Dunlop Snags 2 Prizes at SEMA · 11/07/2006
Dunlop walked away from the Specialty Equipment Market Association fall 2006 show in Los Angeles today with two prizes for its new Direzza Sport Z1 “extreme performance” tires. Introduced at the SEMA show, the Direzza Sport Z1 tire was designed for “maximum dry-weather traction on the street or at the track,” according to Dunlop executive Silvana Valencic. In a statement, Dunlop said, “A wide profile, robust construction, and stiff tread blocks combined with wavy circumferential grooves deliver consistent contact with the road and high grip during cornering.” The new tire won awards from Australia’s Hot 4s & Performance Cars and Greece’s Option Press.
Targeted, not surprisingly, at drifting (“the art of sliding one’s car in a controlled half-sideways position through a tight turn,” according to The Fast and the Furious), on-track, and autocross racing, the tire comes in 17 different sizes—but don’t hold your breath, as it isn’t yet available in the United States. Street ETA here: April or May 2007, according to Dunlop.
But the new Direzza wasn’t the only splash at Dunlop’s booth, which also featured Hot Import Nights’ new NightShift show, with its “pulse-quickening…music, videos, and models.” Dunlop was also offering “treadhead” haircuts after the tread pattern of its best-selling Direzza DZ101 tires. Wish I had one of those. Uh, not.
— Rim & Tire Wholesalers
