1990s

1990

Tanenbaum began restructuring his holdings in Can-Am. MascoTech, Inc., a leading auto parts manufacturer headquartered in Taylor, Michigan, split ownership with Tanenbaum and Taylor through a leveraged buyout. The company was renamed Titan Wheel International, Inc. and a new era began.

1991

Titan acquired certain assets of Berkeley-Davis International, Inc., a specialist in welding and technology equipment. This expertise was used to strengthen Titan's technological abilities in steel welding. This subsidiary was sold in 1996 as Titan redefined its focus on wheel and tire assemblies.

1992

Taylor and MascoTech bought out Tanenbaum's interest in Titan, thereby resulting in Taylor holding 53 percent ownership.

1993

Titan became a publicly traded company on NASDAQ in May of 1993. The initial offering included 2,700,000 shares of common stock offered at $15 per share.

Acquisitions:

  • Certain assets of Auto Wheel Group, Inc. from NI Industries, Inc., a MascoTech affiliate.
  • Dyneer Corporation, a manufacturer of small diameter off-road wheels and tires for all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), lawn and garden equipment, golf cars, recreational and utility trailers, as well as mechanical differentials, clutches and brakes.
  • Certain assets of Dotson Wheel of Saltville, Virginia, now known as Titan Wheel Corporation of Virginia. 
1990

1994

Titan moved to the New York Stock Exchange, trading under the symbol TWI.

Acquisitions made:

  • Nieman's Ltd. with its two facilities in Ventura, Iowa, and Elkhart, Indiana, a national distributor of tires, wheels, axle assemblies and component parts to OEMs.
  • Certain assets of the Pirelli Armstrong Tire Corporation facility in Des Moines, Iowa, under the name of Titan Tire Corporation.
  • A facility in Greenwood, South Carolina, in order to expand Titan's wheel production and distribution network in the southeastern United States.
  • 50 percent of the Sirmac Group of Italy, a major European manufacturer of specialty wheels and other products for the agricultural and construction markets.

1995

Titan stock split three-for-two twice in 1995. The first stock split was effective on February 15, 1995, with a March 15 payable date. The second three-for-two split had a record date of July 31, 1995 and a payable date of August 31.

Acquisitions:

  • Lemmerz UK Limited (now Titan Steel Wheels, Limited), an England-based manufacturer of steel wheels for off-road specialty vehicles.
  • Certain assets of Metallbau Grasdorf GmbH near Hannover, Germany. Titan Germany GmbH manufactures wheels and rims for the earthmoving and agricultural markets, supporting Titan's facilities in England and Italy.

1996

Tractech, the subsidiary which manufactured differentials, was divested as Titan chose to concentrate on wheel and tire assemblies. This marked the elimination of Titan's engineered products sector.

Acquisitions:

  • The Sirmac Group of Italy. Sirmac, in Modena, produces idler wheels for Caterpillar, Inc. Siria, in Bologna, manufactures agricultural wheels.
  • Titan announced plans to build an agricultural and construction tire plant in Brownsville, Texas.
Titan acquired the wheel subsidiary of the French manufacturing company, Delachaux, which has been renamed Titan France SA.

1997

Titan reorganized its operations into separate wheel and tire groups, Titan Wheel Corporation and Titan Tire Corporation, to provide the framework for continued world-wide expansion in both sectors. A corporate name change to Titan International, Inc. was approved by the shareholders in May to more accurately reflect the identity as a manufacturer of both wheels and tires.

A breakthrough concept in wheel and tire assemblies, named the Grizz LSW series, was unveiled. The assemblies, which were designed to meet the needs of off-highway vehicle applications, feature a larger wheel and a lower tire sidewall than traditional designs.

Titan acquired certain assets of American Welding of Warren, Ohio, which served as a development center for patent-pending multi-piece off-highway wheels, utilizing the plant's capacity to produce rolled and seamless rings.

Titan divested the Automotive Wheels facility in a continuing effort to concentrate on core business.

1998

Titan purchased the assets of Condere Corporation, including Fidelity Tire, through U.S. Bankruptcy Court and renamed the Natchez, Mississippi, tire manufacturing facility Titan Tire Corporation of Natchez.

1999

Subsidiary Titan Europe Plc acquired 35.9 percent of the stock of Wheels India Limited, the largest manufacturer of steel wheels for all applications in the Indian sub-continent.

Caterpillar Inc. became one of the first original equipment manufacturers (OEM) to take advantage of Titan’s private branding program for LSW and standard assemblies, resulting in tires bearing the Caterpillar name.
Search all tires in:

Innovation at Titan

View Sizes