Michelin launches aramid-reinforced supersport car tyre

ERJ staff report (DS)

Paris -- Michelin has launched a high-tech super sport tyre to replace its Michelin Pilot Sport 2.

The tyre features three innovations, including a bi-compound tread; an aramid belt (using Twaron) and a so-called variable contact patch.

The bi-compound tread features a carbon black-reinforced material for good wear on the outer edge of the tread region, which bears the brunt of the wear under heavy cornering, while the inner region is silica-reinforced for good grip in the wet and straight-line performance.

The belt is reinforced with Twaron aramid fibre. Michelin says the belt is under variable tension, so that the centre of the belt tightens more than the shoulders, leading to a more even geometry, even at high rotational speeds.

In terms of variable contact patch, Michelin touts its high-performance numerical simulation systems, which have resulted in a design in which the shape of the contact patch changes under cornering, but the total area remains more or less constant.

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Press release from Michelin