Consumer tire shipments in the United States were up nearly two million units in 2011 compared to 2010. So says data from the 2012 Modern Tire Dealer Facts Issue.
Only replacement passenger tire shipments dropped year to year, and that wasn't by much -- from 198.7 million units in 2010 to 198 million units last year, or less than 1%. In contrast, original equipment passenger tire units were up 4%.
Replacement and OE light truck tire shipments were up 2.1% and 17.1%, respectively. Here is the consumer tire breakdown, in millions of units, from the soon-to-be published Facts Issue.
Passenger tires
Year Repl. OE
2011 198.0 36.0
2010 198.7 34.6
Light truck tires
Year Repl. OE
2011 28.6 4.1
2010 28.0 3.5
Medium and heavy truck tire shipments rose even higher: 13% and 56.6%, respectively.
The Rubber Manufacturers Association (RMA) will publish its preliminary shipment results in early February. To check out the RMA's early predictions, click here.
