Drivers are often faced with dilemmas like punctured tyres or breakdowns.

Attempting to address the woes of those on the road, French tyre conglomerate Michelin yesterday announced the launch of a new service product in China called Sui Ni Xing, or "drive without worry."

The product, available in China within the next two years, is a package including services such as 24-hour roadside assistance, free tyre puncture repair, towing and warranty.

Each member is also given a free puncture repair coupon in case of an unexpected tyre emergency.

With the rising number of cars on the road, Chinese consumers are starting to demand more auto-related services.

Statistics show that most consumers have little knowledge about tyres, especially the 20 per cent of women drivers, according to Michelin. Many consumers base buying decisions on whether the tyre maker can provide professional services.

Emmanuel Ladent, marketing & sales director of Michelin China Passenger Car & Light Truck Tyres Replacement Market, is confident that the project will increase customers' loyalty to the Michelin brand.

"And it's also a help for us to strengthen our dealership networking," he said.

He said statistics indicate that the scale of China's tyre replacement market will triple in 10 years.

"So we also expect our dealership network to increase two to three times within the same period. This project is a way, but we still need to do other jobs to achieve it."

Currently in the launch phase of the new service, Michelin has covered 83 cities in 29 provinces and autonomous regions in China.

"Now we have investigated all our dealerships and half of them (around 1,000) meet our requirements. From next month, we will kick off 30 promotion and training conferences in different cities for our dealerships on this initiative," said Ladent.

Dealerships must pass Michelin's authentication to get the membership, he said.

Ladent said the launch of this project in the tyre replacement market did not mean Michelin would ignore the original equipment manufacture (OEM) market.

"Our OEM partners will not only use our tyres. If we take this initiative in the OEM market, other tyre suppliers maybe left behind."

Ladent also says the launch of the project reminds Chinese customers "they are always cared for, respected and deeply connected to Michelin."

"At the same time, it makes Michelin a unique tyre brand that offers the most comprehensive tyre services in this industry," he said.

(China Daily 03/22/2006 page10)