In the automotive supplier community, the PACE Award, presented by Automotive News magazine, is accepted worldwide as the industry’s symbol of innovation. On April 3, at a ceremony to name the winners of the 2006 PACE Award, SKF was one of 11 companies recognized. SKF won in the product category for the X-Tracker, which is used on a variety of vehicles, including the new, high-performance Cadillac STS-V.

The X-Tracker is an asymmetric hub bearing unit. The inboard row has a relatively small pitch diameter, to fit existing vehicle geometry, while the outboard row has a larger pitch diameter to include more rolling elements for increased stiffness. This enables enhanced safety by reducing brake calliper piston knock-back (the distance between the brake pad and brake disc), thereby improving brake response time and vehicle stability. It was first used on the 2004 Dodge Durango and the 2005 Dodge Dakota.

SKF has developed three versions of the X-Tracker: a ball bearing version, a ball and taper bearing version, and a new, all-taper version just now being introduced to the marketplace.