Popular Mechanics lauds Pirelli’s Sustainability and Green Performance Products

Pirelli is wrapping up a successful presence at SEMA 2009, achieving special notoriety for two all-new product lines launched at the exhibition.  The tire manufacturer has demonstrated once again that it is the industry leader for innovative, technological and environmentally sustainable products that perform for dealers and consumers alike.

This week’s show in Las Vegas drew the brightest minds and hottest products together in the global automotive aftermarket at the Las Vegas Convention Center. SEMA 2009 attracted more than 100,000 industry leaders from over 100 countries seeking potential to achieve greater profit opportunities in the automotive, truck and SUV markets.

Global Product Launches and Exhibition

“Pirelli’s global introduction of the Scorpion Verde All Season and the P Zero Trofeo, garnered much attention from the press as well as current and potential customers,” said Mauro Pessi, Pirelli Tire North America CEO.

“In addition to the new product launches and new fitments for existing product lines – Pirelli’s booth was a hub of activity at SEMA,” Pessi continued.

Highlighting Pirelli’s Green Performance initiative, the booth showcased the new Scorpion Verde All Season and P Zero Trofeo – two products that are building towards Pirelli’s goal of an increase in its global environmentally-responsible product range from 20% to 40% by 2011.  Volkswagen’s new Touareg TDI was outfitted with the new Scorpion Verde All Season – and the all-new VW Jetta TDI Cup Edition sedan was fitted with the new P Zero Trofeo, which showcased Pirelli’s commitment to environmentally conscious motoring while making no sacrifices in performance.

Pirelli’s heritage of high performance motoring was evident at both the indoor Pirelli booth in South Hall and the outdoor display – both showcasing the hottest cars of the show.  Inside, Pagani Automobili and Pirelli teamed-up to present the new Pagani Zonda R – a purpose-built carbon fiber race car with over 700 bhp, achieving 0-60 times in less than 2.7 seconds.  The Zonda R was a highlight of the show for most visitors, many of whom visited the booth multiple times to see the Italian hypercar and meet its designer and the owner/founder of Pagani Automobili, Horacio Pagani.

American muscle was represented in triplicate – with Terracuda – a Chip Foose designed vintage Plymouth Barracuda with huge Hemi power and huge Pirelli tires!  Flanking the Foose Terracuda were the two titans of today’s pony car wars, the Chevrolet Camaro RS, outfitted in Transformers livery, and the Spade Kreations Ford Mustang GT – a low slung, wide bodied and ultra-fast interpretation of the iconic muscle car.

“Nowhere else in the show was the meaning of ‘total performance’ more evident than in Pirelli’s booths,” said Tom Gravalos, Pirelli Tire North America’s Vice-President of Marketing, Motorsport and Media Relations,” With Pirelli’s new Green Performance initiative, the performance heritage  customers have come to expect from the leader in high performance tire applications now includes environmentally responsible products that deliver superior handling, braking, wet and dry performance in our Green Performance package.”

Popular Mechanics Editor’s Choice Award

Tuesday’s global launch and press conference of the Scorpion Verde All Season tire was followed by a special awards ceremony at the Venetian Casino and Hotel by Popular Mechanics Magazine. The team of automotive editors from Popular Mechanics recognized the Scorpion Verde All Season as one of the best new products at SEMA, and was recognized for “its outstanding achievement in new product design and innovation,” said Jim Meigs, Editor-in-Chief of the magazine.

SEMA Global Media Awards

In addition to the accolades received for the innovative Scorpion Verde All Season, Pirelli’s P Zero Trofeo, a D.O.T. approved race tire for enthusiast drivers was chosen for two SEMA Global Media Awards by a panel 28 judges from 16 global markets as one of the show’s best new products. Winning products are chosen based on the level of consumer appeal each will have in the journalists’ respective country.  Since 2004, the SEMA Global Media Awards Program has been a staple of the show, and involves bringing journalist from throughout the world to the SEMA Show with the purpose of identifying what new products are likely to succeed in their home countries.  The participating media representatives are from the industry’s top magazines and the editors are amongst the most respected in the world.

SEMA Design Awards

Pirelli supports automotive aftermarket suppliers, innovators and influencers – partnering with the hottest builders in the business to supply tires for the most exciting cars of the show.  Not only did the legendary Pagani Zonda R and Foose Terracuda cars come fitted with Pirellis, but dozens of vehicles constructed, tuned and redesigned from all corners of the country were outfitted with Pirelli tires – and several were recognized for their excellence at the show.

Ford Motor Company awarded Pirelli partner Mobsteel with its top design award for its work on the all-new Ford Taurus SHO – fitted with four 22” Pirelli P Zero Nero tires.  Another notable design award winner from Ford was Funkmaster Flex – whose Taurus SHO was also outfitted with Pirellis.

Mother’s, the pre-eminent manufacturer of auto waxes and cleaners recognized Pagani Automobili with their top design award for the Pagani Zonda R – and presented Horacio Pagani the award on Wednesday at a ceremony in the Convention Center.

Pirelli – Worldwide Leader in Sustainability

Much of the attention garnered at this year’s show was brought upon by Pirelli’s approach to green performance and its position as a world leader in sustainability is recognized globally.  In the Dow Jones Sustainability Indices, Pirelli leads the Auto Parts and Tire Sector for the third year in a row in sustainability, and was confirmed in the twice-yearly review of Financial Times’ sustainability indices for seven consecutive years.  In 2009, the Pirelli Group improved by 11% to a global rating of 88%, in a segment that averages 48%. These ratings come in part because of the efficiencies in production processes and in lowering energy consumption.  Pirelli’s Eco-Sustainability strategy resulted in its lowering of water consumption levels 12.7%, energy consumption 9.2%, and both its CO2 and NOx emissions by 8.9 and 14.9% respectively over the last four years.  These statistics in particular were central in the decision by the Editors of Popular Mechanics to award Pirelli for its efforts in Environmental Sustainability.

Pirelli Tire North America designs, develops, manufactures and markets tires for passenger vehicles in both the original equipment and replacement markets as well as markets and distributes tires for motorcycle and motorsports. Located in Rome, Georgia, Pirelli’s Modular Integrated Robotized System (MIRS) employs state-of-the-art technology to manufacture tires for both export and domestic markets.  For more information please visit www.us.pirelli.com.