Goodyear Tire & Rubber will fly its iconic blimp over more than 100 cities across North America and Europe this year to celebrate the airship’s centennial, expanding beyond its traditional sports coverage to music festivals and cultural events.

The tyre maker announced the tour at the Rose Bowl game in Pasadena, California, where the blimp first provided aerial coverage 70 years ago. The company will also offer rare passenger flights through a consumer sweepstakes running through 10 April.

“Only 0.0006 percent of Americans have flown in the Goodyear Blimp,” the Akron, Ohio-based company said in a statement. Three winners will receive flights for two people at their choice of bases in Carson, California, Pompano Beach, Florida, or Akron, along with USD 3,000 travel vouchers.

“The Goodyear Blimp” is an enduring symbol of nostalgia and innovation for fans worldwide. With its century-long history and unique ability to instil a sense of wonder in those who experience it – whether from on the ground or in the air, the blimp gives Goodyear a way to connect with the public in a way no other tyre company can match,” said Mark Stewart, CEO and President of Goodyear.

The first Goodyear Blimp, named Pilgrim, took flight in 1925. Since then, the airships have become fixtures at major sporting events, including the Olympics and the first Super Bowl. During World War II, the company’s blimps aided US military efforts.

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Scandinavian Enviro Systems AB (publ) has adopted a revised reorganisation plan proposal, including a debt settlement, as it continues through company reorganisation proceedings that began on 27 February 2026. The new proposal supersedes the version published on 26 August 2026 and centres chiefly on reclassifying affected parties into groups. The reorganisation, initiated by a Gothenburg District Court decision, has been extended twice, most recently until 27 November 2026.

The earlier plan was circulated to affected parties in late August, and feedback received since then, together with the Company's own deliberations, prompted the revised submission. Under the new classification, five groups remain, but the former Group A – comprising creditors asserting a right of retention – has been removed, with those creditors moved into the non-preferential category. Group A now contains only the Company's auditor, PwC, whose statutory audit claim is treated as preferential and slated for full payment. Enviro has asked the retention-asserting creditors to substantiate their rights without success, and it considers preferential treatment unwarranted, especially as the property concerned holds no going-concern value for the Company.

The settlement terms for remaining creditors are untouched: public-law claimants and non-related non-preferential creditors are offered 30 percent, while related creditors receive nothing. Payments fall due within three months of the plan gaining final, non-appealable status, though disputed claims await final resolution or binding settlement. Financing comes from a convertible loan and warrants arrangement concluded with Nordic Restructuring and Growth Capital 1 on 26 August 2026, with SEK 35 million earmarked for the settlement as new financing carrying a general right of priority.

The revisions aim to produce a grouping that accurately mirrors creditors' legal standing, thereby yielding a plan capable of adoption by affected parties and confirmation by the district court. The revised proposal will accompany the reorganisation administrator's report when sent to affected parties, and Enviro plans to seek plan proceedings shortly, at which point voting will take place. The full revised plan will be available on the company website.

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Giti Tire has secured a Guinness World Records title for the highest speed achieved by electric vehicle tyres, following a run in which its specially engineered GitiSport e.GTR2 Pro tyres reached 503.17 kmph (312.65 mph). The record was set on 1 November 2026 on a specially secured section of the Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed International Road (E11) in Abu Dhabi’s Al Dhafra Region, surpassing the previous benchmark of 496.22 kmph set at ATP Papenburg in Germany in September 2025.

The achievement was marked on 6 November 2026 at a ‘Celebration of Speed’ event at Burj Khalifa in Dubai, where Dr Enki Tan, Executive Chairman of Giti Tire Group, received the official Guinness World Records certificate. German professional racing driver Marc Basseng drove the YANGWANG U9 Xtreme during the record-setting attempt.

The GitiSport e.GTR2 Pro resulted from more than three years of collaborative development, engineering innovation and rigorous testing. Designed to withstand the extreme forces of an electric hypercar producing over 3,000 PS, the bespoke tyre features high-strength aramid fibre reinforcement and a specialised racing profile. Giti’s engineers worked closely with YANGWANG and Basseng throughout the programme, refining performance according to vehicle dynamics, aerodynamic changes and driving feedback, and further optimised the tyres for the Abu Dhabi highway conditions with critical technical support.

For Giti Tire, the title reflects the strength of its international research and development network, technical expertise and ability to collaborate with leading manufacturers on demanding projects. With 75 years of tyre manufacturing experience and a presence in more than 130 countries, the company continues advancing engineering capabilities across passenger car, commercial vehicle and high-performance tyres. Its expertise is recognised through extensive Original Equipment partnerships, and lessons from extreme-speed projects contribute to wider development priorities including braking, handling, comfort, efficiency and durability.

Basseng said, “When you're pushing the limits of speed, confidence is everything. Having worked closely with Giti's engineers throughout this journey, I've developed tremendous trust in their expertise, dedication and attention to detail. Knowing that every detail had been carefully tested, checked and prepared gave me the confidence to focus entirely on driving and push beyond what we had previously achieved.”

Dr Tan said, “This will be marked as a true Milestone in Automotive history, going beyond 500kmph in an electric vehicle is an industry game changer. Giti and YANGWANG have together pushed beyond the limits of technology to attain the ‘Highest Speed Achieved by Electric Vehicle Tires’. This achievement is a testament to innovation, dedication and the relentless pursuit of excellence demonstrated by our global research and development teams. We engineer tyres that perform under the most extreme conditions. Beyond setting records, this partnership reinforces our commitment to advancing tyre technology, delivering innovative solutions for the evolving automotive industry and inspiring greater confidence in the Giti brand among vehicle manufacturers and motorists worldwide.”

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Tyres Europe has issued a statement clarifying that recycled content targets under the End-of-Life Vehicles Regulation (ELVR), adopted on 8 July 2026, should apply only to materials expressly covered by the regulation, particularly plastics in vehicles. The organisation argues these targets must not be interpreted as extending to tyres or any material used in their construction. Tyres are bonded composites of rubber compounds, structural textiles and steel cords, and the statement examines each material individually.

On rubber, Article 6(3) of the ELVR explicitly excludes rubber materials used in tyres from plastic recycled content targets. For textiles, Tyres Europe considers those from tyres or other vehicle components to fall outside the scope of plastic recycled content targets, noting that plastics and textiles are regulated under separate legislation with their own definitions even when made from the same base polymer. Steel reinforcement in tyres is explicitly excluded from the delegated act on recycled steel foreseen under Article 6(7).

The organisation warns that bringing tyre materials into the ELVR would create regulatory overlap. Tyres are already a priority product group in the ESPR 2025-2030 working plan, with Ecodesign criteria work ongoing and a Delegated Act foreseen by the end of 2027. Tyres Europe maintains that ESPR is the appropriate tool for assessing recycled content, recyclability, information requirements and other sustainability criteria for all tyre materials. The full statement is available on the Tyres Europe website.

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Vredestein, a brand of Apollo Tyres Ltd, has been ranked joint second among the best all-season tyre manufacturers in Auto Bild’s 2026 manufacturer rankings. The German automotive publication’s recognition follows several ‘Exemplary’ ratings earned by Vredestein all-season products in independent tests. Auto Bild’s annual manufacturer rankings assess brands across three categories: summer, winter and all-season tyres.

The brand’s all-season heritage dates to 1993, when it launched the Quatrac as the segment was still emerging. In 2019, Vredestein expanded the range with the Quatrac Pro, designed specifically for high-performance vehicles. The Quatrac Pro 2, introduced earlier this year, succeeded the original Pro as the high-performance flagship of the all-season lineup. It carries an ‘A’ rating for wet grip and is offered in sizes for 17- to 24-inch rims.

In Auto Bild’s recent all-season tyre test, the Quatrac Pro 2 achieved the best overall snow performance and the second-shortest wet braking distance, securing second place overall. In a separate Auto Bild Allrad assessment, the tyre was praised for strong snow capability, the shortest wet braking distance and solid results across other wet criteria, earning second place in a highly competitive test. The latest honour adds to other independent recognition, including a ‘Very good’ rating and a price-performance recommendation for the Quatrac in Auto Moto und Sport’s recent test of ten all-season tyres.

Yves Pouliquen, Vice President, Commercial (Europe, Middle East & Africa), Apollo Tyres Ltd, said, “When Vredestein began developing all-season tyres in 1993, the aim was to give drivers confidence in one set of tyres throughout the year. With the Quatrac Pro 2, we have extended that approach to drivers who also expect the precise handling of an ultra-high-performance tyre. We are proud to see our work on this product and our wider all-season portfolio recognised in Auto Bild’s annual ranking.”

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