So much for the favorite gadget used in all those L.A. freeway car chases....
Posted on 02/26/2009 6:41:12 AM PST by LeoOshkosh
When it comes to developing a tire that can take on tough terrain, such as exploring trails or crawling rocks, engineers at Goodyear say they “left no stone unturned” when developing the new Wrangler MT/R tire with Kevlar. Due to be available in March, it is the company’s first off-road tire built with DuPont’s Kevlar material for enhanced sidewall puncture resistance.
The use of Kevlar, which is reportedly pound-for-pound five times stronger than steel, brings superb sidewall cut- and puncture-resistance to an area of the tire that demands extra toughness when driving off-road, according to Melissa Montisano, Goodyear’s general manager for light truck tires.
That’s going to be one helluva an expensive tire.
>That’s going to be one helluva an expensive tire.
Yep... maybe Obama’s going to equip all of his Civil Subjugation Force’s vehicles with them and THAT’S why he needs all the money in the spending bills.
They’ve been making bicycle tires with Kevlar for quite some time.
I doubt that it's 'all of a sudden'. They've probably been developing this for years.
Also, if you read the article you'll see that the tire was specifically developed for off roading (rock crawling, mudding) to increase sidewall puncture resistance.
The hull of my boat is Kevlar-reinforced for the same reason. That said, a boating magazine two years ago tested various hull structures for resistance to ordnance, and the Kevlar-reinforced structure did very well. This will give me great comfort if I decide to go cruising in the Gulf of Aden or the Straits of Malacca.
Why "all of a sudden" would anyone want any kind of new invention?
iPod? HDTV? Pet rock?
And if you've ever driven anywhere in a ranch in Texas, you'd understand that mesquite thorns are designed by Lucifer to puncture tires.
Just because it's "kevlar" doesn't mean you have to jump to conclusions about being designed for gangs or assault weapons or whatever.
I remember a TV ad from several years ago where they showed a bullet being stopped in slow motion by a Kevlar sheet, advertising tires made with Kevlar. Nothing new here, except that someone finally decided to make an off road tire with it, or perhaps that specific company is touting its new offering.
Freep rule #27: “Anything new is possibly a conspiracy. Throw a wooden shoe at it.”
interco has one also. the vortrac i think.
Kevlar falls generally into the category of “aramid fiber”.
Goodyear was selling “aramid fiber” tires thirty years ago.
The only thing noteworthy about this is “What took so long?” for this particular application.
Kevlar was originally invented to replace the steel belt in tires.
For some reason, this reminds me of Rearden metal...
Sounds like an extension of the ‘run flat tires’ now on some vehicles. There is a niche market and someone will meet the demand.
Kevlar was being developed for the tire market however they perfected the "steel belt radial" before DuPont perfected Kevlar. I know this because I work with people who worked on the Kevlar project.
Also for Kevlar to be considered "Bullet Resistant", you need to have multiple layers of the fabric.
>Freep rule #27: “Anything new is possibly a conspiracy. Throw a wooden shoe at it.”
Rule #28: “Anything old is corrupt. Throw a monkey-wrench at it.”
Rule #29: “Just because you’re paranoid doesn’t mean they AREN’T out to get you.”
;)
the other problem like it's very distant cousin Nylon it has a affinity for water so any break or hole in the tire casing that exposes it to moisture is asking for trouble via moisture migration.
The Kevlar might also allow the tire sidewalls to be more flexible. In 1999, I put Pirelli Scorpion All-Terrain tires on my Jeep. They were great ($90 each and over 65,000 miles before I replaced them) but the sidewalls were so stiff the tires took a bit longer to get onto the rims. My Pirellis were almost bomb-proof; drove over countless nails at jobsites as well as hit several hidden curbs at 30 MPH.
I’ll buy some of these. Sidewall rips and tears are always a problem when crawling through the bush.
Even if they are more expensive, if they are good as they claim, it will save a lot of money on tires made useless by sidewall punctures, tires which aren’t cheap either.
As for being ‘bullet proof’ Most tires are, unless the millitary is shooting at you with steel rounds. Otherwize shooting out a normal street tire isn’t easy with regular lead rounds.
I doubt these tires are spike belt proof, which is how the cops usually stop bad guys, not by trying to shoot out tires, which could result in the cop shooting himself if his bullet bounces straight back at him for trying something so stupid.
I’ve had Goodyear Silent-Armour Kevlar tires on my Duramax 2500 for three years. They are the best tires I’ve had on a truck. After 50k miles they still have about half the tread left.
Is it just in the sidewalls or on the part that runs over nails and thorns and everything else that causes flats?
I could use Kevlar tires and I don’t go off-road. I’ve had two newer tires destroyed by debris on the interstate in the past year, and both were sidewall punctures. The last one happened on Christmas Day 2008, in 10F degree weather with -10 winds, and something shredded the sidewall on the outside AND inside of the tire.
Good grief this was done decades ago. Back in the 70’s you could buy Aramid (Dupont tradename Kevlar) belted tires.
So much for the favorite gadget used in all those L.A. freeway car chases....
The tires are made for off road use, for Jeeps and other 4WD vehicles that travel on rocky trails. You would not want these tires on a passenger vehicle as they are heavy and noisy on the highway.
The Goodyear MT/R has been around for a long time, the '03 to '06 Jeep Rubicons came stock with them from the factory. The biggest problem off roading in the West is sharp rocks that tear into the tires sidewall, not nails and thorns in the tread.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.