This is the single greatest honor in the motor vehicle industry, intended to honor a career and/or lifetime achievement. To become a "Hall of Famer" the nominee must be either retired or deceased. Recipients must have significantly impacted the development of the automobile or the motor vehicle industry. Typically, four to eight individuals are inducted each year.
In 1886, Andr? Michelin took over his family’s rubber and agricultural products company. Three years later, he was joined by his younger brother, Edouard, and they renamed the firm Michelin and Co. Edouard took responsibility for manufacturing and research operations while Andr? was responsible for management and sales.
As was the case in those days, the tires were glued solidly to the rim of the wheels and therefore, tire repair required several tools, a three-hour repair and 12 hours for drying.
Edouard believed there must be a better and faster way to repair tires, which would enable the cyclist to fix a tire quickly by himself.
The result – the Michelin detachable pneumatic tire on a metal rim – was a revolutionary improvement and the success of this detachable tire boosted company sales to an all-time high.
The automobile industry was in its infancy and Andr? and Edouard saw yet another opportunity. They transferred what they had learned about detachable pneumatic bicycle tires to the automobile.
In 1895, the brothers entered the Paris-Bordeaux-Paris automobile race using the newly designed Michelin tires.
The car finished last, but the tires so impressed the industry that the race virtually launched the market for pneumatic automobile tires. At the conclusion of that race, Andr? predicted that within ten years, every car in the world would be fitted with pneumatic tires. It took only five.
The Michelin Brothers’ success in supporting the fledgling automotive industry expanded internationally, when Michelin built a plant in Italy in 1906 and in the United States in 1907. Michelin currently operates 80 manufacturing plants all over the world and produces tires for virtually every type of vehicle imaginable, including the Space Shuttle.
