Hoosier History
Hoosier History
The history of Hoosier Racing Tire is one of an American Dream come true for two young Indiana entrepreneurs who turned a personal vision into a reality.
It began in the early 1950's when Bob Newton, along with his supportive wife Joyce, began a successful racing career on the small asphalt tracks of northern Indiana. Bob, like many of his fellow drivers, was not satisfied with driving on street tyres with their limited sizing options and hard tread compounds. It was during these early days that Bob had a vision to produce his own tyres specifically designed for racing.
In 1957, Bob and Joyce decided to begin producing their own race tyres by re-treading street tyres with softer compounds. They began their business in an old abandoned horse barn in South Bend, Indiana, selling their tyres to local racers. The Hoosier name was chosen for their company to reflect the origin of Bob's racing roots on the short tracks of the Midwest.
The purple colour that embodies the Hoosier Tire brand today came from the colour of Bob’s first race car.
In 1988 Hoosier Tire tackled a huge milestone entering the NASCAR Winston Cup Series (currently Monster Energy). In the first year, Hoosier went on to capture nine victories while getting their marquee win at the Dayona 500 in 1989.
In 1992 Hoosier took another bold step and decided to build its second tyre plant in preparation for the company's return to NASCAR's Winston Cup series. This tyre plant was solely devoted to the manufacture of tubeless radial race tyres to run on tracks at speeds in excess of 200 mph.
The turn of the century also saw Hoosier Tire complete a massive multi-year plant consolidation and upgrade programme which brought all operations together into one sprawling complex.
On October 4, 2016 Hoosier Racing Tire was purchased by Continental Tire.
Today, Hoosier Racing Tire is the largest race tyre manufacturer in the world. Hoosier has grown to produce over 1000 different types of race tyres. The company has its own 300-mph test wheel; a technology centre; state-of-the-art, fully-integrated production facilities recently adding a high-tech mixing plant, with enough capacity to produce not only for Hoosier Racing Tire, but to have the ability to produce rubber for additional entities as well as a model sales and distribution network.
With hundreds of race winners crowned annually we truly are "TIRES DESIGNED FOR CHAMPIONS".
It began in the early 1950's when Bob Newton, along with his supportive wife Joyce, began a successful racing career on the small asphalt tracks of northern Indiana. Bob, like many of his fellow drivers, was not satisfied with driving on street tyres with their limited sizing options and hard tread compounds. It was during these early days that Bob had a vision to produce his own tyres specifically designed for racing.
In 1957, Bob and Joyce decided to begin producing their own race tyres by re-treading street tyres with softer compounds. They began their business in an old abandoned horse barn in South Bend, Indiana, selling their tyres to local racers. The Hoosier name was chosen for their company to reflect the origin of Bob's racing roots on the short tracks of the Midwest.
The purple colour that embodies the Hoosier Tire brand today came from the colour of Bob’s first race car.
In 1988 Hoosier Tire tackled a huge milestone entering the NASCAR Winston Cup Series (currently Monster Energy). In the first year, Hoosier went on to capture nine victories while getting their marquee win at the Dayona 500 in 1989.
In 1992 Hoosier took another bold step and decided to build its second tyre plant in preparation for the company's return to NASCAR's Winston Cup series. This tyre plant was solely devoted to the manufacture of tubeless radial race tyres to run on tracks at speeds in excess of 200 mph.
The turn of the century also saw Hoosier Tire complete a massive multi-year plant consolidation and upgrade programme which brought all operations together into one sprawling complex.
On October 4, 2016 Hoosier Racing Tire was purchased by Continental Tire.
Today, Hoosier Racing Tire is the largest race tyre manufacturer in the world. Hoosier has grown to produce over 1000 different types of race tyres. The company has its own 300-mph test wheel; a technology centre; state-of-the-art, fully-integrated production facilities recently adding a high-tech mixing plant, with enough capacity to produce not only for Hoosier Racing Tire, but to have the ability to produce rubber for additional entities as well as a model sales and distribution network.
With hundreds of race winners crowned annually we truly are "TIRES DESIGNED FOR CHAMPIONS".