Sailun Tire Americas is looking to pick up more share in the rapidly growing rugged-terrain segment with the new Blackhawk Ridgecrawler R/T.
More than 40 Sailun customers from across the United States and Canada tested the recently introduced tire’s capabilities at an Aug. 14 ride-and-drive outside of Las Vegas. Nev.
During the event, Jamie McIntyre, Sailun’s senior vice president of sales, Canada, and product development, North America, told MTD that the tiremaker expects to see the R/T segment "grow substantially over the next several years.
“We've already seen in the R/T and A/T (all-terrain) segments a 9% increase" on a year-over-year basis.
Meanwhile, he says, "the M/T segment is starting to fall off a little bit."
Available in the United States in 40 sizes and fitting wheels ranging from 16 inches to 22 inches in diameter, the Blackhawk Ridgecrawler R/T has been engineered to deliver optimal off-road traction, as well as a quiet, comfortable ride, he added.
“When we designed this tire, we knew what it needed to be,” said McIntyre.
The Blackhawk RIdgecrawler R/T also is 3-Peak Mountain Snowflake (3PMS)-certified, pinned for studs and comes with a 45,000-mile warranty.
It’s manufactured at Sailun’s plant in Cambodia, which McIntyre describes as the firm’s “latest and greatest” and “most technologically advanced” manufacturing facility.
In the United States, the Blackhawk Ridgecrawler R/T is exclusively available through the Tire Alliance Groupe, while in Canada, the tire is available through OK Tire, which has more than 325 locations.
“Blackhawk is one of our core brands” and offers the same value proposition as Sailun’s other brands, said McIntyre.
“We’re trying to provide a tier-one tire at a value price,” he told MTD. “We’re not the cheapest (supplier) out there and we never will be.”
Sailun tries to position its products “20% to 30% cheaper than a flagship brand or the legacy brands that have been out there for a long time. We’ve found that's our sweet spot.”
Dealer feedback
"I was impressed with the performance" of the Blackhawk Ridgecrawler R/T, Justin Kinvig, owner of an OK Tire store in Pentickton, British Columbia, told MTD after driving on the tire for several hours.
Kinvig already sold a few sets of the Blackhawk Ridgecrawler R/T before the Aug. 14 ride-and-drive event and said customers have responded favorably. In fact, he revealed, “one came back and said, ‘Don’t be shy about selling this.’
“The tire looks nice and the fact it’s 3PMS-rated is a good selling point,” added Kinvig. “Not all R/T tires out there have that.”
He also likes the Blackhawk Ridgecrawler R/T’s price point.
“Where we live, a lot of guys run all-terrain tires on their trucks, so now we can offer a good, value-priced alternative.”
Matt Pope, sales representative for Mid-State Wholesale Tire, which is based in St. Joseph, Minn., told MTD he was impressed “with the (tire's) lack of slippage. The tire grabs and does what it’s supposed to.”
Pope believes the product will be an easy sell for both Mid-State Wholesale Tire and the distributor's customers.
“People want an aggressive-looking tire that isn’t a mud tire and won’t howl on the road. This looks like it will be a pretty quiet tire.”
"We're selling the Ridgecrawler R/T now," said Matt Leeper, vice president of sales and vendor relations at Tire Distributors of Georgia Inc.
Feedback from customers "has been all positive,” he noted.
