Continental has won a new tyre supply deal for BMW’s latest 5 Series. The tyre manufacturer will supply the SportContact 7 for sporty driving, the energy efficient EcoContact 6 Q summer tyre, and the WinterContact TS 860 S winter tyre after its products were approved for the entire series, including the all-electric i5.
An analysis of MOT failure data suggests that independent garages should consider how best to service demand for electric vehicle tyres. Matt Cleevely, managing director of Cleevely Electric Vehicles (EV), said the company is stocking a growing inventory of EV-specific tyres, with around 100 sales every month. This is on the back of new data analysis by Garage Industry Trends, which reveals that half of all EV MOT failures on vehicles registered after 2016 relate to tyres – almost double that of a diesel. Additionally, almost 60 per cent of EV advisories relate to tyre condition.
To inform prospective customers that its entire current and upcoming passenger tyre range is “optimised to deliver exceptional performance for electric and internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles,” Goodyear has introduced a new sidewall logo. This Goodyear EV-Ready logo will appear on all replacement tyres from the beginning of 2024.
The electric vehicle (EV) revolution faces a critical challenge as the low-carbon transition hinges on sufficient battery production. Potential raw material shortages loom large, threatening to disrupt the demand-supply balance. The success of this green transition necessitates addressing these supply chain concerns to ensure a seamless and sustainable future for EVs and the broader low-carbon agenda, says data and analytics company GlobalData.
Firestone has launched the new Roadhawk 2 Enliten summer touring tyre. The Bridgestone brand says the new model offers “best-in-class wet grip” as well as longer mileage and a greater than 10 per cent reduction in rolling resistance, optimising fuel or energy consumption, based on internal testing on size 225/55 R17 101W. The integration of Bridgestone’s Enliten technology, which reduces material consumption and tyre weight, as well as using the new NanoPro-Tech high-silica compound for greater wear resistance, ensures the Roadhawk 2 Enliten is an “EV-ready tyre”: a tyre suitable for fitment on vehicles using and electric or conventional combustion engine powertrain. The new tyre will be available from January 2024 in 17-21” sizes to cover 90 per cent of the market. After the addition of 16” sizes in 2025, the range will comprise 112 size variations. The Firestone Roadhawk 2 Enliten is the successor to the Roadhawk summer touring tyre.
The Polestar 0 project aims to create a climate-neutral car by 2030, eliminating all sources of CO2 emissions throughout the vehicle’s supply chain, manufacturing processes and end of life without offsetting them. Nokian Tyres has joined the project and is developing climate-neutral tyres for the car.
Why survey people when you can draw upon all the wisdom of the internet? Hankook Tire & Technology has turned to artificial intelligence to gain insights into consumer attitudes towards electric vehicles, developing a Voice of Customer (VOC) analysis system based upon ChatGPT for this purpose. The Korean firm collaborated with data cloud computing companies Amazon Web Services and Snowflake to build an integrated VOC data analysis system.
Hankook Tire & Technology reports consolidated sales of KRW 2,340.0 billion (£1.4 billion) and an operating profit of KRW 396.3 billion (£243.9 million) for Q3 2023. These results respectively represent year-on-year increases of 1.8% and 106%.
The first European market Hankook all-season tyre aimed at electric vehicles arrives this month. The Hankook iON FlexClimate is a range for both cars and SUVs and initially comes to market in eight popular sizes. Hankook intends to expand the range in the short term to cover other common dimensions for 17- to 21-inch rim diameters.
Yokohama will exhibit its electric vehicle-compatible and sustainable technologies at the Japan Mobility Show 2023, (Tokyo Big Sight’s East Hall 2 in Koto-ku, Tokyo, 26 October to 5 November). The manufacturer’s booth has been assembled under the theme, ‘Yokohama: Creating the Tires of the Future’, with a focus on the company’s latest and future tyre technology developments. These will include tyre mounted sensors, as well as the concept aerodynamic Advan A50 fin tyre, and the Japanese premiere of the Advan Sport EV, Yokohama’s newly launched dedicated high performance tyre for electric vehicles.
Hyundai has opted to fit Hankook’s Ventus S1 evo 3 ev tyres to its Ioniq 6 as standard. The tyre is developed specifically for electric cars, featuring low rolling resistance and a lightweight, robust construction to meet the specific requirements of all-electric vehicles, such as the Ioniq 6. The tyre is supplied in size 225/55R18W.
Bridgestone will make all of its future tyres suitable for electric vehicles (EVs), setting out its strategy to supply car tyre markets during the transition from internal combustion engine (ICE) to electrified powertrains. Tyre-makers have approached EV tyres in a variety of ways, unveiling specialist product lines, adding EV-approved variations to existing product lines, or introducing new technologies to ensure entire portfolios are applicable to EV performance demands. Bridgestone’s Enliten tyre technology platform addresses these demands, which include improvements in energy efficiency, maximising battery range, and accommodating the increased weight and torque of EVs. A Bridgestone-commissioned survey showed increased consumer support for EVs on the back of both potential savings in fuel or energy prices and reducing the environment impact of their motoring.
In just over a month, the Earthshot Prize will announce its 2023 winners in Singapore. Enso Ltd is one of 15 global finalists for this year’s prize, and company founder and chief executive officer Gunnlaugur Erlendsson was amongst a handful of climate tech entrepreneurs who yesterday met with Earthshot Prize founder and Council member, Prince William.
Tyres fitted to electric vehicles (EVs) face a shortfall in longevity versus those fitted to petrol or diesel cars, new fleet data from epyx suggests. The first tyre change for electric cars is taking place at an average of 17,985 miles and 551 days old, compared to 24,641 miles and 585 days for hybrids, and 24,335 and 670 days for petrol and diesel cars. On average tyres fitted to EVs are lasting 6,350 fewer miles than equivalents on internal combustion engine (ICE) powered vehicles. The data is taken from epyx’s 1link Service Network platform. Car and van fleets totalling more than four million vehicles use 1link to manage and process SMR.
Although the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders indicates that battery electrics will hold a 17.8% new car market share by the end of 2023, vehicles powered from the socket remain the subject of lively debate and sensational headlines. Tyres aren’t exempt from such discourse, as the Daily Mail made clear in July when maligning these as the “dirty secret behind your electric vehicles.” To bring some common sense back into the EV tyre conversation, Michelin has shared its views on the subject.
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