GM to develop its own tyre technologies

ERJ staff report (DS)

Detroit - General Motors is attempting to develop its own tyre technologies in the US through an on-going research programme with the new National Tire Research Center in Halifax County, Virginia. GM contributed $5 million to the centre and plans to use the facilities there to develop new generations of tyre - especially in the rolling resistance area.

The company is expected to begin its research efforts from January 2013, according to a press release from GM.

“The work we'll undertake at the National Tire Research Center will have a big impact on how quickly next-generation tyre technologies will be developed and the accuracy of their design and engineering,” said Ken Morris, GM's executive director of Global Vehicle Performance and Safety, and proving grounds and test labs. Morris attended the center's ribbon-cutting ceremony in October.

GM focussed in particular on a Flat-Trac LTRe machine. “This facility's test equipment is like going from a basic telescope to the Hubble - it opens up a whole new world of possibilities,” said Frank Della Pia, a former GM vehicle dynamics manager who is executive director for the tyre research center.

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Press release from GM