IVALO, Finland (May 29, 2013) — Among the locals and those who work there, it's known as "White Hell."
Set in the rolling hills of Lapland, 200 miles north of the Arctic Circle and within shouting distance of the Russian border, Nokian Tyres' winter tire testing facility is the largest of its kind in the world.
The Ivalo test facility covers more than 1,500 acres.
Covering more than 1,500 acres of forest and frozen lakes and criss-crossed by mile after mile of off-road trails and seven miles of paved roads — not to mention herds of resident reindeer roaming the premises with impunity — it's a cornerstone of Nokian's claim of being the world's foremost expert on winter tires.
Temperatures in the winter can plunge to 50 below zero, which is part of the origin of the White Hell moniker.
The name also is a winking homage to the Nurburgring—the 17.5-mile serpentine race course that winds through the hills and dales of Germany's Eifel Mountains. That course is known to most who've driven it as the "Green Hell," so named for the dense forest through which the track unfurls and for the torture it puts most drivers through.
Even the tire displays in Lapland are frozen!
Nokian is able to use the Ivalo test center from November to May. Testing is carried out predominantly at night, when temperatures remain relatively stable. It also affords the tire maker a testing window of up to 15 hours a day during the depths of winter.
Nokian uses three lakes on the property for ice traction testing, but the firm also has built a covered straightline ice rink for increased repeatability.
This reporter, along with a couple of dozen tire dealers from the U.S. and Canada, recently experienced White Hell first-hand as guests of Nokian Tyres. We didn't get the whole White Hell experience, however: Nokian took us there in February, when daytime temperatures reached a relative balmy 20 degrees F.
Drivers touring Nokian's Ivalo winter testing facility have to be on the lookout for roaming reindeer.
Nokian's not the only company, though, that thinks this is a great location for winter testing.
Independent vehicle testing enterprise Test World Oy also operates nearby, and is in the process of building a year-round indoor winter test center for tires and vehicles at its site near Ivalo.
The great white north also has attracted Bridgestone Corp., which last year signed a long-term lease on an automotive proving ground near in Vidsel, Sweden, that will provide the company exclusive use of the facility, located 60 miles south of the Arctic Circle, up to 17 weeks a year throughout the winter season.
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A story on Nokian Tyres' plans for North American growth appeared in the April 29, 2013, issue of Tire Business. To reach this reporter: [email protected] crain.com; 330-865-6145.
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