Michelin Takes Teen Drivers’ Safety to New Levels With #GoldenGauge Program

• During Teen Driving Awareness Month, new gaming-centric program offers teens and new drivers the opportunity to win game-changing prizes – from laptops to gaming consoles – just for checking their tires.
• The #GoldenGauge program is the latest iteration of Michelin’s award-winning, multi-year corporate social responsibility program, Beyond the Driving Test, designed to increase tire safety education and ultimately save teens’ lives.

GREENVILLE, S.C. – January 25, 2022 – Michelin is giving teens and new drivers the opportunity to level up their knowledge of life-saving tire safety in exchange for the chance to win epic, game-changing prizes with the Michelin #GoldenGauge program.

Teens understand that in the world of gaming, items like a new gaming console, a particular gaming laptop, or an in-game booster pack will help them “level up,” improving their overall game experience and performance. In the real world, tires are the game-changers that take road safety and vehicle performance to the next level — and properly maintained tires can be the difference between avoiding an accident and being in one.

To teach tire safety and drive teens to take action, Michelin will reach users through a digital billboard within the highly popular The Sims™ FreePlay mobile game. Players navigating SimTown will have the opportunity to safely stop and engage with the billboard visible from the town map, and they will be rewarded with premium in-game currency and life-saving tire safety tips.

“Meeting teens at the intersection of their passions and speaking their language has always been the North Star of Beyond the Driving Test,” said Alexis Garcin, chairman and president of Michelin North America, Inc. “While tires may not be high on the list of things teens think about currently, we can engage with them through their favorite games to ensure they understand that safer tires can mean safer driving.”

Car crashes remain a top killer of U.S. teens, with an estimated seven teens dying every day, and hundreds more injured.1 On average, there are nearly 11,000 tire-related motor vehicle crashes each year.2 The good news is many of these accidents are preventable.

Enter the Michelin #GoldenGauge campaign, designed to encourage teens to exchange one game-changing action (checking their tires) for the chance to win game-changing prizes, from a new laptop to the latest gaming console or smartphone. To learn whether they are a winner, teens must first properly check their tires. Here’s how it works:

• Visit www.GoldenGauge.com and enter your mailing address
• Within a few weeks, a Michelin-branded tire pressure gauge will arrive at your door
• Use the pressure gauge to check your tires (step-by-step instructions are available HERE)
• When the gauge is properly fastened to the tire valve, a pressure indicator stick will pop out. The color of the stick will indicate if you have won a prize:
  • LEGENDARY GOLD: An epic bundle of game-changing prizes, including a latest generation gaming console (complete with headset, controllers and gaming bundle), a gaming laptop and chair, a VR headset, a Pixel smartphone, and a set of MICHELIN® CrossClimate®2 tires.
  • RARE PURPLE: One of several high-tech prizes designed to elevate your game, ranging from a gaming laptop to a Pixel smartphone. Plus, every winner gets a set of MICHELIN® CrossClimate®2 tires.
  • ELITE BLUE: A $100 Twitch gift card
  • COMMON WHITE: Not a prize winner, but your safety is priceless!

For more information about the Michelin Golden Gauge program or tire safety tips, visit www.GoldenGauge.com

1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (NCIPC). WISQARS (Web-based Injury Statistics Query and Reporting System). U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; July 2020.

2. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Safety and Savings Ride on Your Tires. U.S. Department of Transportation; July 2021.

About Michelin North America

Michelin, the leading mobility company, is dedicated to enhancing its customers’ mobility, and sustainably; designing and distributing the most innovative tires, services and solutions for its customers’ needs; providing digital services, maps and guides to help enrich trips and travels and make them unique experiences; and developing high-technology materials that serve a variety of industries. Headquartered in Greenville, South Carolina, Michelin North America has approximately 23,000 employees and operates 34 production facilities in the United States and Canada. (michelinman.com)

About Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA)

The Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) is the governing body for world motor sport and the federation of the world’s leading mobility organizations. Founded in 1904, with headquarters in Paris and Geneva, the FIA is a non-profit organization. It brings together 246 Mobility and Sport Clubs from 145 countries on five continents. Its Member Clubs represent over 80 million road users and their families. The FIA promotes safe, sustainable and accessible mobility for all road users around the world

About Beyond the Driving Test

Beyond the Driving Test is Michelin’s signature corporate social responsibility program, developed in partnership with Federation Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA). Now in its seventh year, Beyond the Driving Test is one of the most awarded PR programs, with more than 15 industry leading awards. The program was designed to improve critical tire safety education among teens and novice drivers. At its inception in 2014, only two U.S. states included tire safety education in drivers ed materials. Michelin secured commitments to address this issue from all 50 states and the District of Columbia in 2017. To date, 40 states and the District of Columbia have already begun teaching tire safety training in their new driver training programs.For more on Beyond the Driving Test, go to beyondthedrivingtest.com.

Contact Information:

Name: Emily Hetzel
Email: emily.hetzel@michelin.com
Job Title: Press Officer