Gentyre Pty Ltd. then - The General Tyre and Rubber Company (SA) Pty Ltd - was established in 1947 by the Williams Hunt Group, South Africa, and General Tyres International in Akron, Ohio.

The manufacturing facility was built in Port Elizabeth in 1948 and by the end of 1950, tyres, tubes and repair materials were being sold in South Africa, the Rhodesias (now Zambia and Zimbabwe), Nyasaland (Malawi) and South West Africa (Namibia).

The Company continued to expand through the 1950s and in the early 1960s General steelbelted radial ply tyres were introduced in the market.

In 1978, General Tyre in South Africa concluded a technical service agreement with Continental AG in Germany - the first formal association between the two companies - which gave the Company access to the technology required to build high performance steelbelt radial ply tyres in South Africa.

In 1985, the association was further consolidated when Continental in Germany approved the production of Continental branded products by General Tyre at its factory in Port Elizabeth.

Continental tyres were launched in South Africa in 1986 and quickly achieved success in both the original equipment and replacement markets.

Internationally, the 1987 acquisition of General Tyre USA by Continental AG, further reinforced the association between the Continental and General brands in South Africa and helped create new product opportunities.

A major milestone for General Tyre in South Africa - and an important acknowledgement of the companys technical capability - was the approval for Continental branding of a range of South African designed and developed recreational vehicle (RV) tyres - which had previously been marketed as General branded products.

The General Tyre and Rubber Company also introduced Continental commercial steelbelted radial ply tyres - where they have been particularly well received in the uniquely South African minibus taxi market. Limited numbers of imported Continental heavy truck tyres have been introduced in South Africa and exciting opportunities exist for the local manufacture of these and other giant truck tyres.

Offering outstanding tyre life and excellent value for money, General branded products remain a South African favourite and have a high level of acceptance in other Southern African markets.

In 1994, the General Sportiva range of steelbelted radial ply tyres, based on a highly successful European design, was launched in South Africa at the upper end of the economy segment of the market and has set new standards for General in the domestic passenger tyre market as a tyre offering modern features and affordable all-round performance.

General crossply and radial ply light and heavy truck tyres have a long-established reputation in South Africa as dependable, durable, hard-working tyres and are found in every industrial, commercial, building and haulage application.

South African agriculture as well as the mining and logging industries are extensively supplied with locally manufactured General tyres. As with all Gentyre products, these are backed by comprehensive after-sales, service and technical support from the factory and by a nationwide dealer and field service network.

Investment

Over the past four years, Continental Tyre SA has invested over R200 million in the modernisation and upgrading of its research, development and manufacturing facilities. The Company now has the only holographic tyre inspection facility in the Southern Hemisphere and manufactures exceptionally high quality products which meet the exacting construction and uniformity requirements of its overseas technology parents. Most recently, programmes have been implemented to further streamline production and optimise factory utilisation as the Company prepares to become an increasingly competitive supplier to domestic and export markets.

Leading Technology

Continental Tyre SA has achieved notable success through Continental in the original equipment market - particularly in the high performance passenger tyre categories. With an overwhelming dominance of production car racing in South Africa, Continental became highly visible as a leading performance tyre - and three leading motor manufacturers chose Continental tyres to establish nearly every South African speed and endurance record over the

past 6 years.

Reaffirming its performance heritage, Continental introduced the first locally manufactured Z-speed rated tyre in South Africa in 1992. In the same year, they also introduced the first high performance 16-inch tyre - the 205/55ZR16 CZ90. In 1994, Continental again asserted its position at the forefront of leading edge technology in South Africa with the introduction of the first locally manufactured 17-inch tyre - the 235/40ZR17 CZ90 - fitted as original equipment on the BMW M3 sports coupe.

Continental tyres are now approved as original equipment on all leading South African manufactured high performance saloons and sports hatchbacks -manufactured by BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen, Opel, Toyota, Nissan, Mazda and Ford.