title is for Best in Auto Repair in the 2018 Lexington (Ky.) Herald-Leader Readers’ Choice Awards. Tire Discounters operates 112 retail outlets in Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, Tennessee, Georgia and Alabama.

Nokian plant will be ready Nokian Tyres plc says its $360 million tire manufacturing facility in Dayton, Tenn., remains on schedule for a 2020 launch. Construction is underway, and concrete for the foundation has been poured. Nokian also is building a warehouse on the same site with the capacity to hold 600,000 tires.

Inc. ranks tire retailers Inc. magazine says Simple Tire LLC and RNR Tire Express are two of the fastest growing private companies in the U.S. Simple Tire debuts on the 2018 Inc. 5000 list at No. 419.

RNR is No. 3514

Pacsi sets retirement date Phil Pacsi will retire as vice president of sports/events marketing and training for Bridgestone Americas Inc. effective Sept.

30, 2018. He has spent 36 years with the company, the last 24 as a member of the marketing team. He began his career with the Firestone Tire & Rubber Co.

N’Fera Club loves Big Bear Nexen Tire America Inc.’s enthusiast and lifestyle program, the N’Fera Club, has adopted 13 off-roading trails in Big Bear, Calif.

The Adopt-A-Trail volunteers contribute over 25,000 hours annually to maintain the trails in the San Bernardino National Forest.

Ad campaign costs $1 million American Tire Distributors Inc. has launched a $1 million ad campaign highlighting the work of its Tire Pros franchisees. The promise of hassle-free customer service is the message. The campaign features a commercial that airs across streaming television and programmatic video.

14

W

ith the help of four independent judges, John Quirk, chairman and CEO of the 57-store VIP Tires & Services chain, was named Modern Tire Dealer’s 2018 Tire Dealer of the Year.

Here are this year’s judges.

Dick Morgan, a longtime Tire Dealer of the Year judge, is a Certified Management Consultant (CMC) and president of Morgan Marketing Solutions Inc. in Dallas, Texas.

Wayne Williams, who died unexpectedly John Quirk, left, chairman and CEO of in July, was president of ExSell Marketing VIP Tires & Services, receives the 2018 Tire Dealer of the Year Award from Greg Inc., and author of MTD’s “Counter Intel- Smith, MTD publisher. ligence” column. He had been a Tire Dealer of the Year judge since 2012.

John Healy is a managing director and research analyst with Northcoast Research Holdings LLC. Healy covers a variety of subsectors of the automotive industry, and writes “Your Marketplace” for MTD. Alpio Barbara is owner and president of Redwood General Tire Service Co. in Redwood City, Calif. He was MTD’s 2016 Tire Dealer of the Year.

As a part of the award each year, MTD donates $1,000 plus a portion of the advertising revenue from the Tire Dealer of the Year section to a charity of the winner’s choice.

This year, Quirk opted to split the donation between two groups: the New England Cancer Specialists, in the name of Jen McGaughey, the late wife of Blair McGaughey, VIP.’s tire merchandising director; and the advocacy group Stomp Out Bullying. Each charity will receive $5,500.

The advertisers supporting the 2018 Tire Dealer of the Year are Bartec USA, Berkshire Bank, Bridgestone Affiliated Retailer Network, Cooper Tires, Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., Hennessy Industries LLC, Hunter Engineering Co., Max Finkelstein Inc., Michelin North America Inc. Mirick, O’Connell, DeMallie & Lougee LLP, Mohawk Rubber Sales, Pirelli Tire LLC, Schrader Performance Sensors, TBC Brands, Unotifi, Valvoline and O’Reilly Auto Parts.

Bridgestone recalls 2,700 truck tires

B

ridgestone Americas Tire Operations LLC and Bridgestone Canada Inc. together are recalling approximately 2,700 certain all-position, wide-base radial commercial truck tires in size 425/65R22.5.

The recall, with DOT date codes in parentheses, includes the Firestone FS818 (2318 and 2418); Bridgestone M854 (2418 and 2518); Bridgestone M860A (2518); and Bridgestone M864 (2318 and 2418).

All tires covered under the voluntary recall were manufactured on specific dates between June 10, 2018, and June 30, 2018, and sold in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

Bridgestone says the affected tires “may not comply with a specific endurance test requirement” as required by the Federal

Motor Vehicle Safety Standards and similar applicable laws and regulations in Canada and Mexico.

Bridgestone will replace all eligible recalled tires free of charge with a comparable Bridgestone or Firestone all-position, wide-base radial commercial truck tire in size 425/65R22.5 manufactured outside the affected production range, or with a suitable replacement tire.

Owners of tires subject to this recall are urged to contact their authorized Bridgestone tire dealer or company-owned service center to arrange verification and replacement.

Customers in the U.S. and Mexico with questions may contact Bridgestone Technical Service at 800-847-3272.

MTD September 2018

DURABLE. DEPENDABLE.

If your customer doesn’t love their Firestone tires for any reason within the ďŹ rst 30 days, they can bring them back and have them replaced. At Firestone, we stand behind our durable, dependable products and the retailers that sell them.

TM

Restrictions and limitations apply. See FirestoneTire.com for more warranty details.

News/Views

Bites

Tire manufacturers are in the black 3 TIRE MAKERS POST EARNINGS OF AT LEAST $1 BILLION

Pilot christens Wingfoot Three Shaesta Waiz, the youngest woman to fly solo around the world in a single-engine aircraft, christened Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co.’s newest blimp, Wingfoot Three, in Akron, Ohio, on Aug. 30. The christening fell 89 years to the day aviation pioneer Amelia Earhart christened a Goodyear blimp in 1929.

Monro hires two executives Monro Inc. has added two executives. Jerry Alessia, who spent a dozen years working for Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., is overseeing Monro’s tire merchandising operation as senior vice president of tire merchandising. Avi Dasgupta has been appointed vice president of information technology infrastructure and data architecture..

MFI partners with Falken Max Finkelstein Inc. (MFI) is partnering with Falken Tire Corp. to distribute Falken and Ohtsu brand consumer tires throughout the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast U.S. MFI operates from 15 distribution centers with more than 1.3 million square feet of tire storage.

Veritech makes moves Veritech Mfg. & Wholesale Inc. has promoted Matt Bignell to general manager, and Alex Moore has joined the Veritech team as sales manager.

Drivers earn Goodyear perks Members of J.B. Hunt Transport Inc.’s perks program will receive discounts on products and services, including tires from Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co.

USTMA hires Moore Sean Moore has been appointed director of government affairs for the U.S. Tire Manufacturers Association (USTMA.)

Yokohama ends Kumho tie-up Yokohama Rubber Co. Ltd. terminated its four-year-old technology agreement with Kumho Tire Co. Inc., effective July 6. Recent changes to Kumho’s controlling shareholders precipitated the change.

Cooper plans new products Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. will unleash 18 new products over a 24-month time line while refreshing and updating its portfolio, said CEO Brad Hughes. Expanding into new channels is another strategy.

16

P

ublicly traded tire manufacturers were profitable in the first half of the calendar year.

Here are the fiscal results of three tire companies that recorded income of at least $1 billion through the first half of 2018. Exchange rates as of June 30, 2018, are listed in parentheses as needed.

• Bridgestone Corp. posted net income of 134.6 billion yen ($1.2 billion) on net sales of 1.77 trillion yen ($16 billion) for the first six months of 2018. That compares to income of 131.8 billion yen on sales of 1.74 trillion yen for the same period in fiscal 2017.

• Continental AG recorded net income of more than 1.5 billion euros ($1.8 billion) on net sales of nearly 22.4 billion euros ($26.2 billion). That compares to income of nearly 1.5 billion euros on sales of 22 billion euros for the first half of 2017. Sales in the Rubber Group were relatively flat at 8.6 billion euros ($10.1 billion) • Groupe Michelin posted net income of 917 million euro (more than $1 billion) on net sales of 10.6 billion euro ($12.4 billion). That compares to income of 863 million euro on sales of 11.1 billion year for the first half of fiscal 2017.

• Pirelli & Cie SpA posted net income of

181.9 million euros ($212.9 million) on net sales of more than 2.6 billion euros (nearly $3.1 billion) for the first half of its fiscal 2018 ended June 30, 2018. That compares to income of 67.6 million euros on sales of nearly 2.7 billion euros for the same period in fiscal 2017.

• Toyo Tire & Rubber Co. Ltd.’s posted net income of 7 billion yen ($63.8 million) on net sales of 185.7 billion yen (more than $16 billion). That compares to income of 11 billion yen on sales of 192 billion yen for the same period in fiscal 2017.

• Yokohama Rubber Co. Ltd. reported net income of 17.8 billion yen ($160.3 million) on net sales of 309.7 billion yen ($2.8 billion). That compares to income of 15 billion yen on sales of 304.2 billion yen for the first half of 2016. Tire sales revenue increased in the OE sector, but declined in the tire replacement sector.

• Hankook Tire Corp. Ltd., which did not release net income, posted net sales of 3.3 trillion won (nearly $3 billion) for the first half. That compares to sales of 3.3 trillion won for the same period in fiscal 2017.

The company says it will “continue to focus on... premium tire lines through expanding its ultra-high performance tire line-up.”

Bridgestone promotes Higgs

E

ric Higgs took over as president of Bridgestone Americas Inc.’s truck, bus and retread tires business on Sept. 1, 2018. He replaced Joseph Saoud, who was recently named president of Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations (BATO) Latin America.

Steve Joseph Higgs joined Bridgestone in 2016 and Eric Higgs Sutherland Saoud served as vice president of marketing for the BATO commercial group. In his new role he will lead sales, distribution and integrated business planning for the commercial tire and retread business in North America. He also will oversee the development and delivery of new products, technologies and services for original equipment manufacturers, fleet customers and commercial tire dealers.

Steve Sutherland, formerly executive director of sales, distribution and global accounts at the Firestone Ag business unit, replaced Higgs as vice president of marketing.

Sutherland has more than 20 years of sales and leadership experience in the tire and rubber industry. His job will be to lead the over-arching marketing strategy for the commercial group.

MTD September 2018

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News/Views

ATD hopes to reduce debt by $1.1 billion

Dates Sept. 15-20 American Trucking Associations Fall Meeting, Orlando World Center Marriott, Orlando, Fla. (703) 838-1700 www.trucking.org

Sept. 18-21 TIA Automotive Tire Service (ATS) Advanced Instructor Training Tour, Seattle, Wash.

(800) 876-8372 www.tireindustry.org

Oct. 2-3 Asian Retread Conference 2018, Sime Darby Convention Centre, Kuala Lumpur, Malasia www.asianretreadconference.com

Oct. 9-12 TIA Automotive Tire Service (ATS) Advanced Instructor Training Tour, Baltimore, Md. (800) 876-8372 www.tireindustry.org

Oct. 27-31 American Trucking Associations Management Conference & Exhibition, Austin Convention Center, Austin, Texas (703) 838-1700 www.trucking.org

Oct. 30 - Nov. 2 Automotive Aftermarket Industry Week (including AAPEX, the SEMA Show and TIA’s Global Tire Expo), Las Vegas, Nev. (800) 876-8372 www.tireindustry.org

Nov. 7-10 Automechanika Buenos Aires, La Rural Trade Center, Buenos Aires, Argentina www.automechanika.ar.messefrankfurt.com

Nov. 29 - Dec. 2 Automechanika Shanghai, National Exhibition and Convention Center, Puxi, Shanghai, Hong Kong 2802-7728 www.automechanika-shanghai. hk.messefrankfurt.com

March 8-9, 2019 North Carolina Tire Dealers Association Expo, Raleigh Convention Center/Marriott City Center, Raleigh, N.C. (877) 784-0111 www.nctda.com

18

BOND HOLDERS HELP IN RECAPITALIZATION

A

merican Tire Distributors Inc. (ATD) has reached an agreement in principle with holders of more than 70% of its bonds on the terms of a recapitalization transaction that will reduce the company’s debt by up to $1.1 billion. It also will provide financial flexibility as it continues its ongoing transformation, which began 18 months ago.

The agreement in principle is subject to various conditions, including finalization of definitive “The actions we are taking are documentation. Pursuant to the recapitalization, intended to reduce our debt continuing manufacturer partners and trade vendors and create financial flexibility are expected to be paid in full for existing obliga- so we can enhance the strategic initiatives, key technologies tions in the ordinary course for goods and services and talent that will drive our provided. transformation forward,” says “The actions we are taking are intended to reduce CEO Stuart Schuette. our debt and create financial flexibility so we can enhance the strategic initiatives, key technologies and talent that will drive our transformation forward,” says CEO Stuart Schuette. “The agreement we reached with our bondholders reflects their confidence in our business and paves a way for us to implement our recapitalization on an accelerated basis.”

ATD says it has liquidity to meet its business obligations, and operations are continuing as normal throughout this process.

In a letter to its Tire Pros franchisees, Ron Sinclair, president of Tire Pros and senior vice president of retail strategy and partnerships for ATD, wrote “The Tire Pros franchise is an important part of the ATD strategy. ATD is continuing to support you and to provide you the products, promotions and support you need to grow your business so you can serve your consumers like you always do.”

Partnership promotes no-credit-needed financing

M

erchant Partners LLC and Acima LLC have agreed to a strategic partnership designed to make automotive financing more accessible to American households. The move is intended to make no-credit-needed financing more readily available to subprime markets across the United States.

The partnership is expected to accelerate revenue growth for automotive shops in economically vulnerable markets, while benefiting consumers that could not afford basic automotive services otherwise, according to Merchant Partners and Acima, which goes to market as Acima Credit.

The partnership combines the technological prowess of Merchant Partners, owner of the automotive payment management software 1stMile, and the financing capabilities of Acima Credit to provide

more flexible financing to thousands of automotive shops across the nation.

“Our top priority with 1stMile is to get more cars on the lifts for our customers and grow their revenue,” says Bob Church, senior vice president of sales and marketing with Merchant Partners. “The Acima program is a key contributor to help us get this done.”

Acima Credit specializes in financing options for the estimated 40% of Americans who suffer from damaged credit scores or a lack of credit history. With a 90-day payment option and direct-reporting to Experian, Acima Credit helps consumers spread payments over time and establish a credit history.

Consumers who use credit to finance their tire purchases spend twice as much as those who pay by card or cash, adds Merchant Partners. ■ MTD September 2018

performance meets art

#Ps4s

#michelinpremiumtouch

more at michelinman.com

Copyright Š 2018 Michelin North America, Inc. All rights Reserved The Michelin Man is a registered trademark owned by Michelin North America, Inc.

On the Rise

JEREMY JAMES OWNER

TIRES TO YOUR SPOT LEESPORT, PA. WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST JOB IN THE INDUSTRY? Owner of Tires to Your Spot.

WHAT ATTRACTED YOU TO THE INDUSTRY? Every vehicle needs tires through its lifetime.

WHAT IS THE BIGGEST CHALLENGE YOU’VE FACED IN YOUR CAREER? Creating a new business with a new approach to tires. My tire business is the mobile business which is a new type of tire service.

WHO HAS HAD THE BIGGEST INFLUENCE ON YOUR CAREER?

Jeremy James, 37, joined the tire industry with one giant leap when he founded his mobile tire installation business. He markets Tires to Your Spot as the consumer’s “personal pit crew.”

A new generation of leaders is influencing the livelihoods of today’s independent tire dealers, and Modern Tire Dealer is recognizing those who are On the Rise. Direct the young stars in your business world to www.moderntiredealer.com/ontheriseform.

20

w w w . M o d e r n T i r e D e a l e r. c o m

My two sons are the reason I started the business.

I was a single parent and had to get my tires changed about seven years ago. Two-and-a-half hours with young children in a tire service center is brutal. I said there has to be someone who will do this at my location. Never changed a tire before starting this business.

WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST ACCOMPLISHMENT IN THE INDUSTRY? Starting a new market for tire business. Mobile service doesn’t exist in most areas in the U.S. but I believe it is the future of the business.

Convenience is king in today’s busy world. ■ MTD September 2018

TIME TO CLEAN UP

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$

Yokohama Visa® Prepaid Card when they buy a set of 4 select Yokohama tires.

October 1 - 31, 2018

REBATE AMOUNT

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GEOLANDAR M/T® G003

AVID Ascend GT

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GEOLANDAR® H/T G056 GEOLANDAR® A/T G015 Yokohama Winter Tires† AVID Ascend® GEOLANDAR® G055 Tornante® (Available at select locations)

Check out Official Rules at: yokohamatire.com/fallrebate †

Eligible winter tires include: iceGUARD® iG52c, iceGUARD® iG51v, iceGUARD® iG20, GEOLANDAR i/T G072,® BluEarth Winter® V905, W.drive® ZPS, W.drive® WY01

©2018 Yokohama Tire Corporation

Yo u r M a r k e t p l a c e

By

John Healy

Low unemployment rate and high GDP are helping the retail tire market

O

ur recent discussions with dealers leave us more encouraged that the second half of 2018 will be a good time to be in the tire retailing business.

Conversations with dealers in recent weeks suggest that sell-out trends improved in July compared to the same period last year. Surveyed dealers reported they saw unit sales volumes improve at a rate of roughly 1% compared to last year.

While the sluggish sell-out trends in the first half of 2018 created a difficult operating environment, improving industry data points relating to shipments and the digestion of changes in tire distribution behavior over the past couple months’ commentary give us further confidence in our view that a lot of the headwinds that had pressured the industry since the beginning of 2017 are continuing to fade. In addition, commentary from industry contacts in early August leaves us feeling incrementally more positive on a go-forward basis, which could signal a shift in sales trends that would bode positively for the remainder of the year. Given the overall improvement in trends over the past few months, we are cautiously optimistic that sell-out volumes in the second half of the year will revert to healthier levels in light of the fact that the key drivers of intermediate-term replacement demand remain favorable.

In asking dealers why business trends have improved, dealers are leading with the health of the economy. From our perspective, if consumers have cash in their pocket and jobs to work the decision to replace their tires is a bit easier. That said, with unemployment at 3.9% (a low not seen since November 2000) and gross domestic product (GDP) of 4.1% (a high not seen since 2014), it’s hard not to think that this is not helping the retail market. Additionally, miles driven activity on the roads according the Federal Highway Administration has increased at a rate of just under 1% on average over the last few months and has been on the plus side in each of the last 12 months.

Regarding trends in the second half of the year, dealers tell us that August retail trends appear healthy. That said, dealers tell us that in recent weeks manufacturers appear to be approaching the market with some price increases. These price increases are

Average tire tier rankings Tier

Apr’17

May ’17

Jun ’17

Apr ’18

May ’18

Jun ’18

Tire 1

3

2

3

3

2

1

Tire 2

1

1

2

1

1

2

Tire 3

2

3

1

2

3

3

SOOURCE: NORTHCOAST RESEARCH HOLDINGS LLC

22

not surprising given that prices of raw materials used to build a tire are up nearly 10% compared to a year ago. Seeing how these price increases are followed by other manufacturers as well as the ability of retailers to pass along these increases will likely have an impact on how the tire business rolls later this year.

MONTHLY SURVEY A number of independent tire dealers were surveyed concerning current business trends. The results of the July 2018 survey are compared with those of July 2017. See the entire report on www. moderntiredealer.com.

REPLACEMENT TIRE SALES: STRONG JULY RESULTS MAY PAVE THE WAY FOR THE BACK-HALF OF THE YEAR Dealer commentary suggests consumer demand for passenger and light truck replacement tires was notably up in July compared to last year’s period.

The net number of respondents indicating they saw an increase in demand year-over-year was 25% of contacts, significantly higher than any response rate thus far in 2018. July results displayed the fourth consecutive month where contacts saw a net increase in volumes.

A LOOK AT MIX TRENDS IN THE MARKET The past couple months have seen a calmer, more range-bound crude oil market when compared to the beginning of this year.

A continued lack of volatility in the crude oil market will bode well for the tire industry as stable gas prices will allow for higher levels of discretionary spending, especially if the consumer does not have to worry about paying a higher gasoline bill from rapidly rising prices at the pump.

Although crude oil prices have stabilized in the near-term, other raw material inputs have continued to experience rising prices. When assessing raw material spot market costs in the third quarter thus far, prices were up 9.53% y/y, 0.29% when compared to 2Q18.

We note that if raw material prices were to hold steady, the cost of producing a tire would be up 8.65% over the average price during 2H17.

There is a lag time of 4 to 6 months for many of these input costs increases to truly impact tire producers. We have already begun to see price increases and if this trend continues, manufacturers will implement further price increases as they will no longer be willing to keep absorbing the increased production 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.

MTD September 2018

NumbersThatCount

Relevant statistics from an industry in constant motion

COURTESY OF YOKOHAMA TIRE CORP.

States that produced the most tires per day — and number of plants:

©GETTYIMAGES.COM/MATHISWORKS

Number of tires that U.S. tire plants can produce per day.

46

©GETTYIMAGES.COM/TARRAS79

Number of tire plants in the U.S. in 2017.

©GETTYIMAGES.COM/SUSSENN

737,620

South Carolina

115,580

12

Oklahoma

108,500

2

North Carolina

76,500

2

Tennessee

67,300

6

Alabama

61,500

3

Illinois

53,290

4

Mississippi

44,900

2

Georgia

44,200

3

Virginia

39,800

2

Arkansas

32,000

1

Indiana

30,500

1

Ohio

23,330

2

Iowa

16,320

3

New York

14,300

1

Kansas

6,100

1

Pennsylvania

3,500

1

Tire Plant

$360 million

$580 million

Cost of the new Nokian Tyres plc consumer tire plant to be completed in 2020 in Dayton, Tenn.

Cost of the new Triangle Tyre Co. Ltd. commercial and consumer tire plant to be built in Edgecombe County, N.C. SOURCE: MODERN TIRE DEALER’S JANUARY 2018 FACTS ISSUE

24

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Wheel Weights

How adhesive weights are changing tire balancing By COURTESY OF WEGMANN AUTOMOTIVE USA INC.

A

lthough clip-on wheel weights can outnumber adhesive wheel weights in tire stores, adhesive weights are growing in popularity and becoming a more important piece of a shop’s purchase goods.

Don Vanderheyden, director of marketing for Hennessy Industries Inc., manufacturer of Bada brand clip-style weights and adhesive wheel weights, estimates adhesive wheel weights make up about 40% of the aftermarket. Gregory Parker, national account sales manager and marketing director for North America at Wegmann automotive USA Inc., places the split at 35% adhesive weights and 65% clip-on weights. He acknowledges the use of adhesive weights versus the clip-on style in the aftermarket is increasing but cautions a rapid transition is not on the horizon.

“The market is always experiencing slow change,” Parker says. “For our segment of the industry the growth of adhesive weight usage is evident and is being driven by adhesive usage growth at the OEM level and the universal appeal of adhesive weight installation. But clip-on weights are not leaving the market anytime soon.”

The introduction of adhesive wheel weight automation in original equipment factories is contributing to the slow increase in adhesive weight usage as OEMs are slowly removing flanges from their rims altogether.

Wheel weight automation can feature standard steel segmented adhesive weights or continuous adhesive weights, made from composite materials, that are installed using robotic arms and large 300 to 400 pound rolls of product. Continuous adhesive weights are well-suited for automation and can be cut to the exact weight, within a fraction of a

26

gram, necessary to balance a tire. However they are roughly two to three times more expensive than standard segmented steel adhesive weights.

There are several factors to consider when discussing the cost of wheel balance weights, according to Parker.

“Adhesive weights are typically lower in cost than clip-on weights for a few reasons,” he says. “Clip-on weights require more SKUs and are slightly harder to manufacture, which increase the cost. Adhesive weights are easier to manufacture and are higher output due to fewer SKUs, which help reduce the cost.

However, adhesive weights and clip-on weights are all priced relative to their raw material (lead, zinc or steel) pricing, and both adhesive weights and clip-on weights have other factors like speed and efficiency to consider outside of cost when making decisions on what is right for the business.”

MORE ACCURACY IS REQUIRED The popularity of flangeless alloy rims is also pushing the use of adhesive weights upwards. Consumers do not want to see a wheel weight on the outside of the wheel. A clip-on weight can be placed on the inside flange, but the only option for the outside plane is an adhesive weight. Technicians can balance the wheel using clip-on weights and adhesive weights, or two adhesive weights.

“When you get rid of that outer clip weight for cosmetic reasons, the weight planes, or the separation between the two weights, are narrower,” says Greg Meyer, wheel balancer product manager at Hunter Engineering Co. “The best placement would be at the extreme inside and outside of the wheel.” The farther apart the weights, the more “couple” force,

Ann Neal

or the side-to-side wobble of a rolling tire, can be counteracted.

“We’ve lost the outside and two or three more inches because the weight has to be behind the spokes. When those weight planes get closer together, the amount of weights that are required goes up and the precision with which they’re placed also has to go up,” he says.

Adhesive weights require both the balancer and the technician to be more accurate. “He’s got to be more careful and more cautious or he runs the risk of having to peel them off and try again or doing a bad job and having an unhappy customer with a vibration complaint,” says Meyer.

One of the latest trends in custom wheels is extremely thin spokes that curve and blend into the barrel of the rim rather than stop at the barrel. The spoke style creates high and low spots in the rim, which complicates the balancing job for the technician. The design requires the weights to be placed just three or four inches apart.

“The weights would rapidly start getting very large and difficult to compensate for the imbalance,” says Meyer. “The trend is definitely there for the tire dealer and more so for the aftermarket people who are dealing with specialty custom rims. Sooner or later everyone is going to see some crazy example of this.”

Bigger wheels also create wheel weight challenges. Although bigger wheels should be easier to balance because they are wider and have larger diameters, consumers do not want to see the weights.

“The reality is that bigger wheels are more appearance-focused. There’s almost never an outer weight installed on a wheel larger than 20 inches because the guy buying 20-inch wheels would never allow it,” says Meyer.

BALANCERS EVOLVE Balancers have become more helpful to technicians. Advancements enable a technician to place the correct amount of clip-on or adhesive weight exactly where needed.

Meyer says Hunter’s patented SmartWeight MTD September 2018

technology gives technicians the simplest solution with the least amount of weights that are fastest to apply. The speed and simplicity of placing wheel weights are side benefits of SmartWeight. The technology provides a better overall balance by focusing on the up and down static forces that are most likely to be felt by the driver while keeping the couple (wobble) forces in check, adds Meyer.

Hennessy Industries’ Vanderheyden suggests dealers consider advances in technology that make it easier and faster to install wheel weights when purchasing new equipment.

Features such as the ability to lock the wheel in place, lasers to pinpoint the weight’s exact location and lighting to illuminate the barrel of the wheel are available on advanced models such as the Coats 1600 wheel balancer.

The additional technologies make the balancing process easier, faster and more accurate, which helps offset the time and steps required to install adhesives weights compared to clip-on weights. In order for an adhesive weight to stick to the wheel, the area where it will be attached must be cleaned with a solvent and dried first, which

w w w . M o d e r n T i r e D e a l e r. c o m

adds time to do correctly. Clip-on weights do not require the wheel to be cleaned and are much faster to install.

CLEANLINESS COUNTS Advancements in balancing equipment allow technicians to be faster and more efficient when installing clip-on and adhesive weights. Other efficiency improvements are coming from wheel weight packaging and inventory management, according to Parker. He notes tire stores are becoming aware of a cleanliness standard that is used in manufacturing settings called 5S. The 5S organization method is a process designed to keep the workplace in a clean condition.

“Tire retailers in the 21st century are understanding that high-level shop efficiencies are necessary in order to compete in today’s competitive landscape. Inventory management systems, faster reordering tools, and 5S cleanliness standards help technicians worker smarter, not harder,” he says.

Wegmann’s Hofmann Power Weight brand has developed a racking system for

wheel weight inventories that allows technicians to get to the product faster.

“We are introducing our Hofmann Power Weight SpeedRack, which delivers a wheel weight inventory solution that holds all the inventory in the shop, features front opening boxes to ensure a clean receptacle every time a new box is opened, and front mounted bar codes to make Warehouse Management System reordering easier,” says Parker. “It is no longer just about the weight, as suppliers must also enhance the offering surrounding the product itself.”

NINTH STATE BANS LEAD The use of lead wheel weights has been banned by nine states. The latest ban was passed by New Jersey in January 2018. The other states are Washington, Maryland, California, Illinois, Maine, Vermont, Minnesota and New York. Sources of lead-free wheel weight alternatives like zinc and steel include the Bada, Perfect Equipment, Plombco and Hoffman Power Weight brands. Plombco also offers a steel core wheel weight encased in a plastic shell called Plasteel. ■

27

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T i r e D e a l e r o f t h e Ye a r

‘THE GOAL IS TO BE THE BEST SER PRO

By

By Joy Kopcha

A

t the end of 2012, John Quirk made a deal that would forever change his business.

It cost him 500 employees, including the 56 people who managed his retail stores in Maine, Massachusetts and New Hampshire.

Those 50-plus individuals just so happened to be his best salespeople.

And he gave up the keys to every one of his stores.

In a single day, sales fell 20%. And they continued to fall. It took 18 months to break even.

It wasn’t pretty.

“It was the best thing that ever hap-

30

RANDY HAZELTON PHOTOGRAPHY

pened to us,” says Quirk, chairman and CEO of VIP Inc., dba VIP Tires & Service.

What caused this cataclysmic shift?

Quirk sold VIP’s auto parts business and welcomed the nation’s third largest parts retailer as a tenant into his tire stores.

And all of this turmoil came only a year after VIP sold off its commercial tire division, which had been the backbone of the business his grandfather and father built.

It resulted in a transformation of the nation’s 17th largest independent tire dealer into a laser-focused retail leader.

Not quite six years after turning his business upside down, Quirk is Modern Tire Dealer’s 2018 Tire Dealer of the Year.

THE OTR BUSINESS It all began in 1926 when Quirk’s grandfather, Edward Quirk Sr., opened Quirk Tires and Service Corp. on Arsenal Street in Watertown, Mass. Twenty-nine years later the second generation, Edward Quirk Jr., took over. He was 26 years old in 1955, and sold both passenger and commercial tires. Three years later his fourth child John was born.

Quirk and his siblings all grew up working in a family business, though his sister did get a pass from tires and worked with their mother at a public golf course the family owned. Quirk says his dad bought the course as a real estate investment, but MTD September 2018

Chairman and CEO John Quirk calls the technicians at VIP Tires & Service the company’s “crown jewels.” Here he’s pictured with the team in Portland, Maine. Front row from left, Veexay Dethsy, Quirk and Tyler Gordon. Back row, Richard Ross, Brian Haskell, Robert Kaffel, Lucas Ewald and Gary MacCausland.

IN ORDER TO ACCOMPLISH THAT, VIP TIRES & SERVICE HAS REINVENTED ITSELF, WITH JOHN QUIRK LEADING THE WAY. THAT IS WHY HE IS THE 2018 TIRE DEALER OF THE YEAR it included a busy banquet business. His sister and mother became masters of flipping a room for as many as six weddings a weekend.

Unofficially, Quirk’s first job at Quirk Tires was sweeper. Then one summer when he was about 15, Edward Quirk told his son, “You’re not staying home this summer.”

He learned how to change truck tires and swing a sledge hammer. He admits he was a grunt, but the work also was good exercise for his life as a hockey player.

Quirk Tires was heavily focused on the commercial tire segment, with giant off-the-road tires representing about 70% of the company’s business. Much of that w w w . M o d e r n T i r e D e a l e r. c o m

OTR business came from road construction projects throughout the Northeast, as Quirk Tires counted about 100 sand and gravel quarries as customers. In particularly busy seasons, the company might service 150 of those rock crushing quarries where aggregate is made for road surfaces. Each quarry could have a dozen dump trucks on site.

“The bigger the tire the better it was for Quirk Tires,” says Quirk. “We had many multi-generational giant tire technicians working for us, even one three-generation.

They were pros. They were also very expensive.”

The OTR tire installers were members of a union, and Quirk says it was difficult to

VIP by the numbers 15%: Growth of service business in 2017

40%: Percentage of VIP customers who buy winter tires

62: Winter tires sold during the first week of August

80: Employees promoted in 2017 312,699: Customers served in 2017 $950,000: Amount spent on capital improvements in 2017

$70 million: Annual sales 31

T i r e D e a l e r o f t h e Ye a r RANDY HAZELTON PHOTOGRAPHY

John Quirk gives credit to the executive team that leads VIP Tires & Service. From left, Dave Roden, Gary MacCausland, Quirk, Tim Winkeler, Allan Kirkland and Scott Pickard. The group holds formal meetings once a month, but Pickard says informal ones occur “constantly. The ability to make a change quickly I think allows us to be more innovative than some other companies.”

manage the seasonality of those employees’ work. At that time the cold winter weather forced the quarries to close for the winter.

“In January, February and March we’d lose money every year because the plants would all close. We didn’t want to lose these guys because they were so technically advanced, and training someone to do that job safely is intensive. It takes years and years.”

It was Quirk Tires’ business model to have inventory “on the ground” for its commercial customers, including those in the OTR tire market. ”Back then we didn’t have cell phones,

but they had my beeper number. When a piece of equipment would go down, they would call me day or night, and our business was to say yes. They knew we had the product in stock.”

In the offseason Quirk Tires surveyed its customers’ equipment and told owners what tires needed replaced. The better operators followed those recommendations to minimize downtime. But plenty of others didn’t, and the service calls that followed were money makers.

“The bigger the fire the better for us when it came to equipment going down,”

Focus on service, but…

Don’t forget to inspect the tires Many tire dealers are relying more on automotive service to balance the books. VIP Tires & Service wants to heavily tilt its sales mix. The goal is to make it 70-30, with tires on the lower end.

But don’t get the idea Chairman and CEO John Quirk is giving up on tire sales.

“We want to grow our market share. Our mechanical business last year grew 15%.

We were outperforming the industry by far. And our tire business was up 2.5 to 3%, which was a pretty solid number in an industry that was slightly down.”

Quirk says Maine residents usually visit an automotive service provider five times a year, up from the typical three or four visits in other parts of the country. But in looking at VIP’s customer data, the company says it could increase both service and tire sales by marketing to its existing customers.

The database shows there are customers who come in for regular service, but never buy tires from VIP. There are others who purchase tires, but have never had a VIP technician pop the hood. Focus groups and research showed some customers didn’t know VIP offered service. Others didn’t think the company had a competent staff to do the job. Before Quirk acquired VIP, automotive service was barely a blip on the radar.

That’s why the company stresses this mantra with its employees: “We do it all.” And, “If the (car) dealer does it, we do it, too.”

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Quirk says. “You knew when you called, our guys were going to show up and know what the hell they were doing, and they were going to get the machine going quickly.”

He still remembers losing a sale on a set of four 45/65-45 tires. They were $10,000 a piece, and a new purchasing agent decided to buy them from another tire dealer because the invoice was $1,800 less.

Two weeks later the tires were delivered on the back of a tractor trailer rig and neither the tire dealer nor the customer had a way to unload them. The purchasing agent called Quirk and asked if he’d do it. He said no. He told the purchasing agent what he should do is refuse the shipment, buy the tires from Quirk, and his team would come the next day, because they had the tires in

Growing up in the tire business in Massachusetts, Quirk says his family “put the business first and made whatever sacrifice we had to make. You have to zig and zag your way through that.”

MTD September 2018

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T i r e D e a l e r o f t h e Ye a r stock, and install them. “His equipment superintendent convinced him it was the right thing, and we got the order.

“You have to look at the big picture. It’s such a service-intensive business and you have to draw the line in the sand to say ‘if you want top-notch service you have to pay for it.’ It’s not like we were getting filthy rich. We were investing in the business and in the inventory.”

A single crane truck would cost $150,000, and during busy road construction season, it wasn’t uncommon for Quirk Tires to have a dozen of them out on job sites.

With expertise and inventory, Quirk Tires sold itself as a one-stop solution provider. If customers didn’t want their all-encompassing service and chose to shop for tires based on price alone, Quirk Tires wanted to compete for that business, too. “But 99% of customers didn’t want to invest in the infrastructure or the training.

They relied on our training.”

It revolves around tires and service, but Quirk says, “We’re in the relationship business.” The better the relationship with a business owner or management team, the better it is for business.

“They knew if they called Quirk, their problem would go away. Granted, they were going to get a bill for it, but they knew they could trust what we said, and our recommendations were based on a lot of industry experience. In the

long run we were able to reduce those quarry operations’ costs substantially by looking at a total life cycle of a tire over the long haul.” They taught their OTR tire customers not to buy the cheapest tire, and instead purchase a premium product to lower the overall cost per hour. With its tire management system Quirk Tires showed customers how they would experience less down time and that their machines would use less fuel with better tires.

The development of tires for specific applications was another game changer.

Quirk remembers watching equipment at a transfer station in Maine burn through tires — literally. The grime on the garbage was slippery, and the equipment was smoking as the tires were slipping.

“I went to the guy and said I can cut your cost by 25%, and I’ll put that in writing.”

At the time, the operator was only getting three months of use from a set of tires on a loader. “We were able to cut their costs by 70% on an annual basis, although the up-front investment was more than double what they were originally procuring. It was because they were running the wrong tires.”

Talking about these customers, Quirk’s love of the commercial business, and his particular passion for the OTR industry, is palpable. Yet, he’s running a retail-centric business in 2018.

Over the years there were the typical

The O’Reilly exceptions VIP prefers a partner When O’Reilly Automotive Inc. bought VIP Inc.’s auto parts business, it was the nation’s third-largest parts retailer’s entrance into the Northeast. The company leapfrogged New York and Pennsylvania and jumped into VIP’s territory in Maine, Massachusetts and New Hampshire.

VIP’s Chief Financial Officer Allan Kirkland says it was fair to expect O’Reilly to face a learning curve.

And in the five years since O’Reilly has operated parts stores inside VIP’s tire dealerships, there have been some adjustments.

In some locations, O’Reilly has needed more space. VIP has expanded a couple of its Maine stores, in Brewer and Augusta.

The Brewer store serves as a regional hub for O’Reilly, and those stores, on average, carry 48,000 SKUs, compared to 23,000 SKUs for the average store.

O’Reilly also needed more space in Presque Isle, Maine, but rather than add on, VIP has acquired another property nearby — a vacated Sears Auto Center. O’Reilly will remain in VIP’s building, and VIP is moving down the street. The same thing is happening in Claremont, N.H. “We’ve acquired property in

34

ups and downs of business, but there are a few moments that stand out to Quirk, including a 1970 moratorium on new highway construction from Massachusetts Gov. Francis Sargent. “Our business changed a lot when that happened.”

In 2012 Quirk sold the company’s commercial tire division to Pete’s Tire Barns Inc. The sale included what had been the Quirk family’s second location and commercial hub, in Westborough, Mass.

“The board tried to get me to do this a lot sooner than I did and focus 100% on the retail business, feeling that my resources personally were being stretched and thinking you’re better off focusing on one discipline. And in the end, they were right.”

AN ACQUISITION CHANGES EVERYTHING By the 1980s there was a drop in construction activity throughout New England, and the Quirk family was relying more on its retail business. They could see how the principles of their commercial relationships would work in retail: Gather your facts. Understand the equipment better than the owner does. And then respond with a sound recommendation to help the customer.

By 2001 Quirk had more than 15 years under his belt leading his family’s twostore tire business, and he was looking

Claremont with the purpose of moving ourselves out of our own store,” Kirkland says.

In December 2016 O’Reilly made another big move in the region, and acquired the 48 stores owned by Bond Auto Parts in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York and Vermont. In a couple New Hampshire communities, O’Reilly acquired a Bond store where VIP also operated. It’s opted to operate the Bond store and move out of VIP’s space.

Kirkland says the company is now marketing the open space within those VIP stores. “Economically it’s better if we can find a tenant and share the property.”

One kind of tenant is off limits — another auto parts retailer.

Kirkland says VIP is researching possible good partners.

VIP’s newest store, in Lebanon, N.H., opened Aug. 18, and it is another exception. It doesn’t have an O’Reilly store in it at all.

Negotiations are underway for another new VIP store, but it, too, wouldn’t have a parts store in it.

Kirkland says there’s no rule in the companies’ agreement that requires VIP to include space for O’Reilly in its future locations.

“We talk about those opportunities. They’ve been very open to discuss all the prospects of our existing stores.”

MTD September 2018

CONGRATULATIONS

TO DEALER OF THE YEAR AWARD RECIPIENT JOHN QUIRK Cooper Tire & Rubber Company would like to congratulate John Quirk on receiving the Dealer of the Year award from Modern Tire Dealer.

T i r e D e a l e r o f t h e Ye a r RANDY HAZELTON PHOTOGRAPHY

John Quirk and Gary MacCausland regularly visit the 57 VIP Tires & Service stores.

MacCausland spends most of his days on the road, and drives about 1,000 miles each week checking in on the company’s stores and 450 employees, most of whom are full-time, MacCausland says. “I can count part-time associates on one hand.”

to make a big move. He satisfied that itch and bought VIP Discount Auto Center, another independent, family business that sold tires and auto parts from 48 stores.

VIP was geared toward the discount business. Its monthly promotion fliers heralded low prices on tires, and that message was visible on its stores, too. Quirk says every location had a “4 tires for $88” sign on display. He waited six months before taking them all down.

But he didn’t wait that long to make another change. In his first meeting with employees he said effective immediately every manager in the company had complete authority to handle any customer complaint — regardless of the cost. He says he’ll never forget the look on the face of his chief financial officer, Allan Kirkland.

Afterwards Kirkland asked what he was thinking, and warned it would cost him a fortune. But Quirk wasn’t worried about that. “If they don’t have the basic sense of what is right and wrong for the customer, they shouldn’t be a manager.”

He knew he’d be leading a culture change at VIP. That started with a name change to VIP Parts, Tires & Service and a move away from the discount model. Because VIP was the larger and better known entity, Quirk Tire locations also took on the new VIP name.

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Quirk remembers his dad asking him if he knew what he was doing. “I think so” probably wasn’t the most reassuring response, he says.

But Quirk’s father had grown up listening to his dad’s stories about surviving the Great Depression, and Quirk knows that influenced him. The elder Quirk was financially conservative and “made sure he could weather any storm.

“He had that rainy day fund because he knew that times could change. He was not the biggest risk taker.”

Wholesaling to new car dealers VIP Inc. operates a small wholesaling business from its Watertown, Mass., store, the same spot where John Quirk’s grandfather started Quirk Tires and Service Corp. in 1926.

The Dealer Services Group stocks between 8,000 and 10,000 tires, has seven delivery vehicles and drivers, and three more employees working in a call center.

“We’re shot-gunning tires to new car dealers, and also to some smaller garages,” Quirk says. “It’s very much concentrated within a 10-mile circle of the Watertown location because the traffic is horrible.”

Quirk says the car dealers sell from 400 to 500 tires a day.

“It’s not the most profitable business, but it helps our overall volume with our programs from Michelin, Goodyear and TBC. And, we have a lot of learnings out of there of what’s really moving on the OE side.

“We have no intention to expand that business other than seeing what happens with the online portion of that. We see that growing.”

A NEW FOCUS ON SERVICE Quirk saw an opportunity at VIP to make automotive service a much bigger focus.

Parts sales drove the business and combined, tires and service only accounted for 35% of sales. In 2018 the mix is closer to 60% service and 40% tires.

During a summer heat wave in Maine, VIP turned its marketing message toward air conditioning service. The company also used its customer management system software to tell customers about the $10 off special.

MTD September 2018

www.MAXFINKELSTEIN.COM

T i r e D e a l e r o f t h e Ye a r 5 steps to an ideal customer experience

Brian Haskell is among VIP’s 58 ASE Master technicians, and he’s just a few certifications short of achieving ASE World Class status. Last year VIP brought together all of its ASE Master technicians, and those close to hitting the master level. The summit helped them network and learn if they have a question related to a specific make and model, VIP likely has an expert on the payroll.

RANDY HAZELTON PHOTOGRAPHY

Quirk’s employees know they have a clearly stated goal: to be the best tire and service provider in the country. To achieve that Quirk says the company wants to hire people with the vision to spend 25 or 30 years with VIP.

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“Our goal is to get to 70-30. We call that weatherproofing our business,” Quirk says. “We have a big seasonality factor here, especially in northern New England.”

The first burst of that seasonality is good.

When the snow flies, business explodes.

“We’re open as late as we can be, and we’re challenging our crews to work all kinds of overtime. We don’t bring in part-time help because that goes against our mission of delivering an exceptional experience.

“For about an eight-week period it’s all hands on deck. And then after that, our business drops like a rock. The middle of January to the middle of March is our slow period, but stores that have a really strong mechanical team, generally their revenue only dips 10% during that period.”

Tire sales plummet 40%, but Quirk says revenue from the mechanical line is pretty stable year round. So that’s why VIP markets itself as “Northern New England’s leader for all things automotive.” It’s also why he stresses to employees the need to conduct a thorough inspection of every vehicle.

Quirk thinks of it as getting the DNA off the car. “You go to the doctor and they check your blood pressure. They check your weight. They check your cholesterol. Why would you want to talk to a customer if you didn’t know all the vital signs off the car?”

VIP Tires & Service pinpointed the best practices of its most successful stores and created a step-by-step playbook.

All 57 of its stores follow this guideline.

• Greet the customer, grab a multipoint inspection clipboard and take the customer to their car to talk about their needs. Look for lights on the dashboard and ask how the car’s been running and if it’s making any strange noises.

• Back in the store, look up or add the customer to VIP’s customer relationship management (CRM) software. Look for past work orders and assign the job to the next available technician.

• The technician’s first priority is to perform the multi-point inspection.

• Input results from the inspection into the CRM and print the vehicle analysis summary.

• Allow the customer to meet the VIP technician and go under the car in the shop bay. Review the details of the inspection, as well as the customer’s original reason for visiting.

Notably, creating an estimate, getting the customer’s commitment to do the work, and actually completing the repairs all come after the five key steps.

There are basics, such as the tires, oil, filters and fluids. “When you get that information off the car, you can talk intelligently with the customer and help them with a plan over the long haul.

“It’s not about getting every last dollar out of the customer that day. It’s about building a relationship with them.”

An essential part of that relationship at VIP is taking the customer to the vehicle — in the bay.

“Our goal is to get every customer in front of the technician. Let them meet at the car. Let the technician show what they see and go over the health check with the customer underneath the vehicle and show them why this needs attention,” Quirk says, noting that customers go into the shop even when their vehicle doesn’t need an additional service. “You’d be amazed how many letters and emails we get from customers who have never been under their car before. I’d say 95% of our customers have never been under a car.

“Most shops say due to insurance regulations customers are not allowed MTD September 2018

T i r e D e a l e r o f t h e Ye a r RANDY HAZELTON PHOTOGRAPHY

in the shop. We had to battle with our insurance company because we told them transparency is the most critical element of our business. We have to be transparent with ourselves as a team and we have to be transparent with each and every customer. That’s how we’re going to build a customer base.”

In 2017 VIP served 312,699 customers, up 2.3% from 2016. In the last 12 months VIP rang up $70 million in sales.

Transparency also means VIP has installed large glass windows in their waiting areas so customers can watch what’s happening in the bays. Only a few of the 57 stores don’t have a layout that allows for the glass.

“The bigger the glass wall the better,” Quirk says. “We say technicians are the crown jewels of our company, and we’ve got nothing to hide out there.”

THE PARTS BUSINESS VIP Tires & Auto leases space and co-brands most of its stores with O’Reilly Auto Parts.

Quirk says they’ve integrated their point-of-sale systems, and “99% of the time” the part VIP technicians need for a work order is in stock at O’Reilly and “on our counter in five minutes or less.” It gives VIP a competitive edge, he says.

Lessons learned from a lousy review Step one: respond faster With 450 employees and 57 stores, John Quirk is realistic that things can and will go wrong. “We work on over 30,000 cars a month.

You’re going to make a mistake. When it happens, get the customer a rental car, put our best technician on it and fix the frickin’ thing as fast as you can.”

A few years ago a customer came into a VIP Tires & Service store for an alignment, one day after having more than $1,000 of automotive work done at another independent repair shop. That technician recommended an alignment, but didn’t have a rack.

The customer was a pregnant woman two days away from having a baby. When she came into VIP the technician, a former Ford master tech, said he couldn’t do the alignment. The vehicle needed a tie rod on the left side and had a torn CV boot and wheel bearing that needed replaced.

The woman called her husband, who immediately sensed his wife was getting ripped off. He went online “and tore us a new one” and said VIP was trying to “take advantage of his very pregnant wife.” Quickly the review was getting thousands of views, and when someone at VIP saw it and alerted Quirk, he admits he panicked.

“My first reaction was unplug the internet!”

Tim Winkeler, VIP’s president and chief operations officer, reminded him how often they preach transparency. This was a prime time to put that pledge to work.

Quirk talked to the technician, who told him the woman shouldn’t be driving the car in that condition. Eventually he got the husband on the phone, spent 45 minutes calming him down, and asked

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The VIP brand long has been tied to the parts business. When Tom Auger Sr. founded the company in 1958, he sold

if he could re-inspect the car. Quirk called the shop that did the original repairs, introduced himself, and asked if he could borrow a lift for five minutes.

The next morning Quirk, the VIP technician and his district manager drove to meet the customer at the original shop. They all gathered around the car on the lift as the original technician and VIP’s technician went over the car together. The original technician admitted he missed everything VIP had found.

“I’m not saying that we’re perfect by any means, but our guys’ integrity is our most important virtue,” Quirk says. Later that day the customer, as promised, updated his review, and mentioned that the CEO took the time to check out the car, and that the original shop missed a couple of things. It was brief. It wasn’t the heartfelt followup Quirk was hoping for, but it was a realization that VIP needed to be better prepared to handle situations like this in the future.

The first lesson was that the company needed to respond faster.

VIP built a customer portal that’s accessible company-wide. When a customer submits a review or posts a comment, several people in the company are notified, at both the store and corporate level, including Quirk and Winkeler. VIP also has an employee assigned to monitor social media around the clock.

By far, the most common complaint from customers is that there was a communication problem along the way. It might be about price, but it’s often about time. Maybe the technician found another problem under the hood, or the wrong part was pulled for the order. Quirk expects his team to tell the customer immediately.

Offer them a ride. Offer to get them a car. “Be upfront. Be honest.

Overcommunicate. That is being transparent. You can’t assume that they’re going to be OK.”

MTD September 2018

www.unotificrm.com automotive marketing U Unotifi no n otifi is is an an automotive marketing company company that that p provides rovides integrated ttechnology, integrated echnology, specially specially designed designed as as a rretention etention a and nd lloyalty oyalty ssolution. olution.

T i r e D e a l e r o f t h e Ye a r

VIP Tires & Service has 57 stores in three states, and Quirk says the Auger family that founded VIP was “very savvy in the real estate business. They had great locations.”

Quirk remembers his dad telling him to “go in and work on the passion.”

and installed tires under the name L&A Tire Co. Over time, however, the “old man” as he called himself began spending a lot of money on parts.

Quirk says the Lewiston, Maine, native went to an auction of a local parts business that filed for bankruptcy. He cut a deal with the auctioneer to buy the whole lot, and over the course of the next year sold every part at a weekly flea market. He eventually changed the name of his business to VIP Discount Auto Center. By 2001 VIP had grown to 48 stores with tires and parts.

When Quirk Tires acquired VIP that year — a couple weeks after the Sept. 11 attacks — VIP was catering to the do-ityourself mechanic. Parts accounted for 65% of VIP’s revenue.

But the heyday of VIP’s parts business came before the surge in parts proliferation.

The business stocked 23,000 SKUs, and nine times out of 10 had the part a customer wanted. But just like tires, the auto parts business is no longer a one-size-fits-all industry.

The biggest players have gobbled up a large share of the market, and their scale gives them another big advantage. “We estimated a 20 to 25% cost advantage just procuring the parts,” says Quirk.

It was clear to Quirk, and the board of directors at VIP, that the company needed to get out of the parts business. He says

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VIP stores were carrying about $150,000 in parts inventory in each store. O’Reilly Automotive Inc., dba O’Reilly Auto Parts, averages four times that amount. “And the more parts you have in store, the more money you generate.

“We knew the writing was on the wall.

We were going to have to get out of the parts business, or I was going to have to take on an equity sponsor and give up a lot of ownership of the company.” According to data from an O’Reilly Auto Parts analyst presentation in August, the three largest national chains (AutoZone Inc., Advance Auto Parts and O’Reilly) operate 15,862 stores in the U.S., or 43% of the total parts stores in the country.

So Quirk invited eight parts companies to meetings to hear his pitch. In the back of his mind he considered O’Reilly his best opportunity: The auto parts retailer had stores in 39 states, but hadn’t yet entered the Northeast.

“We were fortunate we were able to get a deal. We were able to get out of the parts business without getting killed. We made a little money and partnered with O’Reilly.”

But this was no ordinary acquisition.

O’Reilly is a tenant in Quirk’s VIP Tires & Service stores. The stores are co-branded as VIP and O’Reilly. There is only one customer entrance. There is no demis-

Brandon Jordan performs a courtesy tire pressure check on a customer’s vehicle. John Quirk says he sees other tire dealers promote free services, but there’s a lot of details in fine print.

“When we say free, it’s free.”

ing wall to separate the parts store from VIP’s space.

It’s an unusual concept that Quirk admits was a stumbling block to sealing a deal with some of the other parts companies. But he had estimated it would cost $250,000 at MTD September 2018

C

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t ra

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s n io

JOHN QUIRK

MODERN TIRE DEALERS 2018 TIRE DEALER OF THE YEAR!

CONGRATULATIONS FROM PIRELLI TIRE NORTH AMERICA

T i r e D e a l e r o f t h e Ye a r each of the 56 stores to build a wall and create a separate entrance.

Two weeks after his presentation to O’Reilly officials, the company’s then-copresidents, Greg Henslee and Ted Wise, called and asked for a meeting. They were in Auburn, Maine, and said they had just completed visits to every VIP store. They agreed to pay Quirk’s asking price for VIP’s auto parts operation, but had two requests.

They also wanted all 56 of VIP’s general managers, and the keys to every store. The deal was effective Dec. 31, 2012, and VIP dropped the word “parts” from its name.

BIG BUMPS IN THE ROAD The whole time Quirk was working on pitches to sell the parts business, there was only one other VIP employee in the loop on what was happening. Kirkland, the chief financial officer, had been with VIP since 1988.

After Quirk shook hands with Henslee and Wise from O’Reilly, he called into his office Winkeler, who at the time was vice president of merchandising for VIP, and Gary MacCausland, vice president of operations. MacCausland, who has 30 years of experience in the tire industry, including about 20 years with Sears Holdings Corp., reacted with a single question: “I get to keep our store managers, right?”

MacCausland knew those managers were critical to keeping the VIP ship sailing through the transition. But the negotiations included transferring VIP’s

Technician Jim Chretien works in the VIP Tires & Auto store in Lewiston, Maine. He’s one of 275 technicians on the company’s $15.8 million payroll. VIP set standards for employees: Wear clean uniforms with shirts tucked in and be well groomed.

retail employees to O’Reilly’s side of the business, and every store manager was classified as retail. It was a detail — and a big one — that got by Quirk in the negotiations. But Kirkland says his boss wasn’t going to cherry pick employees to try to cover for his mistake. Kirkland says, “John put his word out there.”

In all, half of the company’s 1,000 employees would begin 2013 on the O’Reilly payroll. (None of the employees in the service bays were affected.)

MacCausland knew he needed to hire 75 people to keep the stores open. The store managers were VIP’s top salespeople. They filled in for service managers on their days

The combination of a parts store inside a tire dealership makes for a unique look on the interior. VIP Manager Ed Lloyd works with a customer just a few feet away from the main aisle of the O’Reilly Auto Parts store in Lewiston, Maine.

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off, and they also handled everything from hiring and firing employees to inventory management and training.

Service managers and service writers were thrust into these leadership positions.

In a handful of stores, Quirk says those service leaders wielded control, increased sales and succeeded. “But 90% of them within a month, six weeks or eight weeks were waving the flag: ‘I didn’t sign up to be the manager. I don’t want this job.’”

The transition continued through the first three months of 2013. During that time every employee in the stores wore VIP black work shirts. O’Reilly hadn’t yet installed its own point-of-sale (POS) system, so Kirkland managed and balanced two sets of books. Parts sold at the retail counter were O’Reilly sales. Parts sold as part of a work order were credited to VIP. In that period, sales were basically flat, up 1% one month and down 1% another month.

Then on March 18, 2013, O’Reilly’s POS system was ready. The parts employees wore green O’Reilly shirts to work. VIP’s sales dropped 20% that day. “And it was 20% the next day, and the next day. It was a bad week. A bad week turned into a bad month, which turned into a bad quarter,” Quirk says. “The effect of letting my managers go to O’Reilly really sunk in at that point. Our best salespeople don’t work for me anymore, and I’m wondering why sales are down.

“And you have managers, and some of them don’t really want the job. They’ve never been trained on being a leader. Today we laugh about it, because it was the best MTD September 2018

Valvoline™ is proud to be a trusted supplier of VIP Tires and Service.

We are grateful for the years of business.

You have developed an exceptional team and organization.

CONGRATULATIONS TO JOHN QUIRK FOR BECOMING 2018 MTD TIRE DEALER OF THE YEAR! US-V-9811-EN ©2018 Valvoline 8/18

T i r e D e a l e r o f t h e Ye a r RANDY HAZELTON PHOTOGRAPHY

John Quirk has found the principles that guided his family’s large off-the-road tire business apply in a retail-focused environment, so he and Gary MacCausland implore technicians like Richard Ross, far left, to provide good service. “People bring their car to people they trust. Transparency is all we talk about at VIP.”

thing that ever happened to us, although it took us almost a year and a half to get back to break even. Since then, we’ve been improving every month.”

And, there was another benefit on the company’s ledger sheet. “The one great thing about selling the parts business to O’Reilly is we have no operating debt. We have some real estate debt, mortgages on the stores, but that’s in a separate company.

VIP’s balance sheet is extremely clean.”

Winkeler, who in 2017 was promoted to president and chief operating officer, says it all begins with the right manager in each store. The company’s top managers have three critical skills: They genuinely care about their employees.

They know cars.

They are customer service advocates.

“When a leader has those three attributes, people typically want to work for them,” Winkeler says. “They don’t have

VIP sells all brands of tires, but focuses on five primary programs: Michelin and BFGoodrich; Goodyear, Dunlop and Kelly; Bridgestone and Firestone; Continental and General; and the MultiMile, Wild Country, Sumitomo and Arctic Claw brands from TBC Corp.

turnover and keep a stable staff. They attract really good people, and their people aren’t the kind who are punching in and punching out. They enjoy coming to work, enjoy what they’re doing at work and they’ll go the extra mile for the customer.

“For us, that’s the secret sauce, except it’s not a secret. You can open up a shop tomorrow and not have any of the whiz bang tools, but you have a leader who genuinely cares about their people, who gets the customer service piece and who

A NEW WAY TO HIRE Losing all of the company’s store managers forced VIP to hire rapidly. There were people with sales experience who knew nothing about cars or tires. There were others who performed well in the interview process or checked off certain boxes on their resumes.

They were viable job candidates, but VIP had no strategy to pick the best workers.

“It forced us to examine the characteristics of an individual who is going to be an excellent leader in a tire and service operation,” Quirk says.

VIP redefined its job descriptions and started using a predictive index tool to help understand what motivates an individual to perform and be productive. The company also started drug testing candidates, and conducted both state and federal background checks. “We got much more disciplined in the hiring process.”

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Matthew Mahar is the service advisor at the VIP store in Yarmouth, Maine. John Quirk says each phone call and customer who walks in the door is “an opportunity to shine.”

MTD September 2018

T i r e D e a l e r o f t h e Ye a r RANDY HAZELTON PHOTOGRAPHY

VIP Tires & Service has a unique partnership with Max Finkelstein Inc. VIP pays the wholesaler to house and deliver all of its tires, including the tires it buys directly from manufacturers. “They’re experts at moving tires around. We don’t have to have our own warehouse, or our own trucks.”

is an expert in their field, and surrounds themselves with good technicians, and they’re going to have a successful business.”

Winkeler admits not every single salesperson working at a VIP front counter is a car expert. But those employees have learned how to leverage the expertise of their technicians to answer consumer questions and convey accurate information to customers.

VIP’s “5-for-5 customer engagement process” also helps fills in the knowledge gaps. The company outlined a perfect customer visit in 30-plus detailed steps, then grouped and defined those steps into a five-step action plan that begins when a customer walks in the door and ends when the customer meets the technician under the car for an overview of how things look.

“We strongly believe that when we get a customer into the shop to meet the technician and see their car, it makes their visit memorable,” Winkeler says. “And ultimately how you get them to come back is they’re thinking, ‘That was really cool.’

When you don’t make the visit memorable, it’s amazing how many customers just confuse us with our competitors.”

VIP believes the 5-for-5 process is so important it has created a 40-page guidebook and three-hour training program on it. The training is part of the onboarding process for all new employees. The company also created a training video to capture every detail in every step.

About 40% of VIP’s customers use winter tires, though the number is much higher in its most northern markets. VIP sells about 40,000-45,000 winter tires a year.

THE RIPPLE EFFECTS OF THE O’REILLY SALE Selling the parts business to O’Reilly meant Quirk had to decide how he planned to

When negotiating to sell the VIP parts business to O’Reilly, the country’s third largest parts retailer asked John Quirk for the keys to the stores. O’Reilly is open later than VIP, and the company also owns an alarm company so it can protect the inventory in all of its stores. VIP locks up its bays and tires, and O’Reilly handles the rest.

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MTD September 2018

Congratulations to

John Quirk

winner of the 2018 Modern Tire Dealer

Tire Dealer of the Year!

Thank you for your outstanding partnership from all of us at Hunter Engineering!

T i r e D e a l e r o f t h e Ye a r replenish tire inventories in his stores. VIP had a 110,000-square-foot warehouse in Lewiston, Maine, that had housed both auto parts and tires. When a store sold a set of tires from its racks, the warehouse pulled another set and delivered it the next day. Parts were replenished the same way. A 53-foot tractor trailer rig typically was loaded and rolling down the highway with parts and tires for seven to 10 stores.

“When we sold the parts business we realized we don’t need those big trucks anymore. We outsourced our tire logistics to Max Finkelstein Inc.” VIP still buys its own tires, and even has an employee stationed in the Finkelstein warehouse. Chuck Sarchi, VIP’s warehouse manager, has been with the company for 35 years.

When VIP buys a trailer load of tires from TBC Corp., the tires are delivered to the Finkelstein warehouse. “We pay them to unload it and put it away, and we pay them to ship it to our stores when we want it there,” Quirk says.

“Finkelstein does a great job at moving tires. They’ve been doing it for almost 100 years. And it got us to focus on the most important thing in our business, which is our people and our customer engagement process.”

About a third of VIP’s stores get daily deliveries from Finkelstein. A few remote locations only get deliveries three times a week. The vast majority of stores receive shipments every other day. VIP was already a Finkelstein customer before this, but “nowhere near what we’re buying today.”

When a VIP store needs a tire but doesn’t have a delivery scheduled the next day, there are still options. Rather than picking a tire from VIP’s own stock in the Finkelstein warehouse, a store can purchase a tire from Finkelstein’s shelves and get next-day delivery. “If you’re in a jam they’re going to do what they can to help you. And if one of our stores is in trouble, they just call Chuck and Chuck will make the problem go away.

“We were able to save money, we’re getting better service, we’re turning our inventory quicker, and most importantly we can focus on the customer, which is the most important thing,” Quirk says. “I can’t remember the last time I worried about whether a tire is going to get to a store or not, which is really nice.”

And Finkelstein delivers more than tires.

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Meet John Quirk Full name: John Patrick Quirk Age: 59 Birthplace: Boston, Mass.

Education: Earned a bachelor’s degree in marketing from Northeastern University in 1982.

Tell us about your family: Married to Sarah for 30 years. Three children: Madeline, Meredith and Johnny What’s your advice for a new tire dealer?

Be on the front line.

Get involved in your community. Help your employees get ahead.

If you could pick your superpower, what would it would be? Perseverance.

Persistence.

Early bird or night owl?

Early bird for sure.

What’s the best part of your job? Helping team members get ahead and build a good life.

What’s the worst part of your job? Dealing with regulatory compliance.

If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be? Being more compassionate and sensitive to non-achievers.

If you could be anything but a tire dealer, what would you be?

A boatyard owner.

If there were no financial constraints, what’s one change to your business you’d make immediately? Pay 100% of our health plan.

The best way to spend a day off is: with family boating, skiing or golfing.

What’s your guilty pleasure? Motown music, dancing and singing.

Your favorite childhood memory: The hockey team at St. Sebastian School.

The biggest mistake you’ve made is: Not going for it 100% in my hockey career.

Your favorite meal: New York sirloin steak with Maine potatoes Your favorite TV show: The Brave, Friends, and the New England Sports Network.

In school you earned your best grades in: marketing.

What would your high school friends say about you now? He’s still slow on the ice.

If you were in charge of tourism in Maine, what three things would you tell visitors they have to do/see? Acadia National Park, Mount Katahdin, Baxter State Park, and eat lobster in Old Port.

What’s your life motto? Believe you can. Make it happen.

Follow your intuition.

Who would be the best celebrity to portray you in a movie? Clint Eastwood Something most people don’t know about you is: I have a big green thumb.

What song do you crank up loud and always sing along to? Ain’t No Mountain High Enough

by Marvin Gaye What’s been the best change/evolution you’ve witnessed in the tire industry? The radial tire.

What’s been the worst?

National accounts.

The wholesaler’s drivers ferry everything from internal mail and in-store displays to paychecks to VIP’s stores.

Kirkland, the CFO, says the Finkelstein agreement also eliminated risks for VIP. Its workman’s compensation burden has been lowered. The company no longer has

If we took away your cell phone on a Monday morning, how long would you last without it? Five minutes.

What’s something your dad taught you about the tire business?

Watch your margins and invest in your people.

What’s been your biggest success in the tire business? The acquisition of VIP in 2001, and the sale of our parts business to O’Reilly Auto Parts.

truck drivers on the road. There are no equipment breakdowns to worry about or deliveries to schedule. “The business model becomes simpler.” The key is that VIP’s POS system has to communicate with Finkelstein’s computers so the right tires are picked from the warehouse.

MTD September 2018

T i r e D e a l e r o f t h e Ye a r to a Maine institution — L.L. Bean Inc. — and the company is building its iconic boots in the space. L.L. Bean signed a 20-year lease. “We were very fortunate to get that deal done,” Quirk says. Kirkland sees the lease as “another great opportunity for the stability of the (VIP) business.”

TALKING TO TECHNICIANS

VIP wants technicians to complete a quick but thorough inspection of every vehicle that enters the bay. John Quirk says it’s like gathering the DNA off the vehicle.

VIP is in the midst of discussions with a vendor to update its POS system. Kirkland calls the existing system “clunky but functional.” It was built internally with pieces added onto the framework over the years. The company, which has two full-time programmers on staff, is looking at a modern, all-in-one system for the future.

With Finkelstein taking care of tire distribution, Quirk officially had an empty warehouse on his hands. He’s leased it

The close of the O’Reilly deal finally gave VIP a singular focus: its retail operation. Winkeler says he and Quirk realized the business regularly focused its attention only on certain groups of employees. There were meetings with managers and discussions with the teams working at the sales counter.

However, two-thirds of the company’s employees were technicians, but other than asking them about what they were working on when they walked through the shop, VIP wasn’t communicating with them. “What do they think of the business? What do they think we should do to be a better company?” Quirk proposed meeting with every technician in the company.

First, VIP created a list of 20-plus questions for the technicians.

Winkeler says it amounted to an employee satisfaction survey.

• How satisfied are you as an employee?

• How satisfied are you with training?

• How satisfied are you with communication?

• How satisfied are you with your manager and leadership?

• What do you think we could do to improve teamwork?

The company gathered the results in January 2014 and then

Congratulations

JOHN QUIRK

CEO of VIP Automotive on being named Modern Tire Dealer’s 2018 Tire Dealer of the Year.

Member FDIC.

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Rev. 8/18

MTD September 2018

Quirk, Winkeler and MacCausland went on a road trip. For three straight weeks they met with technicians, eight to 10 of them at a time, in hotel meeting rooms. They covered the results of the survey and talked about the most frequently cited issues. “And we were taking notes. We took pages and pages of notes,” Winkeler says. “We had lots of conversations of what we should and could do to make VIP better.”

One of the biggest things to come from those meetings is VIP’s policy on training. During one session Quirk challenged one of his most experienced technicians and asked why he didn’t have any Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) certifications, noting the company would reimburse him for the cost of the test if he passed it. The technician pushed back. “What’s in it for me?” Then another technician chimed in and said he doesn’t take the ASE tests because he doesn’t have the money to pay for the tests. He was living paycheck to paycheck, and said there was no guarantee he’d earn a raise for passing the test.

Another employee said he couldn’t afford the $80 study guides.

“We ended up taking all of those barriers down,” Winkeler says.

VIP appointed an employee, Mary Daigle, to be its ASE coordinator. The company now pays up-front for every study guide and every test. There’s no limit to how many times a technician can retake a test to pass it. And, perhaps most importantly, VIP created a pathway for technicians to earn raises.

There are two paths, actually, and both are laid out in seven steps. There’s one for automotive technicians, from the

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VIP technicians Nicole Morin and Brandon Jordan discuss the details on a customer’s work order.

entry level installation technician to the master ASE-certified technician. There’s another outline for service advisors to work their way up to the store leadership role of service manager.

On both tracks every step is defined by earning certifications, whether it’s from ASE, the Tire Industry Association (TIA) or even a state inspection license.

The “what’s in it for me” employee is a master ASE technician. “We now have 50-something master technicians in the company, which we couldn’t have dreamed of a couple years ago,” says Winkeler.

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T i r e D e a l e r o f t h e Ye a r

VIP emphasizes automotive service, but John Quirk wants to increase tire sales, too. “We want to grow our market share.”

The message to customers is: “Turn to VIP.”

Three of those master technicians have gone even farther and earned world class status with ASE. In August Tom Wheeler earned the elite ranking; his fellow VIP colleagues Kenny Bridges and Brian Thibodeau achieved it in 2017.

VIP used to spend $3,500 a year to reimburse employees for ASE certifications. In 2017 the company spent more than $60,000.

Employees have earned more than 1,000 ASE certifications, and ASE patches are sewn onto their uniforms. The company believes that when it focuses on educating its employees, those workers are better able to educate customers about their

vehicles. That, in turn, helps VIP achieve its mission: “to earn an automotive customer for life.”

Last year VIP also made a commitment to focus on TIA training. One of its district managers, Gerry Kostro, is a certified automotive tire service advanced instructor and he’s trained 12 other VIP employees, including Quirk, to be certified instructors. In October 2017 the company trained and certified more than 250 employees for Basic Automotive Tire Service (BATS), and by the end of 2018 the company expects all 450 of its employees to have completed BATS as well as TIA’s Advanced Tire Pressure Monitoring Systems certification.

Long term, VIP wants to have a TIA-certified instructor on staff at each store. Plus, Quirk wants to have a master ASE technician in every store for every shift. VIP stores are open seven days a week, which means it will take 100 of those topnotch technicians to make that dream a reality. “We’re still probably two years away from getting to 100 master techs.”

THE EMPLOYEE SURVEY It was clear to VIP leaders the employee survey and follow-up meetings were an essential tool that would help the business. The next year, it was expanded to every employee in the company.

This year VIP completed its fifth survey and meeting tour.

Each year the survey and employee meetings have served as a guide and playbook for what the company needs to tackle next.

In the first year there was a lot of finger pointing, with service

Congratulations VIP!

bartecusa.com 54

[855]877-9732 MTD September 2018

advisors complaining about things they thought technicians should be doing, and technicians talking about what service advisors should be handling.

A technician told Quirk and Winkeler they should create a company-wide guideline. It was the birth of VIP’s 5-for-5 customer engagement process.

On this year’s survey, VIP has already addressed the two issues employees gave the lowest scores: the company’s sick leave policy and its retirement plan benefit.

As of Sept. 1, 2018, the start of the company’s new fiscal year, VIP’s hourly employees have two sick days to use. They previously didn’t have any paid sick days.

Winkeler says when the survey results were calculated, and these two items were ranked the lowest, the executive team calculated the costs of making improvements. Each sick day will cost VIP $45,000.

The company offers employees a 401k retirement savings program, but hasn’t offered a company match for a number of years. This month, the match returns, but it’s small. VIP will match 50% of the first 2% an employee contributes to the 401k.

Winkeler says the company expects more employees will join the 401k to take advantage of the match, and that it will cost the company $250,000 in the first year.

But because the company knew those were the issues most important to employees, they were able to estimate the costs and share them during their February meetings. It also gave

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John Quirk talks to Greg Holt, manager of the VIP store in Yarmouth, Maine. When Quirk entered the tire business, his friends were “all wearing suits and working at software companies.”

They didn’t understand what he was doing. But he told them, “It’s a family business. I’m going to make something of it.”

them a chance to connect the dots between an employee’s contribution at work to those added benefits.

“That’s when we go back to talking about the processes in store that we want to be focused on,” Winkeler says. “Let’s talk about checking fluids and talking to customers about preventive maintenance, or why inspections are so important.

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T i r e D e a l e r o f t h e Ye a r

Josh Gilbert works to identify a mystery noise complaint from a customer. VIP says it has embraced a formal Tire Industry Association training program for employees in the last 12 to 18 months.

When you process a customer in and out quickly and don’t do the inspection, that customer spends $40 with us. They might have bad brakes or wheels out of alignment.

“All of those services are the right thing for the customer, but they’re relying on you to help them understand their car.

When you complete the inspection process, the financials of the business flourish, and when the business financials flourish we can spend money on benefits.”

Winkeler says employees got it. They told officials not to

upgrade the benefit program all at once, and instead make incremental improvements.

The survey also provides a glimpse of what VIP is doing right. Here’s the statement that employees gave the highest score: “I am willing to give extra effort to help VIP succeed.”

Winkeler and Quirk believe that’s a testament to the culture VIP is working to establish.

“The goal is to be the best tire and service provider in the country,” Quirk says. So they looked at some of the nation’s top tire dealers, including Discount Tire Co. and Les Schwab Tire Centers Inc., and tried to learn from them. “The companies doing the best were the ones that had the least amount of turnover and they promoted from within.”

Winkeler says, “John believes our managers’ number one priority is career development, and helping their team.” That’s why the creation of the seven career steps programs and other training modules is so important. Those tools help managers train and develop employees. As workers realize there’s a path to move up the ladder, learn new skills and make more money, they become more committed to the organization.

“If you’re looking for a career-minded individual, they’re looking for an organization that’s going to invest in them and that’s what we’re trying to do.”

SUPPORTING ITS COMMUNITIES VIP invests in more than its people. It also supports causes in the communities where it does business and where its employees live.

VIP’s biggest project is an annual fund-raising drive for the Make-A-Wish Foundation. During November and December, the company’s busiest months, VIP solicits donations from its customers at the counter. Then, whatever customers donate, Quirk matches.

In the last 10 years VIP has raised more than $400,000 for Make-A-Wish. Since VIP operates stores in three states, the money collected in those states, and Quirk’s match, is given to the Make-A-Wish chapters in those states.

In Portland, Maine, technician Tyler Bomba changes the oil on a customer’s vehicle. VIP has created seven-step paths for every technician and service advisor to move up and make more money.

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MTD September 2018

There are perks for stores that raise the most money. MacCausland says, “Pizza and donuts go a long way.” There are several levels of goodies, and the top prize includes every level of incentive, plus an extra day off. “I think we had a dozen stores at that top level last year.”

VIP also is a sponsor of the Boy Scouts of America Pine Tree Council. VIP donates a pinewood derby car to every scout, sponsors the Pinewood Derby State championship race and provides a welcome packet to every Cub Scout and Boy Scout leader in the state. The packet includes a certificate for a free oil change.

Events big and small, from car shows to car washes, are all possibilities. Quirk says if it’s something a particular store wants to support, “we let them do it.” Sometimes an employee is involved in an event or project. Those get the VIP stamp of approval, too.

“Our rule of thumb is if one of our VIP associates is personally involved, then we will absolutely provide support for that organization.”

When VIP opened its newest store in Lebanon, N.H. in August, the company found a unique way to celebrate and get acquainted with its newest community. Winkeler remembers a news article crossing his desk about the financial strains on the local schools. The VIP team reached out to the superintendents of two local school districts and asked how the company could get involved.

Together, they created “oil changes for education.” Through the end of October VIP is offering $10 oil changes to all customers at

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VIP has an employee, Doug Downer, who responds to and manages all of the tire quotes and requests for service the company receives online. John Quirk says in the summer it ranges from 1,500 to 2,000 a month, and VIP expects it to hit 2,500 to 3,000 a month this winter.

the Lebanon store, and 100% of the proceeds will be donated to seven local schools in the Lebanon and Hartford school districts.

“When we enter a new market, we want to become active in the local community — it’s part of our company culture,” says Winkeler. ■

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Shop Equipment

Joaquin Garcia balances a tire at Redwood General Tire Pros in Redwood City, Calif.

When to repair or replace shop equipment PREVENTIVE MAINTENANCE IS A KEY FACTOR, SAY 5 TIRE DEALERS OF THE YEAR By

Shana O’Malley-Smith

D

eciding when to repair or replace shop equipment is not a decision tire dealers make lightly. There are many factors that go into deciding whether a piece of equipment can be repaired and provide a few more years of service, or whether it’s time to replace it and upgrade to a newer model.

Everyday shop equipment can range from a few thousand dollars to tens of thousands of dollars, and no one wants to make a major purchase hastily. A good rule of thumb is to make the necessary repairs

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or purchase a replacement machine before it becomes critical.

“With 63 stores, one of my biggest fears is to have to buy tire changers for 63 stores at one time,” says Mark Rhodes, president of Plaza Tire Service Inc. in Cape Girardeau, Mo. When decision time comes, store owners and managers look at major aspects such as the age of the machine, productivity and the cost of repairs versus the cost of buying a new one.

“We also look to see if it’s going to provide an opportunity to generate new

revenue or a new revenue stream,” says Jason Frink, equipment sales/distribution for BTS Tire & Wheel Distributors in North and South Carolina. “Is it going to allow you to do things that you can’t currently do? Also, consider market trends and anticipated trends in the market.

Technology changes so quickly. Are you going to need to upgrade what you have?

How much is that going to cost over the next few years, and what’s the return on investment on the new equipment?”

We reached out to five former Tire Dealers of the Year to give us their tips and MTD September 2018

suggestions on how to decide whether to repair or replace the main pieces of equipment in your shop. In some cases, they had us talk with the appropriate associate.

TIRE CHANGERS/WHEEL BALANCERS Tire changers and wheel balancers are some of the most used pieces of equipment in a shop, and wear and tear starts to show after a few years of continuous daily use.

“Different shops wear out equipment at different rates because of how much they use them versus other shops,” Rhodes explains. “So the wear and tear in some shops might allow you to keep machines shorter or longer, and some shops are just naturally harder on equipment, especially tire changers and balancers.”

There aren’t many abnormal breakdowns on tire changers or balancers. Rather, small parts are more likely to fail and cause breakdowns.

“On tire machines, it’s just the everyday wear and tear of the pistons moving in and out of the machine,” says Chris Mitsos, vice president of Mountain View Tire & Service Inc., based in Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.

“The seals on the pistons tend to go out, so that’s normal wear and tear. The piston that moves the arm in and out, that tends to be what goes first on those.

“The other most common thing we see is the airlines get frayed and come apart.

You’ll hear a loud bang in the shop and you’ll hear the air come out. You also see a lot of wear on the turntable where the head slides black and fourth,” adds Frink.

To extend the life of tire machines, store owners should perform some regular maintenance and replace small parts as needed.

“You have to keep them clean, you have to make sure the clamps are not worn out, you want to make sure that everything is in tiptop shape,” says Alpio Barbara, owner of Redwood General Tire Service Co. in Redwood, Calif. “A lot of times it’s the small stuff. It might be a special fitting that goes into the airline or a cylinder because you change so many tires.”

Repair or replace? Answer: both.

Depending on the brand and model of the equipment as well as the store’s volume, the average life span on changers and balancers is about eight to 12 years. Most older tire changers and balancers are repairable if you really need to get a few more years out of them. w w w . M o d e r n T i r e D e a l e r. c o m

A flush mounted lift “opens up the floor and gives you more space to work,” says Direct Tire’s Barry Steinberg. He prefers lifts that are more “user-friendly.”

“We’ll take a look at what keeps going wrong and if it’s simple replacing parts and hoses and actuators, inexpensive circuit boards, then we’ll fix it,” Mitsos says. “If the machine in the store is still working good and the guys in the store tell us the machine is still working good, then we’ll tend to fix it if it goes down.”

If you’ve gotten the better part of a decade or longer out of your tire changer or balancer, you’ll likely be ready for an upgrade to accommodate new tires and wheels that roll into your store.

“We deal with so many run-flats, so many high performance, ultra-expensive exotics — everything from Bugatti and McLaren to Mercedes, BMWs and Porches,” says Barry Steinberg, owner of Direct Tire & Auto Service based in Watertown, Mass.

“We can’t scratch one of those wheels. The run-flat tires need the best technology and equipment, along with training.”

Additionally, there are some aftermarket add-on features that could allow you to extend the life of a good working balancer.

“There are different plates and flanges that you can add to an existing balancer, especially in the case of these chrome clad wheels,” says Frink. “They’re very difficult to balance using the traditional techniques, so there are add-ons that can help to properly balance them.”

LIFTS If maintained properly, a good lift can easily last more than 15 to 20 years in most shops. However, some owners decide to upgrade before then to take advantage of space-saving capabilities and safety features that are offered on new lifts.

“I had the post lifts that had posts on each side and it made it really difficult to walk around because they’re right next to each other, so we purchased two flush mounts,” Steinberg says. “It’s a Rotary machine and it has no posts. We replaced two previously with Nussbaum scissor lifts.

It opens up the floor and gives you more space to work. It’s a safer machine and it’s more user- friendly.”

Some common wear and tear on lifts might include fluid leaking around the cylinders, loose cables and, in the case of two-post lifts, saggy arms. When equipment deterioration starts to put the safety of technicians into question, upgrading is a no-brainer.

“For example, my new lifts, that’s 100% because of safety,” Barbara says.

“When the cables start breaking or getting frayed and they’re not going up correctly, it’s time to replace, which I just did. I replaced all the lifts in my shop a year ago.”

Repair or replace? Answer: replace.

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Shop Equipment Following your lift manufacturer’s proper user guidelines and performing regular maintenance will maximize your lift’s life cycle.

“However, once major components start to fail, it’s time for an upgrade.

“They do have factory recommendations on what to service and when in intervals,” Frink says.

ALIGNMENT MACHINES Alignment racks can last decades, but the technology component needs constant updating.

“Sometimes there are equipment attachments and sometimes its just software,” says Rhodes.

With new car features coming out every year, it’s vital for dealerships to stay on top

of the latest updates. “Sometimes they come out with new adapters and new technology that you can add to your alignment machine without replacing everything,” Steinberg explains. “We typically do that to accommodate new cars.”

A lot of new car technology is connected to the vehicle’s steering system and requires calibration once the alignment is completed.

“So to properly do that you have to reset steering angle sensors and safety systems and lane departures,” says Frink.

“If you don’t have an alignment machine that is capable of doing that on a modern car, you’re really not performing an alignment, and it does leave you open to some issues.”

Repair or replace? Answer: both.

New alignment machines can cost tens

“Some shops are just naturally harder on equipment, especially tire changers and balancers,” says Plaza Tire’s Mark Rhodes. (Pictured: Tire technician Travis Smith balances a set of tires.)

of thousands of dollars, and many shops don’t want to drop that kind of dough unless they absolutely have to.

“If we have a machine that goes down and it’s going to cost $4,000 because it needs a whole new computer, new software, a new printer, we’ll look at how old the unit is and what’s the cost difference between getting it new or fixing it,” Mitsos says.

“Alignment machines are really expensive, so that would be one of the few times where we would spend $3,000 to $5,000 to have it repaired back to where it needs to be.”

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MTD September 2018

Shop Equipment

PHOTO COURTESY OF MOUNTAIN VIEW TIRE SERVICE

Air compressors last a long time — as long as you “drain the water out of the lines every day, and… change the oil periodically when it’s due,” says Mountain View Tire & Service’s Chris Mitsos. “Otherwise they’re like tanks.”

AIR COMPRESSORS Air compressors require regular maintenance to stay in good operating condition, but otherwise will provide many good years of service without a lot of issues.

“You have to service them, you have to change the oil,” Mitsos says. “If you don’t change the oil you will ruin the compressor, but otherwise they’re like tanks. They last a long time.

“We don’t have too many compressor failures; we don’t see a lot of wear and tear on them. You have to make sure you drain the water out of the lines every day, and you have to change the oil periodically when it’s due.”

Additionally, you may see some belts start to fray or oil leaks around the pump.

Repair or replace? Answer: replace.

Air compressors are likely one of the “if it’s not broken don’t fix it” pieces of equipment in the shop. As long as you perform regular maintenance, you shouldn’t have many problems.

When it is time to replace your air compressor, many shop owners are gravitating toward quieter machines to make their shop more comfortable for techs.

“Old compressors make so much noise but we use rotary screw compressors,” Steinberg says. “You can have a conversation standing right next to it. It hardly makes any noise and the guys really appreciate that. They appreciate that their ears aren’t going to get beat up by the noise of the compressor all day long.”

tear or maintenance that goes along with them as long as they’re regularly updated through the manufacturer.

More often than not, you’ll likely replace a scanner because it goes missing.

“Those tend to be the first things that get stolen, either if you have a store break-in or if a disgruntled employee is leaving you,” Mitsos says. “Those tend to ‘grow legs.’ They’re easy to steal because they’re small and easy to conceal. You can’t really walk out with a tire balancer.”

Repair or replace? Answer: replace or repair via software updates.

While some shops are quick to jump on software updates, many times they aren’t readily available because automobile dealers delay the release of repair information on new models.

“If our association would really battle for Right to Repair… we would get the technology a lot sooner than we do now,” Barbara says.

“We have to wait sometimes two or three years for the manufacturer to release it. That’s not fair for the independent tire dealer. We can’t get the information fast enough.”

Other dealers don’t mind waiting a year or two before they acquire new software.

“There’s no need to have updates for 2018 because if a 2018 car comes in with a check engine light, they’re going back to the dealer,” Mitsos says. “If you’re updated for 2016-2017 you’re in good shape. Anything newer than that is under warranty. No one is going to pay to have it repaired when it’s under warranty.”

DIAGNOSTIC EQUIPMENT Scanners need regular software updates if you want to be able to diagnose and repair newer cars. There isn’t much wear and

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Alignment racks, like this one at Redwood General Tire Pros, can last decades, but the technology component needs constant updating.

MTD September 2018

Shop Equipment

PHOTO COURTESY OF BTS TIRE & WHEEL DISTRIBUTORS

Once the hood is opened, the need for engine diagnostic equipment increases dramatically.

WHAT TO DO WITH OLD EQUIPMENT Another factor in deciding whether to repair a piece of equipment or purchase something new is the question of what you’re going to do with your old piece of equipment.

Many shops can use the old equipment or make a little cash off of it.

“As soon as we have one we know needs to be changed, we remove it and put a new machine in and then we’ll fix or sell or reuse our old machine,” Rhodes says.

“I do that pretty aggressively just do avoid having multiple machines to buy at once.”

You also can make a little money back on your old equipment either by using it for a trade-in or selling it yourself.

“When we upgraded our lifts, we went on Craigslist and we sold our two old lifts,” Steinberg says.

“Two local shops called us and they wanted to know the condition and how much they were. For me I got my money’s worth because I had them for about 15 years. And for the smaller shops, they got something they couldn’t afford new, and everyone was happy.”

When replacing shop equipment, Jason Frink at BTS Tire & Wheel Distributors asks this question: “Is it going to allow you to do things that you can’t currently do?”

For dealers with multiple locations, it might make sense to purchase new equipment at one store and move the old machine to another store where it can get additional use.

“When we upgrade equipment in store A, the machine that’s coming out of store A might be better than the machine in store B, so many times we’ll send the machine from store A to store B,” Mitsos explains.

“It’s an upgrade for store B even though it’s not new, and then the one in store B gets disposed of.”

A CAREFUL DECISION Whether repairing a tire machine to get a few more years of work out of it or upgrading a lift that’s been in your shop for nearly 20 years, the decision to invest in your equipment is not one that’s made on a whim.

“We walk a fine line between being proactive with upgrading our equipment and being reactive,” Mitsos says. “The easy thing to do is be reactive and just wait until everything breaks, but we try not to do that.”

In the know about shop flow We contacted five former Tire Dealers of the Year to find out how they keep their service bays stocked with the proper equipment. They are: Barry Steinberg, owner, Direct Tire & Auto Service, Watertown, Mass. (1993) Nick Mitsos, president, Mountain View Tire & Service Inc., Rancho Cucamonga, Calif. (2011) Ricky Benton, president, Black’s Tire

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Service Inc., the parent company to BTS Tire & Wheel Distributors, Whiteville, N.C. (2015) Alpio Barbara, owner, Redwood General Tire Service Co., which does business as Redwood General Tire Pros in Redwood City, Calif. (2016) Mark and Scott Rhodes, owners, Plaza Tire Service Inc., Cape Girardeau, Mo. (2017)

No one wants to spend thousands of dollars on repairs only to find out their machine won’t be able to keep up with the latest car technology in five years. On the flip side, some owners don’t want to jump the gun and buy something new if a good working machine just needs a few minor repairs.

“It’s like a car. If it keeps breaking down and if you start to put too many repairs on a piece of equipment, it’s time to replace it,” Barbara says.

The bottom line is that having good working equipment and giving technicians the tools they need to get the job done is essential for your business flow, whether it be a new machine or something that has been in the shop for years.

“You don’t want guys coming to you saying, ‘I scratched a wheel because the breaker bar is bent and I told you that three months ago,’” Steinberg says.

Lastly, while upgraded equipment is nice, you don’t necessarily have to go for a high-end model or even the newest generation of equipment to service your customers.

“Take a look at what makes up your traffic, what makes up your customers,” says Steinberg. “What are they driving? If you can’t work on a BMW 740i because you’ve never had one in your shop, then don’t worry about it. If you have to turn one person away because they drove in with it, then so be it.

“What are 90% of your other cars driving into your store every day? You have to be prepared for those people.” ■ Shana O’Malley-Smith is a freelance writer living in northeast Ohio. She specializes in the automotive aftermarket.

MTD September 2018

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Electronic surveillance

Big Brother is watching – have you become Big Brother?

THE LAW PERMITS ELECTRONIC SURVEILLANCE OF EMPLOYEE EMAILS AND PHONE CALLS, BUT ONLY WITHIN A LIMITED FRAMEWORK OF FEDERAL, STATE AND LOCAL RULES, AND NOT WITHOUT SERIOUS ETHICAL AND BUSINESS CONCERNS By

Jim Ganther

G

eorge Orwell immortalized the notion of an all-seeing and intrusive government as “Big Brother” in his classic novel “1984.” The recent Supreme Court decision in Carpenter v.

United States reminds us that Big Brother does, in fact, exist. And some of the same issues that arose in Carpenter can arise at your tire dealership.

For those of you who don’t read Supreme Court decisions as part of your normal workday — and why would you? — here’s the Carpenter case in a nutshell: Every time your phone connects to a cell tower, it

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We live in a connected, archived digital world. There are legal rules and limits to listening to, recording and reviewing employee and customer communications. You need to know your legal obligations.

generates a time-stamped record called cell site location information (CSLI). Timothy Carpenter was convicted for four robberies, in part because his CSLI placed him near the scene of those four robberies at the time they were committed. In short, Big Brother was watching. Carpenter was able to get his conviction overturned, arguing that his CSLI could not be obtained without a warrant based upon probable cause. Five justices agreed and today he is a free man (who, presumably, will never again take his cellphone to “work”).

We live in a connected, archived digital world. What rights do you have to listen to,

record and review employee and customer communications in such a world? What can you do as Big Brother?

The short answer is “a lot.” But there are legal rules and limits to such behavior, as well as ethical and business considerations.

INCOMING CALLS TO YOUR COMPANY Incoming calls to your company may be monitored and recorded, provided you notify callers of this fact. We are all familiar with the standard “This call may be monitored or recorded” disclaimer when we dial a customer service number.

If you intend to monitor or record incomMTD September 2018

ing phone calls, you should adopt this practice. In addition, employees need to be made aware of this fact. Putting it in writing is best; it may be included in your company’s employee handbook, and a process put in place to document that the employee received it and agrees to be bound by its terms.

Privacy Act (ECPA) restricts individuals and organizations, including tire dealerships, from intercepting personal wire, oral or electronic communications.

Under the ECPA, even if a call is being monitored for legitimate business reasons, if a personal call comes in, the employer must hang up as soon as it becomes obvious the call is personal. You may monitor a

personal call only if the employee knows the particular call is being monitored — and consents to it.

All of this assumes the calls (or emails) are passing through your company’s phone equipment or computer networks. Recording private calls made on employee-owned cellphones remains a very big no-no, unless the employee consents.

OUTBOUND CALLS FROM YOUR COMPANY Outgoing calls are more difficult to monitor or record than inbound calls for the obvious reason that the employee making the call must provide the disclosure. Ensuring that is being done is difficult, and the downside is huge: allegations of illegal wiretapping.

When it comes to consent to recordings, there are two main positions: one-party consent and all-party consent. In states with the former, only one party to the recording (presumably the caller) needs to consent to the recording. Consult the map on page 70.

If you are in an “all-party” state, everyone on the call must know of the recording and consent to it. Since employees do not always make the required disclosure, most employers in all-party consent states only monitor incoming calls to avoid litigation.

REASONABLE EXPECTATIONS OF PRIVACY AND THE ECPA Employees have no reasonable expectation of privacy even when employers have promised it. In Smyth v. Pillsbury (1996), the court held that an employer could read personal emails even when it had told employees it would not.

In Quon v. City of Ontario (2010), the Supreme Court held that a police officer had no expectation of privacy in the text messages he sent over an employer-issued device, even though his commanding officer promised him his messages would not be monitored. The court reasoned that the officer should have ignored what his commanding officer told him and relied upon the boilerplate language in a form he was given with the device.

Tire dealers have a legitimate interest in ensuring their employees treat customers well on the phone and don’t make misrepresentations in those calls. From this flows the general right to monitor and record calls as described above. There is a federal law, however, that puts some limitations on that right. The Electronic Communications w w w . M o d e r n T i r e D e a l e r. c o m

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Electronic surveillance States of consent Dealers operating in all-party consent states must inform every party on a phone call if it its being recorded.

What if employees consent to having their own phones monitored? If they consent, you could install some truly creepy software.

How creepy? Imagine every text message they send, every website they visit, and every phone call they make being logged and forwarded to you.

Even their locations can be recorded and disclosed. Think I’m making this up? Check out Mobile-Spy.com and see for yourself.

VIDEO MONITORING

All-party consent One-party consent

You’re on my dime Consider the sample text below if your dealership’s employee handbook does not include a section on electronic surveillance. Please note this sample policy language is for illustration only. It should not be used without the review and approval of dealer counsel. State and local privacy laws may vary.

Workplace monitoring Workplace monitoring may be conducted

by Tire Dealer to ensure quality control, employee safety, security, and customer satisfaction.

Computers furnished to employees are the property of Tire Dealer. As such, computer usage and files may be monitored or accessed.

The dealership telephone system and equipment are also the property of Tire Dealer and are to be used for business purposes only. To ensure that the dealership telephone system is used only for business purposes, and to verify that such equipment is not used to misrepresent any material fact to actual or prospective customers, all calls may be monitored.

Inbound calls may also be recorded, but only with prior notice to the inbound caller.

Knowledge of this policy and acceptance of any inbound calls shall constitute em-

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ployee consent to this policy. Tire Dealer may conduct video surveillance of nonprivate workplace areas.

Video monitoring is used to identify safety concerns, maintain quality control, detect theft and misconduct, and discourage or prevent acts of harassment and workplace violence.

Because Tire Dealer is sensitive to the legitimate privacy rights of employees, every effort will be made to guarantee that workplace monitoring is done in an ethical and respectful manner.

Internet usage monitoring Employees should not have the expectation of privacy while using the internet, whether business related or for personal use. Your postings can be reviewed by anyone and Tire Dealer reserves the right to monitor comments or discussions about Tire Dealer, its employees, customers and the industry, including products and competitors, posted on the Internet by anyone, including employees and nonemployees.

Tire Dealer may utilize blog-search tools and software to monitor forums such as blogs and other types of personal journals, diaries, personal and business discussion forums, and social networking sites.

When I was a boy (back in the Carter administration), video monitoring was fairly rare. Cameras were big and clunky, lowresolution, and black and white. Recording happened on VHS or Betamax tapes, which were limited in their capacity. And all of it was very expensive, so video recording was most often seen in connection with high-security environments and, of course, casinos.

But now, video recording equipment is small, high-resolution, and in living color.

It is also cheap, and therefore showing up in more locations, such as building lobbies, 7-Elevens, and along highways — and, not-to-mention, tire dealerships.

It is now possible for you to record and store virtually everything that happens anywhere on your premises.

Keeping an eye on your warehouse, storage areas and in the service bays seems innocuous enough. But how about the rest rooms?

This gets us back to the concept of reasonable expectation of privacy. The expectation of privacy in public spaces is low. The expectation of privacy in the bathroom is high. Some of your company’s space probably falls somewhere in between those two extremes. if you’re conducting video surveillance on your dealership’s property, post that fact around the perimeter and near the building entrances.

What all this drives home is that Big Brother is, in fact, watching. And if you want to be Big Brother, you need to be very, very careful. ■ James S. Ganther Esq. is the co-founder and CEO of Mosaic Compliance Services. He is a compliance expert and a prolific writer and speaker. The author gratefully acknowledges the assistance of Tony Molino Esq. in researching the legal precedents and regulations discussed in this article. Email Ganther at jim.ganther@bobit.com.

MTD September 2018

Autonomous Vehicles

Waymo Co.’s self-driving technology has made this Jaguar I-Pace electric SUV 3 fully autonomous.

Autonomous vehicles: niche vs. mainstream

By

Bob Ulrich

A

utonomous vehicles are a hotbed subject in our industry, as they should be. They potentially affect everyone, even non-drivers, and certainly tire dealers. To some, it is just the next step in the evolution of transportation.

And to others, a world of vehicles without drivers is just crazy talk! Heck, even in “The Jetzons” people were behind joysticks in their “flying cars.” (And there is such a thing as a flying car: Check out the Terrafugia Transition from Terrafugia Inc. at www.terrafugia.com.)

But it isn’t crazy talk, and autonomous

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SOURCE: WAYMO

12 OBSTACLES THAT NEED TO BE ADDRESSED BEFORE A VOLUME ROLLOUT WILL OCCUR

vehicles are already in limited use. Both vehicle and tire manufacturers are investing a lot of money in research and development in preparation for their mass production.

The question everybody asks is, “When will they be more than a niche mode of transportation and ready for highway use?”

Richard Smallwood, CEO and president of Sumitomo Rubber North America Inc., thinks it will be sooner rather than later. In his keynote speech at the 2017 Clemson University Global Tire Industry Conference, he cited a number of OEMs that have announced autonomous vehicle availability within the next five years.

Data from IHS Markit also supports his claim. “According to IHS, sales of autonomous cars, including driver control, will begin by 2025, and could reach 11.8 million in 2035,” said Smallwood. “Sometime after 2050, said IHS, almost all vehicles will be autonomous.”

Another popular question is, “Why do we need an autonomous vehicle?” The initial response is “to improve highway safety,” although the death of a woman killed by an autonomous Uber in Tempe, Ariz., last March may have set back widespread acceptance of autonomous vehicles.

There are additional obstacles standing MTD September 2018

Autonomous Vehicles in the way of their use. Mike Antich, editor of Modern Tire Dealer’s sister publication, Automotive Fleet, recently tackled that topic in his “Market Trends” column.

His perspective, of course, is centered on fleets. “Conceptually, autonomous vehicles are technologically feasible, but, as they say, the devil is in the details,” he wrote. “One thing is certain, as we trail blaze new ground, so too will we trail blaze new problems.”

Here is Antich’s list of 12 obstacles that need to be hurdled before the autonomous vehicle becomes commonplace among fleets. The list is just as thought-provoking for people in our industry.

Recognition of hand gestures. “Autonomous vehicles (AV) find it difficult to decipher the meaning of hand gestures by a driver or pedestrian giving it the right of way. Conversely, an AV runs the risk of misinterpreting a causal hand motion and erroneously determining it has been given the right of way. Understanding gestures is a major safety issue since it is used in a construction zone, by police officers directing traffic in an intersection with a disabled stop light, officers redirecting traffic around a vehicle accident, and at major public venues, such as concerts and sporting events.”

Difficulty driving in snow. “AVs are programed to recognize various road landmarks, such as lane dividers, turn only lanes, or when two lanes merge into a single lane. But when covered by snow, these road markings are obscured or hidden. Similarly, when snow or road grime covers vehicle sensors, it ‘blinds’ an AV to its surroundings impeding autonomous navigation.”

Driving through standing water or a flooded street. “Similar to the issues encountered when driving in snow, standing water likewise obscures road markings impeding AV travel.”

Inability of AVs to effectively communicate with human-controlled vehicles.

“There will be a long transition period when AVs share the road with humancontrolled vehicles. This will create a period of incongruity. For instance, a vehicle horn is used as a communication device providing a cautionary warning. Can an autonomous vehicle hear a horn? What about the colloquial rules of the road?

For instance, will an AV know what is meant when a vehicle in the oncoming

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lane flashes its lights to yield to it the right of way? Flashing lights are also ambiguous because it can also signify displeasure. Can an AV distinguish between the two? What about ambulances and fire engines that in an emergency do not follow the rules of the road, such as driving through red lights?

Ultimately, vehicle-to-vehicle technology will be embedded in emergency vehicles, but a fire truck can be in service for as long as 20 or more years before it is replaced.”

Decades needed to develop case. AVs will necessitate the creation of an entirely new body of case law that will take decades to adjudicate legal precedents. It is generally accepted that if an AV is forced to make a choice between hurting a single person versus many individuals, the AV will be programmed to take the course of least damage. (Based on current law), could a lawyer representing the aggrieved family argue premediated manslaughter — or

‘AUTONOMOUS VEHICLES WILL NECESSITATE THE CREATION OF AN ENTIRELY NEW BODY OF CASE LAW,’ SAYS ANTICH. even second degree murder — because the AV was programmed to intentionally hit a person? Unfortunately, the death of a pedestrian by an Uber AV won’t be the last person killed by an AV. What will be the reaction from regulatory agencies?

Will reactions vary by state?”

Personal privacy concerns. “AVs will be tracked every moment of the day. As vehicle data is collected, so will data about the occupants, such as when and where they are driven. How will the privacy of vehicle occupants be protected?”

Higher acquisition costs. “AVs will be more expensive than the traditional driver-operated vehicle, which will impact a fleet’s total cost of ownership. What will be the residual value of a used AV? One way to look at it is to ask, ‘What is the value of your used personal computer?’

With the ability to download software updates, the ‘operating system’ of an AV will always be current, with obsolescence restricted to dated hardware.”

Taxing AVs. “If AVs strictly adhere to

posted speed limits and parking restrictions, what will be the impact on government budgets from the subsequent reduction in traffic and parking fines? In a mid-size city, such as Seattle, traffic fines constitute 2.6% of the city’s operating fund. One idea floated by government officials is to mitigate this revenue loss by instituting an AV registration tax.”

Impact on organ donations. The No. 1 source of organ donations is young people who died in traffic accidents. With widespread AV usage, will there be a decrease in organ availability?”

Inadequacy of 5G network in an autonomous vehicle network. “Fifth generation wireless systems, abbreviated 5G, are improved networks that will deploy in 2019.

“Although 5G is very powerful, there are concerns widespread use of AVs will make it inadequate in providing robust communication.

“This will be a temporary concern, as technology will advance to address any inadequacy.”

Electromagnetic disruptions to GPS transmissions. “Solar storms are unpredictable and rare, but when they do occur, they erupt vast amounts of energy that can cause a massive spike in geomagnetic activity and radiation, which can interfere with the data connection between a vehicle’s onboard GPS system and the satellites that transmit location data. Electro-magnetic disruptions have caused flights to be diverted to alternate routes.”

Cybersecurity threats. “This is a real concern that will eventually result in deaths and triggers a pendulum reaction from regulatory and government agencies. Based on past history, cybersecurity is often reactionary and vulnerable to zero-day cyber-attacks.”

I found Antich’s additional comments on higher acquisition costs to be especially pertinent to our industry. In particular: “It is generally accepted that AVs will accumulate higher mileages since potentially they can be used in a 24/7 environment, which will have a direct influence on vehicle condition at the end of its service life.”

Many of his obstacles — the need for “an entirely new body of case law” really hits home to me — are reasons why I believe AVs will not be using our interstate highway system anytime soon. But one day they will. ■ MTD September 2018

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Business Insight

Wage and hour violations THERE ARE TARGETS ON THE BACKS OF TIRE AND AUTO SERVICE INDUSTRY MEMBERS By

Dennis McCarron

A

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PHOTO: NADYAPHOTO

pril 2018: $342,926 back wages paid to employees from a Midwest auto chain. April 2018: $306,000 back wages paid to employees in a New York auto shop.

April 2018: $174,400 back wages paid to employees in a California body shop. July 2018: $76,000 back wages paid to employees, plus a $14,160 civil penalty assessed in Alaska. July 2018: $51,506 back wages paid in Kentucky to auto shop employees.

I only have so much space to write this column, so I can’t list every single violation, but in two months’ worth of work, the federal government has disciplined the tire and automotive industry alone by nearly $1 million. Make no mistake about it, there are targets on our backs as the government feels this industry is an easy place to generate revenue. And, sadly, they are right.

This isn’t some witch-hunt the government is cooking up by twisting the facts to get the result they want. This is right in their face, silver platter, “Thank you, sir. May I have another?” bona fide easy pickin’s. And it is all so easily fixable, and the right thing to do.

Wage and Hour violations are discovered in two ways: random audits and complaints.

Random audits occur when the government starts finding “willful” violators: those businesses that knew better and still violated the law. Those types of judgements drive hundreds of more random audits since they are viewed as easy ways to generate revenue. Every time an auto shop is disciplined, and the Department of Labor classifies it as willful or neglectful or “in disregard,” we should all cringe. It makes everyone’s job that much harder.

And if you’re not doing the bare minimum to ensure all of your employees at least are getting paid the equivalent of minimum wage, then shame on you. Your primary job as an employer is to take care of the employees. They take care of the customers.

And the customers take care of the company.

Complaint-driven violations are generally a little hairier, as an emotionally upset employee (or ex-employee) tells the government their right to fair pay has been violated. The employee may or may not exaggerate, but there are nearly zero cases where some pay violations don’t exist. Is there is a statute of limitations regarding how far back the government can go in looking at these issues?

There’s no statute per se, but if they find willful disobedience in the current year they will typically go back four years.

The bottom line is simple: You owe it to your employees, your customers and your family to stay in compliance with Wage and Hour, at a federal level and state level (in some cases). How many shop owners reading this article could survive a $100,000 fine and still have cash to keep their doors open? Make the next inventory purchase? The bare minimum is to make sure all employees meet minimum wage guidelines. This includes overtime premiums, spiffs,

bonuses, and every aspect of pay. Sometimes that means you must crack the whip on employees clocking in and out correctly. You must manage the process. The burden falls on you, the owner, to be in compliance, not the employee. If you believe that you may not be in compliance with Federal Wage and Hour requirements, first get educated. https://www.dol.gov/general/topic/wages .

Push through the legalese and gain an understanding of the law.

If it’s just too much, employ the services of a legal company, like SESCO Management, to help you.

Get compliant with minimum wage. Everyone clocks in and out. Everyone. Just get them used to it. Pay time-and-a-half for any hours over 40 (California you know you are different), or manage your employees to 40-hour work weeks.

Get compliant with salaried employees. Salaried employees must meet a financial requirement and a job duties requirement.

More on that here: https://www.dol.gov/whd/overtime/fs17r_geico. htm, but essentially, anyone in your shop who is salaried must do a significant amount of independent work and be able to make decisions without consulting the owner. If they do mostly task-driven work like sell or file papers or pull parts and tires, then they must be hourly.

If you happen to find a big discrepancy in your current form of pay to employees, you might want to consider self-reporting to the Department of Labor. I know that may sound scary, but in nearly every instance of self-reporting the government has been very lenient and works with the company. Wage and Hour compliance is a must-do for everyone in the tire and automotive industry. To appear professional and attract the right kind of new employee to the business, we must get on board with the basics. ■ Dennis McCarron is executive director of Dealer Strategic Planning Inc., a company that manages multiple tire dealer 20 Groups in the U.S. (www.dsp-20group. com). To contact McCarron, email him at dennis@dsp-20group.com.

MTD September 2018

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Mergers and Acquisitions

What matters about your business to a strategic or financial buyer By

Michael McGregor

PART 1 OF 3

chain that was the definition of hodgepodge. We tried to make the stores consistent, but they were located in a combination of hen asked what information strategic and inner city locations and high-income suburbs, downtown barns financial buyers are looking for in the acquisiand mall locations, freeway-visible stores and hidden ones in tion of a multi-unit tire and service retailer, an industrial park. All were different shapes, sizes, ages and my answer is, “Pretty much everything.” conditions. Trying to come up with a standard customer service Sophisticated buyers want to make a smart process and marketing strategy was challenging. decision, and they need data to do so. They have fiduciary duties A consistent-looking group of stores is always preferred to to their shareholders, stakeholders and investors, and they want to a jumble. However, this industry is still a NIMBY (Not In My plan a successful integration of your business into theirs. So they Back Yard) business. You can’t always put a tire and service store need to know as much as they can learn, sooner rather than later. anywhere you want. An acquirer wanting to grow fast faces the In this first of a three-part series, I’m using my most recent “make vs. buy decision,” and buying is faster and the best option transactions as examples, highlighting points that seemed to in many established markets. matter most to the buyers. Keep in mind that every transaction Demographics. They matter, too. What’s the population is different and new things always come up, so two years from density around each of your stores? What are the income levels? now I’ll have a slightly different list.

Greg Sands, formerly of Americas Service Station, explained The following are not listed in order of importance because at to me how demographics affected his location strategy. He was the end of the day the buyer is just like your patient in trying to get his stores into the customer — what they care about matters most highest income areas of Atlanta, as he found NO ONE WANTS TO BUY SOMETHING those areas provided more protection from to them, and it can differ from buyer to buyer.

Revenue size. All things being equal when competitors going forward. And while higher THAT HAS PEAKED BECAUSE IT’S it comes to acquisitions, bigger in terms of income customers may be more demandALL DOWNHILL FROM THERE. sales size is pretty much always better, as long ing, they usually have less sticker shock and as the business is profitable. More revenue more capacity to pay when a list of needs and for a tire-focused acquirer means greater opportunities to grow recommendations is shown to them. I know of several tire and tire unit sales for the brands they prefer. And I’m sure the Icahn service dealers who follow this approach in different parts of the people are looking at service acquisitions much the same way, as in country with great success.

“How many Tenneco/Federal-Mogul parts can we eventually run Growth trajectory and prospects for more growth. No one through these shops?” Acquisitions of larger operators “move the wants to buy something that has peaked because it’s all downhill needle” when it comes to the bottom line. And since it generally from there. Are there any new services that you are planning to takes as much effort (and sometimes maybe less!) to close a big add to the mix? Are there any new locations that you have secured deal as a small one, it’s simply more efficient for many acquirers for future stores? Are there any smaller, add-on dealerships of to target a larger company if they can afford it. friends who are retiring that you can buy cheaply? These sorts of Geography. Geography matters a lot. Say that a strategic growth prospects let an acquirer know your company’s revenues buyer you are aware of already has a strong footprint of 10 stores are a base onto which incremental sales can be added. in your marketplace, many of which are within a three-mile ring Everyone loves their own babies, and tire dealers are no differof your stores. What is that acquirer’s likely appetite for you? Not ent. Try stepping outside of your own shoes and looking at your much. But if there is an acquirer not in your market and they’ve business with a critical eye. Look at it from a buyer’s perspective been growing, then they should be on the contact list. and you’ll have a more realistic and market-based viewpoint.

If you are based in California, and an acquirer only has stores east In part two next month, we’ll look at people and manageof the Mississippi, they’re not likely to want to buy you. Acquirers ment, profitability, synergies and the quality of your financial like Monro Inc. and Mavis Tire Supply Corp., for example, have reporting. ■ been very disciplined in their growth strategies and move into contiguous states and regions only when they are ready.

Michael McGregor is a veteran of the tire and service industry and a partner at Focus The stores themselves. Are they consistent in size, number of Investment Banking LLC (focusbankers.com/tire-and-service). He advises and assists bays, look, age and branding? Or are they a hodgepodge? multi-location tire dealers on mergers and acquisitions in the auto aftermarket. For I’m not throwing stones here as I once ran a 10-store tire store more information contact him at michael.mcgregor@focusbankers.com.

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MTD September 2018

European Notebook

European tire technology: onwards and upwards!

NON-PNEUMATIC PASSENGER CAR TIRES ARE ONE INNOVATION TO WATCH By

John Stone

W

ith well over 90 tire production facilities and at least 18 research and development centers firmly established, Europe continues to be a major area of growth in the industry, with most of the current leading tire manufacturers now having a strategic operational base in one European country or even several.

It is also considered by several recent independent statistical surveys to be at the very epicenter of today’s major global advancement in the latest tire technology growth momentum.

There is no doubt that this ongoing success in Europe is driven and at the same time reliant on the thriving European automotive sector.

At the same time, despite strong vehicle sales there has been a significant slowdown in consumer tire sales due to the overall financial slowdown throughout Europe brought about by the uncertainty and confusion of Brexit by the UK. At the time of writing this column, it appears that a deal between the EU and the UK is now more realistic than ever, which hopefully will eventually stabilize the European economy and help the tire sector maintain a steady growth pattern for the immediate future.

For around the last three years the tire market has been dominated by four countries in particular — Germany, France, Spain and the UK — which have accounted for over 50% in terms of volume sales.

It is also predicted that over the next three years, up to 2021, this commanding status will continue due to the anticipated increase in vehicle production and sales in these European regions.

Even though these statistics make for encouraging reading, I believe the automotive industry in Europe is currently at a crossroads.

This, in turn, directly affects the continent’s tire market as it needs to accept there is a growing emphasis now on the age of e-mobility and must embrace an even more enthusiastic approach to tomorrow’s “digital revolution” including automated and hands-free driving.

I am aware that more and more leading European tire manufacturers are working even closer with their respective partners in the automotive industry on the way forward, and are currently looking at ways of fostering new innovation in design and safety as well as contributing toward a “greener” environment on our roads.

It is also worth considering that up until now, vehicle drivers have been responsible for the overall maintenance of their tires and to also make sure they drive in a way that protects their tires from the environment. With ever-increasing developments in connectivity and the complete automation of vehicles, these responsibilities are gradually being transferred to the vehicle and its innovative components. This means tire data in the future will become even more important to guarantee safe driving performance and low emission mobility.

At the same time there is a growing demand from drivers for w w w . M o d e r n T i r e D e a l e r. c o m

Tire innovation will continue to prosper in Europe.

high technology tires (not just in Europe, but on a global basis), with the key factors being safety and sustainability. This puts the focus very much on tire producers to listen to customers’ demands by looking to seek their views on what they want and expect from their tires in the future.

So what is the latest major development taking place in the European tire sector? Well, I have noticed that with the increasing popularity of hybrid and electric vehicles, a special tire design for these vehicles has been developed that incorporates a 30% drop in rolling resistance (compared to a standard tire) that effectively reduces CO2 emissions. When fitted to hybrid vehicles, the tires can significantly lower the distances driven with assistance from their internal combustion engines, which in turn increases the miles covered in electric mode.

Also, we are now in the throes of entering a whole new concept in tire technology with the possible introduction of the airless tire, which at the moment remains a futuristic concept.

But I am reliably informed that in Europe the prospect of airless — non-pneumatic tires — for cars is expected to happen possibly within the next five years. Stay tuned! ■ John Stone has been working within the global tire industry for the past 27 years. In 2004 he launched his own consulting company, Sapphire Media Service, which caters to business media clients around the globe. Stone also writes for tire and automotive-related publications in Europe, South Africa and Asia.

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Focus on Industry

The importance of Tier 2 vs. Tier 3 WHY BUILDING A CONSUMER TIRE PLANT IN THE U.S. IS CHALLENGING FOR OVERSEAS MANUFACTURERS By

Bob Ulrich

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t the beginning of “The original data we used was the year, at least two hypothetical. First we developed of three foreign tire what the U.S. market would look manufacturers were exlike over the next five years, from pected to break ground the standpoint of size, demand and on consumer tire plants in the U.S.: business environment. Then we Wanli Tire Corp. Ltd. and Triangle started doing the financial research Tyre Co. Ltd. No timetable has been at the 6 million unit level. announced for the third, Sentury “We looked at a very diverse Tire North America LLC, to begin customer base for these proposed construction.

6 million new tires. We had regional To date, none of them have wholesalers, regional retailers and distributed the ceremonial shovels, with units coming out of the factory needed to independents — one or two of which you Wanli putting its plant plans on hold. At be sold at Tier 2 pricing. If you’re new in the might call chain-type customers that a tire the same time, existing domestic plants U.S., you’ve got a limited period of time to manufacturer might make a proprietary continue to increase capacity as need be. have a brand or brands recognized as Tier brand or two for. We didn’t look at the auto According to research by Tire Con2 value. The math was shocking to me.” dealers at all. We just looked at as diverse a sultants Group LLC, new plants being customer base as you could build if you’re built in the U.S. by foreign companies FOUR MORE TRANSPLANTS building a few brands.” need to produce close to 6 million tires a Nokian Tyres plc, which broke ground on All the conclusions led to the need for year after the first phase of construction its passenger and light truck tire plant in a Tier 2 brand, said Viola. is completed. Tire pricing also needs to 2017, is on schedule to begin producing “We used a very high-tech manufacbe closely scrutinized. tires at its new U.S. plant in 2020. Three turer’s costs. If you’re building Tier 3 tires, “Most interestingly, we found that the other foreign tire companies, Giti Tire you could sell them for lesser money. In number they should reach is 6 million units (USA) Ltd., Hankook Tire America Corp. our business model, we were building a annually,” said Skip Viola, president of Tire and Kumho Tire Co. Inc., have opened product that would stand up to Tier 2, Consultants. “They may have different plants in the last three years. Plant capacity regardless of where it was positioned. thoughts on how to ramp up and reach at both the Hankook and Kumho plants is “We took a realistic approach to building that, but that seems to be the production well over 6 million tires a year. a tire plant in the U.S. We think there are level they need to reach.” challenges for any foreign tire company Viola has more than 40 years of building a plant here.” experience with tire distribution, most Would importing tires in addinotably with Treadways Corp. He tion to building 6 million in the U.S. U.S. tire plant capacity co-founded Tire Consultants with change the business model enough to No. of plants: 46 Richard Clarke in 2012. be profitable? Viola said no.

No. of non-union plants: 28 (61%) “When we first started doing these “There are economic outcomes that No. of manufacturers: 16 analyses, we realized we had to get a may affect our research. For example, Total daily capacity: 737,000 tires financial expert to help us develop and maybe the manufacturer gets better Consumer tire percentage of capacity: 82% study pro forma financial statements. prices on raw materials than we proState with most daily capacity: South Carolina (115,580) jected. Maybe the company develops a We found that if the transplanted Source: 2018 Modern Tire Dealer Facts Issue company sold all 6 million units at relationship with a couple-million-unit third tier tire pricing — whether or retail customer and can provide him not you believe there is a fourth tier — it Viola said he couldn’t comment on the with logistical support. couldn’t make money. details, but said it is possible to create a “In the practical and real world, could “No matter how we spun it, they Tier 2 brand within five years. When asked the challenge be overcome? Maybe. But wouldn’t make money. So we then took a to give a few examples of a Tier 2 brand, our hypothetical world says it would be step back and found out that 50% of the he mentioned Sumitomo and Hankook. very difficult.” ■

FOREIGN COMPANIES NEED TO PRODUCE CLOSE TO 6 MILLION TIRES A YEAR AFTER THE FIRST PHASE OF CONSTRUCTION IS COMPLETED, SAYS VIOLA.

By the numbers

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MTD September 2018

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For what drives you.

Customer Loyalty

How to continually earn loyalty DO YOU HAVE LOYAL CUSTOMERS? ARE YOU SURE? By

Mike Townsend

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very tire store employee has seen it many times. You have a regular customer (let’s call him Bob) who you feel is like family. You think he is loyal enough to give you all of his business. Then it happens. One day you are changing his oil and rotating his tires, and your service tech comes to you to let you know Bob had already purchased, tires, brakes or another product/service from a big box store down the road from you.

What happened? Was it price? Or was it that you failed to be intentional in your customer engagement process with Bob? Or did you fail to measure on a regular interval the loyalty of Bob to your business?

CUSTOMER LOYALTY Is customer loyalty possible? Yes. Let’s look at what defines the “loyal customer.”

• They are likely to send you customers on a regular basis.

• They are likely to buy from you as long as they have a need.

• Most are not actively looking for another supplier.

• They are not swayed by a sales pitch from any of your competitors.

• They are always open to recommendations for other products and services you offer.

• Some are likely to give you feedback on how you can improve.

• They trust you and forgive you even when you don’t get it right.

Of course all of the above sound good, but when applied to all the moving parts in a retail tire store, the dream of creating loyal customers can sometimes elude us. Let’s break down each of them and define what must happen in these challenging times of what I call the “Customer Experience Process.”

They are likely to send you customers on a regular basis.

If this is not happening in your store, you are most likely falling short on how you are making Bob feel when he visits your store even for a routine service. One of the biggest challenges is to be intentional about making Bob feel special every time he comes to your store.

They are likely to buy from you as long as they have a need.

I have seen many stores send as many sales dollars down the road as they actually put into the cash drawer because the customer isn’t made aware of the need. How does this happen? Either the cars are not inspected, or they are not inspected properly.

This can also happen if the results of a proper inspection are presented in a way that causes Bob to lose trust in the business.

Most are not actively looking for another supplier. Many sales associates assume this and as a result, fail to engage a loyal customer. When engaging a loyal customer like Bob, you must make him feel the same way you make a customer who is a relatively new customer.

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It has been said that trust is earned slowly, like water dripping into a bucket, but lost suddenly, like dumping the water out of the bucket all at once. I have witnessed this when a dealer fails to give a customer like Bob something he would typically give a newer customer. When Bob feels like he is not appreciated as much as he used to be, and sees an ad from a big box store….

They are not swayed by a sales pitch from any of your competitors. Some tire retailers can be afraid of competitors.

Some of your loyal customers are being swayed with fancy ads, gimmicks, etc.

We recently engaged a customer on behalf of a dealer in the Atlanta metro area and were able to earn the customer’s loyalty on the phone against a “Buy 3 get one FREE” tire offer. We were about $91 more than the competition but made the potential customer “feel” the value of doing business with an independent.

They are always open to recommendations for other products and services you offer. This can be true as long as you continue to build trust. Remember the bucket issue? If the bucket is full, then start filling another bucket. If you continue to build trust with your loyal customers and connect with them often, they will continue to be loyal.

MAKE SURE YOU HAVE A DEFINED CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE PROCESS FOR ENGAGING ALL OF THEM. Some are likely to give you feedback on how you can improve.

Loyal customers like Bob are always the best ones to ask to find out how to get better. Unfortunately, many are never asked either in person or in an electronic survey (highly recommended).

They trust you and will forgive you even when you don’t get it right. Mistakes happen. As long as you have maintained trust with your customers, you can usually fix problems and retain their loyalty. The challenge many dealers face is making sure they fix the problem in a similar fashion to the way they would fix it for a new customer, because Bob will notice. This is typically when he can be wooed away by your competitor.

Let’s face it, finding a customer should be harder than keeping a customer. Make sure you have a defined Customer Experience Process for engaging all of them. This will not only build trust with customers like Bob, but also encourage Bob to send you even more customers, who will send you even more customers…. ■ Mike Townsend is owner of Townsend Strategies, a sales and leadership training and marketing firm. He has nearly 30 years of sales experience, 13 of them in the tire industry. As a Six Sigma black belt and professional trainer, Townsend says he “has witnessed every scenario and heard every objection in the retail tire environment across every state in the U.S.” For more information, call (865) 3184588 or (800) 319-8552, or email Townsend at mike@townsendstrategies.com.

MTD September 2018

Focus on Industry

From the track to the street RACE TIRE EXPERIENCE HELPS DEVELOP CONSUMER TIRES By

Ann Neal

Dale Earnhardt Jr., speaking prior to the NASCAR race at Michigan International Speedway last month, compared race tires to street tires. He said the soft tire compound of a race tire is designed to last 100 miles versus the hard compound of a street tire that is designed to go 60,000 miles.

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SuperCar 3R in cooperation with General Motors Corp. for the new Camaro ZL1-1LE. The entire Camaro lineup, from the base model to the track-ready ZL1-1LE, is fitted with Goodyear’s Eagle performance tires.

The Eagle F1 SuperCar 3R is made at Goodyear’s passenger tire manufacturing facility in Lawton, Okla. All of the race tires Goodyear makes for NASCAR and other series are made in Akron, Ohio.

Goodyear invited racing and tire industry media to tour the Innovation Center manufacturing plant and Test Center and Engineering Lab in August for a firsthand look at its race tire technology.

Almost everything Goodyear learns on the track translates to consumer products, says Greg Stucker, director of race tire sales and marketing.

But knowledge has flowed in both directions in recent years. A dual compound tread for some NASCAR applications is one example. Goodyear’s consumer tire engineers originally developed the technology for different weather applications.

“The size of the tires on consumer vehicles these days is what only racing tires were years ago,” says Greg Stucker, director of race tire sales and marketing.

COURTESY OF GOODYEAR

G

oodyear Tire & Rubber Co. traces its racing tire heritage back more than a century. The company’s ties to the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) go back to the 1950s, and it has been the exclusive provider of tires to NASCAR’s top three national series since 1997.

“NASCAR tires face the most grueling demands and it’s this environment that helps Goodyear design and manufacture high-quality performance tires, including the new Eagle F1 SuperCar 3R,” says Jason Rismiller, Goodyear’s senior brand manager.

Goodyear unveiled the Eagle F1 SuperCar 3R, the company’s first street-legal competition tire, at its 2018 Customer Conference in January. It is now available in seven sizes, with three more sizes to be released in the next two months. “We are continuing to monitor and assess the marketplace for future size opportunities,” says Rismiller.

Goodyear developed the Eagle F1

Each NASCAR race tire is stenciled with the gold “Goodyear Eagle.”

Stucker says the technology was modified to create an “endurance zone” to protect the inside shoulder of a race tire from heat and a “traction zone” on the outside of the tire to provide grip.

“There’s really a lot of interaction both ways from a tire design and from a tire development tool perspective.” ■

Goodyear’s new track-ready Eagle F1 SuperCar 3R will soon be available in 10 sizes. “We are continuing to monitor and assess the marketplace for future size opportunities,” says Jason Rismiller, senior brand manager.

MTD September 2018

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Focus on Industry

Current and future issues to be tackled in Global Tire Expo educational sessions

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his year’s Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) Show is being held Oct. 30 to Nov. 2 at the Las Vegas Convention Center. “For over 20 years the Tire Industry Association (TIA) has proudly partnered with the SEMA Show to bring a special component of the expo specific to tire dealers and the tire community — the Global Tire Expo (GTE),” says Roy Littlefield, TIA executive vice president.

“We are excited for another exciting year and eager to introduce some of our new educational sessions that will cover topics from preventing irregular tread wear to understanding the tire industry five to 10 years from now.”

TIA’s educational sessions will be presented on Tuesday, Oct. 30, and Wednesday, Oct. 31, at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m.

Littlefield adds, “We also are encouraging participants to join our 2018 Legislative Review (taking place at noon to 1 p.m. on Wednesday) that will focus on how new laws and regulations currently impact the tire industry and its potential impact on the midterm elections.

“We hope that everyone will take advantage of all the resources and opportunities that GTE and TIA has to offer and be sure to visit our booth No. 40069.”

SEMA SHOW Last year’s SEMA Show drew more than 70,000 domestic and international buyers. Its displays are segmented into 12 sections (one being the GTE).

The other sections are: Restyling & Car Care Accessories; Mobile Electronics and Technology; Collusion Repair and Refinish; Tools and Equipment; Racing and Performance; Hot Rod Alley; Restoration Marketplace; Trucks, SUVs and Off-Road; Powersports and Utility Vehicles; Business Services; and Wheels and Accessories.

Here’s a schedule of TIA’s GTE pre-show events and educational sessions.

Look for more information on the SEMA Show, part of Automotive Aftermarket Industry Week in Las Vegas, in next month’s MTD.

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Tire manufacturers will be among the exhibitors displaying their newest products at the 2018 SEMA Show in the Tire Industry Association’s Global Tire Expo section.

TIA PRE-SHOW EVENTS TIA’s pre-show events will be held on Monday, Oct. 29, and include networking, socializing, and an awards ceremony highlighted by the induction of Bob Majewski, president of Sumerel Tire Service Inc., and Arvind Poddar, chairman and managing director of Balkrishna Industries Ltd. (BKT), into the 2018 Hall of Fame.

Noon - 12:30 p.m.

TIA’s annual membership meeting (open to all members) 5 p.m. – 6 p.m.

Cocktail hour (open to all members) 6 p.m. – 8 p.m.

Tire Industry Honors awards ceremony (ticketed event — open to all members and show attendees) 8 p.m. – 10 p.m.

Welcome reception (ticketed event — open to all members and show attendees)

EDUCATIONAL SESSIONS Tuesday, Oct. 30 10 a.m. – 11 a.m.

TPMS at 10: Understanding Original Equipment Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS).

Original equipment TPMS continues to evolve. This session will focus on various OE manufacturers and how the TPMS sen-

sors communicate with the vehicle. It will identify some of the necessary procedures and guidelines for maintaining the TPMS and the steps that technicians must take to ensure it functions properly.

Presenters: Mark J Becker, assistant general manager, Pacific Manufacturing Ohio Inc.; Sean Lannoo, sales technical training specialist, Continental Corp.; W Devon Rippetoe, senior technical service & training representative, Sensata/Schrader Performance Sensors.

Moderator: Matthew White, director of tire service, TIA.

10 a.m. – 11 a.m.

Truck Tires at 10: Wheel Torque for Trucks and Trailers When the wheels become detached from a commercial motor vehicle during operation, the end result can be expensive and dangerous, says TIA. In most cases, a “wheel-off ” can be prevented by following the RIST (remove, inspect, snug and torque) procedure.

This session will outline the steps of the RIST procedure, and include an in-depth overview of the tools and equipment that can be used when installing the fasteners.

Presenters: Kevin Rohlwing, senior vice president of training, TIA; Joseph Heath, technical manager, TIA. MTD September 2018

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Focus on Industry 2 p.m. – 3 p.m. infrastructure proposals aimed Tires at 2: Successful Tire Dealat the tire industry, any potential ers Share Their Secrets changes to tax reform, LIFO repeal, “Winning a national award from Marketplace Fairness (internet an industry trade publication is an sales), IRS audits, used tire sales, honor that is always well-deserved.

Chinese tariffs, OSHA inspections, The criteria to be a candidate crumb rubber bills, healthcare requires a higher level of exceland more.” lence, so winning truly represents Presenters: TIA’s Roy Littlethe best that the tire industry has field; Roy Littlefield, IV, director to offer,” says TIA. The association of government affairs, TIA. has invited MTD’s 2018 Tire Dealer of the Year John Quirk, the Tire 2 p.m. – 3 p.m.

Business Humanitarian Award winManagement at 2: Servicing ner, and the Tire Review Top Shop The latest technical innovations will be highlighted at AAPEX the Next Generation of Consumers winner to make brief presentations 2018, which will play host to more than 2,500 exhibiting com- and Vehicles panies. It will go on the same time as the SEMA Show. on what makes them successful and TIA’s Kevin Rohlwing will look then participate in an informative When everything is right, the average at what the tire and vehicle service Q&A session with the audience. radial truck tire can deliver more than industry is going to look like in five or 10 Moderators: TIA’s Kevin Rohlwing and 100,000 miles of service in most applicayears. How will retailers attract and retain Joe Casebere, technical general manager, tions. When something is wrong, irregular customers when the next generation of REMA Tip Top. wear can cause a tire to be removed from consumers have the majority of the buying service in less than half that time. This power? What types of tire, maintenance and Wednesday, Oct. 31 session will identify the most common repair services will be necessary when the 10 a.m. – 11 a.m. types of irregular tread wear and provide next generation of vehicles hits the road?

ATS at 10: Puncture Repair Facts the correction actions that must take place This session will answer these questions TIA notes, “When a foreign object in order to avoid them. and more. penetrates the inside of a pneumatic tire, Presenters: Kevin Rohlwing and Joseph Presenter: Kevin Rohlwing, TIA. it’s going to leak. Before the resulting flat Heath of TIA. tire can be repaired, there are a number of AAPEXEDU TO HIGHLIGHT TOP factors that must be considered including Noon – 1 p.m.

TRENDS IN AUTO AFTERMARKET size, location, and the angle of penetration.

TIA’s 2018 Legislative Review: How The 2018 Automotive Aftermarket Puncture repairs are performed by the New Laws and Regulations Will Impact Products Expo (AAPEX) is going on at thousands every day but only a certain the Tire Industry; and the Potential Impact the same time as the SEMA Show at the percentage of them follow the industry of Midterm Elections Sands Expo. recommended guidelines and procedures.

TIA notes, “Republicans have controlled AAPEX 2018 will feature more than This session will outline the repair limits the federal government for almost two years.

2,500 exhibiting companies displaying the for punctures in passenger and light truck The president thus far has cut regulations, latest products, services and technologies. tires and provide an overview of the stepboosted energy exploration, adopted a Its educational program (approximately by-step procedures that are necessary to far more aggressive trade-enforcement 50 sessions in all) will be offering 18 sesproperly repair a tire.” posture, and passed a robust tax bill. What sions on the top trends, challenges and Presenters: Tim BeVier, manager do these mean for the tire industry and opportunities in the automotive aftermarket national account development, Tech Interhow will we be impacted by the midterm industry and how attendees can position national; Robbie Bushnell, vice president elections? Find out the upcoming issues themselves to stay ahead of the curve and of Tire Repair Products, 31 Inc.; Jason that will positively and negatively impact grow their businesses.

Donahey, sales manager, Patch Rubber your business.”

Sessions are organized in the followCo.; Adam Tillery, vice president of sales The review will look specifically at issues ing tracks: Technology, Industry Trends, and marketing, REMA Tip Top. such as tire registration, recall of estate tax, Service Professionals Program, Business Moderator: TIA’s Matthew White. tariffs on steel, and the impact the midterm Management, Import/Export, Heating/ elections could have on the tire industry.

Cooling, Heavy Duty, Paint & Body, and 10 a.m. – 11 a.m.

TIA will distribute legislative materials, a Young Professionals Program.

Truck Tires at 10: Preventing Irregular answer questions, and provide an overview During a 2019 Aftermarket Outlook Tread Wear of the legislative climate moving forward. session, the NPD Group Inc. will once again Next to fuel, tires are the second leading “TIA members have to stay informed unveil the results of its latest Consumer operating expense for a fleet. As a result, and get involved with issues that will affect Outlook Survey — now in its 13th annual every trucking company wants to get as their bottom line,” says the association. edition. many miles as possible out of every new “We will also update the status of other Read more about AAPEX in the October tire and subsequent retread, says TIA. pending issues and legislation including MTD. ■

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MTD September 2018

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TPMS

Winter tires and TPMS systems FOLLOW PROPER PROCEDURES TO MAINTAIN FUNCTIONALITY

By

Mike Mavrigian

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e’re fast approaching that time of the year when those of us who live in coldweather areas get excited when the “s” word — snow — is in the forecast. It still means winter tire changeover time for us. The only thing better is a nice blizzard warning!

It’s common for many customers to switch to dedicated winter tires for their region’s cold/snow weather period. Obviously, they have several options, but some of them could potentially create tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS) issues.

The most straightforward service is that the original or “summer” tires are demounted and the winter tires of the same size are mounted to the same wheels. Since a tire service is being performed, it’s best to take the opportunity to carefully inspect all TPMS sensors and service replacement parts to ensure proper sealing and battery performance after explaining your findings and getting a written go-ahead from the customer. The sensors may be pre-programmed or need to be programmed (depending on make and model of the sensors).

The winter tires should feature the same MTD September 2018

PERFORMANCE SENSORS

PHOTO COURTESY OF DILL

Tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS) sensor manufacturers offer individual tools as well as complete tool kits that are dedicated specifically for TPMS service.

overall diameter as the OE tires in order for the ABS to function, so pay attention to the inflation pressure recommendation. If the inflation pressure is different, that would have to be reprogrammed to the TPMS ECU. As an aside, be sure to note the speed rating of the winter tires, too.

Once the wheel and tire assemblies have been installed on the vehicle, the sensors need to be relearned.

DIFFERENT WHEELS AND TIRES However, some customers prefer to run different wheels with their winter tires, mostly for two reasons: to save the OE or aftermarket alloy wheels from salt, ice and slush, and for the ability to run a narrower tire with a taller sidewall, which is better suited for snow and ice traction and handling as compared to a wider tire with a shorter and less-compliant sidewall.

Tire size and rim diameter would be based on finding a size that is equal to the original tire overall diameter in order to provide the ABS module with the proper overall diameter and rotational distance, while being narrower and still providing a load index that is suitable for the vehicle. Be sure to consult fitment guides and check clearances for brakes, suspension, etc., before making any recommendations to your customer.

Here’s an example. A vehicle is equipped with OEM alloy wheels and 205/55R16 tires. This size tire features an overall diameter of 24.9 inches. The customer wishes to move to steel wheels and a narrower winter tire with a taller sidewall.

One potential choice would be 15 x 6 or 6.5-inch wheels with 195/65R15 winter tires. The fitment would still have an overall diameter of 25 inches, but with a narrower section width and taller sidewall.

In order for the TPMS to remain operational, TPMS sensors would need to be installed to the new steel wheels, using sensors that have stems compatible with the valve holes in the wheels. Once the sensors are programmed (along with any change to inflation pressure that may be needed), the assemblies are installed to the vehicle and relearned. w w w . M o d e r n T i r e D e a l e r. c o m

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AUTOMOTIVE INTELLIGENCE

TPMS

PROGRAMMABLE UNIVERSAL TPMS

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A TPMS scan tool allows you to reprogram the TPMS tire pressure setting to accommodate a change in tire inflation as a result of a change in tire size.

Do not be tempted to install any wheel without a TPMS sensor on any vehicle that was originally equipped with direct TPMS. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (NHTSA) interpretation of the Motor Vehicle Safety Act prohibits service providers from installing aftermarket tire and wheel assemblies without working TPMS sensors.

Depending on your state, the TPMS might not need to be functional in order to pass an inspection, but a shop is not allowed to omit the sensors on a vehicle that was equipped with TPMS. The real question you need to ask yourself is what type of professionalism do you portray if you give your customers their vehicle back with a TPMS light glaring at them every time they drive it?

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Scan tools are available to allow technicians to activate, read and relearn all known models of TPMS sensors.

TS508

The process is quite simple. For directTPMS, using the appropriate scan tool that allows this reprogramming function, select the mode that enables tire pressure value resetting (the steps will vary depending on the make and model of tool), change the factory OEM values to the new desired values, again following the prompts on the specific tool in use.

Once the system has been reprogrammed to alert based on a new inflation pressure value, fill out a supplemental tire cold inflation pressure placard and attach it near the factory tire placard. Include the new tire size, load rating and new cold inflation pressure.

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Reprogramming a TPMS to accept a change in tire pressure must include a new modified placard indicating the supplemental tire cold inflation pressure. In this example, the original placard indicates that the vehicle was originally equipped with 225/50R17 tires with a factory-recommended inflation pressure of 31 psi. The modification placard shows a change to 305/35R24 tires, with an inflation pressure of 41 psi.

After replacing modules that contain TPMS data, it is required to relearn TPMS data.

It’s interesting to note that on Ford vehicles, proper module programming and TPMS relearning is required.

The vehicle’s dome lamp will flash until all needed programming and relearning is complete.

TIP FOR SENSOR PROGRAMMING Be sure to program sensors away from where other sensors in your inventory are stored.

Multiple sensors might be programmed by mistake. Whenever you are changing out tire/wheels as a set, make sure that you have moved the original tire/wheels with their TPMS sensors from your work area. This will help avoid having the wrong sensor MTD September 2018

TPMS

How many of your customers know what the TPMS warning light even is?

being programmed, with the customer coming back to your shop a day later with the TPMS light illuminated.

Typically, a flashing TPMS light indicates a TPMS fault and a solid light indicates a tire pressure issue. To make sure that there is not a system fault, cycling the key is necessary. Once driven for a time, the flashing light will go solid.

Cycling the key will reset the system and allow for either a solid or flashing light. It’s best practice to relearn the TPMS anytime the wheels are removed.

You never know if the “last guy” rotated the wheel/tire assemblies and did not perform a relearn.

RELEARNING TIPS Once one or more TPMS sensors have been replaced, or a service such as tire/wheel rotation has been performed, a relearn procedure is likely required.

There are three basic types of relearns, depending on the make, model and year vehicle. These include auto-relearn, stationary relearn and OBD II relearn.

Auto Relearn applies to vehicles that are designed to learn sensor IDs without the need for a TPMS tool. Once the service has been performed, the vehicle simply needs to be driven for a predetermined amount of time in order for the system to reset.

Depending on the vehicle, this may require as little as 5 minutes to as long as perhaps 20 minutes. However, to prevent wasting time, use a TPMS tool to trigger each sensor to verify that the sensors are functioning properly.

It should be obvious that all tires must first be inflated to the placard’s recommended pressure.

A Stationary Relearn allows sensor IDs to be transferred to the vehicle ECU while in the shop. This typically requires a TPMS tool or an OBD II scan tool.

An RF signal communicates with the ECU to inform the computer as to the

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location of each sensor wheel position.

ATEQ provided this example. It is a 2014 Ford Escape that features a standard ignition. Inflate all tires to the specification, turn the ignition off, press and release the brake pedal, cycle the ignition off to run three times, finishing with the engine in the run position. Next, press and release the brake pedal again, and then turn the ignition to the off position.

Once again, cycle the ignition from off to run three times, finishing with the engine in the run position. At this point, the horn will sound twice (at least, it should).

Use the tool to activate the left front sensor, at which point the horn should sound once. Repeat this process for the right front sensor, followed by the right rear sensor, followed by the left rear sensor.

The sequence must be followed properly (LF, RF, RR, LR).

The OBD II Relearn requires a TPMS tool to transfer the new sensor IDs directly to the vehicle’s ECU. With the tool connected to the OBD II port, each sensor is scanned, following the prompts on the tool.

The sensor IDs are then transferred to the ECU. Most Asian and European vehicles currently require the OBD II relearn procedure.

Referring to a 2011 Toyota Camry as an example, the procedure is as follows: 1. Inflate all tires to specification.

2. Read all sensor IDs using a scan tool.

3. Connect the tool to the OBD port.

4. Reset the ECU using the tool.

5. Turn the ignition off, then to the on position.

6. Drive the vehicle at a speed of about 12 mph for about five minutes.

This is merely one example. Always follow the procedure provided by the auto maker’s service manual or the instructions provided by the sensor and/or tool maker. ■ Mike Mavrigian is editor of Modern Tire Dealer’s sister publication Auto Service Professional.

MTD September 2018

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TPMS

2011–2018 Ford Edge and...

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Lincoln MKX

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SUBJECT VEHICLES: 2011–2018 Ford Edge and Lincoln MKX. RELEARN PROCEDURE? Yes. SPECIAL TOOLS NEEDED? Yes, a TPMS activation tool (204-363).

The tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS) of the 2011–2018 Ford Edge and Lincoln MKX monitors the air pressure in the four road tires with wheel-mounted tire pressure sensors. The sensors transmit radio frequency signals to the smart junction Box (SJB) approximately every 60 seconds when the vehicle speed exceeds 20 mph (32 km/h).

If the vehicle is stationary for more than 30 minutes, the sensor will enter into a “sleep mode” and stop transmitting.

Each tire pressure sensor transmission is compared against a low-pressure limit (the pressure listed on vehicle certification label minus 25%, which will be about 6 psi to 9 psi). If it is determined that the tire pressure has fallen below this limit, the SJB sends a message to the instrument cluster, which then illuminates the low pressure warning indicator and displays the appropriate message(s) in the message

96

center (if equipped). All tire pressure sensors are battery-operated.

The sensors are attached to the portion of the valve stem located inside the wheel with a T10 Torx screw. Under the following conditions, the TPMS may not function properly:

• There is low tire pressure.

• The tire pressure sensor is missing or damaged.

• The spare tire is installed as a road wheel.

• An incorrect tire pressure sensor is installed or the tire pressure sensor is installed incorrectly.

• Non-OEM wheels are installed (aftermarket rims) or non-OEM equipped run-flat tires are installed.

• There are other non-OEM modifications (roll cages, service barriers, part racks, ladder racks, etc.)

TIRE PRESSURE MONITOR WARNING INDICATORS NOTE: As ambient temperature decreases by 6 degrees Celsius (10 degrees Fahrenheit), tire pressure decreases 1 psi (7 kPa). Because tire pressures fluctuate with temperature

changes, tire pressures must be set when the tires are at outdoor ambient temperatures.

If not the tire pressure may drop enough to be detected by the TPMS, which will activate the low pressure warning light.

When the tire pressure warning light comes on solid and the message center displays “LOW TIRE PRESSURE,” check the air pressure of all tires and adjust to the specified cold pressure listed on the vehicle certification label (found on the driver’s door or door pillar). Drive the vehicle at 20 mph for at least two minutes. Make sure the warning light goes off. If the warning light stays on, there is a malfunction in the TPMS. See the appropriate manufacturer service information.

When the tire pressure warning light flashes for 70 seconds and then remains illuminated, after a bulb-check has been performed and the message center displays warning messages, there is a malfunction in the TPMS. See the appropriate manufacturer service information.

TPMS RESET PROCEDURES NOTE: If the tire pressure sensor is replaced, it will need to be trained.

MTD September 2018

If the vehicle has different front and rear tire pressures, the tire pressure has to be adjusted and the TPMS sensors have to be trained. If the vehicle has the same tire pressure on the front and rear tires, the TPMS is not affected by wheel and tire rotation.

When the tire pressure warning light comes on solid and the message center displays “LOW TIRE PRESSURE,” check the air pressure of all tires and adjust to the specified cold pressure listed on the vehicle certification label (found on the driver’s door or door pillar).

Drive the vehicle at 20 mph (32 km/h) for at least two minutes. The TPMS sensor activation procedure may also be used in place of driving. See “Tire pressure sensor activation.” Make sure the warning light goes off.

position to the RUN position three times, ending in the RUN position. Do not wait more than one minute between each key cycle.

NOTE: It may take up to six seconds to activate a tire pressure sensor. During this time, the activation tool must remain against the sidewall of the tire.

NOTE: If a sensor does not respond

to the activation tool, attempt to activate the same sensor using the activation tool.

If the sensor still does not respond, move the vehicle to rotate the wheels at least ¼ of a turn and attempt to activate the same sensor again.

NOTE: If the SJB does not recognize any one of the four tire pressure sensors during the two minute time limit for each

TIRE PRESSURE SENSOR TRAINING NOTE: In the following procedure, TPMS activation tool (204-363) must be used.

NOTE: The tire pressure sensor training procedure must be done on a single vehicle, in an area without radio frequency (RF) noise and at least three feet away from any other vehicle equipped with the TPMS. RF noise is generated by electrical motor and appliance operation, cellular telephones and remote transmitters, power inverters and portable entertainment equipment.

NOTE: A new tire pressure sensor is shipped in an OFF mode (or battery saver mode), and must be turned ON before it can be trained. To turn the sensor on, inflate the tire to the recommended inflation pressure and wait at least two minutes, then continue with the sensor training procedure.

1) Turn the ignition switch to the OFF position, and then press and release the brake pedal.

2) Turn the ignition switch from the OFF position to the RUN position three times, ending in the RUN position. Do not wait more than one minute between each key cycle.

3) Press and release the brake pedal.

4) Turn the ignition switch to the OFF position.

NOTE: The horn will sound once and the tire pressure warning light will flash if the train mode has been entered successfully (if equipped, the message center displays “TRAIN LF TIRE”).

5) Turn ignition switch from the OFF w w w . M o d e r n T i r e D e a l e r. c o m

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TPMS

ILLUSTRATIONS COURTESY OF FORD MOTOR CO.

ILLUSTRATIONS COURTESY OF FORD MOTOR CO.

Figure 1: Parts of the pressure sensor.

Figure 2: Tire mounting position.

sensor response, the horn will sound twice and the message center (if equipped) will display “TIRE NOT TRAINED REPEAT.” The training procedure must be repeated from the beginning.

6) Place the TPMS activation tool (204363) on the left front tire sidewall at the tire valve stem.

Press the test button on the activation tool. The horn will sound briefly to indicate that the tire pressure sensor has been recognized by the SJB. NOTE: Do not wait more than two minutes between training each sensor. If the wait time is more than two minutes the SJB will stop and the training procedure must be repeated from the beginning.

7) Within two minutes after the horn sounds, place the activation tool on the right front tire sidewall at the valve stem.

Repeat the procedure for the right rear and the left rear tires, in that order.

8) When the tire training procedure is complete, the message center (if equipped) will display “TIRE TRAINING COMPLETE.” For vehicles not equipped with a message center, successful completion of the training procedure will be verified by turning the ignition switch to the OFF position without the horn sounding. If the horn sounds twice when the ignition is turned off, the training procedure was not successful.

TIRE PRESSURE SENSOR ACTIVATION 1. Turn the ignition switch to ON. 2) Place the activation tool on the left front tire sidewall at the tire valve stem.

NOTE: A green light will flash and a beep will sound on the activation tool for each successful TPMS sensor response.

3) Press the test button on the activation tool to activate the TPMS sensor. For best results, activate each sensor twice.

NOTE: If, after adjusting tire pressures and activating the sensors, the tire pressure warning light is still illuminated, there is a malfunction in the TPMS. See the appropriate manufacturer service information.

4) Repeat the procedure for each remaining tire.

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MTD September 2018

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TPMS DEMOUNTING/MOUNTING PROCEDURES

Torque specifications Component Wheel nut

Ft.-lbs.

100 In.-lbs.

Tire pressure sensor nut 13

(N.m) (135) (N.m) (1.5)

CAUTION: The tire should be demounted from the wheel using the tire changer manufacturer’s instructions. Use the following information to avoid damage during the demounting/mounting procedures.

CAUTION: The tire and wheel must always be correctly matched. It is very

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important to determine the size of each component before any assembly operations commence. Failure to adhere to these instructions can result in an explosive separation and cause serious bodily injury or death.

CAUTION: Use only wheels and wheel nuts that have been designed for the current model year. Tire pressure sensors are not designed to be used with aftermarket wheels. Aftermarket wheels or wheel nuts may not fit or function correctly, and can cause personal injury or damage to the vehicle. A wheel and tire assembly equipped with a tire pressure sensor will have the following verbiage stamped or cast on the wheel: “Sensor May Be Inside.”

CAUTION: Tighten wheel nuts in a star pattern. Failure to follow tightening specifications may result in high brake disc runout, serious injury, or death.

NOTE: The use of run-flat tires when the vehicle is not originally equipped is not recommended, as it may cause TPMS to malfunction.

CAUTION: Do not inflate the tire higher than the maximum pressure stamped on the tire sidewall.

NOTE: If possible, use a digital tire gauge (204-354) any time tire pressures are measured to be sure that accurate values are obtained.

Ford recommends the use of a digital or dial type tire pressure gauge rather than a stick type gauge for increased accuracy.

TIRE PRESSURE SENSOR

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CAUTION: These vehicles are equipped with valve-mounted tire pressure sensors.

Valve-mounted and strap-mounted tire pressure sensors are not compatible. Swapping wheels from one vehicle to another with the different systems will adversely affect TPMS operation.

NOTE: Tire pressure sensors are equipped with Lithium-ion batteries, and must be disposed of accordingly.

Removal NOTE: Failure to follow the instructions below may result in damage to the TPMS sensor.

1) Remove the wheel and tire. The valve stem is connected to the TPMS sensor. Do not pull the valve stem from the wheel, or damage to the sensor will occur.

2) Remove the valve stem core and fully deflate all air from the tire.

MTD September 2018

TPMS 3) Remove the tire from the wheel following the tire manufacturer’s directions.

4) Remove the TPMS sensor from the valve in the sequence seen in Figure 1.

5) Using a T10 Torx, remove the valve stem-to-TPMS sensor screw.

6) Carefully and firmly, pull the sensor straight down and separate it from the valve stem.

NOTE: A new valve stem must be installed whenever a new tire or wheel is installed.

NOTE: When installing a new wheel, always install a new valve stem and reuse the TPMS sensor from the previous wheel if possible. The TPMS will not have to be trained if the sensor is reused.

7) Using a suitable valve stem puller and a wood block, remove the valve stem from the wheel.

8) If the TPMS sensor is being reused, inspect the TPMS sensor for damage and install new parts as necessary.

Installation NOTE: To prevent TPMS sensor and

valve stem damage, the valve stem must be installed onto the TPMS sensor and then installed into the wheel as an assembly.

1) Install a new valve stem onto the TPMS sensor tightening the valve stem-toTPMS sensor screw to 13 in.-lbs. (1.5 Nm).

NOTE: It is important to pull the valve stem and TPMS sensor assembly through the wheel rim hole in a direction parallel to the valve stem hole axis. If the assembly is pulled through at an angle, damage to the valve stem and sensor assembly may occur.

NOTE: Use only a suitable fast-drying, corrosion- inhibiting tire bead lubricant to lubricate the tire. Use of anything other than tire bead lubricant may result in damage to the TPMS sensor.

2) Lubricate the valve stem with suitable fast-drying, corrosion- inhibiting tire bead lubricant and install the valve stem and TPMS sensor assembly into the wheel using a block of wood and a suitable valve stem installer.

NOTE: Do not mount the tire at this time.

3) Make sure the valve stem rubber is

fully seated against the wheel, and then position the wheel on the turntable of the tire machine, then lubricate and position the bottom bead of the tire on the wheel.

4) Mount the tire according to the tire manufacturer’s instructions being certain to position the machine arm at 6 o’clock with respect to the location of the valve to avoid damage to the sensor (see Figure 2).

5) Inflate the tire to the pressure specified on the vehicle certification (VC) label located on the driver door or door pillar.

6) Install the wheel and tire.

7) If a new sensor has been installed it must be activated (see “Tire pressure sensor activation” and trained (see “Tire pressure sensor training”). ■ 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 Poway, Calif., Mitchell 1 has provided quality repair information solutions to the automotive industry since 1918.

For more information, visit www.mitchell1.com.

To read archived TPMS articles, visit MTD’s website at www.moderntiredealer.com.

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MTD September 2018

Products PureContact LS is available in 29 Sizes The new PureContact LS from Continental Tire the Americas is designed for luxury cars and luxury sports cars and is available in 29 sizes from 16 inches to 20 inches.

Continental says a new compound gives the PureContact LS longer tread life, improved road noise, and excellent wet braking capabilities versus the prior model.

The PureContact LS has a 10% improvement in wet traction, 23% improvement in wear and 50% reduction in noise over the PureContact. The company’s Tuned Performance Indicators show when the tire is no longer performing optimally in dry, wet or snow conditions.

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Bosch adds two diagnostic scan tools

SMP releases Four Seasons air door actuators

The new ADS 325 and ADS 625 scan tools from Bosch Automotive Service Solutions feature full diagnostic capabilities including system scans, data stream, special tests, bidirectional controls, and repair information. The ADS 325 and ADS 625 scan tools include coverage for domestic, Asian and European vehicles. They are compatible with other wireless accessories including borescopes, battery testers, tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS) reset tools and noise, vibration and harshness (NVH) analyzers. The scan tools are part of the Bosch’s new Automotive Diagnostic Solutions line.

BOSCH AUTOMOTIVE SERVICE SOLUTIONS www.boschdiagnostics.com

Standard Motor Products (SMP) has added a full line of all-new air door actuators to its Four Seasons brand. The company says door actuators are a key component for driving comfort and air ventilation. Made from premium materials, precision gears and high quality soldered connections, Four Season’s air door actuators undergo rigorous testing to ensure OE fit, form and function, according to SMP. There are 200 part numbers available covering 140 million vehicles.

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VDO hybrid battery cooling fans have OE design Continental Commercial Vehicles & Aftermarket has released VDO Hybrid Battery Cooling Fans for popular hybrid vehicles to the aftermarket. Key applications include the Ford C-Max and Fusion, Lexus CT 200h and ES 3000h, and Toyota Avalon, Camry, Prius, and Prius V models. These new direct replacement components were previously available as dealer-only parts and are now offered for aftermarket service. Continental says VDO Hybrid Battery Cooling Fans restore the original battery cooling performance. Their OE design ensures ease of installation right out of the box.

CONTINENTAL COMMERCIAL VEHICLES & AFTERMARKET www.usa.vdo.com

Ateq offers dual-band sensor coverage Ateq TPMS Tools has added coverage for new Alligator dual-band sensors, which program sensors of both 315 and 433 frequencies, to its TPMS scan tool. Ateq says it is the first to offer coverage for the new Alligator Sens.it dual frequency sensor. Using Ateq TPMS tools, users can program sensor of both 315 and 433 frequencies. The dual-frequency capability of Alligator Sens.it allows shops to reduced inventory from two SKUs to one. Using an ATEQ TPMS tool, users can read, create and clone the new dual-band programmable sensor quickly and easily.

ATEQ TPMS TOOLS LC www.ateq-tpms.com

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Ken-Tool has multi-size loose wheel nut indicators New HexChex multi-size loose wheel nut indicators from Ken-Tool are designed to offer very wide application coverage in four SKUs, cutting inventory costs. The company says the four SKUs cover 31 lug nut sizes from ¾ inch (19 mm) to 2 inch (50 mm) and fit 6-, 8- and 10-sided lug nuts. A HexChex quickly installs over a lug nut without tools and fastens securely with a ratcheting closure. Each HexChex has a clocking pointer to alert a driver when a lug nut is beginning to loosen.

KEN-TOOL CORP. www.kentool.com MTD September 2018

Products Wrenches in new line are offered in 3 styles The new line of GearWrench slugging/striking wrenches from Apex Tool Group are available in three styles (6 point slugging, 12 point slugging, and 12 point 45 degree offset striking). The wrenches are designed for applications where the force or torque needed to loosen or tighten large fasteners is so great that a hammer or sledge is required. The company says the large striking surface allows for more efficient hammer contact while the compact handle length permits usage in confined areas.

APEX TOOL GROUP LLC www.gearwrench.com

Amsoil has 3 new aerosol cleaners Amsoil has released three aerosol cleaning products designed for engine surfaces, automotive glass and powersports equipment.

The company says Amsoil Engine Degreaser removes the toughest grease, dirt and grime from engine surfaces. It is safe to use on all engine components and leaves no residue.

Amsoil Glass Cleaner cuts through grease and grime quickly and effectively. Its ammoniafree formulation is safe on all glass, including tinted windows. Amsoil Mudslinger provides a protective layer against the accumulation of mud, dirt and snow on all-terrain and utility vehicles and dirt bikes.

AMSOIL INC. www.amsoil.com

Cooper adds Solarus AS to Starfire line Cooper Tire & Rubber’s new Starfire Solarus AS offers all-season performance for passenger cars and crossover vehicles at a value price point. The Solarus AS replaces the Starfire SF340 and Starfire RS-C 2.0. The new tire reduces overlap in speed ratings within the Starfire line and offers more vehicle fitments than its predecessors. It will be available in 52 sizes this year covering 81% of the passenger touring market. Cooper says the Solarus AS offers an enhanced tread compound and tread profile for all-season traction. Deep, lateral shoulder grooves ensure excellent traction throughout the life of the tire.

COOPER TIRE & RUBBER CO. www.coopertire.com

106

Lang Tools has a diesel compression tester The new Lang Tools light-duty truck diesel compression tester is designed to work on the most popular vehicles on the road. The company says the gauge (0 - 1,000 psi; 0 – 70 bar) maintains the highest compression test reading and is easily reset. The wire-reinforced hydraulic hose is engineered to withstand the high pressure during testing, and has a swivel end for easy access under the hood. Included adapters service Cummins, Dodge, Ford, GM, GMC, Hino, Hummer, International, Isuzu, Land Rover, Navistar, Nissan, and Sprinter. Based in Racine, Wis., Lang Tools is an A&E Inc. company.

LANG TOOLS www.langtools.com

New Trico wiper blades do not require adaptors The new Trico Pro premium wiper blade line from Trico Products features a “onefit” connection system that eliminates the need for adaptors. The new blades are engineered with the latest in beam blade technology to deliver the all-weather performance.

With a minimal SKU count for full, on-hand stock, the Trico Pro line is available in 15-inch to 28-inch delivered in easy-to-open packaging. The complete line stocks in just 2.5 square feet of space.

TRICO PRODUCTS CORP. www.tricoproducts.com

KTI has a new line of portable jump starters The new Power Supply/Jump Starter Kits (part numbers KTI74391, KTI74392, KTI74393 and KTI74394) from K Tool International (KTI) are portable compact tools designed to jumpstart cars, sport utility vehicles, and light to medium duty trucks. Each kit features a digital LCD screen that lights up to display the power level. In addition, each kit contains multiple functions and gadgets, such as AC wall chargers, DC charge cable, USB charging cables, eight DC output tips, flashlight, compass and OBD II memory saver cable, depending on the power supply chosen.

K TOOL INTERNATIONAL www.ktool.com MTD September 2018

SAY YES TO ALL THE BUSINESS THAT COMES TO YOUR SHOP Two tire dealers explain how they overcame the challenges of ADAS, large wheels and stiff tires in “Technologies for Servicing Today’s Vehicles,” sponsored by Hunter Engineering and enclosed with the September issue of MTD.

W W W. H U N T E R . C O M

Products Centric Parts introduces heavy-duty brake program Centric Parts’ new heavy-duty brake program features air disc brake pads, rotors and repair kits for all makes. Air disc brake pads are available in two grades of application-specific friction (106 Series: 23K and 306 Series: 26K) and in more than 20 FMSI (Friction Materials Standards Institute) shapes. The rotor line has more than 25 SKUs of coated and uncoated rotors. Centric Parts, a division of APC Automotive Technologies LLC, says the program covers all classes of commercial vehicles and components from APC’s DieselTech (exhaust and emissions), DuraFit (after treatment) and Centric Parts (brake systems) brands.

CENTRIC PARTS www.centricparts.com

Enersys expands Odyssey performance batteries Enersys has released Odyssey Performance Series Group 49 and 94R batteries for Jeep, Dodge and Chevrolet vehicles. The company says the Odyssey Performance Series 49950 battery provides engine-cranking pulses up to 1,700 amps and 950 cold cranking amps (CCA). It is designed for popular Jeep, Dodge and some BMW and Mercedes-Benz vehicles introduced over the last 10 years. The Odyssey Performance Series 94R-850 battery provides enginecranking pulses up to 1,500 amps and 850 cold cranking Amps (CCA). It is specifically designed for popular Chevrolet, and some Jeep and Dodge vehicles introduced over the last 10 years.

ENERSYS INC. www.odysseybattery.com

Toyo unveils Proxes Sport The all-new Proxes Sport is designed to create a greater connection to the road with improved contact, grip and handling. Toyo Tire U.S.A. Corp. says this max performance summer tire combines proprietary Nano Balance Technology with a unique tread design to deliver these enhancements in wet and dry conditions. The flagship for the company’s Proxes line of high performance tires, Proxes Sport is available in nearly 70 sizes covering a broad range of modern sports cars and luxury sedans. Fitments are available for 17- through 20-inch wheels with widths up to 325 mm.

TOYO TIRE U.S.A. CORP. www.toyotires.com

Premium Guard adds air filters for Ford F-Series trucks Premium Guard has released air filters for Ford F-250/350/450/550 Super Duty 6.7L (17-18) and Ford F-250/350 Super Duty 6.2L (17-18). The company says it offers nearly complete coverage for late models as well as older vehicle models. The air filters feature up to 12,000 miles of engine protection from dust and harmful particles; up to 99% efficiency; and lowpressure drop to ensure optimal air flow.

PREMIUM GUARD INC. www.pgfilters.com

Pirelli offers Scorpion All Terrain Plus for pickups and SUVs The new Scorpion All Terrain Plus tire from Pirelli Tire North America for pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles (SUVs) is available in 16 to 20 inch sizes. The tire has a three-peak mountain snowflake symbol and a 50,000mile tread wear warranty for all sizes. The company says the aggressive tread pattern and upper sidewall design deliver a great look and balanced performance on and off road. The new tread compound also provides high resistance to cutting and chipping as well as excellent snow traction.

PIRELLI TIRE NORTH AMERICA INC. www.pirelli.com

108

Mayhew has a new 6-piece set of trim tools Mayhew Steel Products has added a 6-piece ProGrip Trim Tool Set to its Mayhew Tools brand. The set consists of three U notch and three V notch trim tools. The company says the U notch tools are ideal for removing window crank retaining clips and e-clips, while the V notch trim tools are able to quickly pull apart trim, tacks and staples from panels. Both notch tools can be used to take out flush mounted fasteners. The rolling head trim tools are ideal for removing door panels. Each tool is made in the U.S. MAYHEW STEEL PRODUCTS INC. www.mayhew.com MTD September 2018

OCTOBER 30–NOVEMBER 2, 2018 • LAS VEGAS, NEVADA

SUCCESS STARTS HERE

See the latest tire trends in racing, street performance, hot-rod, classic vehicles, light trucks, SUVs and UTVs/ATVs—all in one place.

R E GIS T ER F OR S UC CE S S AT S E MA S HO W. C OM

Products Tenneco expands Monroe Quick-Strut line Tenneco has added 24 part numbers for 13 domestic and 44 import applications to its Monroe Quick-Strut line of premium replacement strut assemblies. The expansion includes 14 part numbers that offer exclusive coverage. The company says the latest line expansion extends coverage to more than 2.8 million vehicles. Exclusive coverage offered by the latest line expansion is available for: 2011-2016 Dodge Journey (rear); 2011 Jeep Compass (rear); 2011-2017 Jeep Patriot (front); 1999-2002 Kia Sportage (front); 2008-2010 Mitsubishi Lancer (rear); 2011-2014 Scion xD (front) and 2014-2016 Toyota Corolla (rear).

TENNECO INC. www.monroe.com

Kumho has a new all-season UHP tire Kumho Tire USA’s new ultra-high performance all-season tire, the Ecsta PA51, is available in 43 sizes, with a dozen more sizes to be added later this year. Kumho says the Ecsta PA51 provides road-hugging grip and a quieter drive in diverse weather conditions. It is engineered for weather reactive technology and a comfortable ride. An innovative tread design allows for high-end performance as well as extended tread life. The Ecsta PA51 covers about 95% of the top UHP all-season fitments in the market and has a 45,000 mileage limited tread wear warranty and road hazard warranty.

KUMHO TIRE USA INC. www.kumhotireusa.com

New Rein Automotive water pump has aluminum pulley CRP Automotive is offering offers Rein Automotive aluminum water pump pulley and belt kits (Part Nos. PKW0001 and PKW0002) for BMW vehicles. The company says the upgrade kit features an aluminum pulley in place of the OE plastic design.

Application coverage includes 1992-2006 3 Series, 1999-2005 5 Series, 2004-2006 X3, 2001-2006 X5, and 1997-2002 Z3 equipped with six cylinder engines. The kits come complete with a genuine ContiTech serpentine belt, Rein aluminum replacement pulley, and the required hardware needed to mount the pulley to the water pump. CRP Automotive is part of CRP Industries Inc. CRP AUTOMOTIVE www.crpautomotive.com

Ford expands Omnicraft rotors and drums coverage

Rotary offers a truck alignment system Vehicle Service Group (VSG) has added the R5000HD Commercial Truck Alignment System to its Rotary brand. The company says the system is ideal for aligning trucks with a gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of 19,500 pounds and above. It doesn’t require a tower at the front of the bay, has no minimum bay size requirements and the portable aligner console can be positioned anywhere in available bay space. The R5000HD system eliminates the need for rolling compensation and reduces labor time by electronically measuring axle offset on every alignment.

VEHICLE SERVICE GROUP www.rotarylift.com

110

Ford Motor Co. has added 136 part numbers to its Omnicraft brand of coated brake rotors and drums for non-Ford/ Lincoln vehicle repairs. Ford says the part numbers expand Omnicraft coverage for many popular vehicle lines, including late-model Chevrolet Silverado, Toyota Camry, Hyundai Santa Fe and Nissan NV200.

Omnicraft rotors and drums feature a GG15HC formulated high-carbon casting which provides enhanced heat dissipation and extended brake life, high resistance to thermal cracking and fade, and low noise propensity and resistance to brake judder. The rotor coating provides corrosion prevention and increased rust resistance and a clean appearance for open wheels.

FORD MOTOR CO. www.omnicraftautoparts.com

Bridgestone unveils Firestone FD711 The new Firestone FD711 drive tire from Bridgestone Americas is designed to provide aggressive traction for light to moderate on- and off-highway service. Engineered for durable, long-lasting performance in high-scrub and hightraction applications, the Firestone FD711 tire offers solid grip, long wear and enhanced retread capability. Features include a slow wearing cap compound with a cool-running base to protect the tire’s casing from damaging heat and four-belt construction to combat casing penetration for improved durability and retread capability. The Firestone FD711 tire is available in 11R22.5 and 11R24.5 sizes in the U.S. and Canada.

BRIDGESTONE AMERICAS INC. www.commercial.firestone.com MTD September 2018

Join us.

We are now accepting applications for a brand new 20 Group. DSP 20 Groups offer tire and automotive dealers the opportunity to share best practices, benchmark against the industry and improve nancial performance. DSP facilitators are seasoned professionals with vast tire and auto service industry experience. We already have six groups, with 120 members benetting from the experience, and this is your chance to get in on the action — don’t miss out!

Increase cash ow. Improve net prot. Reduce payroll.

Inuence employee behavior. Recruit and retain employees.

MTD-.8

Call 310 533-2428, or email: dennis@dsp-20group.com www.dsp-20group.com

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

Aftermarket Auto Parts Alliance Inc.

28-29

www.alliance1.com

American Omni Trading Company

98

www.american-omni.com

ATEQ TPMS Tools LC

102

www.ateq-tpms.com

AUTEL

www.autel.com

Bartec USA

94

www.bartecusa.com

BendPak Inc. Ranger Products

103

www.bendpak.com/brakes

BKT USA Inc.

11

www.bkt-tires.com

Blackburn OEM Wheel Solutions

67

www.blackburnwheels.com

Continental Tire

75

www.continentaltire.com

Dealer Strategic Planning Inc.

111

www.dsp-20group.com

Falken Tires

83

www.falkentire.com

Firestone Tire

15

www.firestonetire.com

Giti Commercial Truck Tires

95

www.gititrucktires.com

Hankook Tire America Corporation

58-59

Hercules Tires Hunter Engineering Company K & M Tire Inc.

112

13, 92

93

ADVERTISER

PAGE

WEBSITE

Sentury Tire Americas

25

www.senturytireusa.com

Snap Finance

77

www.snapfinance.com

Standard Motor Products Inc.

99

www.standardbrand.com

Sumitomo Tire

5

www.sumitomotire.com

Sumitomo Tire

81

www.sumitomotrucktires.com

Synchrony Car Care

85

www.syfenroll.com

Tireco Inc.

101

www.tireco.com

TireHub

17

www.tirehub.com

Travel Centers of America

69

www.ta-petro.com

Triangle Tire USA

89

www.triangletireus.com

VDO TPMS Replacement Parts

90

www.redi-sensor.com

Yokohama Tire Corporation

21

www.yokohamatire.com

ZC Rubber America Inc.

87

www.arisuntires.com

www.laufenn.com www.herculestire.com

62, 107

www.hunter.com

63

www.kmtire.com

TIRE DEALER OF THE YEAR AD INDEX ADVERTISER

PAGE

WEBSITE

Bartec USA

54

www.bartecusa.com

Berkshire Bank

52

www.berkshirebank.com

Kenda Tire USA

IBC

automotive.kendatire.com

Kumho Tire USA Inc.

23

www.kumhotireusa.com

Bridgestone Affiliated Retailer Network

39

www.bridgestonetire.com

KYB Americas Corporation

71

www.kyb.com

Cooper Tires

35

www.coopertire.com

47

www.goodyear.com

Linglong Americas Inc.

7

www.linglongtire.com

Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company

Maxxis International— USA

73

www.maxxis.com

Hennessy Industries LLC

57

www.hennessyind.com

Michelin North America Inc.

19

www.michelinman.com

Hunter Engineering Company

49

www.hunter.com

Mighty Auto Parts

65

www.mightyautoparts.com

Max Finkelstein Inc.

37

www.maxfinkelstein.com

Mr. Tire/Big 3 Tire

105

www.mrtirebig3tirectd.com

Michelin North America Inc.

51

www.michelinman.com

Nexen Tire America Inc.

IFC

www.nexentireusa.com

Nitto Tire U.S.A. Inc

OBC

www.nittotire.com

Mirick, O’Connell, DeMallie & Lougee, LLP

56

www.mirickoconnell.com

O’Reilly Auto Parts

100

www.firstcallonline.com

Mohawk Rubber Sales

55

www.mohawkrubber.com

43

www.us.pirelli.com

Pirelli Tire LLC

9

www.us.pirelli.com

Pirelli Tire LLC

Plombco Inc.

27

www.plasteelwheelweights.com

53

www.schradersensors.com

Rotary Lift

97

www.rotarywheelservice.com/mtd

Schrader Performance Sensors

Schrader Performance Sensors

TBC Brands

33

www.tbcbrands.com

91

www.schradersensors.com

Unotifi

41

www.unotificrm.com

SEMA Show

109

www.SEMAshow.com

Valvoline

45

www.valvoline.com MTD September 2018

Advertising information (330) 899-2200 ext. 2217

MTD Classifieds TOOLS & EQUIPMENT ☻ TIRE BEAD BREAKER

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•Constructed mainly for farm rear tractor tires.

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•Excellent for working on tires without removing the wheel from tractor.

•Operates with 1/2” drive impact wrench or ratchet wrench. Weight 12 lbs.

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(979) 793-6105

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888-641-6058 www.TruckTireonline.net

Tire Dealer Tools & Equipment Air Tools • Battery Chargers Compressors • Hose Reels Impact Sockets • Jacks Lube Equip • Tire Equip

All wheel balancing tools bend or break and lose their accuracy if accidentially dropped on the concrete shop floor!

No, not all!

Introducing the new SpeedPlate EBA * Best Balancing Accuracy * Fastest To Setup & Use * Virtually Indestructible (Patent Pending) * Alloy & Steel Wheels * 4, 5, 6 & 8-Lug Wheels * Available For Most Balancers

For FREE Catalog Call 800-772-0863 www.wesbrooksinc.com

2012 Sheppard Access Rd. Wichita Falls, TX 76306

w w w . M o d e r n T i r e D e a l e r. c o m

1-800-242-6687 113

Advertising information (330) 899-2200 ext. 2217

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USED PASSENGER TIRES All Sizes Available KY, TN, GA & AL TRAILER LOADS AVAILABLE

JR’s Tires • (423) 494 0292 114

MODERN TIRE DEALER We offer...

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MTD September 2018

Introducing

Klever R/T

The terrain you drive on doesn’t care and it is not willing to compromise-It is what it is! The Kenda Klever R/T was designed to conquer Rough Terrain without sacriďŹ cing the ride and comfort of an A/T tire

TECHNOLOGIES MODE RN TIRE DE ALE R PRE SENTS

FOR SERVICING TODAY’S VEHICLES All Hunter Engineering Co. products are protected by copyright laws

S P O N S O R E D BY

EXCLUSIVE LOOK:

Ryan Walker, Big O Tires Tim Grundhoffer, Ultimate Car Care Tire Changer Decision Guide; Behind the Equipment Resources

TECHNOLOGIES FOR SERVICING TODAY’S VEHICLES

1

SAY YES TO ALL THE BUSINESS THAT COMES IN THE DOOR Quick and accurate: Dealers service stiffer tires, large assemblies and ADAS with Hunter’s latest technologies

By Ann Neal A LARGE WINDOW SEPARATES THE SHOWROOM

from the shop area in Ryan Walker’s new Big O Tires store in Providence, Utah. A customer gazing through that window in July 2018, just a few weeks after the store opened, saw something completely foreign to his typical tire retail experience.

“What?” the customer uttered. “That guy is working on my car over there, and that tire machine is changing my tire over here.”

To which Walker calmly replied, “Yep. That’s our new tire changer, our new Hunter tire changer with WalkAway.”

Walker believes his is the first independent dealership in northern Utah to have the latest version of Hunter Engineering Co.’s Revolution tire changer with “WalkAway” capability, which enables technicians to do two tasks at one time.

When in WalkAway mode, the Revolution tire changer, as described by Hunter, “performs 80 seconds of autonomous bead breaking and demounting, freeing the technician to perform balancing procedures or other shop tasks during the longest portion of the tire changing process.” For Walker, the WalkAway technology helps prove his Providence shop is “the real deal” to customers whose service choices include new car dealerships.

2

The latest in tire changing technology is doing far more than impressing Walker’s customers. The new Revolution machine and other Hunter innovations are helping him compete in a market crowded with service providers, especially auto dealerships backed by the financial resources of original equipment manufacturers (OEMs).

According to Modern Tire Dealer’s 2018 Facts Issue, auto dealerships account for 9% of the domestic passenger tire retail market. That’s up from 5.5% a decade ago.

Car dealers are expected to continue to expand their tire replacement business, according to Pete Liebetreu, vice president of marketing for Hunter.

In the battle to attract customers, car dealerships have a few advantages due to their connection to OEMs. “They’re essentially the retailer on record for the car manufacturer, they have the easiest access to all car service information,” says Liebetreu. He notes that in the “old days,” car service information did not matter much.

TECHNOLOGIES FOR SERVICING TODAY’S VEHICLES

“Undercar was undercar was undercar,” he says. “An Alfa Romeo platform was not especially different to replace the tires on than a Chevrolet. You just had to have access to the tire and you could get the job done.”

Those days are gone. The vehicles in today’s service bays have numerous and unique tire fitments. Liebetreu notes that each fitment has its own radial force variation, which is known by Road Force in Hunter’s patented terminology, specified by the OEMs. “Only the car dealer automatically has the inside line to all that information,” says Liebetreu.

Although independent tire dealers do not have connectivity to OEMs, they do have options, according to Liebetreu. “You either decide you’re not going to service the more specialized requirements and needs. Or you decide you are going to offer an experience that’s equal or better than what a consumer can get from the OEM. That’s the situation that’s developing right

WWW.HUNTER.COM

PEOPLE WHO SPENT ONLY $600 ON A SET OF TIRES EXPECT THEIR $15,000 CAR TO RIDE LIKE IT DID WHEN IT WAS NEW. GREG MEYER, HUNTER ENGINEERING a sense, we’re doing a lot of that legwork for independent tire dealers. But the only real window tire dealers have to get it is through the equipment itself.”

ANY TIRE, ANY WHEEL Walker’s 8,000-square-foot store in Providence services everything from jalopies to Teslas. He estimates higher-end cars make up about 15% of his business. His Hunter Revolution tire changer is helping him compete against half a dozen new car dealerships within blocks of his store, especially when it comes to servicing lowprofile tires for high-performance vehicles.

To service larger wheel assemblies and provide ADAS resets, Ryan and Ashley Walker chose the latest equipment from Hunter Engineering for their new 10-bay Big O Tires store.

“It has to be done right, and the Hunter machine helps us do all of that absolutely right. We don’t ever mess it up. We never scratch a wheel. So these people with these very high-dollar cars come to us because they know we’re not going to scratch a wheel.”

The Hunter Revolution with the WalkAway mode services larger fitments with ease. “They’re putting more 19-inch wheels on vehicles like Dodge Journeys. You’re just seeing more of this bigger wheel in a smaller space. A machine that can do a super low-profile tire super easy is good for all of us.”

The Revolution also simplifies service of large light truck (LT) tires. “The jaws are stronger and the transmissions are stronger on these Hunter tire changers.

When we’re doing these big LT tires, we don’t have any problem.”

Tire technician Sam McBride is shown with the store’s Revolution tire changer. Owner Ryan Walker says that when employees know their equipment is top of the line, they are comfortable selling any service.

now for the independent.”

OEMs are requiring their dealers to have certain service capabilities and equipment for a reason. “These specifications are not being applied to make the car dealer spend more money on equipment. The OEMs believe the equipment is essential to properly service their vehicles, and the only channel they can ensure has the right way to service their vehicles is their dealer channel.”

Equipment companies like Hunter are trying to make the OEM-derived technology available to service providers. “They want to simplify these myriad of OEM requirements and make them palatable and usable by a broad range of service providers, including tire dealers and the general aftermarket,” says Liebetreu. “In

TECHNOLOGIES FOR SERVICING TODAY’S VEHICLES

3

This image provided by Hunter shows a Revolution tire changer with WalkAway, a feature that frees a technician to balance assemblies while the tire changer demounts the next tire.

Hunter saw the shift toward bigger tires and wheels coming years ago. “We’ve been anticipating this curve,” says Liebetreu.

Vehicles like the Harley Davidson and Lightning editions of the Ford F-150 gave Hunter the first glimpse of the move to large tires. “We needed to service those vehicle just the same as we did all the other F-150s that were being used by contractors for work trucks. We address the forerunners when they come out and that puts us in a position to address the broader application later.”

That’s good news for independents who need to be ready for any type of vehicle that pulls into their service bays. “Diameters don’t bother us, widths don’t bother us, weights don’t bother us, finished types of wheels don’t bother us,” says Liebetreu.

“We have accessories so techs can service the clad wheels. We have collets to better center these wheels on the balancer because it’s important they be properly centered to balance a high-mass wheel. Our equipment has really been marching in lockstep with this change to larger sport utility vehicles.”

ROAD FORCE ADVANTAGE FOR INDEPENDENTS People want their SUVs to be more like cars in terms of ride comfort, and they want larger wheels. “From a technical standpoint, it becomes quite challenging for a car maker to design a vehicle that has high load-carrying capability, a greatlooking wheel and tire package, and rides as smooth as a sedan,” says Liebetreu.

Car makers’ solutions to ride comfort challenges, namely the highly tuned suspension of SUVs, created challenges for technicians balancing tires. “Techs need to understand things like Road Force,” Liebetreu explains. “They need to understand how to massage tires to take Road Force out of them. They need to understand the importance of something as simple as proper tire pressure.”

Walker, who has a store in Logan and one in Nephi along with his new outlet in Providence, has used Hunter Road Force balancers for years. His shops are equipped with the latest model, the Road Force Elite,

4

(left) The latest Hunter alignment equipment is spotlighted in this social media post by a shop promoting its full-service capabilities. (right) Shops highlight their use of Hunter equipment in their social media posts about their service offerings.

which was released two years ago. “It is super easy to use. Anybody can do it,” says Walker. That’s exactly what Hunter intended, according to Greg Meyer, wheel balancer product manager for Hunter.

Hunter has been innovating improve-

TECHNOLOGIES FOR SERVICING TODAY’S VEHICLES

ments in Road Force balancers since introducing the technology about 20 years ago.

Ease of use is one of the most dramatic advances in the latest model.

Earlier versions required the technician to touch measuring devices called dataset

WWW.HUNTER.COM

arms to the wheel to enter dimensions of the wheel. “You basically had to tell it where you wanted to put the wheel weights.

You would also use the same dataset arms to measure the runout. Now we have the magic of lasers and cameras. You just pull the hood down, and it does it all on its own,” says Meyer.

Easy to use means it’s easy to train technicians on the Road Force balancer.

“You just put the wheel on and pull the hood down. The learning curve is literally minutes,” says Meyer.

A Hunter Road Force machine balances a tire and also checks for conditions other than balance that create vibration thanks to a proprietary feature called a load roller.

“The Road Force balances a tire better than any other balancer,” says Meyer. “But it also has a load roller that pushes against the tire and continues to spin it.” The load roller is looking for conditions such as a bent rim, an improperly manufactured or damaged tire, or a tire that is not properly seated on the rim.

“When people put the words Road Force and balancer together, they’re thinking that Road Force and balance are related, and essentially they’re not. You can have a perfectly balanced tire that has horrible Road Force, or you could have a tire with perfect Road Force and horrible imbalance, or any combination of the two. Balance and Road Force are two completely separate issues,” says Meyer.

Thirteen OEMs require their dealerships use Hunter Road Force balancers. “The people who make the cars are saying that to get their vehicles to drive properly, you need to use Road Force technology,” says Meyer.

Sensitivity to Road Force varies between vehicles, and OEMs make sure their dealers know how to compensate to achieve the smoothest ride possible. “It’s just the nature of the vehicle suspensions,” says Meyer. A new car dealership can check a technical service bulletin and find out the Road Force specifications to make the vehicle run according to the factory’s requirements.

“The dealerships will have some information an independent will not,” says Meyer.

“That being said, an independent will be able to perform a balance almost identical to the dealer. They can certainly make the car ride just as good as the dealer can.”

Hunter’s load roller technology cre-

A MACHINE THAT CAN DO A SUPER LOW-PROFILE TIRE SUPER EASY IS GOOD FOR ALL OF US. RYAN WALKER, INDEPENDENT TIRE DEALER ates a level playing field for independents competing against new car dealerships, according to Meyer. “We’re measuring the force that the tire actually applies to the suspension, or the wheel actually will apply to the suspension when it drives on the road.”

Meyer says machines that measure the This image from Hunter shows a Road Force Elite balancer, which connects technicians to vehicle-specific Road Force limits and other undercar information via the HunterNet computer network.

runout, or the roundness of the assembly, mimic the measurements taken by the load roller. “The roundness does not tell you how much force the wheel is going to apply to the suspension.” The Road Force value depends on various other factors, including the stiffness of the tire.

As sidewalls have gotten lower, tires have become stiffer. “A lower profile does a couple of things. One is it makes the ride more firm, which OEMs adjust for in suspension design and such. But what it does in wheel balancing is that if the tire is

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not manufactured perfectly, the rim is not perfectly round or it’s not seated perfectly on the rim, the Road Force values go up much more quickly.”

Both car dealers and independent dealers face the same balancing issues, but independents see all wheel-tire combinations from all OEMs in their shops. “Their job is more difficult, but it’s really not different from manufacturer to manufacturer. It doesn’t matter if it’s a Toyota or if it’s a Mercedes.

If you get the tire put on correctly and it has low Road Force numbers, you’re going to have a happy customer.”

A Road Force Elite replicates the balancing process in car makers’ factories, according to Meyer. “The machine identifies the stiffest point of a tire and the lowest point on the rim. The technician marks the low spot on the rim and the stiffest point of the tire and turns them on the tire changer so the marks line up. When the stiffest point of the tire meets up to the low part of the rim, it essentially unloads it. The compressed spring becomes less compressed, and it behaves more like the springs around it.

You can effectively reduce Road Force by just turning the tire on the rim.”

The process is called match mounting.

“These few thousandths of an inch dif-

ference can make significant differences, especially when you’re talking about low profile assemblies. The stiffer the assembly, the more improvement you can see by turning the tire on the rim,” says Meyer.

The Road Force Elite is faster than previous models in two ways. “We worked a lot on the cycle time, and the Road Force Elite is the fastest balancer we offer. But it’s not just balancing wheels,” says Meyer. “It’s also measuring this Road Force number, which used to take 25 seconds extra, in the same amount of time it is balancing the wheel. We were able to make the Road Force Elite not only our most valuable machine for diagnostics but our fastest machine as well.”

AN AUDIT MACHINE FOR DEALERS The Road Force Elite not only balances the tire faster, it identifies vibration problems before the customer does. In this way, the Road Force Elite acts an audit machine for an independent dealer, whose product is the tire being placed on the rim.

“They don’t make the tire, they don’t make the rim, they put the two together.

In an ideal world, they would put the tires and rims together and go for a road test to make sure everything is perfectly smooth,” says Meyer.

But a road test is almost never performed when four tires are installed. “That’s where our machine comes in,” says Meyer. “We’re essentially road-testing all four of those tires because if we don’t do it, the customer

Clockwise from right: The showroom of Ryan and Ashley Walker’s new Big O Tires store in Providence, Utah. The AutoComp Elite brake lathe (image provided by Hunter), automatically determines the position of internal plates. Hunter introduced Quick Check Drive autonomous alignment inspection technology in July 2018 (image provided

by Hunter).

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TECHNOLOGIES FOR SERVICING TODAY’S VEHICLES

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is doing our quality control for us. The Road Force Elite makes sure that 100% of a tire dealer’s products are good, so that every customer that drives away from the tire store is happy.”

In today’s service bays, the expectations of all customers, even those who own older vehicles or economical sedans, are higher than ever. The standard for the average customer has gone up as the OEs improved vehicle quality.

“An independent tire dealer might not be held to the standards of a Mercedes dealer, but the standards are going up by the day. People who spent only $600 on a set of tires expect their $15,000 car to ride like it did when it was new,” says Meyer.

Owners of light trucks are also demanding more. For Meyer, the consumer has changed more than the vehicles.

“Twenty years ago people would say it’s a beat up old truck and no one cares if it shakes and rattles down the road.

Today, the guy driving that truck paid $50,000-plus for it, and he expects it to ride like the Cadillac that sits next to it in his garage. In the light truck market more than anywhere, the consumer is a different animal today than he was 30 years ago. It’s a requirement to meet the same standards with a pickup truck as we do with a passenger car.”

ONE-STOP SHOP FOR ADAS Walker’s new store is equipped with Hunter machines, from an 18,000-pound four-post lift to Hunter’s new on-car brake lathe.

“We don’t have to worry about any sort of vibration issues. If my customer asks if it will ride like a new car, I tell him yes because we have technology that competes with or surpasses that of a car dealership.”

Walker says Hunter keeps him up to date with the latest technology, such as lane departure warning.

“They keep you on the forefront. Before it’s really out there, they’re already talking to us about it and telling us they will have updates for our equipment. And then it happens.”

Walker began seeing lane departure

Technicians Koali Kaha (left) and Alex Tyler use the latest HawkEye Elite aligner to reset steering angle sensors, lane departure warning and other ADAS safety systems.

warning, which is an advanced driver assistance system (ADAS) technology, about two years ago.

“I thought customers would have to go to the dealership to get it serviced, and only dealerships would have the software.

Nope. Hunter was there. Instead of telling a customer he has to go back to the dealership, we tell him we can do that for you here. And that just improves the customer experience.”

Local body shops bring their cars to Walker’s store because his is the only independent tire store with the technology to reset lane departure systems.

“It doesn’t have to go to a dealership,” he says. In addition to lane departure warning sensors, Walker’s HawkEye Elite aligner is capable of resetting forward collision warning and adaptive cruise control, two other ADAS technologies.

Walker also has a Hunter Quick Check inspection lane. “We check the alignment right in the tire bay. So before it even gets to the alignment rack, we know whether it needs an alignment. So that’s just all-around quicker. The faster I can set up an alignment and get it done, the quicker I can make a profit with that aligner.”

Hunter’s latest Quick Check technology innovation is Quick Check Drive, which was released in July 2018. The new generation is a touchless alignment inspection system that provides instant alignment readings.

Each Quick Check Drive unit is equipped with four cameras and 16 laser sensors that scan a vehicle’s wheels as they drive past, eliminating operator labor and stopping

of the vehicle.

The speed of the scanning technology means a dealer can check the alignment of every vehicle that comes into the tire store, according to Alan Hagerty, product manager.

“One of the big advantages of the new Quick Check Drive technology is that independent shops can now offer and advertise free alignment checks. The checks require virtually no manpower costs, they simply need to pull the car into the bay. It’s a great way to help market and drive more vehicles to their shops and have them be the tire and wheel expert. It is a big game changer for shops to be able to do alignment checks faster and easier than ever before and have more customers than ever come in for a complimentary check.”

OPPORTUNITIES WITH ONLINE TIRE BUYERS The pressure to deliver an outstanding service experience is heightened in an online tire purchase, according to Liebetreu. “If they are ‘just’ the tire installer, then they have to ensure they do the installation and balance correctly because they’ve been peeled out of the tire sale portion. So executing becomes so much more important.”

Activities that should be taking place with the online tire buyer, such as alignment checks, are opportunities to execute really well and turn an online tire buyer into a returning customer.

“It’s really about having the experience where you feel your needs were handled in the best way. Hunter is all about supporting the tire dealer in that regard,” says Liebetreu.

“We make sure that we got the right equipment, get the turnaround time down to the quickest with the right information, with the best outcomes, with the information right in front of the technicians when they need it. What we’re trying to do is to support the tire dealer in this challenging marketplace.” n

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Tim Grundhoffer’s new HawkEye Elite aligner performs alignments faster than prior models and resets the safety features on ADAS-equipped vehicles.

(FCW), adaptive cruise control (ACC) and lane departure warning (LDW), require a separate electronic alignment following a mechanical wheel alignment in order to function properly.

In July 2018, Grundhoffer purchased the technology needed to service every vehicle that comes into his shop. His new HawkEye Elite aligner integrates the two types of alignments – mechanical and electronic – into one easy process. Hunter bundles its proprietary technologies and processes for resetting ADAS technologies under a single name: Safety System Alignment.

WHY ADAS MATTERS TO WHEEL ALIGNMENT

‘WE DIDN’T HAVE THE TECHNOLOGY UNTIL HUNTER STEPPED UP’ Independent dealer uses Safety System Alignment for ADAS reset

By Ann Neal WITH ABOUT 20 NEW CAR DEALERSHIPS WITHIN

five miles of his auto repair shop and tire store, Tim Grundhoffer is fighting tooth and nail for every customer. He’s leveled the competitive playing field with equipment and technology from Hunter Engineering, especially the HawkEye Elite aligner, which resets a vehicle’s safety features after a routine wheel alignment.

“The technology is so advanced from even two years ago,” says Grundhoffer, who manages the 10-bay Larson Tire and Auto LLC outlet in Inver Grove Heights, Minn., which goes to market as Ultimate

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Car Care. The company also operates a 12-bay store called Harland’s Tire and Auto Center in Owatonna.

“Everything has to be positioned just right or the car will not steer right, it will not brake right, there are a number of things that cause issues if you don’t do it right. We couldn’t do it.”

By “it,” Grundhoffer means the electronic alignment of advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS), which use cameras, radars and sensors to enable a car’s computers to monitor its surroundings. ADAS technologies, such as forward collision warning

TECHNOLOGIES FOR SERVICING TODAY’S VEHICLES

Hunter refers to Safety System Alignment as the new last step in wheel alignment, according to Kaleb Silver, director of product management. Understanding this new “last step” and its significance for independent tire stores requires a closer look at ADAS technologies.

There are many examples of ADAS in the marketplace today. These automated safety aids help drivers avoid collisions.

“Even a rearview camera on a vehicle so the driver can see behind the car rather than use the mirrors are all considered advanced driver assistance systems that have been added to cars in recent years,” says Silver.

What does ADAS have to do with wheel alignment? A lot, it turns out. Traditionally, technicians have made mechanical adjustments to the vehicles to ensure they travel straight down the road.

“As we make those adjustments, we’re essentially affecting where the body of the vehicle is pointed,” says Silver. “A car that is running crooked down the road is sideways on the lane a little bit. The wheels under the car are not pointed in the same direction with the body of the car.

The condition is called dog tracking, and wheel alignment can fix that along with other issues with the vehicle’s suspension.”

ADAS complicates routine mechanical alignments. “Advanced driver assistance systems use sensors that are mounted to the body of the car. Changing the direction of

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HOW THEY DO IT Tim Grundhoffer’s team is using Hunter equipment to provide complete auto service, including sensor resets, to customers. Here’s a look at his Hunter equipment lineup: • HawkEye Elite aligner • Road Force Elite balancer • 4-post lift rack • TC 37 10E tire changer • BL505 brake lathe

the wheels changes where the body of the car points in the lane. When we change the direction of the wheels, we change where those sensors point.”

To ensure the sensors point in the proper direction, some OEMs require their ADAS systems be reset after a mechanical wheel alignment has been performed. Silver cites Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep products with adaptive cruise control as examples.

“Adaptive cruise control means that the vehicle is using radar to detect the vehicles in front of it. But that radar could get pointed in a different direction by a wheel alignment. Chrysler, for example, requires that radar unit be reset after a wheel alignment has been performed,” says Silver.

Ford and Lincoln vehicles are another example of OEM-required ADAS resets.

Vehicles with lane departure warning or lane keep assist use a camera to detect the lane markings on the road. Ford states in its service documentation that the camera needs to be reset after wheel alignment changes have been made, according to Silver. “ADAS is tied to wheel alignment because sensors and cameras mounted to the body change direction whenever you adjust the wheel alignment.”

ALERTS TO OEM RESET REQUIREMENTS Hunter equipment and technologies provide more than a wheel alignment. “We address the wheel alignment in the way the OEM states by also offering Safety System Alignment capabilities for modern vehicles,” says Silver. “Safety System Alignment is anything electronic that needs to be aligned to the wheels after the mechanical adjustments.”

The Hunter HawkEye Elite aligner alerts the user to any required resets according to OEM service documentation before the alignment actually begins. “We notify them ahead of time so that they

are well-informed prior to completing the alignment,” says Silver.

Hunter includes steering angle sensors, a technology dating back to the mid-2000s, in its Safety System Alignment capabilities.

More than 70% of new vehicles today require steering angle sensors be reset after a wheel alignment.

“The steering angle sensor itself is tied to the steering wheel of the vehicle and is the input to the vehicle’s computers for items like electronic stability control and electric power steering. The steering angle sensor is the driver’s intent input into the vehicle’s computer,” says Silver.

Hunter’s CodeLink device links a vehicle’s OBD-II system to an aligner to reset the steering angle sensors. The CodeLink tool enables technicians to reset steering angle sensors without expensive scan tools, according to the company.

“CodeLink is a separate device but it doesn’t work separately from the machine,” says Silver.

“It’s an accessory for the HawkEye Elite wheel aligner. There’s a procedure by which you plug it into the vehicle, turn the ignition switch to the on position, and follow the on-screen prompts.”

Silver says the Hunter aligner has a distinct advantage over other scan tools for the steering angle reset procedure. “We actually measure where the wheels are pointed and ensure that they are straight ahead according to the wheel alignment prior to the steering angle sensor being reset to zero.”

Another Hunter technology, Fully Integrated Alignment (FIA), helps speed the alignment process. FIA provides direct communication between the wheel aligner, alignment rack and other equipment in the service bay.

“What that means for the customer is that we can automatically lock and unlock turn plates and slip plates on the alignment rack, as opposed to the user having to walk around and remove mechanical pins,” says Silver. “Automatically locking and unlocking at the right point during the alignment procedure saves time and effort on the technician’s part, and also increases the lifespan of the equipment.”

An option called Inflation Station for automatically inflating tires is available, too. “An air hose at each wheel on the rack can be connected to the car. It automati-

From top: Austin Cosgrove (left), Joe Jacobson and Dustin Mueller review alignment readings generated by their new HawkEye Elite aligner. The image provided

by Hunter (middle) shows a Road Force balancer, which diagnoses issues that cause vibration along with balancing tires.

In the bottom image (provided by Hunter), a hand-held CodeLink device is used to reset steering angle sensors for a vehicle on the HawkEye Elite alignment rack.

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cally measures and sets pressure for the vehicle, and it communicates that data to the alignment machine for inclusion on the alignment printout at the end of the alignment,” says Silver.

In addition, the HawkEye Elite removes the opportunity for wheel damage. “There’s no metal-to-metal wheel contact with our HawkEye Elite system,” says Silver. “It also removes wheel size from the equation such that we are clamping to the tire and not the edge of the wheel. We still reference the wheel, but we use the tire for clamping.

This removes the wheel size barrier that has been an issue in the past.”

IF YOU CAN COUNT, YOU CAN DO IT “It’s new,” Grundhoffer says of his HawkEye Elite aligner. “So we’re all learning it now.

It’s unbelievable.” It is indeed hard to believe a setup time of just five minutes for an alignment versus the 15 to 20 minutes needed with the previous aligner. “Setup time is cut down drastically. The whole process is so much faster,” says Grundhoffer.

Another advantage is the minimal amount of training needed to use the

The ability to reset ADAS safety functions is a competitive advantage, and tire stores highlight their capabilities and their Hunter technology in social media channels.

The investments are paying off in multiple ways. The efficiency and productivity gains generated by the HawkEye Elite go straight to Grundhoffer’s bottom line. But the benefit he values most is the ability to complete every aspect of the mechanical and electronic alignment for every customer.

“There’s no more taking it to the dealer for any of the stuff we couldn’t do before.

The whole advanced driver assistance system, from steering angle sensors to the

EVENTUALLY, EVERYONE IS GOING TO NEED ALL THIS SPECIALTY EQUIPMENT THAT HUNTER SUPPLIES.

TIM GRUNDHOFFER, INDEPENDENT TIRE STORE MANAGER HawkEye Elite. “An entry-level person can do it. It is absolutely easy if they just understand math,” says Grundhoffer. “If you can count, you can do it. The machine tells you what to do.”

The HawkEye Elite has boosted productivity, too. “Instead of doing one alignment an hour, we can do two to three an hour.

And sometimes four,” says Grundhoffer.

The machine has cut five minutes out of the alignment process, from 20 minutes using the prior model to 15 minutes on the new.

“Most of the dealers around here have ten times the backing we have, money-wise,” says Grundhoffer. “Everything’s changing.

Eventually, everyone is going to need all this specialty equipment that Hunter supplies.

We had to step up a little bit and buy the equipment to match everybody.”

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power steering and stability control, can all be done here now, at our shop.”

ONE-STOP EXPERIENCE PROMISE In addition to the newest Hunter aligner, Grundhoffer’s team is using Hunter’s latest Road Force balancer. The new balancer is easier to use than the prior Road Force model. “You don’t have to measure the tire.

The machine does it for you. The balancer tells you step-by-step what to do. As long as you can lift 50 pounds, you can do a balance on the Road Force. ” Grundhoffer has been using Hunter equipment for years and has seen it evolve to keep up with the changes and challenges of tire service. “Tires are bigger and are lower profile. With the new Road Force,

TECHNOLOGIES FOR SERVICING TODAY’S VEHICLES

it’s a lot easier to balance a tire. People are buying more custom rims than they ever did before. Sometimes the tires and rims don’t mesh well together. The Road Force automatically tells us where the tire needs to sit on the rim to give it the best true runout without a shake.”

Grundhoffer says Hunter’s equipment is made to service OE specs. “It allows us to provide the highest quality diagnostic balancing possible and the best alignments that are out there.”

Silver notes that Hunter equipment gives a tire dealer the ability to do the job to the same level that the dealer would provide in their facility. “In fact, tire dealers that invest in Hunter alignment technology are using the same alignment technology that the dealership down the street would be using to align the vehicle.”

Hunter’s focus is to do the job right the first time and provide equipment with builtin features to help ensure efficiency, speed and accurate results, according to Silver.

“The equipment ensures the technicians have what they need to address the growing needs of vehicles on the road today, is easy to use, and is a fast and simple solution that exceeds what’s available from any competitor in the marketplace.”

The new HawkEye Elite and Road Force balancer machines are the stars of Ultimate Car Care’s newest television commercials, which began airing in September 2018. The commercials run on local broadcasts of shows such as Animal Planet and Minnesota Wild hockey games. The commercials may appear up to 100 times over a month.

“The promise to customers is a one-stop experience for all of their automotive needs, even sensor resets. Everything is done in-house here,” says Grundhoffer. Backed

by Hunter’s wheel service technology, Grundhoffer’s team is now equipped to keep that promise to every customer who drives into their service bays. n

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HUNTER TIRE CHANGER GUIDE Choosing the best tire changer for your shop

The larger tire and wheel assemblies on today’s vehicles make finding the best tire changer model to fit your shop’s needs more difficult than ever. The proliferation of sizes and types of tires further complicates the buying decision. Here are some points to consider when evaluating your choices.

WHEEL SERVICEABILITY CHART

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WHEN TO CHOOSE TABLE-TOP TIRE CHANGERS

WHEN TO CHOOSE A CENTERCLAMP TIRE CHANGER

WHEN CHOOSING A TIRE CHANGER, THE CHOICE IS YOURS

In many cases a traditional tabletop tire changer with a side shovel is a great choice. They are strong, powerful and familiar for most technicians.

But today’s expensive rims and challenging tires have spawned a new class of center-clamp tire changer. These models generally offer premium rim protection and often feature bead loosening using rollers.

Regardless of configuration, Hunter offers several models of tire changers from modest to very powerful.

Virtually all tire changers models can also be equipped with leverless heads and/or wheel lifts.

HUNTER TIRE CHANGER LINEUP AUTOMATIC

CENTER-CLAMP

TCR1X

TCA34S

TC39

TC37

TC3300

TABLE-TOP

TCX57

TCX56

TCX53

TCX51

TCX50

HEAVY-DUTY

TCX645HD

TCX625HD TECHNOLOGIES FOR SERVICING TODAY’S VEHICLES 13

BEHIND THE EQUIPMENT Hunter equipment is backed by the industry’s largest engineering research and development team and is supported by the industry’s largest sales and service organization. On-site service and training, same- or next-day service, and expert equipment recommendations are just some of the benefits that come standard with a Hunter investment.

Here are some more!

HUNTER’S YOUTUBE Hunter has an entire YouTube channel dedicated to technical content, equipment operation, and videos explaining needed services for vehicle owners! You can access the channel by searching the Hunter Learning Channel on YouTube. There are currently over 120 videos on the channel, and new videos are added all the time!

LOCAL SUPPORT Hunter is proud to field the largest dedicated sales and service organization in the entire undercar service industry with approximately 380+ sales representatives and 390+ service representatives. Hunter’s field organization is dedicated to providing superior customer assistance, product information and technical support, and on-site training.

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TECHNOLOGIES FOR SERVICING TODAY’S VEHICLES

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HUNTER TRAINING Hunter has over 40 regional training centers in the United States and Canada backed by ASE-certified training instructors to help shops get the absolute most out of their investment in Hunter. Regional training class schedules can be found online at www.hunter.com/training.

SHOP MANAGEMENT TOOLS Increase your shop’s productivity and revenue with Hunter’s online business intelligence technology!

HunterNet empowers your shop to present digital results, generate powerful management reports, and much more. Connected equipment includes Hunter’s state-of-the-art Quick Check and Quick Tread inspection systems, HawkEye Elite wheel aligners and Road Force Elite wheel balancers.

TECHNOLOGIES FOR SERVICING TODAY’S VEHICLES 15

SAY YES TO VEHICLES WITH STIFF TIRES, LARGE ASSEMBLIES AND ADAS It’s easy to bring the technologies for servicing today’s vehicles to your tire store.

HERE’S HOW IT WORKS: 1

ON-SITE DEMONSTRATION

2

CUSTOMIZED PROPOSAL

3

INSTALL & TRAINING

The first step is to schedule a complimentary consultation with Hunter today!

Complete the form specially set up for our MTD readers at www.hunter.com/mtd to get started.

www.hunter.com/mtd 16

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