Hannover, spring 2004: Thanks to their excellent weather protection, scooters are practical, popular and well used vehicles even in the wet and cold season. Until now, a modern scooter tyre for just such conditions was sadly missing on the market. The new ContiNavigator is marked M+S, meaning it is suitable for the colder months of the year.

The wide variety of high-quality scooter tyres on offer from Continental in Hannover, Germany, received a boost last autumn, when ContiNavigator was presented. It is marked M+S, which in German stand for “Matsch und Schnee”, slush and snow, a denotation saying that the tyre is able to provide contact with the road surface even in adverse weather conditions.

Naturally, it is not the marking as such, that gives the tyre its grip. It is provided by a new compound method, which helps keep the tyre soft and yielding even at low temperatures. Design and manufacturing of this special tyre have profited from the combined know-how within the Continental AG. This is why the Navigator keeps contact with the road surface, long after other tyres have frozen stiff.

An important aspect is how the tyre deals with wet conditions during the colder season. Ability to deduct water from the contact surface and excellent grip are the prime qualities. The ContiNavigator is not only suitable for tarmac, but is also a nice companion for trips on dirt roads. An extra bonus are the excellent handling qualities, originating mainly from a special contour, achieved with the help of computer calculations to find the best behaviour.

For a very special mission, the Navigator will be equipped with spikes. The current ice-racing series Trophée Andros, having begun in December 2003, have had a special scooter class introduced in the popular FIA series for this winter. The motorcycles in the Trophée Andros use Conti TKC 80 and the cars are using either  special Conti or Viking tyres with spikes.

The following ContiNavigator sizes are currently available:

120/90-10 M/C 57L TL M+S

130/90-10 M/C 61L TL M+S

130/60-13 M/C 53P TL M+S

140/60-13 M/C 57P TL M+S

Soon available:

3.50-10 M/C 59J TL/TT M+S

100/80-10 M/C 58M TL M+S

100/90-10 M/C 56J TL/TT M+S

120/70-10 M/C 54L TL M+S

110/90-12 M/C 64P TL M+S

120/70-12 M/C 58P TL M+S

130/70-12 M/C 62P TL M+S

Further Continental scooter tyres:

ContiTwist - with a sporting thread pattern and modern technology for current scooters

Zippy 1 - a long-life tyre with excellent grip for sports scooters

Zippy 2 - extremely good handling qualities for Funduro Scooter

Zippy 3 - long-life and winter qualities for all-rounders and classic scooters.

LB and K62 - excellent steering and vehicle control, also available as white-walls.

Continental group is a leading provider of tyres, brake systems, suspension components, vehicle electronics and technical elastomers. Worldwide, the group in 2003 employed 69,000 people and achieved a turnover of 11.7 billion Euro.