since 1976
since 1976
By Lee Pang Seng
THE General Tire range of SUV (sport utility vehicle) and pickup tyres was launched to the Malaysian market in the last quarter of 2025. Due to its very competitive pricing for the tyres with performance comparable to the premium range, it was not surprising that they were well received in our price conscious market.
This range comprises the Grabber HT6 (highway tyre) and AT6 (all-terrain tyre), the numeral reflecting the generation of the product. We were given a drive impression of these tyres in Rayong, Thailand and if that might seem odd, it was to tie in with a visit to the Continental factory there, which celebrated its Phase II expansion.
The General Tire Grabber range is produced in this Rayong factory for the Asia-Pacific market. To recap, General Tire, which originally started off as a tyre brand in the US, was acquired by Continental Tyre in 1987. The General Tire range is meant to bridge the gap between the premium Continental range and the entry level Viking brand of tyres.
Being produced at the Continental tyre factory means the General Tire range enjoys the same quality processes and ‘state-of-the-art’ equipment that the German tyre maker employs at the Rayong premises. The difference comes in the materials used in making the tyre and of course, the tread pattern and the design input behind it.
Continental started producing tyres at the Rayong factory in 2019 with the focus on passenger car and light truck tyres. It included the production of motorcycle tyres two years later. Continental says the most advanced production technology with a high degree of automation and quality assurance is applied in the Rayong facility.
The Phase II expansion inaugurated recently is said to add an annual capacity of three million passenger car and light truck tyres, which also created 600 new jobs. It entails an investment of more than 300 million euros (about RM1380 million) and also marks the launch of local radial motorcycle tyre manufacturing at the Thai plant.
It has been ages since we visited a tyre production factory and our memory was more of tyres being made in somewhat hot and sweaty conditions. That has changed a lot since the old days and our tour of the Rayong tyre facility covered all aspects of tyre assembly (putting the various layers, beads and sidewalls together) that were done in air-conditioned comfort. The ‘assembled’ tyre is cured before the final stage in a huge area that could accommodate up to 12,000 tyres a day.
Our last stop was the tyre mould section where the tyre gets its respective tread pattern and would come out the way we are familiar with at the tyre shop. We were only shown the mould that carries the tyre tread pattern but not the hot press section where the various sections of the tyre are fused together to become one whole unit. Being a hot process, it was probably done in a non-airconditioned section of the factory.
Grabber HT6 & AT6 Road Review
The Grabber HT6 was fitted onto three Honda CR-Vs and the AT6 on three Toyota Fortuner part-time four-wheel drives. The drive took off from Pattaya for the hour-long journey to the Rayong tyre production facility. The terrain covered was mostly along highway stretches and short secondary and urban roads.
We chose to start with the CR-V running on 235/60 R18 HT6 tyres as we wanted to see how they compare with the Continental CrossContact LX tyres that we drive on daily in our mid-spec Mazda CX-5. It was as quiet running as expected on the highway with the audible notes varying according to the road surface.
The noise generated over concrete surfaces, which is louder than that over tarred road surfaces, was noticeably subdued to maintain a relatively quiet ride. Likewise, the noise level when running over the many rumble strip sections (probably to keep drivers awake and alert) was also low and highly tolerable.
And during the few times we were driving along at the legal speed limit of 120km/h (yes, Thai highways have a higher speed limit than ours), we heard more of the wind noise than the tyre. The HT6 also absorbed impacts from uneven road surfaces well for a comfortable ride. In much same way, that was how we remembered our Continental CrossContact LX’s general performance to be when they were new.
There was no opportunity to gauge the Grabber HT6 through winding roads except for a mild sweeper or two. How the tyres grip the road and complement the vehicle’s handling dynamics would give us a better idea of their overall performance. We are pretty confident with our CrossContact LX tyres through twisty roads and it would be good to see how the Grabber HT6 fare by comparison.
General Tire says the HT6’s improvements over the previous HT5 were focused mainly on better mileage. Other areas that saw improvements were ride comfort, dry braking and quieter running. It was the same in handling performance while rolling resistance (fuel efficiency) and wet braking were slightly inferior from the HT5.
Nevertheless, the level of wet braking is still comparatively good with the high number of adjacent sipes that could drain and push out water from the centre grooves. The improved longevity of the HT is achieved with stone ejectors and lateral cuts on the tyre. The former ensures the centre grooves are free of stones while the latter prevents the outer grooves from curling inwards during braking.
The better level of ride comfort is attained via uniform block geometry with low stiffness variation, continuous sipes on tread blocks and closed shoulders on each side. This leads to smooth tread block interaction with the road surface and ‘reduced belt excitation’. The air flow is also disrupted and noise waves are broken up for a quieter ride.
Other interesting features are the Visual Monitor Technology (VMT), alignment indicator and wet/dry performance indicator. General Tire says these indicators remind the vehicle driver when to change tyres and ensure an even wheel alignment.
For the return drive, our impression of the AT6 fitted on the Toyota Fortuner was more of comparing its performance against the HT6. The tyre size was 265/60 R18 and it has tread blocks that are meant for good grip on off-road terrain while maintaining decent on-road performance.
Despite its more fussy and intricate tread design, the noise harmonics are low and we found the AT6 to be almost as quiet running on the highway as the HT6, even when driving along at 120km/h. It took to the occasional bump and the many rumble strips without a jarring effect, providing us a comfortable ride.
Our impressions would have been complete if we had the opportunity to gauge the AT6’s performance off-road as well. It would probably have accounted itself well on its off-road performance based on positive feedback General Tire received in the Malaysian market since it was introduced here.
