Titan To Sell Assets In Aftermarket Focus

Autoparts Report, April 25, 2000

Titan International Inc., a Quincy, Ill.-based heavy duty tire maker, said it is selling its manufacturing plants in Clinton, Tenn., and Slinger, Wis., and leasing its Greenwood, S.C., plant to Carlisle Tire and Wheel, a subsidiary of Carlisle Companies Inc. The transaction is valued at $95 million.

Titan said it has decided to exit the lawn and garden and all terrain vehicle OE wheel and tire business, concentrating instead on the aftermarket. The two companies have signed a five-year supply agreement whereby Titan will purchase wheels and tires from Carlisle for its distribution outlets.

Titan will now focus on expanding its heavy-duty tire operations in Des Moines, Iowa; Natchez, Miss.; and Brownsville, Texas.

Carlisle had been in talks about acquiring all of Titan, but the two companies terminated those discussions last September.