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NEWS
Vehicle Owners Urged Not to Use Retreaded or Winter Tyres
NZ Coroner Calls for Snow Tyre Ban
Malaysian news agency Bernama reports that vehicle owners are being urged not to use retreaded tyres and winter tyres as several road accidents in the country have been found to involve tyre failure.
Pahang Road Transport Department (JPJ) director, Datuk Zakaria Man said even though at the moment there were no studies done to prove the two types of tyres contributed to accidents, their usage needed to be curtailed as several accidents were found involving retreaded tyres. "Retreaded tyres are popular because they are far cheaper than new tyres which have risen in price in tandem with the rise in rubber price in the world market lately," he told reporters after attending a JPJ Temerloh Hari Raya Aidilfitri open house meeting.
He said retreaded tyres were also likely to explode as the rubber layer was thinner when it was further retreaded to accommodate new treads.
"In the case of winter tyres, they are used tyres from abroad which are not suitable to local road conditions in terms of the surface and temperature which could result in a vehicle skidding," he said.
Asked to comment, Tai Qisheng, Goodway Rubber Head of Sales and Marketing said, "The tyre retreading industry is not a new industry and, in fact, it started some 70 years ago in Germany. Over the decades, technology has made tyre retreading popular among the transportation industry. Retreaded tyres are used across passenger cars, trucks, large earth moving equipments as well as commercial airplanes. Retreaded tyres are not only chosen by fleet operators for their economic value. Most advanced countries today are promoting the use of retreads for environmental reasons and some have even passed legislation for the use of retreads across governmental agency vehicles. This industry is also heavily promoted in some countries via various incentive schemes as part of efforts to conserve our environment.
Treads (or rubber pieces) that fall apart on the road, these may have come from a retreaded tyre or it
also may have come from a new tyre. Retreaded tyres are just like new tyres or any other products. There are those which are made in high quality and there are equally similar in the lower quality segment. The usage of high quality products would give you assurance of safety to not only drivers, but the general public.
We would like to invite the Director to visit our factory for a deeper understanding of our facilities and also at one of our fully quality certified Authorised Retreaders. He would be able to see how advanced these factories are and would also witness many tyres that come back to our factories that are retreaded more than once (explaining that these tyres, if retreaded properly, are even retreaded again and again). Retreading Business believes that it goes without saying that there is little or no place in hot climates such as Malaysia for winter tyres. We have been told by our contacts in Malaysia that Datuk Zakaria Man was referring only to car tyres and that the impact on retreading in Malaysia would be minor as there is only one car tyre retreader.
Perhaps this is one of those instances where a clarification from the retreaders about tyre pressures and overloading might well have been apposite.
In a move that sends out a mixed message, a New Zealand coroner has called for a total ban on snow tyres after a passenger in a car fitted with snow tyres was killed in an accident near Taumaranui. The differentiation between traditional old style snow tyres and modern winter tyres was not made.
Palmerston North coroner Tim Scott made the recommendation after findings from the inquest into the death of Taumaranui meat worker William Paul in August 2010.
Paul, 27, was a front seat passenger in a car fitted with snow tyres which slid on a corner on State Highway 4, 36 kilometres north of Taumaranui, and collided into the path of an oncoming courier van.
Neither speed or alcohol were considered causes of the crash. The road had been sprayed with calcium magnesium acetate (CMA) an hour before the accident to prevent ice forming on the road surface.
The driver of the car, Hayden Lefoe, told police his Toyota Corona was fitted with four snow tyres when he had bought it. Lefoe, who did not give evidence at the inquest, also told police he did not know a lot about snow tyres and presumed they were better on snow for driving.
Scott said most drivers' knowledge of snow tyres was limited and that they were not easy to recognise.
He said snow tyres were designed for cold roads in Japan and Europe, and not for normal winter driving conditions, except for ski field access roads.
Snow tyres provide less traction unless they are used on the road surfaces they are designed for. They decrease the vehicle's performance, instead providing an increased likelihood of skidding or sliding, Scott said.
However he failed to clarify that winter or cold weather tyres actually improve road safety.
In his finding Scott said snow tyres should be banned totally from vehicles warranted, or certified to operate and be used on New Zealand roads.
Scott also recommended it should be an offence to sell snow tyres, or drive a vehicle with snow tyres fitted.
He stopped short of recommending cars which are fitted with snow tyres be failed on a warrant of fitness.
"I have not made this recommendation lightly," he said. "There should be no exceptions to the ban."
This is a subject that retreaders operating in and selling into New Zealand might wish to seek clarification on. Is Mr. Scott referring to tyres designed solely for use on snow, or is he referring to the whole range of cold weather tyres that have been proven to save lives around the world?
Michigan Rep Tries to Tax Retreads
Michigan State Representative Douglas Geiss introduced a Bill on the 5th October that aimed to have the state tax $5 per retread. The funds raised to be used to clear the roads of "road alligators".
The Tire Retread & Repair Information Bureau (TRIB) already has been in contact with Representative Geiss' office.
"Once again, retreaded tyres are being blamed for all the rubber on the road," says David Stevens, managing director of TRIB. "It's doubly ironic because, one, the University of Michigan conducted a study concluding retreaded tyres were not the problem for roadside debris, and two, the bill plans to amend the Environmental Protection Act by damaging one of the most environmentally friendly
products around."
Harvey Brodsky of the RTA wrote to Geiss with the following, "We are writing to take strong objection to your proposed House Bill 5037, which we believe is ill advised and is probably based on faulty information regarding the true causes of tyre debris on Michigan highways. I have placed a call to your office and left a voice mail requesting that either you or one of your staff members return my call so what we can discuss in greater detail why we believe your bill is ill advised. Please do see that my call is returned.
There is ample evidence regarding the true cause of tyre debris on our highways – and the evidence is overwhelming that retreads are NOT the cause. There is even a
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) report published in December 2008, titled Commercial Medium Tire Debris Study Final Report, which dispels the myths that retreads are responsible for tyre debris on highways everywhere."
It is ironic, since the NHTSA has itself reported that debris comes equally from new and retread tyres, and the market mix is roughly 1:1, then such a tax would need to be placed on all tyre sales.
Also, since much debris will be from long haul truckers passing through the state, Michigan businesses would be put at an additional disadvantage of having to pay to clear up debris from out of state hauliers.
6 Retreading Business