Sailun Targets UHP All-Season, All-Terrain Segments

Sailun Tire Americas is taking aim at two high-volume segments with the launch of the Sailun Atrezzo SVA2 and the Sailun TerraMax AT2.

The Sailun Atrezzo SVA2 is an ultra-high performance (UHP) all-season tire. The Sailun TerraMax AT2 is an on/off-road light truck and SUV tire.

Sailun dealers and distributors pushed the performance boundaries of both products during the recent Sailun Traction Tour, a day-long ride-and-drive event held near Salt Lake City, Utah. (They also drove on the Sailun TerraMax RT, a light truck tire that has been in market for a few years.)

The Sailun Atrezzo SVA2 offers "superior traction, handling and stability,” according to Sailun officials.

The tire features a modern tread design with “optimized void arrangement” for enhanced wet grip and stability; an optimized contact patch that evenly distributes ground pressure, “enhancing traction and control;” an innovative tread pattern with additional tread blocks for noise minimization and road impact absorption; and more.

The Atrezzo SVA2, available now in the United States exclusively through TBC Corp. and National Tire Wholesale (NTW), will come in more than 50 sizes, ranging from 205/45R16 to 255/40R20. In Canada, the tire is available through multiple distributors.

The Sailun TerraMax AT2 also is exclusively available in the U.S. through TBC and NTW and can be purchased in Canada via multiple distributors.

The tire features an “aggressive, open shoulder tread design that is 3-Peak Mountain Snowflake-certified" for optimal water, slush, mud and snow expulsion. A center rib helps ensure ride control and a stable drive, while deep sipes “create additional tread surface” and enhanced traction. Protective sidewall biters “provide extra traction and help prolong the tire’s lifespan."

The Sailun TerraMax AT2 will be available in nearly 50 P-metric and LT sizes. 

Key updates 

When discussing target applications for the Sailun Atrezzo SVA2, Jared Lynch, vice president of sales, corporate accounts, PLT, North America, told MTD that “the Atrezzo SVA1, our previous product, did incredibly well for us. That one came out around 10 years ago and was mostly geared toward sedans.”

More recently, demand for SUVs and CUVs “has exploded. CUVs and SUVs today have very firm handling, firm suspensions and high horsepower. The consumers who are buying those vehicles are former sedan owners. We wanted to make sure when we came out with (the Atrezzo SVA2) that we had the right sizes for those customers.”

"We also focused on making sure staggered fitments are available that we didn’t have previously,” said Jack McClure, PLT segment manager, North America, Sailun.

"Another interesting dynamic that happened was five to 10 years ago, consumers looked at the value tier for their third or fourth tire replacement,” said Lynch. “Today, they’re looking to the value tier for their first replacement.”

When asked why Sailun is introducing an all-terrain (A/t) tire now, Lynch noted that while rugged-terrain is the fastest-growing segment in the light truck tire category, “the volume of A/T tires is significantly higher than R/T tires.

"When we updated to the TerraMax AT2, we spent a good amount of time focusing on making sure we improved in every single area. We wanted to make sure it was quieter and even more comfortable than the previous-generation (TerraMax) and from a traction and handling standpoint it’s superior.

"And then a very important aspect is aesthetics. We wanted to make sure we looked at what customers want from an aesthetic standpoint today and we updated the (tire’s) sidewalls to match. There’s still a massive market for A/Ts, so we made sure we incorporated the characteristics that consumers want.”

Lynch said both the TerraMax AT and Atrezzo SVA2 will be positioned as fourth-tier products. “We want to make sure we build top-tier quality and provide good value. That’s very important to us.”

Steve Taden, key account manager, NTW, told MTD during the Utah ride-and-drive that Sailun’s “quality, construction and engineering rival any tier-two (brand), any day of the week.”

After driving on the Atrezzo SVA2, Jeff Waters, senior brand manager for TBC, said the tire is "quiet, predictable ... (with) good, strong handling. And it looks good. Sailun does a really good job of (delivering) a clean, premium look. The 18-inch-plus UHP all-season market is exploding. UHP all-season is a massive market and it’s going to continue to grow.” 

Fast to market

Sailun is working on bringing new products to market faster, said Lynch. "Market dynamics change quickly nowadays. In the past, you could have three years to develop a new product and you pretty much would be guaranteed there wouldn’t be much market change.

"Now vehicles are being introduced much faster and (original equipment vehicle manufacturers) are making changes to vehicles more frequently,” forcing tiremakers to pick up the pace of new product development.