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BTCC stars endorse Dunlop winter safety programme

By MJP Media | 6 November 2012

Gordon Shedden, Frank Wrathall and Rob Austin help British Touring Car Championship title sponsors Dunlop to launch their winter safety campaign at the Tamworth Snowdome.

A Honda Civic climbs the Tamworth Snowdome ski slope

BTCC champion Gordon Shedden was today joined by fellow touring car stars Frank Wrathall and Rob Austin at the Tamworth Snowdome in helping Dunlop to launch their new winter safety campaign including their latest weather-beating tyre: the Dunlop Wintersport 4D.

According to statistics, over 250,000 cars were damaged as a result of winter weather last year, many of which would have been saved if they had been running special winter tyres. In many parts of Europe it is a legal requirement to run winter tyres between October and March - something the politicians here are contemplating.

BTCC Champion Gordon Shedden (center), Frank Wrathall (right) and Rob Austin (left)

As Andy Marfleet of Dunlop explained, "Ordinary tyres start to lose their effectiveness at temperatures of less than 7 degrees C, and as Met Office data shows, the temperatures were lower than this on average for 5 consecutives months last winter. At these low temperatures the tyres lose their ability to grip properly and so acceleration, steering and grip are all compromised to a major degree. Winter tyres on the other hand have a very different rubber compound and tread pattern which actually works better at these low temperatures". And Dunlop should know: John Dunlop invented the pneumatic tyre some 125 years ago and the company celebrates this milestone next year.

As a demonstration of the effect of winter tyres, Dunlop took two identical Honda Civics and fitted one with a set of standard fit tyres and one with the new Wintersport 4Ds. They then attempted to drive the two cars up the indoor smooth snow ski slope at the Tamworth Snowdome. With such a steep slope it was not surprising that the ordinary tyres wouldn't even get a grip at the base of the slope. The Wintersport 4Ds however did an amazing job as the car was able to drive up to the top of the slope with no wheel-spin at all and then came back down the slope, performing immaculate emergency stops on the snow and ice. Looking at this, it is no wonder that every UK police force now changes to winter tyres at this time of year to protect their drivers and vehicles and many chose the Dunlop brand for these.

Frank Wrathall crashes out on the slope

As the recently crowned 2012 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship champion Gordon Shedden said: "Safety is paramount in motorsport, but should be out on the public roads too. These tyres prove why insurers are now very enthusiastic about people fitting them. They save you and your insurers money and could just save your life".

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