A year ago, Goodyear announced its line of four products made from soybean oil for the passenger car market. It was definitely a good start, but this year, the American company is going even further by extending the idea to the commercial vehicle market. From buses to commercial transport, Goodyear intends to fill all areas of the automotive market with more environmentally friendly and, above all, more resistant tires.
At least that’s what we’ve learned from their various product unveilings that took place in May. Among other things, Waste Expo 2022 attendees got a look at the Endurance WHA, a specialized tire for waste transportation. Also on display for the first time earlier this month were the Metro Miler G152 and G652 for metropolitan transit. What do they have in common? Their ingenious use of soybean oil to reduce the amount of petroleum needed to manufacture them.
The equivalent of a soda can!
According to Dustin Lancy, director of commercial products at Goodyear North America, that’s a pretty impressive amount of oil that can be saved for each tire. In the case of the Metro line, it’s about 325 milliliters, which is about the same as a standard soda can. For the Endurance WHA, it’s even more: about 475 milliliters, the equivalent of one of those famous red Solo style plastic cups. At least that’s what Jessica Julian, marketing manager for commercial products, tells us. Clearly, Goodyear has a flair for comparison!
The goal: to increase the scale
Individually, it’s not much when you consider that a barrel of oil is about 160 liters. However, we must consider the problem on the right scale! The city of Montreal, for example, has over 1800 buses, which could reduce the total amount of oil used in their tires by over 20 barrels. For a fleet of 500 garbage trucks, that’s another 15 barrels of oil.
Saving oil is not the only benefit of these soy-based tires. Their composite rubber is also particularly resistant and their design includes some rather surprising technologies. On the Endurance WHA, you will find the DuraSeal system that seals minor cracks in the tread.
Of course, most consumers will not have access to these new Goodyear models that have just been launched. I don’t know many people who own garbage trucks or buses… Luckily, the four soy-based options are still available at Blackcircles.ca. They are ComfortDrive and WeatherReady Insurance as well as Eagle Exhilarate and Eagle Enforcer All Weather created specifically for police cars. Would you be interested in one of these eco-friendly models?
