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At this year’s International Geneva Motor Show Dunlop unveils an innovative outlook into future tire technology: an ultra-lightweight concept tire featuring the latest DuPont™ Kevlar® technology to replace traditional steel components. By using this technology Dunlop is aiming for better fuel consumption combined with excellent performance and increased driving pleasure.

The tire on display, which is a research and development project of Dunlop’s Development Center in Hanau, Germany, is 25 percent lighter than comparable tires in the same size. “Such an enormous weight reduction would lead to significant lower levels of rolling resistance and fuel consumption”, said Bernd Loewenhaupt, Dunlop Director Consumer Tire Technology. The concept tire is on display at the Dunlop stand 2057 in hall 2. Pininfarina’s electric car concept ‘Pininfarina BlueCar’ will be equipped with the Dunlop innovation and on display at the Pininfarina-Bolloré stand 2040 in hall 2. Pininfarina exclusively designed the tire’s tread and its sidewall to fit their innovative ‘BlueCar’.

Steel is normally used in several tire components in the form of very fine wires, wound into flexible and strong cords. These steel cords are used in the tire’s breaker and in the beads. “Steel has been an effective material for many years. However, since steel is relatively heavy, our continued research and development efforts focus on strong but lighter materials to reduce fuel consumption without compromising on the tire’s endurance. We are working closely with the R&D teams of DuPont to further employ their outstanding Kevlar fiber for our future high performance tires,” said Loewenhaupt.

DuPont™ Kevlar®, a synthetic fiber five times stronger than steel on an equal weight basis maintains its strength and resilience in a wide range of temperatures, has been used to replace almost all the tire’s steel elements. For some steel components, the Dunlop engineers used special hybrid materials or other forms of nylon to reduce the tire’s weight.

Dunlop SP Sport Maxx TT proves Kevlar® capabilities

DuPont™ Kevlar® has already been used in Dunlop’s award-winning ultra-high performance tire SP Sport Maxx TT in the form of Kevlar® pulp. Kevlar® pulp consists of highly fibrillated chopped fibers that can be used as special additives to enhance performance by providing excellent reinforcement and viscosity control under stress. The Dunlop SP Sport Maxx TT features Kevlar® EE in the apex compound for a stiffer sidewall, which provides more resistance to torsion, tension and heat. This leads to increased stability during cornering, as well as enhanced road feedback and more precise driving. The apex is part of the tire’s sidewall and located radially outward from the tire’s bead.

DuPont™ Kevlar®: five times stronger than steel

DuPont™ Kevlar® is an ‘aramid’ fiber. The chemical composition of Kevlar® is poly para-phenyleneterephthalamide, more commonly known as a para-aramid.

Aramids belong to the family of nylons. Common nylons often do not have optimal structural properties, so the para-aramid distinction is vital. DuPont offers Kevlar® in the form of continuous filament yarn, cut fiber that can be converted into yarn or thread, sheets and fibrillated pulp.

DuPont™ Kevlar® is today used in different forms in a myriad of applications, from bullet-resistant vests to under-water cables, parachutes, space vehicles and since the launch of the Dunlop SP Sport Maxx TT also, for the first time, in the complete apex of a tire.

About Dunlop

Dunlop is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of high and ultra high performance tires with an impressive track record of motor sport successes. Dunlop’s extensive racing experience has led to innovative technologies for tires designed for everyday motoring. Always looking to maximize driving pleasure, Dunlop offers all types of motorists the performance and durability of the latest tire technologies, including tires with RunOnFlat technology, which is fitted to award winning vehicles such as the Mini, BMW One, Three, Five Series and X5.

Many of the world’s leading vehicle manufacturers, including Alfa Romeo, AMG, Audi, Bentley, BMW, Jaguar, Lexus, Mercedes-Benz and Porsche, fit Dunlop as standard.

For more information on Dunlop, visit www.dunlop.eu

About DuPont 

DuPont is a science-based products and services company. Founded in 1802, DuPont puts science to work by creating sustainable solutions essential to a better, safer, healthier life for people everywhere. Operating in more than 70 countries, DuPont offers a wide range of innovative products and services for markets including agriculture and food; building and construction; communications; and transportation.

For more information on DuPont, visit www.dupont.com

DuPont™ and Kevlar® are trademarks or registered trademarks of E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Company.