Continental Tire the Americas LLC has introduced the General AltiMAX RT45, which the company is positioning as "a long-lasting, all-season touring tire for passenger cars and crossovers."
The General AltiMAX RT45 replaces the General AltiMAX RT43 and offers many of the same performance benefits, plus "a 10% improvement in wear," according to Joe Maher, Continental product manager.
The General AltiMAX RT43 is available in 100 sizes and "we have kept the same sizing strategy" with the General AltiMAX RT45, said Maher.
The new tire will launch next month in 100 sizes. Thirty-six additional sizes will be added in September 2022, giving the General AltiMAX RT45 85% coverage of the passenger car and CUV segments.
"Most of the extension sizes are in the 18-inch and 19-inch category. We want to be ready for first replacement. We (also) have good volume in older sizes."
Specific performance benefits of the General AltiMAX RT45 include "reliable braking" on wet roads; "optimal traction in light snow;" long-lasting tread; "responsive handling on wet and dry roads;" low road noise; and more.
"We did not want to change the performance balance of the product," says Maher.
The styling of the General AltiMAX RT45 also "is very similar to its predecessor."
Maher says Continental has been "building inventory" of the new tire for "close to seven months. We should be in good supply of this product. We need to transition" from the General AltiMAX RT43 to the General AltiMAX RT45 "in a fashion that didn't cause a lot of back orders."
