Birmingham, UK,
23
September
2021
|
10:26
Europe/Amsterdam

Goodyear launches new fuel efficient and versatile product line FUELMAX ENDURANCE

Supporting truck manufacturers and transportation companies in their move towards a more sustainable future

Summary
  • Low emissions and hard-wearing
  • Efficient and versatile – bringing the fuel efficiency of the motorway to more roads
  • Full range features EU B-label for fuel efficiency in combination with high levels of grip and traction

Goodyear has announced a new fuel efficient and versatile product line called FUELMAX ENDURANCE. This range of steer and drive axle tyres provides an innovative solution for transportation and logistics companies operating both on motorways and A- and B-roads.

The new range will support thousands of fleets and truck manufacturers in the UK and Europe to reduce their carbon footprint, by combining the fuel efficiency levels known in long-haul applications with the durability, traction and mileage required to drive on A- and B-roads. The company states the new product line is the most versatile and fuel-efficient it has ever produced, and underlines that all sizes feature a B- label in fuel efficiency1, while offering leading performance in inter-regional applications.

 

The sustainability dilemma

Sustainability is a key focus area across different stakeholders and industries. In January 2020, the UK introduced the Environment Bill, bringing environmental protections and recovery into UK law, and in December 2019, the European Commission presented the European Green Deal aiming to become the first climate neutral continent by 2050 .

“Vehicle manufacturers, fleet managers and operators are under increasing pressure to meet sustainability targets whilst operating on low margins. Regulators, investors and end-customers are demanding ‘clean’ products being transported in the most sustainable way. To support a real move towards a climate-neutral future in a highly complex environment like transportation, green and efficient operations need to go hand-in-hand, without adding complexity,” says Grégory Boucharlat, vice-president Commercial Europe for Goodyear. “With the new FUELMAX ENDURANCE, we bring the fuel efficiency known in motorway operations to A- and B-roads. It’s efficient and hard-wearing, offering low emissions and excellent grip as well as long-lasting performance and mileage. With this new product line, we wanted to bridge the gap between sustainability and reality in daily operations.”

Goodyear’s decision to develop a new range that focuses on both fuel efficiency and endurance is to support the move towards more sustainable transport, as well as the evolving demand for more versatile products from both transportation companies and truck manufacturers.

 

Efficient and long-lasting performance

As a new standard tyre fitment for new trucks, the range covers a wide variety of haulage applications while supporting manufacturers in further lowering emissions levels of new heavy-duty-vehicles by 2%, on average, in comparison with a C-label tyre for fuel efficiency.1 In line with Europe’s overall ambition, CO2 emissions of new production commercial vehicles need to be reduced by 15% from 2025 onwards and even double, 30% as of 2030, in comparison with the 2019-20 baseline.

Until now, transportation operators often had to choose between durability, strong mileage performance or excellent fuel efficiency when it came to tyres. FUELMAX ENDURANCE is designed to make that choice easier for fleet managers who are seeking cost and fuel efficiency as they are no longer limited by the type of road they operate on.

The versatile FUELMAX ENDURANCE range is a real gamechanger within the tyre and transportation industry, as it is efficient and hard-wearing, offering both low emissions and excellent mileage, plus traction,” says Maciej Szymanski, Marketing Director Commercial Business Unit Europe at Goodyear. “A reduction of 2% in CO2 emissions translates into a saving of about 1 tonne CO2 and 400L of fuel per truck, per year. If a 100-vehicle fleet switches from a C-label to a fuel-efficient B-label tyre like FUELMAX ENDURANCE, this would represent a potential saving of 100 tonnes of CO2 emissions and 40,000 Litres of fuel, per year. You can imagine the potential when we start multiplying the numbers of vehicles and fleets.1

 

Key development focus areas

While setting new standards, Goodyear engineers focused on bridging three conflicting areas of the development spectrum to secure fuel efficiency and low emissions versus 1. mileage, 2. traction and 3. versatility.

As a starting point, the
development of the new product line is based around demonstrated Goodyear technologies. Then, customised innovations for the steer and drive axle positions extend Goodyear’s established fuel efficiency capabilities to a wider range of routes, while safeguarding traction, grip and mileage trough a robust, versatile design.2

The FUELMAX S ENDURANCE steer tyre combines Goodyear’s proven IntelliMax Rib Technology in a 5 or 6 rib design with ingenuity in the rib distribution and groove geometry. The stiffeners in the shoulder grooves connect when the tyre rolls, increasing the robustness of the tyre and limiting wear in more demanding off-motorway journeys, where stop-start driving, curb stone impact, increased turning and manoeuvring and more braking put additional demand on tyres.

The increased tread depth on selected steer sizes results in more wearable rubber3, providing better grip later in the service life. An innovative low energy-loss tread compound offsets heat generation caused by load forces on the steer position. A number of steer tyres also feature an optimised sidewall compound, further contributing to lower emissions and fuel efficiency as it decreases flexion and deformation of the sidewall in off-motorway operations.

In addition to the innovative tread compound for use on the drive axle, the drive tyre benefits from a dedicated curing process to further optimise rolling resistance. The directional tread design includes a high number of deep sipes, deep centre grooves and more biting edges to improve traction and evacuate water more effectively.

By combining new and existing technologies, the full FUELMAX ENDURANCE range provides high fuel efficiency (B-label), with enhanced robustness, late life grip and traction. Both steer and drive tyres feature the 3PMSF certification and are equipped with RFID, enabling connected tyre management.

 

More sustainability by adding extra service life with Goodyear Retreading and intelligent solutions

Underlining Goodyear’s commitment to the circular economy, the new FUELMAX ENDURANCE is fully compatible with Goodyear’s Retreading program. The drive tyre will be available as a premium TreadMax moldcure retread, adding extra mileage while providing the same features and benefits as the new innovative tread and reducing tyre costs up to 30%4.

In combination with Goodyear’s smart tyre monitoring solutions – including Goodyear TPMS, Drive-Over-Reader and most recently launched DrivePoint – the service life and fuel efficiency can be significantly enhanced, further supporting transportation companies in their move towards a more sustainable future.

1 EU tyre label: all sizes of the new FUELMAX ENDURANCE product line feature a B-label for fuel efficiency.
Numbers
based on VECTO calculation when switching from KMAX GEN-2 (C-label for fuel efficiency) to FUELMAX ENDURANCE (B-label
for fuel efficiency)

2 Stated optimized technologies and innovations are customized, differentiated by tyre size

3 Comparted to FUELMAX GEN-2 on selected sizes

4 Based on internal data from Goodyear Innovations Center in Luxembourg

About Goodyear

Goodyear is one of the world's largest tire companies. It employs about 72,000 people and manufactures its products in 55 facilities in 23 countries around the world. Its two Innovation Centers in Akron, Ohio, and Colmar-Berg, Luxembourg, strive to develop state-of-the-art products and services that set the technology and performance standard for the industry. For more information about Goodyear and its products, go to www.goodyear.com/corporate.