Modern Tire Dealer - September 2023

AS COMFORTABLE ON THE ROAD AS IT IS CAPABLE OFF.

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WHY BIGGER ISN’T ALWAYS BETTER SECRETS OF SERVICE

ADVISOR SUCCESS

JON LANGERAK –MTD’S TIRE DEALER OF THE YEAR –IS BUILDING WONDERLAND TIRE FOR THE FUTURE

‘WE HAVE A LONG-TERM VISION’ ‘WE HAVE A LONG-TERM VISION’

Photo:

Mike Manges By

There’s no question that for most of this year, demand for tires has been down versus 2022 levels. This is reflected in tire shipment projections, which recently were lowered from earlier forecasts.

In March 2023, the U.S. Tire Manufacturers Association (USTMA) predicted that we’d end the year with around 334.2 million total tire shipments. Last month, the USTMA bumped that number down to 325.4 million units. By contrast, around 332 million units were shipped during 2022, according to the USTMA.

The USTMA’s full-year 2023 forecast has dropped in four of the six categories that the association tracks, compared to yearago numbers. In the OE channel, the USTMA is now predicting passenger tire shipments will total 43.9 million units (up 5.6% versus 2022), light truck tire shipments will total 6.2 million units (down a half-point since 2022) and medium truck tire shipments will total 6.5 million units (flat versus last year.)

Replacement passenger tire shipments will total 210.5 million units (down 1.5% versus 2022), light truck tire shipments will total 35.9 million units (down 3.6% versus 2022) and medium truck tire shipments will total 22.4 million units (down 16% versus 2022.)

If you’re a pessimist, you could say this is a gloomy forecast. I think it’s a positive forecast — and let me tell you why.

It goes without saying that 2021 and 2022 were unusually strong years. The industry experienced a massive, across-theboard rebound in 2021, following the initial shock of the COVID19 pandemic. That momentum carried over into the first part of 2022, especially in the medium truck tire category, which grew by more than 20% versus prior-year levels.

But those numbers are hard to sustain. What we’re seeing now is a return to normal — which, in this case, means a return to 2019 levels. And I would argue this is a good thing.

Once again, let’s look at the numbers. According to the USTMA, 46.3 million OE passenger tires, 5.9 million OE light truck tires and 6.5 million OE medium truck tires were shipped during 2019.

In the replacement channel, 222.6 million passenger tires, 32.5 million light truck tires and 18.9 million medium truck tires were shipped that year.

Based on the USTMA’s current 2023 projections, more units will be shipped in two categories — replacement light truck tires and medium truck tires — than were shipped in those same categories in 2019.

Here’s some other good news: You and your peers are continuing to work down your inventory levels.

During a recent Sumitomo Rubber North America Inc. dealer meeting, Chris de Rosales, the company’s director of market intelligence, said inventory levels are stabilizing and have “now made their way through a normal cycle.”

He also reported that “in the last three months, we’ve seen PLT shipments come back to life. We’re starting to see sellout come back to life. What’s driving that is vehicle miles traveled.”

There are other reasons why I think 2023 will be a solid year for our industry.

Number one, inflation seems to be under some semblance of control. In July 2023, the overall U.S. inflation rate was 3.2%, up slightly from previous-month levels, but well below its peak of 9.1%, which was reached 12 months prior. (For the record, in November 2022, the Federal Reserve announced that it seeks to achieve an overall, long-term inflation rate of 2%.)

I also believe the window on tire manufacturers’ ability to take major price increases is closing. After two straight years of virtually non-stop pricing actions, the case for more hikes will be increasingly hard to make. The market simply can’t bear another round — or multiple rounds — of big price increases.

Finally, tire manufacturer investment remains robust. Last summer, Hankook announced it would invest $1.6 billion to expand consumer tire production at its Clarksville, Tenn., plant and enable commercial truck tire production there. Earlier this year, Bridgestone Americas Inc. and Michelin North America Inc. announced a total of $610 million in multi-year, capital investments across several plants. Nokian Tyres plans to double the annual capacity at its Dayton, Tenn., plant by next year.

I’m sure there are other tiremakers that are making big investments in their facilities. Manufacturers invest when they believe market demand will support it. That bodes well for our industry.

Last year and 2021 will be difficult, if not impossible, to top. But that’s OK. In 2023, down will be up and a return to 2019 levels should be viewed as a positive. ■

If you have any questions or comments, please email me at mmanges@endeavorb2b.com.

When down is up MARKET IS RETURNING TO PRE-PANDEMIC LEVELS — AND THAT’S A GOOD THING

A return to 2019-like numbers should be viewed as a positive as the industry levels out after two extremely robust years.

Photo: MTD

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Watching all sides of the tire industry

The variety in this month’s top 10 list is a good reminder of the importance of all the many pieces that make up the tire industry. It’s easy to xate on the retail business, especially amid busy seasons of mergers and acquisitions in that space, but the industry is much larger than retail. Tire manufacturers are supplying products and making investments to serve both the retail and commercial tire markets and dealers are also wearing multiple hats as wholesalers and retreaders. They say it takes a village to raise a child. It takes global partnerships to serve the North American tire industry.

1. Photos: Goodyear hosts innovation day to celebrate 125th anniversary

2. Photos: An up-close look at Nokian’s U.S. plant

3. McGriff and Best-One announce partnership

4. Tire sellout is ‘becoming less bad’

5. Goodyear reports third straight loss

6. Retreading completes Bill Morgan Tire

7. Mounting mistakes can cost you big-time

8. Constant investment helps Canada Tire seize opportunities

9. Service truck safety takes ‘vigilance,’ says Rice Tire

10. USTMA dials back 2023 tire shipment forecast

DIGITAL EDITION

SOCIAL

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EDITORIAL

Editor: Mike Manges, (330) 598-0368, mmanges@endeavorb2b.com

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Art Director: Erica Paquette

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Sean Thornton sthornton@endeavorb2b.com

Rick Benton, Black’s Tire Service Inc.

Jessica Palanjian Rankin, Grand Prix Performance John McCarthy Jr., McCarthy Tire Service Co. Inc. Jamie Ward, Tire Discounters Inc.

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Bill Morgan III sees retreading as an avenue for expansion. His business, Bill Morgan Tire Co., recently opened a ContiLifeCycle retread plant in Lexington, Ky.

Photo: Bill Morgan Tire Co.

TIA announces honorees

RICHARD SMALLWOOD AND MARY SIKORA TO JOIN HALL OF FAME

Richard Smallwood, the former president and CEO of Sumitomo Rubber North America Inc. (SRNA), and Mary Sikora, a scrap tire recycling advocate and publisher of Scrap Tire News/ Recycling, are the 2023 inductees into the Tire Industry Hall of Fame.

The Tire Industry Association (TIA) will honor both during an awards ceremony on Oct. 30, prior to the start of the 2023 Global Tire Expo/Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) Show.

The Tire Industry Hall of Fame recognizes those who have made great contributions to the “growth and development of the tire industry or have demonstrated high standards, ideals and leadership in the management of their businesses and in the tire community and have achieved goals and success that distinguish them from others,” according to TIA.

Jim Pangle, TIA president, says, “TIA is pleased to honor these exceptional individuals entering the 2023 Tire Industry Hall of Fame. They have made tremendous contributions to our industry and we look forward to recognizing them and hearing their stories this fall during the Tire Industry Honors ceremony.”

RICHARD SMALLWOOD

Smallwood is the former president and CEO of SRNA. TIA says he is known for “his integrity, passion, value of people and as a visionary leader open to new ideas.” He remains chairman of SRNA, is on the board of Sumitomo Rubber U.S.A. and is an advisor of Sumitomo Rubber Industries of Japan.

According to TIA, Smallwood “regularly credited the company’s workforce for its strong growth during his tenure. Smallwood has spent nearly 35 years in the tire industry, including 22 years at Falken Tire Corp., which later was renamed SRNA. He also served as an executive officer at parent company, Sumitomo Rubber Industries, the first non-Japanese person promoted to that position.

“At Falken and SRNA, Smallwood focused the company’s lineup on UHP and sport light truck tires and later expanded that to include ultra-high performance, passenger car, SUV, crossover, light truck and medium truck products. A passionate car guy, he also led SRNA to gain its first original equipment fitments.

“Smallwood serves the broader tire industry as an eight-year, current board member of the U.S. Tire Manufacturers Association and has spoken at conferences worldwide, where one of his topics was the

Scrap Tire News, which is considered a top publication in the scrap tire and recycling industries and is a reference for various state and federal environmental governing bodies.

“Twenty-five years ago, Sikora’s passion for tire recycling led her to the thenAmerican Retreaders Association, where she encouraged leadership to add a tire recycling component to its annual trade show. Through her efforts, tire recycling businesses found a home where they could exhibit and trade show attendees were

evolving autonomous vehicle industry. In addition, he represented the tire industry when he testified before the U.S. Commerce Department on the negative impact of tariffs against imported autos and auto parts, as imported steel was impacted at the time.”

MARY SIKORA

Sikora is the publisher, editor and owner of Scrap Tire News/Recycling.

TIA says, “Long before recycling and sustainability became household words, Mary Sikora recognized the need to better manage the flow of scrap tires that were being landfilled or stockpiled in the United States.

“She created a newsletter that began to emphasize the important contribution tire and rubber recycling can make for the economy and the environment by creating new businesses, jobs and products. That newsletter grew into today’s monthly

able to view the latest methods to process scrap tires into useful products. She added seminars to the program and encouraged legislative attendees to assist the industry in finding solutions for capturing the raw materials designed into tires.

“Sikora was instrumental in the creation of the Tire and Rubber Recycling Advisory Council within the ARA and later assisted in developing TIA’s Environmental Advisory Council. Through these and other efforts, Sikora is recognized as a ‘go-to’ person in the tire recycling industry.”

HOW TO ATTEND

The Tire Industry Honors awards ceremony begins at 6:30 p.m. on Oct. 30, 2023, at Planet Hollywood Las Vegas Resort & Casino. There is no charge to attend the event, but it is a ticketed event and RSVPs are required. Registration is available on TIA’s website.

The Tire Industry Association will induct Richard Smallwood and Mary Sikora into the Tire Industry Hall of Fame in 2023.

Photos: TIA

McGriff joins Best-One

McGriff Tire and Best-One Tire & Service have announced a new partnership as both companies celebrate 75 years in business. McGriff Tire operates 18 locations in Alabama and Tennessee, plus an intermodal division and two retread plants.

McCarthy acquires Dice’s Tire

McCarthy Tire Service Co. Inc. has purchased Dice’s Tire Service, a single location dealership in Carlisle, Pa., from owners Sherrie Fisher and Trey Wible. The acquisition includes a Bandag retread plant that brings McCarthy Tire’s retread plant total to 14. Most operational Dice’s Tire teammates will stay on with McCarthy Tire.

VIP opens new store

VIP Tires & Service has opened a new location in Lowell, Mass. VIP Tires now operates nearly 70 stores in Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont and Massachusetts.

Foundation supports Hawaii

The Automotive Aftermarket Charitable Foundation (AACF) is helping aftermarket companies and their team members affected by the Lahaina fires in Hawaii. The organization has established a dedicated relief fund to provide financial help to families affected by the fires. Those needing help are asked to contact the AACF. Donations to assist can be made online.

Steve Shannon Tire expands

Steve Shannon Tire Co. has added two new locations through an acquisition and a new store building. The company acquired a five-bay store in Troy, Pa. from Krises Tire, and built a new, nine-bay store in State College, Pa.

Mavis goes racing

Mavis Tire Express Services Corp. took the wheel as a NASCAR Cup Series sponsor this season, with Denny Hamlin’s No. 11 Toyota Camry carrying the Mavis brand colors. Mavis sponsored five races, including Hamlin’s win at Pocono Raceway.

Eastern Tire & Auto grows

Eastern Tire & Auto Service Inc. has acquired Herricks Garage in Rockport, Maine, from owner Dave Herrick. The acquisition doubles Eastern Tire & Auto Service’s capacity, according to dealership officials.

USTMA dials back 2023 tire shipment forecast

The U.S. Tire Manufacturers Association (USTMA) has dialed back its forecast for 2023 and now says tire shipments will total 325.4 million units, down from the 334.2 million units it predicted in March and down from the 332 million tires shipped in 2022.

Comparing the March numbers to the new August figures, in both original equipment (OE) and replacement, the forecast has dropped in four of the six categories. Shipments in the OE passenger tire channel were revised upward.

Total replacement passenger tire, light truck tire and truck tire shipment forecasts have dropped by 10.1 million units since the March forecast. The bulk of that decrease is seen in passenger tires, falling 5.3 million units.

Here’s a look at the latest forecast, compared to 2022 totals.

Geoff Doster to lead Linglong North America

Shandong Linglong Tire Co. has unveiled its new subsidiary, Linglong N.A. Sales, based in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., and has appointed Geoff Doster as president of the company.

Doster recently held the role of executive vice president at TBC Corp. and was president and chief operating officer of TBC Brands LLC. Doster spent nearly two decades at TBC Corp. and spent six years at Michelin Group.

“I’m deeply honored to have been identified as the leader to spearhead the North American growth initiatives for Linglong Tire and eager to begin supporting our customers, dedicated teammates, valued partners and the industry as a whole,” says Doster.

“The prospect of shaping the future of a brand that values quality, customers and teammates while striving to be a first-class enterprise is both exciting and rewarding.”

As president, Doster will lead initiatives geared towards enhancing brand awareness, cultivating marketing programs and assessing the value of all product segments that Linglong offers. His first major initiative is the establishment of a leadership team in North America, according to officials.

“Geoff is a respected leader in our industry and I’m confident that his extensive experience, leadership style and entrepreneurial spirit will continue to propel us forward as we navigate our journey of strategic growth, while never straying from our foundation, core values and steadfast commitment to our customers and the communities we serve,” says Wang Fend, chairman and CEO of Linglong Tire.

Geoff Doster, a former executive with TBC Corp., will lead Linglong’s new North American operations.

Photo: Linglong Tire

A LONG WAY TOGETHER

AGRIMAX TERIS

No matter how challenging your needs, AGRIMAX TERIS is your best ally for all harvesting operations. This radial tire actually combines extraordinary traction and high load capacity with outstanding stability. Thanks to its special compound, the reinforced shoulder and bead, AGRIMX TERIS provides a high level of puncture resistance as well as great handling and driving comfort.

AGRIMAX TERIS is BKT’s response for combined harvesters providing best performance without damaging your crops.

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Bites

Sullivan Tire reopens outlet

Sullivan Tire Co. Inc. celebrated the grand reopening of its Damariscotta, Maine, location following a renovation. The store includes a new waiting area and offers a full menu of tire and auto services.

MFA adds Atturo at stores

Atturo Tire Corp. expanded its network of dealers with the addition of 36 MFA Petroleum Co. Big O Tires franchise locations in the Midwest. The company’s tires were to arrive in stores by the end of September.

TGI makes appointments

Tire Group International LLC (TGI) hired Joe Rios as its new chief financial officer and promoted Enrique Hernandez to chief operating officer. Rios has more than three decades of financial management and strategic planning experience. Hernandez has been with TGI since 2010.

RNR goes back to school

For the ninth straight year, RNR Tire Express is filling backpacks for students. The company is partnering with 96 franchise locations to gift over 5,000 backpacks filled with school supplies for students around the country.

Turbo names Pickens CCO

Tire industry veteran Todd Pickens is Turbo Wholesale Tires’ new chief commercial officer. In his 30-plus year career, Pickens has held executive positions with vehicle manufacturers, as well as Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co and most recently, Mickey Thompson Performance Tires & Wheels, where he was vice president of sales and customer service.

Nokian creates EV symbol

Nokian Tyres Inc. has introduced a new Electric Fit symbol for electric vehicle (EV) tires. The symbol indicates that the tire has been developed and tested for EV use, but can also be used on internal combustion engine-powered vehicles.

Diehm’s Tire founder dies

David Diehm, who founded Diehm’s Tire Service in Marshall, Mo., recently died at the age of 86. He worked for Firestone Tire & Rubber Co. as a sign installer and later joined the staff of a tire dealership in Marshall. He purchased the business and founded Diehm’s Tire Service in 1969.

New president takes over at OTAA

The Ohio Tire & Automotive Association (OTAA) recently hosted its annual meeting and golf outing in Dublin, Ohio, and announced its new president. The meeting had 116 members in attendance and the OTAA William Floyd Distinguished Service Award was given to Tom White, president of Tire Source — a six-location dealership headquartered near Akron, Ohio — recognizing him for his “many years of service to the board, OTAA and our industry,” according to Alex Boehnke, executive director of OTAA.

The new president of OTAA is Jon Boyd, tire business manager for Boyd’s Tire and Service, a sevenlocation dealership headquartered in Westerville, Ohio.

Boyd takes over as president from Jeff Wallick, director of training at K&M Tire Inc., a wholesaler with more than 30 locations that is headquartered in Delphos, Ohio.

OTAA also donated $3,000 to the Automotive Aftermarket Charitable Foundation (AACF), a nonprofit dedicated to providing emergency funding to automotive aftermarket members and their families. Chuck McCourt of McCourt Industries, an AACF board member, accepted the donation on behalf of the foundation.

Boyd begins his two-year term as president of the OTAA with a very specific goal in mind.

“For me, it’s about building our membership,” he said. “I think only 30% to 40% of potential tire and automotive repair facilities in Ohio are actually paying dues to our organization.

“I don’t think enough of (the non-members) know who we are and what we do to protect them. We need to find a way to get ahold of the right people in each of these organizations and then let them know what we can do for them. And then secondarily to that — and almost more importantly — we need to make sure the benefits we are giving our association members are enough that they want to be part of the association.”

Boyd said the OTAA wants to be both a social and a functional organization.

“We have to be functional for dealers to want to pay the dues every single year. For example, we are going to parts companies and asking, ‘What can you give our members to make it so they get a benefit they might not get from just negotiating with you directly?’ And then training is a big thing we are also focusing on.

“When my predecessor, Jeff Wallick, was president, we switched from a scholarship fund to a training program because we thought the dealers in our industry would benefit more from protecting the quality of their associates — the same people who are working on customers’ vehicles.”

Boyd said the group’s 2024 golf outing will be held Aug. 5, at the Country Club at Muirfield Village in Dublin, which is a suburb of Columbus, Ohio.

Chuck McCourt of McCourt Industries, right, an AACF board member, accepted a donation of $3,000 from OTAA’s Alex Boehnke (left) and Jon Boyd.

Photo: MTD

Boyd (middle), the new president of the OTAA, says the association wants to be both a social and a functional organization. The OTAA honored Tom White (right) with a distinguished service award.

Photo: MTD

Hunter expands distribution

Hunter Engineering Co. has opened a new distribution center in Madison, Miss. The center is located between Hunter plants in Durant and Raymond, Mo. which is helping to expedite shipping times.

Vipal celebrates 50 years

Vipal Rubber Corp. is celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2023. Chairman Arlindo Paludo says, “Staying close to our customers remains a cornerstone.” Paludo’s father, Vicencio Paludo, started the company and it has grown to include operations in the U.S., Brazil and Argentina.

SEMA awards scholarships

The Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) has issued a total of $245,000 in scholarship and loan forgiveness awards through its SEMA Memorial Scholarship Fund.

Kumho plant workers ratify contract

Workers at Kumho Tire Georgia Inc., the Macon, Ga. tire plant operated by Kumho Tire USA, have ratified their first four-year contract. The United Steelworkers (USW) said the deal covers about 325 workers at the site.

“The membership at Kumho Tire fought for years to win the rights and benefits of a fair union contract,” says USW International President Tom Conway. “Thanks to their solidarity and the hard work of our bargaining committee, they achieved that goal.”

USW District 9 Director Daniel Flippo says the contract “provides yearly wage improvements and other pay increases. It also includes additional paid time off, a joint health and safety committee and other workplace protections, all while maintaining quality health care and other benefits.

“The power of solidarity won a fair contract and we proved that our voices are strongest when we stand together for the benefit of everyone. With the ratified agreement in place, our jobs will be more secure, prosperous and safer than before.”

When plant workers voted to join the USW in September 2019, they became the first tire workers to unionize in more than 40 years, the USW said. And it came after a lengthy fight. That year, an administrative law judge ordered a new vote after determining the tiremaker had violated employees’ rights during the initial union vote in 2017.

About 325 Kumho employees are covered by the new bargaining agreement at the tiremaker’s U.S. factory in Macon, Ga.

Photo: MTD

Bites

Prinx sponsors hockey

Prinx Chengshan Tire North America, Inc. (PCTNA) added hockey to its sports marketing portfolio this summer by sponsoring the 3ICE league, a three-on-three league of hockey players. The tiremaker sponsored multiple games, including the league championship.

Continental wins award

For the third year, Continental Tire the Americas LLC has won the Vendor of the Year award from Mitsubishi Logisnext Americas (MLA). The award recognizes the “commitment and operational support demonstrated by Continental through MLA’s original equipment aftermarket program, Rapidparts, in the material handling sector,” says Continental.

CEAT supports rodeo

CEAT Specialty Tires is the official ag tire of the World Champion Rodeo Alliance, the Women’s Rodeo World Championship, the National High School Rodeo Association and the National Junior High Rodeo Association. This is the ag tire brand’s fourth year of rodeo sponsorship in the U.S.

Yokohama promotes Kahrs

Yokohama Rubber Co. Ltd. has promoted Jeremy Kahrs to vice president of research and development at the Yokohama Center America facility in Cornelius, N.C. He was previously senior director and now will oversee daily operations. Tom Kenny will serve as executive technical advisor to oversee strategic projects.

Snap-on expands training

Snap-on Inc. has added new dates to its Tuesday Topic training schedule. Each week Jason Gabrenas, diagnostic national trainer for Snap-on, hosts a training session to cover a variety of topics, from thermal imaging to guided testing procedures.

Toyo exits parts business

Toyo Tire Corp. plans to close its Toyo Automotive Parts (USA) Inc. business and cease production of auto parts in the U.S.

Goodyear turns 125

As part of its 125th anniversary, Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. recently relit the Goodyear sign atop the company’s former headquarters in Akron, Ohio.

Bridgestone breaks ground on TBR plant expansion

Bridgestone Americas Inc. has broken ground on a $550 million investment at its medium truck and bus tire plant in Warren County, Tenn. The capital influx will expand the plant’s footprint by 850,000 square feet and will add nearly 400 jobs.

Construction, which will expand the factory’s total footprint to more than 2.8 million square feet, is expected to be completed by the end of 2026.

The investment will “support increased capacity and accelerate the use of advanced technologies that support cleaner, safer and more efficient commercial truck and bus fleets,” according to Bridgestone officials.

Bridgestone’s Warren County plant will be one of the company’s first to have the capability to produce Bridgestone’s “ENLITEN technology stack,” which optimizes rolling resistance and wear. The plant will also be able to add RFID tags to all of the tires produced there and integrate sensors to collect data for fleet managers.

The plant will utilize AI technology to increase manufacturing productivity.

“With new investment and new jobs, we are moving our Warren County Plant forward, driven by growing demand for our products, our commitment to investing in U.S. manufacturing and our Warren team’s dedication to innovation, efficiency and quality for our customers,” says Paolo Ferrari, joint global COO, Bridgestone Corp., and president and CEO of Bridgestone Americas.

“This investment will expand the capabilities of this plant and pave the way for Bridgestone to bolster its sustainable solution offerings for fleets.”

Monro pilots digital check-in

Monro Inc. is testing a new ConfiDrive Performance Review in 90 stores, with hopes to expand the tablet-based process in all 1,300 stores in the fall.

The program allows the store manager to use a tablet and check in the customer by scanning the vehicle’s VIN to identify and assess the vehicle. This is followed by a courtesy inspection.

The manager then is able to advise guests about the vehicle’s condition and suggest services. The full ConfiDrive Performance Report is sent to the customer via email or is printed for them.

“The ConfiDrive Performance Review program is a game-changer in our industry,” says Mike Broderick, president and CEO of Monro.

“The transparent process raises the bar on customer service and loyalty communication and it’s an important step toward a fully digital automotive service center. ConfiDrive emphasizes our commitment to quality, integrity and safety.”

The $550 million investment at Bridgestone Americas Inc.’s Warren County, Tenn., plant will expand the factory’s footprint by 850,000 square feet and enable the integration of RFID and other tire technologies.

Photo: Bridgestone Americas Inc.

HERE’S WHAT OUR CUSTOMERS ARE SAYING:

“I’M AMAZED AT THE STABILITY AND THE DURABILITY.”

“The stability of them just amazed me,” says Rice. “We’ve got 1,300 hours on them and we don’t have a crack on them yet. It’s an even wear pattern, no separation, a lot less cuts from the rocks due to the design of the sidewall. They’re just a really good tire.”

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

Jake Rice of AA Quarry runs a CAT 982M loader with up to 15 tons of limestone shot rock and gravel on cycles of up to a mile. Other brands cracked under pressure, so AA Quarry switched to 875/65R29 Yokohama RT41s.

Numbers ThatCount

Relevant statistics from an industry in constant motion

5,000 Number of continuous count stations used to track tra c ow.

Source: U.S. Department of Transportation

MPG Potential light vehicle average eet fuel economy by 2032.

160 Federal OSHA citations issued for retail parts, accessories and tire stores in 2022.

Source: Occupational Safety and Health Administration

$188.2 BILLION

Total tari s assessed on Chinese products under Section 301 since mid-2018.

Source: U.S. Customs and Border Protection

Carolina Ports Authority

Photo: 76980942 © Maxim Kostenko | Dreamstime.com

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Photo: General Motors

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John Healy By

Retail sellout turns positive

TIER CHOICE REMAINS IN FLUX

At long last, tire dealers indicate retail sellout trends have turned positive after declining year-over-year the past seven consecutive months. July marked the first positive month for sellout trends since November 2022 and it’s up a healthy 3.5% year-over year.

Regionally, there were some changes. The Northwest region reported the strongest trends, up 7.5% year-over-year, while the Southwest region was the main laggard, approximately flat. This bucks recent trends, as the Southwest had been performing the strongest of any region over the prior four months.

While a month ago, we described sellout levels as “becoming less bad,” it appears the marginally better industry backdrop, as well as the lapping of softer comparables from a year ago, worked in favor to drive positive retail trends during July.

What’s driving the turnaround? Dealer contacts continue to note the consumer auto repair deferment cycle has become more friend than foe in recent months. Despite the overall inflationary environment dragging down sales for the majority of 2023, we see sequential improvements in the rate of decline from April through June, before July finally turned positive. Given this dynamic, as well as a continuation of easier comparables moving forward, we would not be surprised to see sellout levels remain on the positive side of the ledger in August.

Miles driven trends are also encouraging. Trends strengthened for a fifth consecutive month. That marks the first occurrence of five straight months of positive trends since November 2021 to March 2022. Our miles driven momentum index registered a 2.9% year-over-year increase in July, which follows healthy growth of 3.5% year-over-year in June. And early figures in August showed continued strengthening, with miles driven up 3% year-over-year in the first week of August.

Improvements also remain visible as it pertains to the material costs to build a basic replacement tire. Those overall costs fell 18% year-over-year in July, following a 14.3% year-over-year decrease in the second quarter. We still believe these year-over-year declines are a welcome sign for both tire manufacturers and dealers, as price increases, on top of overall inflationary impacts, have been a drag on retail sellout levels for much of the year.

Combining these factors, we believe the tire replacement channel is beginning to see some positive tailwinds, which have been largely absent thus far in 2023.

SHIFTING TIERS CONTINUES

Dealer commentary suggests consumer demand for passenger-light truck replacement tires was again positive on a net basis compared to July 2022. Of our contacts, seven out of 10 independent tire dealers reported positive demand trends in July — a sequential step up from the net 11% in June.

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

Most notably, none of the independent dealers in our July survey experienced a drop in demand. Thirty percent of our contacts said demand was flat.

Looking forward, dealers indicate this recent positive theme could continue as we enter fall and winter. Should weather trends worsen — and remember the historically mild winter we experienced a year ago — we may see an acceleration in the rate of consumer replacement as vehicle owners begin to pursue necessary maintenance heading into the winter season.

The movement between top-selling tiers continues, as once again in July, dealers indicated tier-two brands were the most in demand by consumers. That comes after tier-two tires were in the least demand in June. Dealers continue to highlight that the consumer deferment cycle has begun to shift positively, though trade-down continues to remain prevalent in the space.

Tier-one tire brands were the second in demand in July, after somewhat surprisingly being the top choice from consumers in June.

While dealers continue to point to consumer trade-down given the inflationary environment, we were a bit surprised to see tier-three brands take the bottom spot in July.

We see this as an indication of how the current economic backdrop is impacting consumers, as certain subsets of consumers who are less impacted by inflation continue to pay up for premium brands. Still, we note consumers seem to change their preference for certain tires in the face of current economic conditions. We’ve seen that play out in the swings in our rankings over the last few months. ■

John Healy is a managing director and research analyst with Northcoast Research Holdings LLC, based in Cleveland, Ohio. Healy covers a variety of subsectors of the automotive industry. If you would like to participate in the monthly dealer discussions, contact him at john.healy@northcoastresearch.com.

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WHERE ALONG THE WAY DID PREMIUM COME TO MEAN EXPENSIVE?

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have a long-term

building Wonderland Tire for the future

BY MIKE MANGES

Jon Langerak—MTD’s Tire Dealer of the Year— is

‘We

vision’

Jon Langerak knows exactly when he will step down as CEO and president of Wonderland Tire Co. — five years from now, after he turns 60.

When that time comes, he will move into a consultant role at the dealership, having handed Wonderland Tire’s reins to its next generation of owners, who will come from within the Langerak family.

By then, those owners will have benefitted from years of systematic preparation — as well as Jon’s steady, unflagging mentorship — which will help them take the 17-location, Byron Center, Mich.-based company to its next level of development.

However, between now and then, Jon — the architect behind Wonderland Tire’s phenomenal growth over the last two decades — says he has a lot of work to do. That includes keeping the dealership on its current trajectory. Under Jon’s direction, Wonderland Tire has enjoyed 10% to 15% revenue growth year after year.

“If I gradually wind down, the company will start coasting,” says Jon. “You can’t coast and maintain what you have. You really can’t. If you aren’t growing, you’re dying.”

Complacency has never been part of Jon’s vocabulary or thought process — and that’s one of the many reasons why he’s the recipient of MTD’s Tire Dealer of the Year Award.

‘A REALLY GOOD MIX’

Other than a short stint working on a farm when he was in his teens, Jon has spent his entire career at Wonderland Tire.

The dealership — whose name is a nod to Michigan’s old slogan, “Water-Winter Wonderland” — was formed in 1978, when Jon’s uncles, Henry and Earl Kamps, bought Clyde Jewell Tire, a small, single-location dealership in Grand Rapids, Mich. (Their father, Bill Kamps, along with his partner, Jerry DeVries, had opened a tire dealership, Kamps-DeVries Tire, 18 years earlier.)

Jon joined Wonderland Tire when he was 15. His younger brother, Dave Langerak, now Wonderland Tire’s chief operating officer and co-owner, followed a few months later.

“Our very first job was patching tubes,” says Jon. “There was a pile in the corner and I could barely reach to the top of it, that’s how many there were.”

In those days, Wonderland Tire was a small operation. That would change as the dealership entered its first big growth phase, which was driven, in part, by Jon.

By 1992, the dealership was expanding out of its home in western Michigan and into other areas. Earl Kamps had opened a Wonderland Tire store in Calumet City, Ill., a Chicago suburb, giving Wonderland Tire two locations. The outlet was — and remains — extremely successful. Jon, who had moved into a sales position at Wonderland Tire, knew that the dealership was capable of even more.

Competitors were starting to take notice of the company, he says. “I remember when a new dealership came to town. The man who ran that location said he would put us out of business within a year. Henry and I kind of chuckled about it and said, ‘We’ll see.’”

As Jon’s responsibilities grew, he came to the realization that he wanted to become an owner — if not at Wonderland Tire, then somewhere else.

“In the early-’90s, me and my brother, Bill, who also was working in the family business and running our retread plant, decided we were going to go out on our own and start our own retread plant. We started to buy and store our own equipment.”

Henry and Earl were unaware of the effort. “We were young and not sure Henry would allow us to be owners (of Wonderland Tire) at the time,” says Jon. “We said, ‘If we’re going to own something, we’re probably going to have to build it ourselves.’”

Along the way, Jon and Bill struck up a friendship with Bob Majewski, founder of the AcuTread mold cure retread system. They began selling AcuTread retreads to local fleet customers, who loved the product.

Soon, the opportunity to become an AcuTread retreader emerged. Buy-in, at the time, was $1 million — around $1.8 million in today’s money.

Jon, Bill and Dave took the proposal to Henry and Earl and convinced them to take the plunge under the Wonderland Tire umbrella. “Henry and Earl said, ‘If we’re going in this direction, we want you guys to have skin in the game, because if this fails, it will bury the company,’” says Jon. “It was a big pill to swallow.”

Henry and Earl, who remained Wonderland Tire’s principal owners, “gave each of us 8% of the company.”

Bill eventually stepped away from the family business “and Dave and I took his 8%. Henry and Earl knew that if we were

“We have a long-term vision and a long horizon,” says Jon Langerak, president and CEO of Wonderland Tire and MTD’s 2023 Tire Dealer of the Year.

Photo: Wonderland Tire Co.

Tire Dealer of the Year

owners, we were going to work toward making AcuTread a successful venture. Once we became owners, they empowered us. Henry, in particular, saw the energy we had.”

AcuTread shook up the markets where Wonderland Tire operated and become a major growth catalyst for the dealership. (See sidebar on page 32 for more.)

Building on the success of AcuTread, the dealership began to expand in other ways and made its first acquisition — the original Kamps-DeVries Tire store in Greenville, Mich. — in 2004.

“I saw that tire dealers in this area were aging,” says Jon. “So I approached Henry and said, ‘We should try an acquisition.’ He said, ‘Who do you want to buy?’ and I said, ‘DeVries Tire.’ We talked with the (dealership’s) owner, Dave DeVries, and he said, ‘I want to sell.’ Henry said to me, ‘If we’re going to do the acquisition, you’ll have to run it for a year.’ We took over operations and I started going up there every day, running it and managing it.”

Jon quickly restored the struggling store to profitability. “I knew if we could make that work, acquisition was an option if we wanted to expand into other areas. We wouldn’t have to start from the ground up.”

Jon’s hunch proved to be on the money and Wonderland Tire continued to acquire other dealerships. In 2007, the company purchased Valley Retreading, a dealership in Grand Rapids, plus Lawens Tire, a dealership in Six Lakes, Mich. That year, Wonderland Tire also opened a greenfield location in Zeeland, Mich., not far from its headquarters in Byron Center.

As Wonderland Tire grew, Jon and Dave’s responsibilities multiplied. In 2008, they became majority shareholders in the dealership. (Today, each has a 46% stake in the company. Earl, who will retire at the end of 2023, owns 7%. Henry, while no longer a shareholder, still advises Jon and Dave and helps in certain areas of Wonderland Tire’s business.)

With Jon and Dave now at the helm, Wonderland Tire continued to expand. In 2015, the dealership acquired Reed’s Tire, a local company, and then established a presence in northwest Michigan by acquiring J.I.S. Tire Service.

The same year, Wonderland Tire acquired Root’s Tire Service, giving it a foothold in northern Michigan.

In 2017, the dealership purchased Cooper’s Tire & Service, which was based in northern Indiana.

But by far, Wonderland Tire’s biggest acquisition came in 2021 when it purchased Sumerel Tire Service Inc., a Newport, Ky.-based dealership that had locations in Kentucky, Tennessee and Ohio. “I talked to (its owner), Bob Majewski, for almost three years before he committed,” says Jon.

The deal gave Wonderland Tire three busy retread plants far away from its base.

Wonderland Tire’s growth convinced Jon and Dave that they needed to develop a more robust corporate structure. “We don’t have layers of management, which can become very clunky and clumsy,” says Jon.

“We have our management team,” which includes Jon and Dave, plus Jim DeVries, the dealership’s chief financial officer.

“Then we have three other people who report to us: Seth Kamps, our vice president of purchasing and inventory; Ryan Seidel, our director of operations; and Jason Cleveland, who’s our vice president of manufacturing. Everybody in the company answers to those six people.

“In 2015, we put together an organizational chart showing where we were and the positions we’d have to hire for. We recognized that the company’s growth had pushed our structure to the limit.”

“If

“When we see a need, there’s nothing holding us back,” says Jon.

a customer needs something — and we believe there’s a market for it — we’re going to pursue it.”

Photo: Wonderland Tire Co.

MTD Tire Dealer of the Year Profile Everything you need to know about Jon Langerak

Name: Jonathan “Jon” Langerak

Age: 55 years old

Education: High school and one year of college

Family: Father (Harry) and Mother (Evelyn) and eight siblings, including six brothers and two sisters. My brother, David, is two years younger than me and we own Wonderland Tire together. I am married to Lisa and we have been married 34 years. We have five children, ranging in age from 21 to 32 years old. We have three grandchildren.

When you were in elementary school, what did you want to be when you grew up? That’s tough to say. I lived life in the moment and was not too concerned about the future. Every day was a great day, but at that age, I was not focusing on what my long-term vocation was going to be. I did want to own my own business. I do remember that.

Who had the most profound influence on you when you were young? My mother and father had a huge impact on my life at an early age. My father was a high school teacher and I remember the early mornings and late nights he worked to provide for the family. My mother was a stay-at-home mom and she was always busy providing for us. They taught me and the rest of the family about hard work, always providing for your family and the basics of life: be honest, always tell the truth, believe in God, trust Him with your life, work to the best of your ability, never say never, do not renege on what you owe, and family is very important.

The other person who influenced me as I came of age was my Uncle Henry. He was a previous owner of the company, along with his brother, Earl, and the president of Wonderland Tire. He taught me many things about business and entrepreneurship. I am indebted to him for many of the skills I learned and developed

under his leadership. He was a true mentor who had patience, an eye for raw talent and always had our success in view.

What’s the best advice your parents ever gave you? Always tell the truth, even if it hurts.

What was it like growing up in the tire business? It was exciting. New things were happening. The tube-type tire was being replaced by the tubeless tire back in the early 1980s and I was part of that change, which presented many opportunities. Also, the bias-ply tire was on its way to being phased out as the dominant tire of choice and was being replaced with the radial tire. I was always looking for a new challenge, so I took up the opportunity to begin going out and soliciting new customers. We also had started a retread shop with Oliver retreading and I used that to solicit many fleets and local businesses as an opportunity to lower their cost and save money.

I worked my way up through the company, beginning as a tube repairer and cleaner, then doing tractor tire service, working at our retread plant to learn that process, then fleet maintenance and tire service to sales, and then was involved in our first acquisition in 2004, managing and transitioning the acquired company to our company philosophy and culture. In 1998, our company changed significantly when we installed a new retreading system into our company called AcuTread. It really gave us something new in the marketplace and we took advantage of that and saw significant growth and profitability. AcuTread was a true success story in our company history.

When did you first say, “I want to be a tire dealer?” In the early 1990s. I had learned many parts of the tire business, enjoyed them and decided that I should focus on the tire business as a long-term career.

Continued on page 28

“I

enjoy all aspects of my job,” says Jon Langerak (second from right), with, from left to right, Henry Kamps, Earl Kamps and brother, Dave Langerak. Henry and Earl founded Wonderland Tire in 1978.

Source: Wonderland Tire Co.

Tire Dealer of the Year

Continued from page 26

When you and your brother took over majority share of Wonderland Tire, what was your biggest challenge and what was your biggest opportunity? Our biggest challenge at that time was that the United States — and really the world — was experiencing the collapse of many financial institutions. The housing market was collapsing and generally, the nation was experiencing a severe recession. This impacted our own business and we saw a rather severe decline in sales and ended up laying off several people, something we had never had to do. Managing the business through that recession was a challenge that required my and my brother David’s full attention each day.

The recession was also our biggest opportunity. It caused us to reevaluate who we were as a company, how we wanted and needed to go to market and what our customers needed and valued from Wonderland Tire. When we evaluated who we were in the market, we realized that two of our biggest assets as a company were our loyal and long-standing managers and team members and our exclusive AcuTread remanufactured products. We then made substantial investments in both of these areas and promoted a culture of providing excellent customer service and value-based AcuTread products.

What are your dealership’s biggest challenges and opportunities today? Our biggest challenge today is to continue to grow our management and team structure as the company grows. Growth is good, but it also needs to be managed. That requires us to focus on building structure into the company to manage that growth and to continue providing a ‘family, value, trust’ experience to both our customers and team members. I learned many things growing up in the business and one thing my former boss and (Wonderland Tire’s) previous owner, Henry Kamps, taught me is that an owner needs to always be working on the business to improve and develop it.

The biggest opportunity for us today is to continue to grow and mentor the next generation of family members to be better than David and myself as owners and managers. We currently have nine next generation family members who work full-time in the business. One of them is our vice president of inventory and asset purchasing. The others have meaningful jobs in the company where they can have an impact on the growth and profitability of the company. Most of them are either managing a store or are assistant managers at a store. They are learning all aspects of the business and what it takes to run a store or manufacturing facility. We want them to have a meaningful job where they can begin to take on an area of the business and have an impact and use their talents. This is also important for the other employees in the company to observe and see that the next generation is talented, hardworking and worthy of their trust and respect because of the work they do.

We see the next generation of owners as a great opportunity for the company to revitalize itself again and find new and better ways of doing business and going to market. They are smart and energetic and have a desire

to find new areas of growth and to make changes and improvements in our current systems. With a new generation comes new ways of looking at things and this is a positive thing for the business.

How do you start your typical workday? With a cup of coffee. I go into the office and normally review emails and my calendar for the day and then get to work on the items that are most important and work down from there.

What’s the secret to overseeing so many locations and employees? Hire people who are smarter and better than yourself, be humble enough to recognize that, empower them so they can do their job and provide them with what they need to do that work efficiently. Then trust them to do the work and do not micromanage them.

What are the best and worst parts of your job? I enjoy all aspects of my job. Probably one of the highlights is working on automation in our plants. We have begun that process and are working to find areas in the plants where we can eliminate wasted steps and make it as efficient as possible through the use of technology.

If you had zero financial constraints, what is one change to your business that you would make today and why? We would speed up our process of automating our plants. Automation is expensive, especially if you have to design and manufacture a particular piece of machinery or equipment that may not be available.

We would speed up that process because we see that AcuTread products are in high demand and it’s one of our major competitive advantages in the marketplace and for our customers.

What’s the best personal decision you’ve ever made? Marrying my wife, Lisa. We have been married for 34 years and it has been a wonderful life together. She is a true help in my life and a true confidant and friend.

What’s the best business decision you’ve ever made? To be in business with my brother, David. We each have a different personality and skill set that over the years have complimented each other very well.

If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be? To have more patience with others.

What’s your favorite book? “Chesapeake” by James Michener. It is a historical novel that I read quite a few years ago and really enjoyed.

What’s your favorite movie? I do not have one.

What’s your favorite vacation spot? Any beach along the Lake Michigan shoreline. Our family grew up camping in many of the state parks and beaches in Michigan. My wife and I like to visit some of the cities and towns in northern Michigan, such as Traverse City and Petoskey. I also snowmobile in the upper peninsula of Michigan in the winter — great fun!

What’s your ideal night out? Going to a nice steak or seafood restaurant with my wife, Lisa, and our friends or family.

What’s your favorite stress-reliever? Going to the beach and relaxing while listening to the waves.

The idea wasn’t necessarily new, according to Dave. “Jon and I had been part of the management group at Wonderland Tire, going back to Henry’s ownership. Henry thought like the executive of a big company, even when we were a small company. Even before we became owners, we thought a lot about structure and policy and did a lot of things early on that some companies who are bigger than us today haven’t done.”

With a more sophisticated structure in place, “we advertised positions within the company first and if someone had the skills and desire, we interviewed them,” says Jon. “We have a specific company culture. If we can hire someone from inside, they already know that culture and know what we expect. If we bring someone in from the outside, it’s not that easy.”

Wonderland Tire now employs nearly 200 people — a mix of people who have risen through the ranks of the company and employees brought in from the outside. “We’ve become more of a bottom-up company,” says Jon. “Before that, Dave

Tire Dealer of the Year

Presented by Michelin

Michelin is proud to recognize Jon Langerak of Wonderland Tire Company as Tire Dealer of the Year. Wonderland Tire is a familyowned-and-operated company committed to excellence.

“Big companies, when they make a decision to do something, give themselves a very short time to do it,” says Jon. “In a family business, that’s different. When we do new projects or add new services, we can take a longer view. We give ourselves time. We’re not focused on getting it done quickly, but rather getting it done right.”

Photo: Wonderland Tire Co.

and I wore all the hats. We had to call all of our meetings, We had to tell people what to do. We now have a really good mix. We have our hand on the pulse of the company, but others are empowered to run their own areas.

“When we bought Cooper’s Tire, I was at that store every week, working with the manager to get it off the ground. I don’t get that involved anymore. I have a saying, which is ‘a leader needs to work on his business, not in his business.’ More and more, I’m living by that. We also tell our managers, ‘Don’t be a firefighter. You can do more good for the company by taking a big-picture approach.’”

THE POWER OF ‘PATIENT CAPITAL’

That big-picture approach applies to nearly every aspect of Wonderland Tire’s business, says Jon. For example, Jon and Dave give struggling dealerships that Wonderland Tire acquires five years to turn a profit. But the brothers don’t leave that to chance.

“If a store isn’t profitable, we put the right manager in and put the right culture in,” says Jon, who adds that some locations “have taken a full five years” to get out of the red.

“We’ve become more of a bottom-up company,” says Jon. “Before that, Dave and I wore all the hats. We had to call all of our meetings. We had to tell people what to do. We now have a really good mix. We have our hand on the pulse of the company, but others are empowered to run their areas.”

Photo: Wonderland Tire Co.

Make-or-break business

Make-or-break business

How AcuTread has fueled Wonderland’s growth

How AcuTread has fueled Wonderland’s growth

Before becoming an AcuTread retreader, Wonderland Tire Co. was affiliated with another tread rubber supplier and the Byron Center, Mich.-based dealership’s retread production was relatively modest. “We had two curing chambers and were doing around 60 tires a day,” says Jon Langerak, CEO and president.

Wonderland Tire, at the time, also was buying AcuTread mold cure products from Newport, Ky.-based Sumerel Tire Service Inc., a company it would eventually acquire in 2021. “We put them into our fleet customers to see how they would run,” says Jon. “And they were fantastic! We called (AcuTread founder) Bob Majewski up and said, ‘We want to become an AcuTread retreader.’”

“It was a million-dollar investment and we were only a $4 million to $5 million-a-year company,” says Dave Langerak, Wonderland Tire’s co-owner and chief operating officer. “We were making money” before AcuTread. “But we also knew we were being pressed by the competition. We needed a product that would help us stand out.”

Wonderland Tire built its first AcuTread product in April 1998. Jon says customer feedback was immediate and positive.

A typical fleet customer “would try, say, 24 (AcuTreads), run them and then order more,” despite the fact Wonderland Tire charged $15 more for an AcuTread than a standard retreaded truck tire.

“If price was a problem, we told customers, ‘Tell us what you’re paying for your current retreads and we’ll match that price on your first 24 AcuTreads.’ Within six months, we needed four more presses. At the time, presses were hard to get, so we ended up buying two used ones, so we could continue running.”

Jon and Dave soon began developing new tread designs in conjunction with Sumerel Tire Service. “We were a big influence behind producing more designs,” says Jon. “When Bob (Majewski) came out with AcuTread, he had one trailer design and one drive design. We then came out with a waste haul design” and others — a process that continues to this day.

“We don’t go as wide as Michelin or Bandag or Goodyear, but we cover all the essentials,” says Jon. “We even have SmartWay-verified products.” (Pre-Q Galgo Corp.’s parent company manufactures AcuTread rubber, a proprietary blend, for Wonderland Tire. A company in Akron, Ohio, manufactures AcuTread molds to the Langeraks’ specifications.)

Wonderland Tire and Sumerel Tire Service also established the AcuTread Alliance Group and began licensing AcuTread rubber and machines to other tire dealers. “We started soliciting members on the open market,” says Jon. “We wanted independents to join. The idea was that if you produced AcuTreads, you could be part of the group,” but still call your own shots.

There was no cash buy-in requirement. “We charged royalties, with the goal of putting those royalties back into the alliance. We eventually developed a program where we leased equipment to retreaders, which they could own over time. What that did was take away the cost of entry.” (Wonderland Tire manufactures its own AcuTread machines.)

AcuTread also enabled Wonderland Tire to make its own decisions regarding its retreading business. “It’s really the tread rubber supplier that controls most retreaders’ businesses, from the development of new products to the expansion of plants,” says Jon, who adds that this dynamic was even more prevalent 30 years ago.

Having its own retread system and products gives Wonderland Tire “the ability to be independent enough to do the right things for our customers,” says Jon Langerak. “Take a particular tread design — if we want to build it, we can build it. All of our designs and rubber compounds are proprietary. AcuTread is an exclusive product. Nobody else has it. We’re very independent. We like to do things ourselves. We don’t like people telling us how to do it.”

Having its own system and products gives Wonderland Tire “the ability to be independent enough to do the right things for our customers,” says Jon. “Take a particular tread design — if we want to build it, we can build it. All of our designs and rubber compounds are proprietary.

“AcuTread is an exclusive product. Nobody else has it. If a customer likes AcuTread, he can only get it from us. We’re very independent. We like to do things ourselves. We don’t like people telling us how to do it.”

Dave says adding AcuTread was “the most pivotal, strategic thing we’ve done as a company.”

And it came with huge risks, according to Jon. “AcuTread was probably the first Wonderland project where if it failed, it would have sunk the ship,” he explains. “But AcuTread has been wonderful for us. It changed our company. We wouldn’t be the company we are today without it.”

Photo: Wonderland Tire Co.

Wonderland Tire shows appreciation in many ways

do something for people who’ve been with us for more than 20 years? Why not send them on a nice trip?’” Dave Langerak, Jon’s brother and Wonderland Tire’s chief operating officer, said, “Yes.”

“Our people love it,” says Jon. “I think it shows the level of commitment we make to them.”

Jon and Dave show their appreciation in other ways. Last year, when fuel prices spiked, each Wonderland Tire employee received a $50 prepaid gas card. “That was Jim DeVries’ idea,” says Jon.

“Every Thanksgiving, they get a $50 card to one of the supermarkets in the area. In western Michigan, it’s Meijer. And we do it with other supermarket chains” where other Wonderland Tire stores are located.

“We also take a portion of our profits each year and distribute that to our employees. Typically, that’s anywhere from $2,000 to $3,500 for line employees. Our managers get one-and-a-half times that. It can fluctuate. but we want (employees) to understand the more profitable we are, the more we can give them.

“Our employees are the heartbeat of Wonderland Tire,” says Jon Langerak, the company’s CEO and president. “They’re on the front lines every day, doing the work with a smile on their faces.”

Jon learned early in his career that it’s important to recognize employees and highlight their contributions. Wonderland Tire pays for employees who have hit their 20-year mark with the company to go on a vacation of their choosing, with their spouse or partner — anywhere in the world, all expenses paid.

The idea, according to Jon, came from Rebecca Reed, Wonderland Tire’s marketing manager. “She came from a family business, Reed’s Tire, and saw that we have many long-term employees. She went into David’s office and said, ‘Wouldn’t it be nice to

When integrating new stores into Wonderland Tire, the Langeraks provide plenty of runway “so we don’t have to change everything quickly because that makes employees very jumpy. And it wrecks morale. We say, ‘OK, what are we going to change this year?’ Then we build rapport with employees while doing that.

“We build a business plan for each store, which contains projections for sales and where we want to be in terms of profits. We also did that for a new store” that Wonderland Tire opened down the street from its corporate office in Byron Center a few years ago.

The store, which offers a mix of consumer and commercial tires, is three times larger than its predecessor in the area. (Seventy-five percent of Wonderland

“The vast majority of our employees also are on an incentive program,” says Jon. “The tire business can be slow in January, February and March. The rest of the year, it ramps up. Summer can be a stressful time. It’s busy. It’s hot. With the incentive, during the summer months our employees can make double or triple what they can make in the winter months.”

Jon and Dave also make personal appearances at Wonderland Tire stores. “When we had our first million-dollar month 12 years ago, we went to each location and grilled steaks for employees,” says Dave. “Last year, in September, we had our first $3 million month. We ended up going to every store and grilled steaks.”

“Employees recognize it when you do things for them that you don’t have to do,” says Jon.

Tire’s business is commercial, says Jon. The rest is retail.)

“We were afraid that (store change) would negatively affect profits, so we built a projection that said after five years, the manager of that new store would be back to the profitability level” of the outlet it replaced. “He hit it in two years.” (The store, which is pictured on the cover of this issue of MTD, is on track to turn more than $8 million in sales this year. Wonderland Tire’s next most profitable store — its location in Calumet City — is projected to generate $6.6 million in sales.)

Giving things time to develop without demanding immediate returns is part of a philosophy that Jon calls “patient capital. I learned the idea of patient capital from another business owner who talked about

the importance of planning your exit. He said you can do that when you have patient capital.

“Big companies, when they make a decision to do something, give themselves a very short time to do it. In a family business, that’s different. When we do new projects or add new services, we can take a longer view. We give ourselves time. We’re not focused on getting it done quickly, but rather getting it done right.”

AcuTread gave Jon his first opportunity to apply the patient capital approach. “We had a five-year projection there and blew that out of the water. When we bought Reed’s Tire, we got into auto service work for the first time. That was another instance when we integrated a new service and took a longterm approach to it.

Jon and Dave Langerak went to every Wonderland Tire store and grilled steaks for employees in September 2022 when the dealership had its first $3 million month. It continued a tradition they started years earlier.

Photo: Wonderland Tire Co.

‘Employees are our biggest assets’

Tire Dealer of the Year

Successful succession

Wonderland Tire’s next owners and managers are learning the ropes

“It’s part of my job to make sure the next generation of Wonderland Tire owners and managers are qualified,” says Jon Langerak, the company’s CEO and president.

Each member of Wonderland Tire’s next-gen group is required to progress through steps outlined in the dealership’s Family Manager Training Policy.

Completing the program takes many years and begins “at age 12 on the cleaning crew.” From there, next-gen group members “transition into tire work at age 16,” according to the written policy.

At 17 or 18, they are expected to work at a commercial store, going on OTR, ag and commercial truck tire service calls; learning mechanical work, including brakes, alignments and other services; and completing Tire Industry Association Automotive and Commercial Tire Service courses.

From 18 to 20, next-gen group members learn everything about the AcuTread process. From there, at age 21, they graduate

to working at retail and commercial locations — running the front counter, dispatching and billing service calls, working with vendors, setting up delivery routes, visiting customers, learning national account paperwork and more.

After completing that portion of the course, next-gen members learn outside sales and corporate office functions. At this stage, they also attend Wonderland board meetings, family shareholder meetings and more.

Putting future owners and managers through the paces “helps prevent any sense of entitlement” from developing, says Seth Kamps, son of Earl Kamps and Wonderland Tire’s vice president of purchasing and inventory. (He is the senior member of the dealership’s next-gen group.)

“We all have to learn what hard work is and our fellow employees can see that, so there’s a certain level of respect you gain. And it helps you learn the business. Me, my brothers and my cousins all have gone through pretty rigorous training.”

“Since then, we’ve implemented auto service at all of our stores. For us, it was a new idea. It was a leap of faith. We said, ‘We need to experiment with this, take our time and see if we can become successful.’ My brother, Dave, is in operations, so it was his baby. And he’s done a wonderful job with it. That’s become a new area of our business that’s bringing in revenue.”

Jon says he’s seen other companies, including some competitors, demand to see returns too quickly after implementing a new service or opening a new location. “If you push too hard, bad things happen — at least that’s what I’ve found.”

Moving slowly helps win new customers, too — especially on the commercial tire side. Steelcase, an office equipment manufacturer, is based in Grand Rapids. Jon landed that account for Wonderland Tire. “It took me nine years to pick that customer up. I would go in, solve little problems here and there and put some tires in. Eventually, the company gave the whole account to us.

“I tell our salesmen, ‘If you’re number two, you’re going to be number one eventually.’ This also allows us to charge the right price for what we provide. We don’t have to cut prices in order to pick up business.”

Patient capital also helps with employee retention, according to Jon. “It allows a person to make a career at Wonderland. We have people here whom we hired when they were 18 and now they’re 50 years old.”

And it has allowed Wonderland Tire to cultivate a pipeline of potential acquisitions. Jon maintains a list of tire dealerships within a 75-mile radius of Wonderland Tire’s headquarters whose owners are aging. He personally stays in touch with them, checking in from time to time. “If they don’t have someone who wants to take over, we can become a good option for them,” he says. “They know who we are and in some cases, we’ve already done business with them.”

“We were always taught that if we aren’t moving forward, we’re moving backwards,” says Dave. “There’s no inbetween. At one point, I would have been happy being a small, 25-person company. But Jon would not have been. He wouldn’t have allowed it.”

“This business means a lot to us and we’re not going to skimp” on investment, says Jon. “This also is something that allows us to keep employees long-term. We give them the right equipment,” reinvesting millions of dollars each year.

Photo: Wonderland Tire Co.

Tire Dealer of the Year

‘YOU HAVE TO REINVEST’

“My management style boils down to this: hire people who are better than you, give them the tools they need and say, ‘Run this thing,’” says Jon. “One of my strengths is that I’m a good delegator. I know when it’s time to pass (roles or duties) to the right people. I realize that if they’re going to

feel empowered and do a meaningful job, I can’t always be involved.

“Dave is more hands-on. He’s very detail-oriented. My brother’s philosophy is ‘Employees respect what you inspect,’ so he lays out things for people and he monitors that. I’m not that way. I feel like I’m stepping on people’s toes. But I guess

over the years, that’s why we’ve worked so well together.”

Jon has seen owners of other businesses refuse to relinquish control. This often backfires on them, he says. “In a family business, it’s a weakness to not be able to give up control or put people in place to do the work for you. We’ve watched and talked with a lot of families who own businesses and control can be an issue. It’s also why so many people can’t get out. They either die in the saddle or sell when they’re 75 years old.

Langerak Chairman & CEO

Nava Vice President

“Many people who own businesses have that ‘driver profile,’” says Jon. “They’re aggressive. They have to be doing something. I have that personality. I think it’s part of the entrepreneurial spirit.”

Jon says he’s always looking at the competitive landscape and monitoring what other dealerships in Wonderland Tire’s markets are not doing, instead of what they are doing. “We’re always looking at where there’s a niche in the market” that isn’t being addressed. “And we’re always trying to develop new niches.”

Nearly 20 years ago, Jon noticed that many cement mixer fleets in Wonderland Tire’s markets “were running big, wide tires. So we built a tread rubber mold for that type of tire, which enabled us to pretty much own that business in that area. It was a niche that allowed us to corner a market.

“More recently, we got into truck mechanical work. And we’re going to be putting up a new store in Holland, Mich.,

Jon Langerak Chairman & CEO

Modern Tire Dealer's 2023 Tire Dealer of the Year

HIGH-PERFORMANCE RUBBER FOR ADVANCED RETREADS SINCE 1952

"Jon, on behalf of everyone at Pre-Q GALGO Corporation, I would like to say thank you for being a loyal customer and part of our family, and it is indeed an honor to wish you and your team congratulations on being named MTD's 2023 Tire Dealer of the Year"

Jon

Eduardo

“Jon isn’t the kind of owner who wants to be in the limelight,” says Dave Langerak, Wonderland Tire’s chief operating officer. “He likes to work behind the scenes. He lets people run their areas, while he keeps an eye on the big picture. But when Jon makes a decision, there’s no turning back.”

Photo: Wonderland Tire Co.

and we’ll have to determine if we’ll put an alignment pit in (there) or not.”

It has always been Wonderland Tire’s philosophy to plow a significant amount of revenue back into the company — dating back to when Henry and Earl were majority owners. “That’s the whole patient capital thing again,” says Jon.” We have a long-term vision and a long horizon. If you’re going to do this long-term, you have to reinvest. Every September, at our manager’s meeting, they bring in a list of assets they’ll need in the next year and we get to work on it. We buy four or five new service trucks a year. We spend millions. We buy the right stuff and the good stuff.”

Jon says some of Wonderland Tire’s competitors have not been as aggressive or proactive in maintaining and updating their equipment. “We call that ‘frugalizing,’ when you don’t spend money on the things you need in order to run a good business. I don’t understand that concept. This business means a lot to us and we’re not going to skimp. This also is something that allows us to keep employees longterm. We give them the right equipment.”

“Our dollar amount of investment is phenomenal,” says Dave. “We have a $2 million asset purchase list this year. We like doing things right once and not having to duct tape it later. I tend to take a longer time than Jon to do my research and reach decisions. Jon is more of a gut reaction guy. And his gut reaction is typically right. I realize that it has to be a combination of both. Some things have to be based on your gut and your experience.”

Jon also isn’t afraid to make tough decisions, says Dave. When the brothers became majority owners in Wonderland Tire, the Great Recession hit. “We were challenged to make a profit that year,” says Dave. “We went from being very profitable to being forced to lay off 10% of our workforce. I remember Jon coming into my office and saying, ‘Dave, we have to lay off 10% of our people.’ I did not want to do it. Those are the kinds of decisions Jon’s good at.

“Jon and I have taken some personality tests and I’ve learned some things about him that I didn’t know. He keeps a lot of his thoughts to himself. He isn’t the kind of owner who wants to be in the limelight. He likes to work behind the scenes. He lets people run their areas, while he keeps an eye on the big picture. But when Jon makes a decision, there’s no turning back.

“He’s very self-assured, but at the same time, he’s willing to collaborate,” says Dave of Jon. “He has the patience to talk through ideas and hear other people out. That’s something he’s developed as an owner. But in the end, he’s very willing to make that final decision.”

Dave says Jon’s personality is a blend of

traits from both the Langerak and Kamps families. “The Kamps family has that entrepreneurial gene. There are lot of Kamps in western Michigan who are related to us and have their own businesses. But Jon also has a good dose of the Langerak side. Our dad was very contemplative and soft-spoken. Jon has that side, as well. I tend to be very

Tire Dealer of the Year

task-oriented. Jon is less focused on tasks and lists. He has one or two big things he wants to get done that day, but not a big, long list of things. And when he’s done, he’s satisfied.”

‘YOU KNOW WHERE JON STANDS’

Jon and Dave complement each other “and you need that to be successful,” says Seth Kamps. The brothers also can demonstrate tough love when needed, he adds.

“I recall at one point, as a young store manager, there were problems with my building, problems with my trucks and problems with my employees,” says Kamps. “I was managing a store that was the farthest away from our corporate office. I was at least an hour away from our nearest store. I sometimes felt like I was on an island. I remember calling Jon and Dave and saying, ‘I have this problem and that problem,’ and the response I got was kind of surprising: ‘This is your store. You have to figure it out.’ That taught me to take the final line of responsibility.”

“You always know exactly where Jon stands,” says Seth Kamps, Wonderland Tire’s vice president of purchasing and inventory. “He’s always straightforward in his conversations and relationships. He speaks his mind and you never have to second-guess where he is or what he’s thinking.”

The brothers also are receptive to recommendations and new ideas, says Ryan Seidel, Wonderland Tire’s director of operations. “We used to have an old computer system. I said, ‘Jon, if continued growth is the idea, this isn’t a scalable system.’ So

Jon formed a committee and told us, ‘You will pick a new system.’ And he gave us a deadline. From the time he said those words to the time we had a new system in place was about a year, which is pretty quick. Jon and Dave don’t accept substandard.”

“You always know exactly where Jon stands,” says Kamps. “He’s always straightforward in his conversations and relationships. He speaks his mind and you never have to second-guess where he is or what he’s thinking. Jon’s true to his colors and he isn’t going to let poor performance slide. He’s going to deal with it, but he’s also willing to teach.

“Jon’s not going to hang you out to dry if you make a mistake. He’ll tell you what you did wrong and he’ll encourage you. He’s not out to get you. He wants everyone to succeed. One thing he says, though, is, ‘If you’re not a leader, you’re following someone.’ As business owners grow older, they tend to play things more safely. They don’t take as many risks. Jon is a calculated risk-taker.”

Photo: Wonderland Tire Co.

Jon also can be a calming influence, according to Seidel. “COVID-19 was a super-chaotic time and in the early days, some of us were kind of panicking. We were wondering, ‘Will we have to lay people off? Will we have to close?’ Jon brought (a sense of peace) to the organization. He said, ‘Calm down. It’s going to be OK.’ He was able to settle us down and bring us back to reality. And we kept taking those forward steps.

“Jon encourages me all the time,” Seidel continues. “He says, ‘Make sure you‘re buying the guys lunch.’ We take our store managers on fishing trips. He pushes me to do those things. In my 20 years in the tire industry — all the different companies I’ve seen — this is the company that cares the most about its people. And it’s not just words. It’s the actions that show they care.”

“Jon is an excellent leader” who has earned the respect of Wonderland Tire’s employees, says Jim DeVries, the dealership’s CFO. “That’s his greatest attribute. He started when he was a teenager, push-

ing a broom and working in a store. He busted tires, he was in outside sales, he’s worked in our plants — he’s done it all, so he’s very relatable in that regard.

“He’s also the opposite of a micromanager,” DeVries continues. “He’s willing to let his people take risks. He’s willing to let them fail and learn from those mistakes, without getting upset. He lets them do their thing. Jon has great integrity as a

Jon “is the opposite of a micromanager,” says Jim DeVries, Wonderland Tire’s chief financial officer (far right, with, from left, Dave and Jon.) “He’s willing to let his people take risks. He’s willing to let them fail and learn from those mistakes, without getting upset. He lets them do their thing. Jon has great integrity as a person.”

Photo: Wonderland Tire Co.

Tire Dealer of the Year

COACHING THE NEXT GENERATION

“At the age of 60, I’m supposed to put in my replacement and sell the majority of my shares” in Wonderland Tire, says Jon, who adds that Dave has made the same commitment. “Then we’ll work in the company as mentors and consultants for another five years — making sure the transition to new ownership is smooth.”

That new ownership will come from Wonderland Tire’s “next-gen” group, which includes members of the Langerak and Kamps clans. The youngest next-gen group member is 21. The eldest, Seth Kamps, is 30 years old.

“In 2004 or 2005, we started to talk about succession and that it had to be planned thing,” says Jon. This was driven, in part, by observing other tire dealers who didn’t have a succession plan or waited too long to think about one. Jon and Dave didn’t want to put Wonderland Tire or its employees in that position.

In an internal Wonderland Tire document written for next-gen group

members, Jon writes, “Very few family businesses survive until the fourth generation. However, family businesses also have the capability to be very resilient in comparison to their non-family counterparts. Wonderland Tire needs good governance and management, long-term thinking, profitability and strong foundations, providing meaning and fulfillment for the family, as well as committed owners, engaged employees and family members.”

Members of Wonderland Tire’s nextgen group undergo a rigorous, multiyear training program, starting when they are 12 to 15 years old, sweeping shop floors and cleaning offices. After they master these tasks, they graduate to the next level, which is working on tires — typically at the age of 16 or 17. From there, they advance to the next level and so on, finally completing the program around the age of 22. (See sidebar on page 36 for more details.)

“We make them go through a program, rather than throwing them

person and that’s something the other owners have, as well. You can see how our employees respect them and are willing to do whatever they need to do.”

“Jon encourages me all the time,” says Ryan Seidel, Wonderland Tire’s director of operations. “In my 20 years in the tire industry — all the different companies I’ve seen — this is the company that cares the most about its people. And it’s not just words. It’s the actions that show they care.”

Photo: Wonderland Tire Co.

headlong into the business without any direction,” says Jon. “It’s part of our job to make sure the next generation of ownership is qualified.”

Some members of the next-gen group are more geared toward management than ownership, he adds. “We make them take a personality test, so they can understand who they are.”

Some, he says, have discovered talents or interests they didn’t know they possessed. “It happened recently with my son, Trevor. He went through the Dale Carnegie program this summer and did very well — so well, in fact, that (representatives from Dale Carnegie) came to our next-gen meeting and presented him with the program’s highest achievement award. For him, that was an eye-opener. He said, ‘OK, I can influence people.’”

Putting next-gen members through extensive training helps non-family managers and employees respect them. “We want them to have a well-rounded understanding of the business and they also will have the respect and trust of

their peers and employees by the time they take over. Part of that process is giving each an area of responsibility and letting everyone see that they can manage it and make it better.

“I think that’s why the transition between Henry and Earl and David and I went so well,” says Jon. “Dave and I were involved in the business right away. We worked shoulder to shoulder with our

“We’re looking at this thing generationally,” says Jon.

“And we’re doing the things needed to keep Wonderland Tire moving forward. There’s great satisfaction seeing our family and our employees’ families grow and develop and knowing I’m a part of that. If it was just dollars and cents, it wouldn’t be any fun for me. There wouldn’t be any satisfaction in that.”

By retreaders, for retreaders www.treadware.biz

Photo: Wonderland Tire Co.

other employees. They saw we had the ability to do this. If employees see you just sitting there with your feet up, there will be resentment.

“There’s also a certain excitement among our employees that we’re planning for the next generation and we’re doing it deliberately. When employees see that, they appreciate it. There’s a saying in the family business world called ‘shirtsleeves to shirtsleeves in three generations.’ The founder builds the business, the second generation maintains the business and the third generation destroys the business. Then you’re back to shirtsleeves again. That isn’t what’s going to happen here.”

Next-gen members also serve on Wonderland Tire’s family council. Every other year, the dealership holds a week-long “family summit” at an off-site location. (The company’s latest summit took place last month.)

Next-gen group members plan the event, “come up with an agenda and put it all together,” says Jon. During

the event, each member is required to provide updates on his or her area of responsibility via a formal presentation.

“We’re not easy on them,” says Dave. “They’re not going to have anything handed to them on a silver platter.”

“Several years ago, we asked them, ‘Where do you want Wonderland Tire to be in five years?’” says Jon. “They came up with a plan. I looked at it and said, ‘That’s less than 5% growth each year. If we grow at that rate, we’ll miss the mark.’

“We don’t want to grow just for the sake of growing. We want it to be profitable growth. We emphasize to them that if you’re just going to grow, but not increase profits, that’s probably not a good strategy. We emphasize that if you’re going to grow, you have to grow profitably because you have to reinvest in the business.

“We also talk about continual learning. You never stop developing yourself or others. We try to promote that because we’ve seen it in ourselves. I’m not the same person I was in 1988.”

As next-gen group members’ business acumen has developed, they’ve identified new business opportunities for Wonderland Tire, which have been presented to Jon and Dave. “And that’s what we want,” says Jon.

“When we see a need, there’s nothing holding us back. We want to always look for opportunities. If a customer needs something — and we believe there’s a market for it — we’re going to pursue it. I see that as being important and I think the next generation of ownership sees that as being important. They have the energy to do it. We just have to harness that energy and the way we do that is to make them owners and managers.”

“Jon and Dave haven’t named their successors,” says Seth Kamps. “And they’ve made it clear that not everyone is going to be an owner. But I know there’s going to be a position for me here. Wonderland Tire is very stable. Jon and Dave never make rash decisions. And they’re really looking after our professional and personal growth.”

GUARANTEED SATISFACTION

“We’re not in business just to make money,” says Jon. “We have close to 200 employees and they all have families. That’s a motivator for me. I wouldn’t want

them to be hurt by me not running the business in a good way. And that’s grown on me over time. The older I get, the more I recognize that.”

At the same time, Jon says that it’s “very important to enjoy what you’re doing.”

Jon looks forward to continuing to develop Wonderland Tire’s next group of owners and managers. In the meantime, he has no plans to ease off the gas pedal. There are new stores to open and other dealerships to acquire. There are new services to introduce, new products to sell and new customers to win. There are advancements to pursue and new goals to achieve.

“We’re looking at this thing generationally,” says Jon. “And we’re doing the things needed to keep Wonderland Tire moving forward. There’s great satisfaction seeing our family and our employees’ families grow and develop and knowing I’m a part of that. If it was just dollars and cents, it wouldn’t be any fun for me. There wouldn’t be any satisfaction in that.” ■

Wonderland Tire is cultivating its next generation of owners and managers, all members of the Langerak and Kamps families, who are progressing through an extensive, multi-year training program to learn every operational aspect of the dealership. “We want them to have a well-rounded understanding of our business,” says Jon.

Photo: Wonderland Tire Co.

ADAS 101

WHAT TIRE DEALERS NEED TO KNOW

By

Madison Gehring, Joy Kopcha

As advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) technology becomes more common in vehicles on American roadways, there’s a growing market to maintain, inspect and calibrate the many systems that fall underneath the large ADAS umbrella.Blind spot detection, automatic emergency braking and lane departure warnings are just a few.

Depending on the specific technology, either a static or dynamic calibration is needed. Some require a scan tool and test drive. Others need more equipment, including target boards, to ensure proper calibration.

Haresh Gobin, product development manager for LaunchTech USA, a manufacturer of ADAS equipment, says, “There are many variables that contribute to addressing ADAS calibrations across the spectrum on Euro, Asian and domestic vehicles. Each OE manufacturer has specific processes and procedures, in addition to technologies utilized in their vehicles.”

The expectation is these technologies will only continue to evolve, as they’re directly tied to making roadways safer.

New research published in August by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety estimates that ADAS technologies could

prevent 37 million crashes, 14 million injuries and almost 250,000 deaths over the next three decades. “This would represent 16% of crashes and injuries and 22% of deaths that would otherwise occur on U.S. roads without these technologies.”

It’s imperative tire dealers become more acquainted with the service opportunities surrounding ADAS.

We asked the experts who are manufacturing calibration equipment for help with some basics, from the tools and space needed to do the job to how and when to talk to customers about ADAS.

MTD: What equipment do tire dealers need on-hand to service ADAS?

KYLE HARRIS , product manager, Hennessy Industries Inc.: The types of equipment required to service ADAS systems on today’s vehicles will vary with vehicle manufacturer, the specific system needing service and the actual operation being performed. For example, many new cars do not need any equipment at all to calibrate certain ADAS systems. The vehicle needs only to be taken for a short test drive. At a minimum, shops should be prepared with a modern scan tool with the latest updates.

RYAN GERBER, ADAS product specialist, Hunter Engineering Co.: Ideally, a tire dealer would already have an alignment system, which most do. Pretty much every ADAS calibration begins with an alignment, because if the wheels aren’t going straight, then neither is the ADAS. This is a big deal, because the cameras and radar work like a flashlight beam. What may be a tiny bit off near the bulb becomes way off the farther out they go, which means the ADAS can’t properly do what it’s designed to do.

Besides an aligner, a shop will need some sort of ADAS calibration system that can ideally handle a wide range of vehicles, although you don’t have to go all-in from your first calibration. It’s not really the shop or technician that does calibrations. It’s the software. The better your system, the greater your opportunities.

HARESH GOBIN, product development manager, LaunchTech USA: To service ADAS systems, the requirements vary per (vehicle) manufacturer. Some systems require dynamic calibrations, which are done with the vehicle in motion, simulating a drive cycle, while a professional-level scan tool is communicating with the vehicle’s control modules. Other vehicles require

Before purchasing tools or equipment for ADAS services, Chris Chesney at Repairify says tire dealers need to study the car parc in their market and balance OEM calibration requirements with any limitations of their space.

Photo: Repairify Inc.

ADAS

a static calibration, which is done (while the vehicle is) stationary in a controlled indoor environment with proper lighting, space and levelness of flooring. Static calibrations also require the use of a professional scan tool, in addition to a calibration unit, such as the Launch X-431 Mobile Plus that adheres to OE standards and procedures.

Other equipment requirements that tire dealers need to have access to are TPMS diagnostic tools, alignment equipment and automotive informatics reference databases.

FRANK TERLEP, vice president of ADAS solutions at Auto Techcelerators, an Opus IVS company: It depends on what ADAS calibration/validation services they want to offer. I always recommend the first step for a tire dealer is to decide if they want to be in the ADAS

Frank Terlep says Opus IVS is unique in that it offers a complete end-to-end diagnostic, ADAS, calibration and validation solution with its DrivePro, ADAS MAP, Calibration CoPilot and Test Drive CoPilot platforms.

calibration/validation business. Once they decide they do want to be in that business, the next step is to decide what ADAS services they want to offer.

The equipment a tire dealer will need will depend on the ADAS services they decide to offer. Below is a list of basic equipment a tire dealer may need to offer ADAS calibration/validation services: alignment system; lift; ADAS targeting system(s); aftermarket diagnostic tool(s), which are usually available with targets; and OEM diagnostic tools or remote diagnostic service.

In addition to equipment, tire dealers will also need an invoicing and documentation system. Documentation is critical when it comes to ADAS calibration/validation services. There are repair order and repair order lines, pre- and post-repair/calibration reports, calibration results reports and post-calibration documentation from test drive results.

Pre-calibration documentation includes tire pressure, images of the vehicle’s four corners, images of the dashboard with the key on and doors closed and images of the empty trunk and full tank of gas.

CHRIS CHESNEY, vice president of training, Repairify Inc. dba asTech: Each shop, no matter the primary service they provide, needs to evaluate the ADAS calibrations they will most likely encounter and be responsible for. In the case of the typical tire dealer, the most common service associated with new tires is a four-wheel alignment. The effect that an alignment has on ADAS systems is dependent on the vehicle, but there are some common systems to be prepared to address. The equipment needed is going to depend on the systems you need to calibrate and the vehicles you will see in your shop. If you are going to align Toyota Camrys, then you will need to be able to calibrate sensors that affect automated emergency braking (AEB), lane keep assist (LKA), etc. If you are going to align GM Silverados, you’ll need to be able to perform the dynamic calibration associated with these forwardlooking sensors. The answer to what equipment tire dealers need requires some research into their car parc and services offered, along with the limitations of their facility or location.

MTD: Are there levels of ADAS service tire dealers can offer (for example, certain services with a lower-dollar investment and more advanced services with a higher-dollar investment?)

HARRIS (Hennessy): Dynamic calibrations for vehicles and systems that require it is a very low investment service to offer a customer after a windshield replacement, for example. In most cases, only a proper scan tool with the current updates is required.

Static calibrations typically take far more time to set up and complete, with many vehicles taking as long as a few hours to perform certain procedures.

Static calibrations require the most investment in equipment, floor space and labor hours to complete.

Haresh Gobin from LaunchTech says drivers can learn from alerts that they’re overcompensating in some situations, as well as warning lights that signal diagnostic trouble codes, that an ADAS technology isn’t working properly.

GERBER (Hunter): I wouldn’t describe it as levels — more like capabilities. Preparing yourself to do every possible calibration for every possible model would be a huge undertaking, but there’s no need to do that. Like any other procedure, you start small and work your way up as you gain experience. Begin with models you’re familiar with, learn how calibrations work and expand from there.

Many dynamic, or driving, calibrations can be done with aftermarket scan tools. Investing in one that’s focused on ADAS calibrations is a good starting point with a low cost. When your experience justifies taking on more business — and it will — you can purchase equipment that allows you to do static calibrations with fixtures and targets.

GOBIN (LaunchTech): The entry cost to fully service and accommodate ADAS on Euro, Asian and domestic vehicles is investing in a calibration unit package that comes with a variety of targets and accessories that will allow for static calibrations, in addition to a professional diagnostic scan tool.

The minimum requirement for a tire dealer would be a professional-level scan tool. In this case, they will be able to only address dynamic ADAS calibrations and ADAS pre-scan reports.

CHESNEY (Repairify): Tire dealers will encounter forward-facing sensor calibrations more than anything. These services will include static calibrations and dynamic calibrations depending on the vehicle. For static calibrations, the shop will need the OEM targets and fixtures to hold and position the target, along with the factory scan tool or access to a remote

Photo: Opus IVS

Photo: LaunchTech USA

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service provider, which uses the factory tool to activate the calibration once the target is placed.

For dynamic calibrations, the factory scan tool or a remote service provider using the factory tool is used to activate and direct the road test in a way that allows the vehicle to gather enough information to adjust the sensor properly. Prior to a dynamic road test, there may be additional adjustments to the sensor mounting bracket or measurement of sensor angles that will require the use of special levels, gauges or other specific tools or fixtures. All of this information is found in OEM service information.

MTD: Does ADAS require special considerations within a facility, such as size of space, environment, lighting, etc.?

HARRIS (Hennessy): Performing static ADAS calibrations does require a significant space be available for such procedures. A dedicated 50-foot-by-40-foot space that is clear of obstructions and clutter (and

has) a level floor is ideal. It is also important that the area be well-lit. Any shadows or glares that are cast on a target board, for instance, could prevent a calibration from being possible. A clean floor is also preferred, as many static proce dures do require markings and reference points be marked on the floor.

GERBER (Hunter): ADAS calibra tions have certain guidelines and requirements that are established by the OEMs. These can vary widely, but most are feasible for almost any size shop. A certain amount of space is required, but nowhere near as much as is commonly believed. Other requirements include things like a level surface, a certain degree of lighting, an unobstructed view without nearby distractions, etc., but again, these are usually not huge obstacles.

GOBIN (LaunchTech): Different manufacturers have varying space requirements. A space 40 feet by 20 feet (is) able to accomplish

Hennessy’s Kyle Harris says static calibrations typically require “a clean, fairly sterile” environment so the equipment doesn’t misread something while checking a vehicle’s sensors.

most ADAS front and rear calibrations. For forwardfacing camera calibrations, the minimum space is 32 feet by 16 feet.

CHESNEY (Repairify): Every ADAS calibration, static or dynamic, has specific space, environment, floor level, floor and wall color, etc. requirements outlined in service information. Tire dealers are typically limited in space and usually have a lot of clutter, such as hoists, tire

Photo: Hennessy Industries Inc.

MTD: Drivers often rely on their car drifting to one side to signal they need a standard wheel alignment. How will they know an ADAS component needs alignment/calibration? How can tire dealers help educate consumers and explain the need for ADAS calibration?

HARRIS (Hennessy): ADAS safety systems do not require routine calibration or attention. If a warning light is present or if a system appears to not be operating properly, it would be best to have it looked at by a professional. Tire dealers can communicate this to their customers by keeping an open dialogue with their customers every time they are in for service. These safety systems are important, just like tires, brakes and wipers, for safe vehicle operation.

GERBER (Hunter): Unless it’s a dashboard warning light, a driver would not necessarily know an ADAS component needs adjusting. They would need to rely on shops to alert them when calibrations are needed. Fortunately, this problem basically solves itself, since a calibration is usually called for any time an ADAS component is disturbed in any way, including when it’s a simple remove-and-replace. Many common procedures trigger a required ADAS calibration, such as a windshield replacement, bumper repairs and so forth.

GOBIN (LaunchTech): Drivers will be able to know if an ADAS system needs calibration by overcompensation alerts that are not functioning correctly, in addition to warning lights that denote diagnostic trouble codes.

TERLEP (Opus IVS): The short answer is the driver probably won’t. If an ADASequipped vehicle is drifting to one side, it may only need an alignment. It also may only need proper tire pressure in the tire. It may also be that the tires are mis-matched. The vehicle may also have suspension damage. It is important that the tire dealer still check for the basics.

Once the basics have been checked, then it is important to perform a proper test drive/drive cycle following OEM drive cycle procedures to ensure the ADAS operates as the OEMs state (it) should. If, after a proper drive cycle is performed the vehicle’s ADAS is still not performing properly, a calibration should be performed.

There are many different opportunities for tire dealers to educate and explain the

need for ADAS calibration/validation services. The most obvious time is when the consumer arrives at the tire dealership for an estimate or for service.

It is our recommendation (that) one of the first steps the tire dealer takes is to identify the systems on the vehicle and then inform/educate the consumer on those systems and why and how they need to be serviced, calibrated and validated, based on the service(s) the vehicle may need.

Tire dealers could utilize point-of-sale materials to educate consumers. If the tire dealer uses email marketing, this is a powerful tool for educating consumers. Like email marketing, social media is also a very powerful tool for educating consumers. In-shop educational ADAS clinics are another great way to show and tell why ADAS calibration/validation services are critically important.

CHESNEY (Repairify): The typical scenario at a tire dealership is when a customer purchases a new set of tires and a wheel alignment, where the steering angle sensor is adjusted to zero as required when thrust angle has been adjusted. Anytime the thrust angle has been adjusted or changed, the steering angle sensor must be adjusted to zero. And anytime the steering angle sensor is adjusted, the sensors that assume the steering angle sensor was at zero when they were last calibrated must be calibrated to the newest setting.

The argument is often made that if the last time the sensors were calibrated

and the steering and thrust angles were zero, and if over time the thrust angle changed, there isn’t a need to calibrate after a wheel alignment.

This is a risky assumption because there is no way to know when the last calibration took place and if the proper procedures were followed. If you don’t perform the required calibrations, you risk sending your customer out in a vehicle that reacts differently than they have become accustomed to. Most motorists get used to how their vehicle performs.

Not calibrating after an alignment can cause the vehicle to react differently, which the motorist may notice, but which may put them at risk when the technology is needed to avoid an accident.

It is important to spend some time with each customer to educate them about the ADAS on their vehicle.

The new car dealer most likely did not show them how these systems work and certainly didn’t share how tire services can affect their accuracy if not calibrated properly.

This means the tire dealer needs to educate their team to be able to have those conversations with their customers.

MTD: Is an ADAS alignment/calibration needed every time the wheels are aligned?

HARRIS (Hennessy): In most cases, making a minor adjustment to front toe does not require a complete ADAS recalibration. In the event of a collision

Hunter Engineering sees a growing opportunity for tire dealers to maximize their alignment systems and services by doing ADAS calibrations, too. “If they don’t take advantage of their opportunities, someone else surely will,” says Ryan Gerber, Hunter’s ADAS product specialist.

Photo: Hunter Engineering Co.

or if related components are repaired or replaced, it may be required to calibrate those affected systems. With that in mind, it is always best to follow OEM recommendations on what procedures are performed and when.

GERBER (Hunter): An alignment usually precedes an ADAS calibration, since if the wheels aren’t going straight, neither is the ADAS, which is not good. But a typical wheel alignment itself will not automatically trigger a calibration unless the components are somehow disturbed or the particular OEM requires it.

But the main thing with tire dealers is that they’re already doing alignments — hopefully as many per day as they possibly can. They may as well take the next step and begin doing calibrations, as well. Before long, every vehicle on the road will have sophisticated ADAS equipment that will require periodic calibrating. There’s a huge market that’s only going to grow and if they don’t take advantage of their opportunities, someone else surely will.

GOBIN (LaunchTech): Per most OE manufacturer’s recommendations, whenever a vehicle is aligned, an ADAS calibration is needed. The reason for this is (because) the suspension geometry is changed and the various systems need to adjust their distance and proximity algorithms to be in-sync with the new measurements. Additionally, ADAS calibrations are needed in other scenarios, such as whenever any repair is done, (like) shock replacement, brake replacement or suspension components.

TERLEP (Opus IVS): ADAS is an integral part of modern vehicles, offering features like lane departure warnings, adaptive cruise control, automatic emergency braking and more. Calibration of these systems is critical to ensuring their proper functioning, especially after certain vehicle service procedures.

Wheel alignment is one such procedure that might necessitate ADAS calibration.

Misalignment can affect the ADAS

Let the changer do the changing

sensors’ ability to accurately read the vehicle’s position on the road. Therefore, recalibration is often required to make sure that the systems are working correctly.

Several OEMs — at least 10 — recommend or even require ADAS calibration following wheel alignment, as it’s a best practice to maintain the correct functioning of these systems.

The requirements for ADAS calibration may vary between different makes and models and even between different years of the same model. Therefore, it’s always advisable to refer to the specific vehicle’s service manual or consult with the manufacturer directly to understand the precise requirements for ADAS calibration after a wheel alignment.

CHESNEY (Repairify): I think I illustrated this above, but essentially, if the thrust angle is changed and/or steering angle sensor is adjusted, then any ADAS sensor that assumes thrust angle is zero should be calibrated. ■

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Communication is the key to service advisor success

ADVISORS CONTROL THE CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE

By

Madison Gehring

When a customer first walks into a tire dealership, one of the first individuals he or she will meet is the company’s service advisor.

This initial meeting and conversation can set the precedent for how well your technician performs a requested service and how well taken care of your customer feels.

JT Nichols, CEO of Motion Tire Pros, a three-store dealership based in Elk City, Okla.; Solomon Till, vice president and partner at Elite Tire & Suspension, a twostore dealership in Sandpoint, Idaho; and Russ Welsh, senior vice president of retail operations, North America, for Monro Inc., discuss the importance of clear, concise communication by service advisors.

CLEAR, CONCISE AND COMPLETE

At Motion Tire Pros, the service advisor is responsible for getting all the information from a customer and their vehicle to build a work order and send it back to the technician, according to Nichols.

“Our work order is through a pointof-sale system and we have a specific section on it called ‘technician notes.’ In that section, service advisors will put any detailed services that we’re going to be doing and then they will include any special requirements or requests.”

Once that is completed, Nichols says the service advisor will print out the work order and physically highlight the technician notes section, so the notes are clearly visible to the technician who will perform the work.

“Before the vehicle is even pulled back to the bay, the technician and service advisor will get together and discuss everything on the ticket to make sure the notes are clearly understood,” he continues.

“In my opinion, communication is probably the most important aspect of everything we do. We operate by what we call the three Cs of communication — clear, concise and complete.”

The process is different at Elite Tire & Suspension, which is working on opening its third location, according to Till.

“There are seven total employees at each location and we are all 20 steps away from one another.”

Elite Tire & Suspension’s two current stores hit around $7 million in sales each year, so “at that level, you don’t necessarily need a designated service advisor.”

Instead, three of the dealership’s most experienced technicians are out front — diagnosing problems, quoting services and selling to customers, while adhering to what Till calls “IDC — inspect, document and communicate.

“That is the most important part. We always inspect and then we always docu-

ment and then we always, always communicate before spending anybody’s money.”

The best thing about having a smaller dealership, according to Till, is that it removes the potential breakdown in communication between advisor and technician because the same person who is taking the work order is the same person who services the vehicle.

Monro Inc., which has nearly 1,300 locations nationwide, uses a similar process, according to Welsh, who says there are usually two service advisors at the front of the store at each Monro location.

When a customer comes in, the advisor takes down the requests on a work order form at guest reception. (At some Monro pilot locations, this is done electronically.)

Monro Inc., which has nearly 1,300 locations nationwide, has the service advisor take down the customer’s requests on a work order form at guest reception to give to the technicians who will be servicing the vehicle.

Photo: Monro Inc.

“We educate guests on what we’re going to do for them that day by specifically starting with (Monro’s) Comfort Drive Inspection, which is basically a health check for their vehicle,” says Welsh. “The advisors will document concerns in the write-up and give it to the technicians.”

When a confusing or complicated situation arises, Welsh says the advisor will invite the technician to have a direct conversation with the guest.

“This is just to make sure that the team member (who is) actually working on the customer’s vehicle fully understands the concerns guests have. We want there to be no misinterpretations on what the guest is trying to convey.”

GOING THE EXTRA MILE

“At Monro, we do something we refer to as a quality double-check,” says Welsh. “When the repair work and courtesy inspection are done, one of the service advisors will go out to the vehicle and verify that everything sold was done and completed, along with the recommended services.”

This goes a long way toward making sure the customer is completely satisfied with their service, he notes.

Elite Tire & Suspension does something similar with pre-test drives and post-test drives.

“The advisor will do these test drives to make sure that whatever issue that was showing up in the pre-test drive is now solved in the post-test drive,” says Till.

Communication between service advisor and technician can also determine how much a service will cost in time, money and labor. “Good communication ensures that we’re not costing ourselves more than we should and it also helps us find ways to save money for the customers,” says Nichols.

Welsh says knowing exactly what needs to be done also is the best way to optimize efficiency. “We want to make sure we are using our working hours effectively. We don’t want our techs to be doing a job that did not need to be done in the first place. It wastes everyone’s time and money.”

THE RIGHT PERSON

According to Nichols, the first interaction between the customer and the service advisor will “immediately determine if the customer is going to have a good or bad experience.”

That’s why it’s important to have a person in this position who can communicate not only with the customer, but also with the technician, he says.

“The technician may throw out a lot more technical terms that an average person may not know. The advisor has to explain these things thoroughly in a way the customer can understand.”

He says tire dealers must be “very, very selective” in who they choose to hire for the service advisor position.

However, this doesn’t mean the service advisor needs a lot of technical background, according to Welsh. He believes being personable, outgoing and confident are traits that make a great service advisor.

“I can teach anyone how to sell,” says Welsh. “I can’t teach them how to be nice.” ■

How OBD II can help with tires

DIAGNOSTICS CAN PROVIDE TIRE CLUES

By

Madison Gehring

When thinking of OBD II, the most common thought is using information to solve engine issues and emissions problems. But how do OBD II diagnostics influence tire pressure monitoring systems (TPMS) and other tire-related services?

Officials from Autel U.S., Bosch Automotive Service Solutions, Opus IVS and Topdon USA explain how OBD II can optimize tire wear and overall vehicle health.

EDUCATE FIRST

“In general, explaining the diagnostic process to vehicle owners helps them understand and justify the costs associated with visits to the repair shop,” says John Amato, director of training, Autel.

He explains that diagnostic processes and services aren’t at the forefront of most customers’ minds, so it is important for tire dealers to bring them to their customers’ attention.

If a vehicle has been brought in for any service, Jim Fish, chief marketing officer, Opus IVS, says it is good practice to

scan the vehicle for possible issues. “The vehicle is already in the service bay, so it is easy to perform these scans,” which allows dealers to be proactive and ready for any upcoming issues the vehicle may have.

OBD II AND TIRES

According to Haakan Light, technical director at Topdon, OBD II “only requires vehicle manufacturers to provide diagnostic data and fault codes within the engine control systems for the purpose of emissions control compliance. Only engine control modules are mandatory.

“Engine control systems, by and large, do not generally communicate directly with TPMS systems for the purpose of flagging OBD II-specific fault codes.”

However, OBD II can help find the causes of tire issues.

“While OBD II diagnostics are not the main way to monitor tire pressure and overall tire health, it can still offer insight into certain issues that might indirectly affect tire wear, performance and overall vehicle health,” says Duane Watson, technical trainer for Bosch.

Because the OBD II and TPMS sensors are connected, a tire dealer is most likely already connecting to the OBD II port for the purpose of registering TPMS sensors, says Fish.

“From there, it is a simple click to ensure that all vehicle systems are operating as designed, including the vehicle’s tires.”

TOOLS TO HELP

Many TPMS tools utilize the OBD II port to capture information, but also to relearn, program or copy TPMS sensors.

Amato says that “within two minutes of the technician approaching the vehicle, the (Autel TS508WF) tool can display every aspect of the TPMS system including things like the presence of diagnostic trouble codes, improper wheel locations, mismatched sensor IDs and even sensor low battery conditions.”

Autel’s ITS600 tool can verify when tire pressure is low and the proper location of the affected tire is displayed on the dashboard, continues Amato.

Watson says the Bosch TPA 300 can address “trouble codes and allow diagnostics, as well as TPMS sensor programming

Bosch also offers advanced diagnostic scan tools like the Bosch ADS525X or ADS625X to give technicians access to advanced vehicle support scanning and live data for OE-level coverage.

Topdon’s TPMS tool, the TP 48, offers OBD II relearning procedures, according to Light, and is compatible with more than 20 aftermarket TPMS sensor brands.

Even with the right tools, it may still be difficult for techs to understand what is wrong with the customer’s vehicle.

“Opus IVS and their customers scan millions of vehicles each year with OE-level scanning capabilities,” says Fish. “Additionally, we offer live expert support by way of OEM master technicians. So we won’t only read the DTC in the vehicle, we can help the professional repair shop understand exactly what is wrong.” ■

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Drawing the right ‘spaghetti diagram’

YOU NEED A PROCESS — EVEN FOR OIL CHANGES AND TIRE ROTATIONS

By

Dennis McCarron

If you’re a store owner or manager, I would like to give you a homework assignment. Take out a clipboard, pen and paper and go out to your shop. Label one side of the piece of paper “bay door” and note some important pieces of equipment, like a toolbox or cart.

Now wait for an oil change job to come through the bay door. Trace the steps your technician takes throughout the entire process of the oil change — every movement. What you will have after the vehicle is pulled out will look like spaghetti.

If you nd yourself in this situation, I’d like you to do the unthinkable: give an oil change to your top technician. And draw the diagram again. It likely won’t look like spaghetti this time. ere will be fewer lines.

A seasoned technician knows about something the French call “mise en place.” It means “everything organized before starting the work.” In other words, you think about the tools and steps you are going to have to use and follow before you begin.

It also means having the necessary equipment or supplies close at hand, like oil catchers and lters.

When a technician prepares his or her workspace prior to getting the work done, it almost always gets done faster, more e ciently and with fewer mistakes.

Now, onto the second problem: the two di erent pieces of spaghetti. is means your shop has no process. Not only is this ine cient, but it’s also a liability.

In this scenario, a seasoned technician does an oil change the exact same way, every time. Why? So they don’t have to think about what’s next.

e same principle can be applied to a tire rotation. Does every technician start and end on the driver’s front tire? at’s the tire that can cause the most damage in the event of a wheel-o .

Lack of process o en isn’t the technician’s fault. ey either were never taught an o cial way to perform an oil change or tire rotation at your location or they’ve dri ed from the process and have been allowed to do it di erently for quite some time. Remember that your least-tenured, least-paid employee is handling some of the most expensive items to x if there is a mistake. Generally speaking, if your top technician makes a mistake, you have to replace a part. When the general service person makes a mistake, it gets more expensive.

If you do this once, it may show you the great amount of ine ciency — including wasted time and steps — in your oil change process. If you do it a second time, for the next oil change, and the spaghetti looks di erent, you have a bigger problem: you have no process.

Let’s tackle the rst problem.

Having an ine cient process wastes time. We all know the feeling, usually around 10 a.m. or 11 a.m., where we seem to get “backed up” with waiting customers. Service advisors start to get concerned. And when the phone rings, the stated wait time for a simple service like an oil change starts to get longer. e same goes for tire rotations.

At this point, you are likely losing out on service for that day. e customer will then call around to look for a shop that will quote a more acceptable time frame.

I also advise you to involve your best technicians in coming up with written procedures. You don’t have to list every little step. But the major milestones in an oil change, for example, should be written out so a newer technician knows how to do the job properly. (You can even make it a point of pride and show your customers what they are buying.)

Doing an oil change or replacing a tire isn’t the same as it was 15 or 20 years ago. ese jobs are much more complicated and if a mistake is made, much more costly to x. A er you create your dealership’s standard operating procedure, make sure your technicians learn it. And make sure you spot-check their adherence to it from time to time. ■

Dennis McCarron is a partner at Cardinal Brokers Inc., one of the leading brokers in the tire and automotive industry (www.cardinalbrokers.com.) To contact McCarron, email him at dennis@cardinalbrokers.com.

Does your diagram look like this?

Photo: 28947755 © Pixelrobot | Dreamstime.com

Mergers and Acquisitions

Bigger is not always better

THERE’S NO ‘SECRET SAUCE’ TO LARGE, STRATEGIC-BUYER RETAIL ACQUISITIONS

Michael McGregor By

IIt’s tempting for all of us who read MTD for news about some of these big tire and service retail acquisitions to think that the large players have some kind of magic formula or secret sauce that allows them to keep growing.

Large retailers definitely possess some strengths that some MTD readers don’t have, such as access to capital, stronger bargaining power with suppliers and widespread brand recognition.

But other than these, their larger size brings with it a whole host of other problems, the collective weight of which equalizes the playing fields. The upshot is, they’ll never be able to force you out of business.

The biggest problem that large acquirers face is employee retention. Having qualified people work the sales and repair process is the key to higher sales and profitability.

It baffles me how large acquirers can continue to do acquisition after acquisition while losing good people from the companies they acquire. I hear frequently how a lot of talented people leave a tire business after the large acquirers buy them.

The day I wrote this, for example, I learned that the new store manager at the tire store nearest my office just came over from NTB. He started looking for a new job the day the sale of NTB was announced. And invariably when I follow up with former clients after transactions, I hear that good store managers and lead technicians have left.

Smaller independent tire dealers tend to have more of a familylike atmosphere and many do a great job of making their companies an attractive place to work, resulting in far lower turnover.

With higher employee turnover comes instability within the store and some large retailers struggle to develop the finely tuned store team environments that deliver high levels of customer service and satisfaction.

Smaller retailers often provide a stable environment that delivers more attentive customer service and they have deep roots in their communities and stronger relationships with their customers.

Large retailers typically have structures and hierarchies that can slow decision-making. This bureaucratic nature sometimes can make it difficult to adapt quickly to changing market trends and consumer preferences.

Compounding this, decision-making is often centralized at corporate, when it really should be delegated to the field as much as possible. I heard from one client that sold to a large acquirer that simply hiring a tire buster required three layers of approvals and took up to two weeks. By that time, the installer had been hired elsewhere.

In some cases, large retailers can’t quickly adjust their pricing strategies and marketing in response to local market changes. And when it comes to integrating technology into their operations, large companies can be slower than their smaller competitors.

IT projects can take forever at big companies and often come in over budget. Smaller retailers can access numerous IT vendors with applications that they can plug and play into their systems and store processes far faster than larger players, in many cases.

Large acquirers often have higher rent in some acquired locations and certainly have higher overhead due to the size and scale of their operations. In contrast, smaller retailers often operate with lower overheads, which can give them higher profit margins.

Smaller tire dealers know their local markets very well and can make better location choices.

Large acquirers often buy problem locations. You can’t tell me that if someone buys 100 stores, that 20% or more of those aren’t dogs that might take years to fix, if they are at all fixable. The pressure to expand leads some large acquirers to make expensive, long-term commitments they’ll regret later.

There are a few notable exceptions, where big players can be viewed as having a secret sauce. Peter Drucker once said, “Culture eats strategy for breakfast.”

Les Schwab, with its high average store sales volumes and highly productive, long-term employees, has their culture as their secret sauce.

And in addition to a strong culture, the combined Discount Tire/Tire Rack might be one of the large players that has developed a secret sauce with its combined business model.

Last week, I called my nearby large-chain tire store to get my favorite brand of tires for my car. After a long hold time and then a fruitless tire search, the salesperson suggested I simply order the tires on Tire Rack and he’d install them.

I took his advice, but had them shipped to a Discount Tire that was on my drive home. The Tire Rack website was so easy to use and it linked me to a Discount Tire store to make an installation appointment, as well. The tires were received on time two days later and the people at Discount Tire had the tires on within 30 minutes of taking my keys.

The tire buying experience I had was seamless. Now I know why people love Tire Rack and Discount Tire. ■

Michael McGregor is a partner at Focus Investment Banking LLC (focusbankers.com/automotive/tire-and-service). He advises and assists multi-location tire dealers on mergers and acquisitions. For more information, contact him at michael.mcgregor@focusbankers.com.

‘Smaller retailers often provide a stable environment that delivers more attentive customer service.’

Dealer Development

Leave your happy place

WHY EMBRACING FEAR IS GOOD FOR BUSINESS

Randy O’Connor By

No matter how you define your happy place, you likely consider it refreshing, pleasant, agreeable, secure, cozy and safe. In a word, comfortable. Other than safety and security, comfort has long been identified as a primary human need. As a building block it’s more foundational to our needs than love, friendship, belonging, respect, strength, self-actualization and even freedom. It’s no wonder most of our daily decisions, conscious or not, are rooted in our need for comfort.

On the flip side of safety, security and comfort, we find fear. We associate fear

with risk, sometimes in paralyzing doses. So we go great lengths to avoid it.

Let’s say your hourly labor rate is $145. In the past three years, like most, you’ve seen your payroll percentage of gross profit increase and outpace your gross profit dollar percentage increase. You know your service is worth more and you need to pay your techs more to stay competitive in the labor market. You’ve done your homework by calling your competition and find you’re near or at the top of the range in your market. You think about it for a bit, but you don’t make a change. You’re worried that bumping your billable labor rate to $155 or

$165 (likely still too low in most parts of the country) could be a mistake. You’re afraid. The thought of making a bad decision makes your heart race. What if someone complains? You’d rather avoid the potential pushback than reap the benefits of getting paid fairly for the quality of your work. You leave it alone and move on. Welcome back to your happy place. That was a close one!

It’s a new day and business is good, but one of your techs shows up late, again. You’re backed up before you even get a chance to get ahead. This has been an ongoing issue, especially on Fridays. You think confronting the situation could slow you down even more. And what if the technician gets upset and leaves? What then? Find a new tech? Yeah, right. You creatively avoid the hard discussion, yet again. By midday, you get caught up and somehow all the stress created earlier in the day has dissipated. Welcome back to your happy place. Another near miss!

I see this sort of behavior in every meeting or training I facilitate. Labor rates, or some other pricing question, are the most common. Personnel management, or lack thereof, is next in line. Fear of the unknown overrides our ability to see the potential reward. We keep comfy in lieu of making the harder decision.

I want to reinforce the idea that “the only true risk is the risk not taken.” Why? Because I see fear everywhere in my interactions with owners and their teams. It is hands down the single biggest barrier to elevating performance.

I encourage you to bet on yourself. Trust that you can and will fix whatever might need fixing after the fact. Turn fear from a paralyzing agent into an adrenaline boost. Be bold, be different, be daring, take chances — and be happy. ■

Tire and auto industry veteran Randy O’Connor is the Owner/ Principal of D2D Development Group (Dealer to Dealer Development Group.) He can be reached at randy@d2ddevelopmentgroup.com. For more information, please visit www. d2ddevelopmentgroup.com.

By

When techs learn more, you earn more

SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL AUTOMOTIVE TECHNICAL SCHOOLS

Craig Van Batenburg

Do you know your local automotive technical high school teachers’ first and last names? What about the local community college’s automotive technology professor? If not, assuming they exist close to where you live and work, visit them.

Your new hires need to know more than tires and alignments. They need a solid background in automotive theory. But theory is about the least likely subject a young technician wants to study when they have just purchased their first car. They may be more excited to hit the open road than going to school. However, there are exceptions, as my company, Automotive Career Development Center, has found at our local technical high school.

My father, Raymond, let me work at his used car lot when I was a kid. Although he didn’t have a customer-facing repair shop, he did work on the cars he bought at the local auction. In many cases, they needed their seats redone, a rebuild of the engine or a fix of the transmission. I was holding the flashlight while my interest was heightened.

In 1969, the year I graduated from high school, going off to college to earn a degree in automotive technology was unheard of. Today, it makes more sense than ever as electric cars, hybrid cars and plug-in hybrid cars are gaining popularity. More consumers are realizing the benefits of these cars and trucks. If you have a degree — or a great formal education — you are typically better off when servicing these vehicles.

Helping your local school also is a way of giving back. As you get to know the teachers and students, create — or participate in — an internship program, with their guidance. Understanding new technology is so much easier for a technician when they have critical thinking skills and a good, basic understanding of electricity, electronics, hydraulics and more. You can help them do this.

I work with a company based in the Netherlands that offers virtual learning. (There are others, too.) COVID-19 taught us we can do more on the internet than we ever thought possible.

You may ask, “Is a high school diploma enough to succeed as a technician these days?” Many of us older technicians have a high school diploma. Do we have a college degree? Not many. Do you need one to be successful? Let’s define success. That is worthy of a few sentences. Webster defines success as “Favorable accomplishment or prosperity.” The successful technicians I know won’t say they are successful. Most are modest about their achievements. Some feel prosperity hasn’t been reached yet.

In today’s very high-tech auto repair world, an ASE Master with L1 is something to be proud of. An accredited automotive manager (AMM) is worth a bundle as a service writer or manager. But what about a college degree? Do technicians need one? Will it help them fix a car or run a repair shop?

I give young people advice at my training classes, as I am training more young people than ever before. What do I tell

them? A college degree is a must. Do it before you have a family, a home mortgage or get past 30. My older brother, Scott, went to Clark University in Worcester, Mass. He did well and went on to attend Stanford. I didn’t follow that road.

Did it matter? Yes. A college education would have helped me run my business more effectively. A college education would have added to my technical knowledge. I am proud to say that I was successful without a degree. I was at risk early on, as it was harder for me to operate my shop without the proper education. I did attend college when I was in my 30s, but did not graduate.

In today’s marketplace, a degree will help the average tech succeed. The brightest technicians won’t have much of a problem in college, so don’t dismiss college in their automotive career development. If you employ a younger person, talk about higher education. Offer them an incentive. Support your local schools. Parents would love to see their children looking at college as part of the repair industry. It will add credibility, status and a positive self-image.

As for us old cronies, cars and trucks were pretty simple decades ago. We may be playing some old eight-track tapes, but it’s time for the old-timers to sing a different tune. The world is moving faster and we need to properly train our service personnel and hire staff.

Be part of the highly educated repair industry. When your technicians learn more, you earn more. Support scholarship funds. Talk to your staff about furthering their education. It can only make everyone’s lives more successful. ■

Craig Van Batenburg is the CEO of Van Batenburg’s Garage Inc., dba Automotive Career Development Center (ACDC), which is based in Worcester, Mass. A 50-year automotive service industry veteran, Van Batenburg provides training for facilities that service—or want to service—electric and hybrid vehicles. For more information, see www.fixhybrid.com or email him at craig@fixhybrid.com.

If you employ a younger person, talk about higher education. Offer them an incentive. Support your local schools.

Photo: Automotive Career Development Center

All-season tire for SUVs and CUVs. This second-generation premium SUV and CUV all-season tire features an expanded size line up and delivers excellent wet braking, reduced noise, and snow performance. Equipped with exceptional tread life and engineered to be quiet and responsive, drive with confidence using our QuickView Indicators technology.

Focus on Industry

Nokian will double its U.S. production

FACTORY IS NOW BUILDING LIGHT TRUCK TIRES

By

Mike Manges

Nokian Tyres will double the annual production capacity at its Dayton, Tenn., plant by 2024 as part of its ongoing investment in the four-year-old facility.

The company is now manufacturing light truck tires at the plant, which runs 24/7, and recently added 125 people to the factory’s workforce, bringing its total head count to 475. (The majority of the hires serve as production operators. Others handle maintenance, quality, logistics and general administrative functions.)

“In Dayton, we exclusively make allseason and all-weather tires and now have the capability to make light truck tires here,” Wes Boling, Nokian’s senior communications manager, told attendees during a recent event at the plant. “We’re ramping up that volume.”

Products made at the factory include the all-season Nokian One, the all-weather Nokian WR G4 and the all-terrain Nokian Outpost line. (Nokian’s winter tires are made in Finland.)

“The Dayton factory enables us to tailor our product mix for the North American market,” said David Korda, the plant’s operations director, who is overseeing Nokian’s investment of employees and equipment at the facility.

“We have the ability to ask, ‘What does the North American customer need?’ And we’re able to now (meet those needs) because of our expanded volume.”

By 2027, the Dayton plant will make up 25% of Nokian’s annual global pro -

duction, according to company officials. Nokian’s plant in Finland will generate 35% and its recently announced plant in Romania, which is slated to begin production in 2025, will manufacture the rest of what’s projected to be a total global, annual output of around 15 million units.

This will “almost approximate the former level of production at our Russia facility,” said Boling.

Nokian no longer operates in Russia, where it had a plant that produced around 16 million tires a year. (Roughly half of that production was sold within Russia.)

Looking ahead, “here in Dayton, we have the capability to go up to eight million (units per year) and then up to 12 million, if we were to build onto” the factory’s existing footprint, said Korda.

In addition to investing in production, Nokian is building a new, 600,000-square-foot distribution center at the Dayton plant, which will be up and running next summer.

The warehouse will join Nokian’s network of nine distribution centers throughout the United States and Canada and will serve the company’s growing number of dealers in the Sun Belt.

“We’re right on the cusp of taking that next step” in North America, according to Korda. “And we’re making sure that we’re doing this in an organized, controlled way. The numbers will come and by the end of next year, we’ll be where we need to be.

“We’re taking a lot of time and energy to make sure we give dealers products that are of the highest standards.”

“The Dayton factory allows us to tailor our product mix for the North American market,” says David Korda, the plant’s operations director.

Photo: MTD

Nokian’s four-year-old plant in Dayton, Tenn., will produce as many as four million tires by 2024. The plant manufactured two million tires last year.

Photo: MTD

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ATEATAF9PLUS-17

Atlas AF9Plus-17 7.5HP

Commercial Compressor w/ Plus Package

■ Motor Running: 7.5 Horsepower

■ Tank Capacity: 80 Gallons

■ Overall Dimensions:

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ATEATAF13

Atlas AF13 13HP

Gas-Powered Air Compressor

■ Motor Running: 13 Horsepower

■ Tank Capacity: 30 Gallons

■ Overall Dimensions:

L 46” x W 19” x H 37”

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Toyo adds modern twist to training

TOOL HELPS ‘CONSTANTLY REINFORCE’ THE MESSAGE

Joy Kopcha By

When it comes to training tire dealers, Toyo Tire U.S.A. Corp. is looking to arm dealers with all the information they need to know about the company’s products. And in 2023, the tiremaker has made it a goal to do that in a fun, engaging way.

Enter mobile video games.

Toyo’s new T3+ Games on the Go training is a mobile-based platform that revolves around short bursts of information. With videos, games and quizzes the tiremaker is breaking down all the details

of its product o erings into small bites.

Wendy Nicolle, senior manager of product marketing and dealer support for Toyo, says T3+ is a complement to Toyo’s longstanding T3 training program, which o ers in-depth video lessons over a 20-minute span. ose sessions are designed for tire dealers to sit down in front of a desktop computer and focus on the speci c tire or topic at hand. ey’re housed in Toyo’s dealer portal, the same place dealers order tires and point-of-purchase materials.

But users typically take a training class once, pass a test and earn a certi cate, along with a rebate or rewards to redeem for Toyo merchandise.

Robert “Sonny” McDonald, Toyo’s senior national trainer, says, “It’s a nice thing to start with, but it’s like a one-anddone type of thing.”

McDonald says using a video game model and mobile technology opens the door to recurrent messaging. He says T3+ allows Toyo “to constantly reinforce our message. We didn’t want to be a one-anddone type of program.”

Nicolle says the site’s analytics show that’s what has happened with the T3 platform. “Once you learn all the modules, there’s really no reason to come back.”

She says T3+ is constantly evolving. New games are added each week and there are quarterly contests and a leaderboard showing those who have earned the most points. Toyo rewards the top 100 users every quarter with prizes.

McDonald says he thought about his own 22-year-old daughter as the team was creating the program. “If she can’t do something on her mobile phone and if it’s not short verse, she just won’t do it,” he says. “I hate to use the cliché, but it’s TicTok learning or Instagram learning — short bursts of one or two minutes. But we also want to make learning fun.”

In those small sessions, Toyo can break

Sonny McDonald says Toyo’s new T3+ mobile training gives the tiremaker an avenue to provide information more quickly to its customers and to solidify their expertise on the company’s products.

down the basics of a particular tire or even a broader category in a series of videos or a string of trivia questions. But it’s also “a good way for us to get our messages out quickly, because we can make these games on demand,” McDonald says.

at means Toyo can highlight stories from a weekend of o -road racing activities or other lifestyle events. “ is gives us a lot of exibility to reach our audience,” he says. And because it’s built on a mobile platform, it’s a exible resource for tire dealers, too. e T3+ platform is accessible 24 hours a day, seven days a week. at means a tire dealer or technician “on a lunch break can play a Toyo game and learn something about Toyo.”

REINFORCING THE TECHNICAL DETAILS

Just because the program is designed in a fun format doesn’t mean Toyo isn’t o ering serious information. Nicolle says there are games that cover consumer tires and commercial tires, as well as basics about the Toyo brand. ere also are games that cover technical details, such as:

• Load in ation tables;

• Speed ratings;

• Minimum replacement requirements for an OE tire, and;

• How to plus-size.

“ ese are things that Sonny teaches (in person) that we are able to teach on T3+,” Nicolle says. “ ose are critical bits of information.”

Photo: Toyo Tire U.S.A. Corp.

Toyo launched its new T3+ Games on the Go platform in May and within the fi rst two months attracted 1,200 players from around the country.

Photo: Toyo Tire U.S.A. Corp.

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Focus on Industry

And while the platform features a national leaderboard of players, Toyo can also assign a speci c game to all of the employees in a single dealership, or Nicolle says a training module can be o ered to an entire wholesale distributor, all the way down to a single store.

McDonald says one example of that kind of tailored training could revolve around Toyo’s winter products. Dealers in certain markets don’t need to brush up on winter tire speci cs, so Toyo could focus the reach of its winter T3+ games on tire dealers in appropriate markets.

“We can customize games to meet those dealers’ needs,” he says. “ at’s the beauty of this platform. We can build games on demand, on the go, anytime.”

Toyo can also monitor which questions are stumping users. Nicolle adds, “We have robust analytics that can show us where people are having trouble.”

Earlier this year, Toyo introduced its newest all-weather tire, the Celsius II, and Nicolle says the team noticed users were getting several of the questions for

that product wrong. ey agged that as “an opportunity to reinforce that as we head into fall.”

It’s also an opportunity to remind users of the full-length trainings available on Toyo’s T3 platform. She suspects users were failing because they hadn’t invested the time in the longer session. e two platforms are designed to reinforce each other and give users a well-rounded education on all things Toyo.

McDonald says Toyo is also watching when users play the Toyo games. In the rst quarter a er it was released, one player at the top of the leaderboard was spending three hours a day on the platform. But Toyo also noticed that “gameplay drops o on the weekends dramatically,” so the company started o ering extra points and a special badge to their “weekend warrior” players.

A er spending a year building the T3+ platform, the goal now is to make sure tire dealers and their sta s take advantage of all the tools built into it.

“We’re de nitely in growth mode,” McDonald says.

Toyo says the T3+ model is meant to complement the longer, in-depth sessions offered on the company’s traditional T3 platform.

Photo: Toyo Tire U.S.A. Corp.

Industry week preps for Las Vegas

AAPEX TRADE SHOW FLOOR IS SOLD-OUT

MTD Staff By

The 2023 editions of the Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) Show and Automotive Aftermarket Products Expo (AAPEX) are scheduled to open Oct. 31 in Las Vegas. Both combine trade shows along with many hours of educational seminars. As of late-August, almost 2,150 vendors had registered to exhibit at the SEMA Show, Oct. 31-Nov. 3, and the seminar agenda included 100 sessions throughout the week.

SEMA has also added a new ending to the show with SEMA Fest, a two-day outdoor festival at the Las Vegas Festival Grounds that will extend into the weekend following the events at the Las Vegas Convention Center. The Nov. 3-4 event is marketed as a “two-day celebration of motorsports, music and car culture,” and is designed for enthusiasts “who have long dreamed of being part of the SEMA experience.” It’s a mix of live music, drifting, motorsports, off-road demonstrations and ride-and-drive events. Festival attendees have the option of buying a ticket that also includes access to the SEMA Show on Friday.

AAPEX, to be held at the Venetian Expo, will open with a keynote breakfast and address on Oct. 31 by Earvin “Magic” Johnson. (Tickets are required to attend the keynote session and Johnson’s talk on “The Magic of Winning.”)

AAPEX organizers say the show floor is sold-out, with more than 2,400 exhibitors listed as participants, as of late-August. As a result of the sell-out, organizers say many of the expo’s featured product sections will be larger than previous years. The 2023 expo, Oct. 31-Nov. 2, also will highlight companies that offer products and services in the electric vehicle (EV) space. The Joe’s Garage section will feature 10 bays with working lifts for live product demonstrations, as ASE-certified technicians will work on a different vehicle in one of the bays each day.

AAPEX is also expanding its efforts to bring students to the event. For the first time, educators have the option to register their students and expose them to career options in the automotive aftermarket.

Both shows also offer their own mobile apps, which include helpful maps to navigate the spaces.

TIA HIGHLIGHTS

The Tire Industry Association (TIA) will host its customary events prior to the start of the Global Tire Expo at the SEMA Show, including a fundraising TopGolf event at 2 p.m. on Oct. 29. The next day features a slate of meetings, but the highlight is the nighttime Tire Industry Awards Ceremony. These events are complimentary and open to TIA members, as well as show attendees. But they are ticketed events, and reservations are required. Here’s a run-down of the Oct. 30 night-time details, which will be held at Planet Hollywood:

5-6:30 p.m. Tire Industry Honors Cocktail Reception

6:30-8 p.m. Tire Industry Honors Awards Ceremony

During the awards ceremony, TIA will induct two new members into the Tire Industry Hall of Fame: Richard Smallwood, the retired president and CEO of Sumitomo Rubber North America Inc., and Mary

Sikora, a scrap tire recycling advocate and publisher of the Scrap Tire News. (Read more about the honorees on page 8.)

The remainder of TIA’s events, including its daily educational sessions, will be held inside the Las Vegas Convention Center. The Global Tire Expo — Powered by TIA/SEMA Show is open daily 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., except on Nov. 3 when the show closes at 4 p.m.

Here’s a look at TIA’s educational agenda at the show:

Oct. 31

10-11 a.m. TPMS at 10: Lessons learned from the front lines of TPMS

10-11 a.m. Truck tires at 10: Service truck driver safety

2-3:30 p.m. Successful tire dealers share their secrets

Nov. 1

10-11 a.m. Tires at 10: Wheel installation and retention guidelines

10-11 a.m. Truck tires at 10: Total truck tire repair with TRMG

2-3:30 p.m. Management at 2: Employee engagement — the key to retention and development

With exhibitions both inside and outside the Las Vegas Convention Center, the SEMA Show brings together not just the tire industry, but the entire expanse of the automotive aftermarket.

Photo: SEMA Show

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Michelin launches Uniroyal Laredo HT and AT

Michelin North America Inc. has launched two new Uniroyal tires for trucks and SUVs: the Uniroyal Laredo HT and the Uniroyal Laredo AT. The Uniroyal Laredo HT is an all-season highway tire for light-duty pickup trucks and SUVs. The Uniroyal Laredo AT tire is an all-season tire that can accommodate both on- and off-road driving. The Laredo AT comes with a 55,000-mile warranty, while the Laredo HT has a 60,000-mile warranty. The tires are backed by a 45-day satisfaction guarantee and come in 66 size offerings between the two.

MICHELIN NORTH AMERICA INC.

www.uniroyaltires.com

Continental introduces General UHP tire

Continental Tire the Americas LLC has launched a new ultra-high performance tire within its General brand, the G-Max AS07. The all-season tire is for passenger and light truck vehicles and the G-Max AS07 is replacing the existing G-Max AS05 and Grabber UHP, combining them into one line. The G-Max AS07 fi ts wheels ranging from 16 inches to 24 inches in diameter and comes in 77 sizes. Key features of the tire include wet and dry braking; optimal snow traction; low road noise; and long-lasting treadwear, according to Continental officials.

CONTINENTAL TIRE THE AMERICAS LLC

www.generaltire.com

Goodyear expands Cooper lineup

Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. has unveiled the new Cooper Cobra Instinct, a hyper-responsive, high-performance tire that delivers decisive maneuvering. The Cobra Instinct combines all-season capabilities with sport performance. The new tire is available in 25 sizes for wheel diameters ranging from 17 inches to 20 inches. Features of the tire include a tread compound containing soybean oil for better grip and traction in cold weather; sweeping tread grooves to evacuate water; an asymmetrical tread pattern for traction and handling; a wheel protector; and a strong, lightweight design that helps with responsiveness. The tire’s sidewall features a snakeskin-inspired design.

GOODYEAR TIRE & RUBBER CO.

www.coopertire.com

Yokohama to unveil Advan Sport EV tire

Yokohama Rubber Co. Ltd. will introduce the Advan Sport EV, a new, ultra-high performance summer tire for electric vehicles (EVs), to overseas markets this fall. Tokyo, Japan-based Yokohama Rubber plans to offer the new tire in 16 sizes. The tire features technologies cultivated in Yokohama’s development of original equipment tires. One of those technologies is a compound to reduce tire rolling resistance, thereby expanding EV driving range. The Advan Sport EV also will be the fi rst Yokohama tire to bear the company’s new, proprietary “E+” mark, which will be on tires sold for use on electric vehicles.

YOKOHAMA TIRE CORP.

www.yokohamatire.com

Hennessy debuts basicmodel Maxx tire changer

Hennessy Industries Inc. has expanded the Coats Maxx tire changer line with the Maxx 50 tire changer. The Maxx 50 tire changer features key Maxx features but gives low-volume shops the ability to get a tire changer with only the essential tools they need. The Maxx tire changer platform now comes in four models in total: the Maxx 90, 80, 70 and now, the Maxx 50. Features of the Maxx 50 tire changer include the capability to handle wheels up to 24 inches in diameter, plus a dual nozzle bead sealing system that allows for a faster turnaround time.

HENNESSY INDUSTRIES INC.

www.coatscompany.com

Pirelli rolls out Scorpion MS tire

Pirelli Tire North America Inc. has launched the new Scorpion MS, a highperformance all-season tire created as original equipment for the latest generation of SUVs. The Scorpion MS is the heir to the Scorpion Verde All Season and Scorpion Zero All Season. Features of the new tire include a new formulation of polymer and resin for optimal grip and braking; sipes to enhance snow performance; a single- ply carcass that improves steering precision; and more.

PIRELLI TIRE NORTH AMERICA INC.

www.pirelli.com

TPMS: Infiniti Q50 – 2023

DESCRIPTION & OPERATION

A tire pressure sensor integrated with a valve is installed in each wheel and transmits a detected air pressure signal in the form of a radio wave. The radio signal is received by the remote keyless entry receiver (tire pressure receiver).

When the vehicle has reached a speed of 40 km/h (25 mph) or greater, the BCM (body control module) receives a signal transmitted from the tire pressure sensors installed in each wheel. If the BCM detects low tire pressure or a system malfunction, it sends a signal to the combination meter via CAN communication to illuminate the low tire pressure warning lamp. In addition, a warning message will be displayed in the information display.

TPMS RESET PROCEDURES

TPMS reset operation can set the present tire air content as a TPMS reference value. This procedure must be performed:

• After tire pressure adjustment,

• After tire or road wheel replacement, and

• After performing tire rotation.

1. Push the MENU button and touch “Settings” on the lower display.

2. Touch “Meter” or “Meter Setting.”

3. Touch “TPMS Setting.”

4. Touch “Tire Pressure Reset.”

5. When setting of Tire Pressure Reset, touch select “OK” or “NO.”

6. After resetting the TPMS, drive the vehicle at speeds above 25 km/h (16 mph).

NOTE: The TPMS settings are updated while driving. CAUTION: TPMS detects low tire pressure after this calibration. Before calibration finish, low tire warning lamp does not turn ON. (This is not broken.)

MEMORIZING THE TIRE PRESSURE SENSOR ID

WITH TIRE PRESSURE SENSOR ACTIVATION TOOL (J-45295-A)

1. Turn the ignition switch ON.

2. Using CONSULT, select “WORK SUPPORT” in AIR PRESSURE MONITOR. Then, select “ID REGIST.”

3. Select “Start” on “ID REGIST” screen.

4. Hold the tire pressure sensor activation tool (J-45295-A) against the side of the left front tire, near the valve stem.

5. With the tool held at a zero-to-15-degree angle to the tire, press and hold the tire pressure sensor activation tool button until the indicator lamp turns OFF (approximately 5 seconds).

6. Repeat steps four and five for the remaining tires in this order: right front, right rear and left rear.

TORQUE SPECIFICATIONS

7. When ID registration is complete, check the following pattern at each wheel.

After the ID registration procedure for all wheels is complete, press “End” on the CONSULT to finish ID registration.

WITH SIGNAL TECH II TOOL (J-50190) — WITH CONSULT

NOTE: The Signal Tech II must be updated with software version 1.1.48 or newer in order to perform the below procedures. The Signal Tech II software updates can only be downloaded from a CONSULT unit with ASIST. Other versions of ASIST will not show the updates.

1. Adjust the tire pressure for all tires to the recommended value.

2. Turn the ignition switch ON.

3. Using CONSULT, select “WORK SUPPORT” in AIR PRESSURE MONITOR. Then, select “ID REGIST.”

4. Select “Start” on “ID REGIST” screen.

5. Turn on the Signal Tech II tool (J-50190).

6. Hold the Signal Tech II against the side of the left front tire, near the valve stem.

2023 INFINITI Q50

Photo: INFINITI Division of Nissan North America

7. With the tool held at a 0 to 15 degree angle to the tire, select “Activate Sensor” from the main menu, then press and release the “OK” button to activate the sensor. Once the sensor is activated, the vehicle parking lamps will flash and the sensor ID will appear on the CONSULT screen.

8. Repeat steps six and seven for the remaining tires in this order: right front, right rear and left rear.

9. When ID registration is complete, check the pattern from the earlier table at each wheel.

10. Once all sensors are activated, select “End” to finish ID registration.

WITH SIGNAL TECH II TOOL (J-50190) — WITHOUT CONSULT

1. Adjust the tire pressure for all tires to the recommended value.

2. Turn on the Signal Tech II tool (J-50190) and select “TPMS Check” from the main menu.

3. Select vehicle model and year.

4. When prompted, hold the Signal Tech II against the side of the left front tire, near the valve stem.

5. With the tool held at a 0 to 15 degree angle to the tire, press and release the “OK” button to activate the sensor. Once the sensor is activated, the tool will sound a tone and the tire pressure will be displayed.

6. Repeat steps four and five for the remaining tires in this order: right front, right rear and left rear.

7. When prompted, connect the tool to the data link connector. The tool will connect to the TPMS, read the VIN, read sensor IDs and check for TPMS DTCs. Along with DTCs detected, one of the following will be displayed next to each wheel:

• N/A - Not applicable because no ID found by the tool;

• OK - Wheel and sensor are in original position;

• NEW - New ID found compared to TPMS;

• RT - Wheel has been rotated;

• Low Press - Low tire pressure.

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8. If no DTC is present or the repair has been completed, press the “OK” button to register the IDs and clear DTCs.

9. Print a Signal Tech II Audit Report for your records. Refer to the Signal Tech II User Guide for instructions.

TIRE PRESSURE SENSOR REMOVAL AND INSTALLATION REMOVAL

1. Remove tire assembly.

2. Remove valve cap, valve core and then deflate tire.

NOTE: If the tire is reused, apply a matching mark to the position of the tire road wheel valve hole for the purpose of wheel balance adjustment after installation.

3. Remove valve nut retaining tire pressure sensor and allow tire pressure sensor to fall into tire.

4. Use the tire changer and disengage the tire beads.

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2023 Winner Andrews Tire

TPMS

When

CAUTION: Verify that the tire pressure sensor is at the bottom of the tire while performing the above. Be sure not to damage the road wheel or tire pressure sensor.

5. Apply bead cream or an equivalent to the tire beads.

6. Set tire onto the tire changer turntable so that the tire pressure sensor inside the tire is located close to the road wheel valve hole.

7. Turn tire so that valve hole is at bottom and bounce so that tire pressure sensor (1) is near valve hole. Carefully li tire onto turntable and position valve hole (and tire pressure sensor) 270 degree from mounting/dismounting head (2).

CAUTION: Be sure not to damage the road wheel and tire pressure sensor.

8. Remove tire pressure sensor from tire.

9. Remove the grommet seal.

10. Remove valve stem.

INSTALLATION

CAUTION: Replace valve stem assembly if the valve stem has deformations, cracks, damage or corrosion.

1. Apply bead cream or an equivalent to the tire beads.

2. Install the tire inside beads onto the road wheel.

3. Install valve stem to tire pressure sensor.

4. Install grommet seal to the tire pres sure sensor assembly.

CAUTION:

• Never reuse grommet seal. Insert grommet seal all the way to the base.

5. Follow the procedure below and install the tire pressure sensor to the road wheel.

a) When valve stem assembly is replaced.

Hold the tire pressure sensor as shown and press it in the direction indicated by the arrows to ensure its contact with the wheel.

After placing the tire onto the tire changer, turn the tire so the sensor is near the valve hole (1), and then position the valve hole and sensor 270 degrees away from the machine’s mounting/demounting head (2).

1. Set valve stem in the tire pressure sensor.

2. Install the washer in the valve stem, and then install seal. (TYPE 2 only)

CAUTION:

• Check the direction of the seal. e cut part of washer becomes the center of the valve stem.

b) Check the condition of valve stem before installing tire pressure sensor to road wheel.

CAUTION: e base of valve stem must be positioned in the groove of the metal plate as shown.

c) Hold tire pressure sensor as shown and press the sensor in the direction shown by the arrows to bring it into absolute contact with road wheel. A er this, tighten valve nut to the specied torque.

CAUTION:

• Never reuse valve core and valve cap.

• Check that grommet seal is free of foreign matter.

• Check that grommet seal contacts horizontally with road wheel.

• Check again that the base of valve stem is positioned in the groove of the metal plate.

• Manually tighten valve nut all the

During installation, make sure the base of the valve stem (A) is positioned in the groove of the metal plate as

way to the wheel. (Never use a power tool to avoid impact.)

6. Set the tire onto the turntable so that the tire changer arm is at a position approximately 270 degrees from the tire pressure sensor.

CAUTION: Be sure that the arm does not contact the tire pressure sensor.

7. Install the tire outer side beads onto the road wheel. CAUTION: When installing, check that the tire does not turn together with the road wheel.

8. Check the tire pressure for all wheels and adjust to the specified value.

NOTE: Before adding air, align the tire with the position of the matching mark applied at the time of removal.

9. Install tire to the vehicle.

10. Perform tire pressure sensor ID registration. ■

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

Photo: Mitchell 1

shown.

Photo: Mitchell 1

Photo: Mitchell 1

memorizing the tire pressure sensor ID, hold the activation tool against the side of the tire, near the valve stem.

Photo: Mitchell 1

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