Bridgestone Firestone North American Tire (BFNT) promoted Robert W. Handlos, currently the vice president of materials development, to vice president of product development, a newly created position for the company. Each of the product development groups located at BFNT’s Akron-based technical center will report to Handlos, as well as the Akron-based security function. He will also continue to have responsibility for the product development facilities located in Akron and the company’s race tire manufacturing plant, known as ATW.
Mark Mojica was hired by the Performance Automotive Group as vice president of sales and marketing. Mojica, formerly the director of performance sales for Rancho/Tenneco, has more than 21 years in the suspension business. Earlier this year, during the Off Road Impact trade show held in Anaheim, California, Mojica was part of a prestigious panel of suspension manufacturer representatives that discussed various issues on the off-road suspension industry.
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General Parts Inc. named Jerry Colley (left) executive vice president, Store Group, reporting directly to President O. Temple Sloan III. Colley was most recently the vice president of stores and senior vice president of customer satisfaction for AutoZone’s Memphis, Tennessee, headquarters. He was in charge of 3,000 stores and led the acquisitions of 108 Auto Palace stores, 90 Pep Boys Express stores and 500 Chief Auto Parts stores.
Agri-Cover Inc (ACI) launched a new company blog to provide customers and dealers with valuable and timely information and to create a new way to communicate with their customers. The blog features product information and announcements, contests, videos, tech tips and much more. ACI’s blog is available at http://blog.agricover.com.
Hyundai Motor America has teamed up with Rhys Millen Racing (RMR) to create the “Art of Speed” Genesis Coupe 2.0t show car that will be displayed at the Hyundai booth during the 2008 SEMA Show. The RMR Genesis Coupe will be the first of many Genesis Coupes to be modified by a multitude of tuner shops. This RMR-developed Genesis Coupe will be a fully functional racecar capable of putting the driver in the winner’s circle.
“The unique part of this project is that it will be moving art, which is why we named it the ‘Art of Speed,’” says Rhys Millen, professional race driver and founder of RMR. “The focus will be on the engine and a radical body design to complement the factory body lines. We are going to transform the Genesis Coupe into an apex-carving machine with jaw-dropping looks. We think it has the possibility of being one of the coolest cars at the Show.”
The RMR Genesis Coupe will be powered by a 2.0L DOHC inline four-cylinder engine with an RMR turbo kit. It will be equipped with a heavy-duty HKS sequential transmission and a K&W coil over suspension to put that additional power to the ground. These are just some of the planned mechanical modifications to turn the Genesis Coupe into a race car capable of running in the Pikes Pike Hill Climb, Formula D or Redline Time Attack series.
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“Art of Speed” Genesis Coupe |
The RMR Genesis Coupe will be outfitted in a silver and black paint scheme and dominated by a RMR wide body kit, functional hood scoop and carbon fiber wing. Enkei racing wheels and Bridgestone Potenza RE-01 tires surrounding Brembo brake calipers complete the package. Inside will be a racing cockpit with a Sparco steering wheel and seats, an eight-point roll cage and a RMR carbon-fiber dash.