From the four full-ply poly bias tires of the early to mid-1960s to the carbon-fiber-enhanced radials complete with Kevlar belts and multiple compound tread designs of the 21st century, we’ve come a long way in a relatively short time. A glance in the rear-view mirror shows that our great industry has been foolish at times but never for long.

Remember the move away from the proven four-ply poly of the 1960s to a two-ply poly to a one-ply poly (the latter of which did not please the consuming public)? Most motorists felt fortunate if they got 5,000 or 6,000 miles out of those one-ply units.

Thankfully, the belted bias tire came along to fill the gap until domestic tiremakers got the handle on how to build a radial ply tire. Then, they had to learn how to create steel-belted radials, a far greater trick, as the disastrous recalls of the early 1970s proved.

The period between 1960 and 1980, in fact, was rife with the ‘black art’ of tire design. Competition between tire cord producers – fiberglass, rayon, nylon, polyester or some combination thereof – was vicious to the point that producers of one would claim the others were dangerous. Dangerous as in death and destruction.

Tire writers from that period were faced with a wide array of tire types, from wide ovals to tires with cantilevered sidewalls to polyurethane tires (Yes, even then!). Michelin and Pirelli owned the radial market in Europe, but BFGoodrich was the first American tiremaker to market a radial ply product widely: the Radial 660.

Despite the technical glitches and bad press, radials were the wave of the future.

Why the history lesson? There were many tire company chieftans who followed tire development paths that, in the long run, proved fruitless. Particularly among U.S. makers, fear and technical inability dictated the seemingly bullheaded direction of tire technology. Marketing and advertising kept them in the game until technology finally swept them away.

Today, tiremakers are far more willing to travel uncharted technology courses. That’s a major reason why tires are such technological marvels.

Once they got wind of the wonders of radial technology, consumers, who spent decades accepting less started demanding more. The ‘new’ reality of radial ply tires did not escape the wisdom of the independent tire dealer. “Once motorists have driven on radials, they won’t settle for anything less,” said one.

Tire mileage guarantees of 40,000 miles and more soon dominated. Throughout the 1980s and into the 1990s, tire mileage claims climbed as UTQG was exploited. Those 40,000-mile warranties gave way to 50,000- and 60,000-mile warranties. In the mid-1990s, Michelin unleashed the then-controversial 80,000-mile warranty. Today, that company offers one of its regular radials with a 90,000-mile treadlife warranty, and Hankook has a couple that tout 100,000 miles.

Also important was the change in tire profiles. The 70-series wide oval and tires like it in the mid-to-late 1960s gave way to the 60-series in the early 1970s, the 50 by the mid-1970s, and on down to a 45-series in the mid-1980s and 35-series by the late 1980s.

Even better, tire scientists and engineers have given us multiple tread compounds across the tread face – as many as three in some cases – and 3D sipes that open and close as weather and temperature conditions dictate. One can only begin to imagine what tires will be like 40 years into the future.

In the early 1970s, Dunlop unloosed a tire concept called the Denovo. It was a run-flat tire. Pirelli hooked up with Dunlop for a short time to see what it could add to the technology, and Michelin began work on its version.

Stateside, Goodyear did the same, going as far as to show a run-flat tire with an inner-tire mounted on the rim. If the main tire suddenly went flat, the inner wheel took over. While most of these ideas didn’t catch on immediately, no one gave up on the technology.

Today, extended mobility tires are common. Goodyear introduced its EMT on the 1993 Corvette, and Michelin soon rolled out its PAX system, now OE on several models. The French tiremaker also has a zero-pressure tire that can survive without air for 50 miles at 55 mph. Note the word “system” beginning to creep into the tire vocabulary lexicon. Are we selling systems now?

We can’t leave out tire sealant technology and the role it has played. From the Uniroyal Royal Seal of more than 30 years ago to Goodyear’s DuraSeal technology now being used in commercial truck tires, safer, extended mileage tires, including those with sealant, represent a big part of what today’s motorists want in a tire.

On the Horizon

Companies like Goodyear, Michelin and Bridgestone have always given us some clues about what to expect. Will run-flats become more the norm than the exception? You will hear the word “nanotechnology” and need to work it into your vocabulary. Tire scientists exploring the world of nanotechnology have not only made fairly common things smaller, but stronger, more adaptable, more complex and more useful at the same time.

This will mean a significant drop in tire weight, which will translate to greater fuel efficiency. And, nano particles will expand the horizons of now highly creative tire development types.

Says Goodyear’s Joe Gingo: “In the future, we’ll see even more significant advances in materials science that will yield strong, safe, light, smart, efficient and easily customized tires. Nano science will continue to lead us to new reinforcing materials, such as Kevlar and carbon fiber. Some of the materials we are currently working on include nano clays, nano scale rubber gels and smart materials that can be adapted to the needs of a tire. For example, the material might become stiffer as a tire builds up heat.” That’s where Gingo draws the line. He’s not going to spill the beans to his competitors.

Finally, the micro-science crowd has even gone as far as saying that, by using nano technology, tires could be made to last for the life of the car.

Keep your eye on Michelin’s Tweel, along with continuing tire innovations from other tiremakers. A visionary product for the moment, a tire like the Tweel could render tire pressure checks, fixing flats and highway blow-outs completely obsolete. And, don’t forget about the injection-molded polyurethane tire from Amerityre. If its idea pans out – and Amerityre has gotten further than others – the tire industry as we know it will literally disappear.

Watch, too, for the possible emergence of something Bridgestone has been working on for several years. It’s called a dynamic-damper in-wheel motor system for use in electric-powered vehicles. What does that mean? No more engine or transmission or separate brake and steering systems – everything is built into the wheel end. Surrounded, of course, by the ever-evolving tire.

As technology shifts, we’ll put the pieces together, so stay tuned.