The air is running out of run-flat tire interest
10-29-09, 01:00 PM
#1
The air is running out of run-flat tire interest
http://www.autoweek.com/article/2009...NEWS/907279993
Found this item on another forum.
"It was another disappointment for Michelin and other makers of run-flat tires in a 17-year effort to win customers in the United States.
When run-flat tires appeared here in 1992, they were expected to win wide acceptance as original equipment. The prospect of no flats or blowouts seemed like a strong pitch.
But except for applications on a few luxury and other vehicles, the tires were largely ignored because of their high cost--$200 to $500 each--and their impact on fuel economy.
"A Michelin study released last year found that only 3 percent of drivers worldwide want run-flat tires. U.S. market share is well below 1 percent."
I had a set on a 335i I owned and sold the set after a week and went with conventional Michelin Pilot Sport A/S.
Better ride and quietness and no loss of handling.
Found this item on another forum.
"It was another disappointment for Michelin and other makers of run-flat tires in a 17-year effort to win customers in the United States.
When run-flat tires appeared here in 1992, they were expected to win wide acceptance as original equipment. The prospect of no flats or blowouts seemed like a strong pitch.
But except for applications on a few luxury and other vehicles, the tires were largely ignored because of their high cost--$200 to $500 each--and their impact on fuel economy.
"A Michelin study released last year found that only 3 percent of drivers worldwide want run-flat tires. U.S. market share is well below 1 percent."
I had a set on a 335i I owned and sold the set after a week and went with conventional Michelin Pilot Sport A/S.
Better ride and quietness and no loss of handling.
10-29-09, 03:08 PM
#2
Lead Lap
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I finally dropped my Blizzak Run Flats this year. They're just too stiff and harsh not to mention the difficulty the Lexus dealer had installing them. Fortunately, our GS has a spare tire.
10-29-09, 03:33 PM
#3
Lexus Test Driver
Good riddans. But for the cars that come with these tires and no spare, what's the owner to do when they change over to regular tires and then get a flat? Are there provisions to store a spare in the trunk? Is there even a way to secure a spare underneath the trunk mat?
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10-29-09, 09:54 PM
#9
Lead Lap
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Location: Oregon
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Good riddans. But for the cars that come with these tires and no spare, what's the owner to do when they change over to regular tires and then get a flat? Are there provisions to store a spare in the trunk? Is there even a way to secure a spare underneath the trunk mat?
10-30-09, 05:54 AM
#14
Lexus Champion
3rd generation run flats are out or about to be.
http://blogs.automobilemag.com/65212...ire/index.html
http://blogs.automobilemag.com/65212...ire/index.html
Bridgestone’s new third-generation runflat tire (which the company refers to as 3G RFT), however, has significantly advanced the company’s line of runflats. Whereas the second generation was merely tolerable compared with the suppleness of a conventional tire, the third generation’s variations are almost undetectable from behind the wheel. I can say that confidently, too, because I drove almost identical BMW 5-series vehicles fitted with conventional Bridgestone RE050 tires, second-generation runflats, and 3G RFTs back-to-back-to-back on short sections of the Aprilia test facility. In addition to the new tire’s drastically improved ride, it also transmits slightly less road noise into the cabin of the car.
Bridgestone claims that the 3G RFT’s sidewall is only about 105 percent stiffer vertically than that of a conventional tire, versus the 115 percent stiffer second-generation. A new “NanoPro-Tech” rubber polymer and a new deformation-reducing ply help manage heat in no-air situations; therefore, less sidewall rubber is required to permit the tire to safely travel up to 50 miles at 50 mph, an unchanged target.
Perhaps most importantly, the 3G’s behavior is so similar to that of conventional tires that Bridgestone is willing to recommend this tire as an aftermarket replacement for vehicles that originally came with traditional tires--and have tire-pressure monitoring systems, which were made mandatory in the United States beginning for the 2008 model year. In the past, the company’s runflats have been installed only on vehicles whose suspensions were specifically engineered by their makers to minimize the effects of the shoes’ stiff sidewalls and additional weight.
Bridgestone will also produce an increased number of sizes in the 3G RFT lineup, particularly tires with taller (and necessarily thicker) sidewalls, which will be supplemented by distinctive, paddlelike “cooling fins” designed to create turbulence.
The 3G RFT is already in production in Japan and is set to debut later this year on an unidentified BMW, most likely the 5-series Gran Turismo and/or the X5 M and X6 M SUVs. Bridgestone currently supplies original-equipment runflat tires to Aston Martin, Audi, BMW, Ford, Lexus, Maserati, Nissan, and Toyota. The company developed its first runflat tire for the 1987 Porsche 959. After twenty-two years, though, runflats comprise only one or two percent of the U.S. and Canadian markets; thanks in part to its new third-generation runflat technology, Bridgestone expects that figure to increase to ten percent by 2019.
If runflat tires weren't so darn pricey, I bet even more people would get rid of their spare tires ...
10-30-09, 06:06 AM
#15
sounds promising....quieter than conventional...better ride than prvious RFT's
Bridgestone’s new third-generation runflat tire (which the company refers to as 3G RFT), however, has significantly advanced the company’s line of runflats. Whereas the second generation was merely tolerable compared with the suppleness of a conventional tire, the third generation’s variations are almost undetectable from behind the wheel. I can say that confidently, too, because I drove almost identical BMW 5-series vehicles fitted with conventional Bridgestone RE050 tires, second-generation runflats, and 3G RFTs back-to-back-to-back on short sections of the Aprilia test facility. In addition to the new tire’s drastically improved ride, it also transmits slightly less road noise into the cabin of the car.
Bridgestone claims that the 3G RFT’s sidewall is only about 105 percent stiffer vertically than that of a conventional tire, versus the 115 percent stiffer second-generation. A new “NanoPro-Tech” rubber polymer and a new deformation-reducing ply help manage heat in no-air situations; therefore, less sidewall rubber is required to permit the tire to safely travel up to 50 miles at 50 mph, an unchanged target.
Perhaps most importantly, the 3G’s behavior is so similar to that of conventional tires that Bridgestone is willing to recommend this tire as an aftermarket replacement for vehicles that originally came with traditional tires--and have tire-pressure monitoring systems, which were made mandatory in the United States beginning for the 2008 model year. In the past, the company’s runflats have been installed only on vehicles whose suspensions were specifically engineered by their makers to minimize the effects of the shoes’ stiff sidewalls and additional weight.
Bridgestone will also produce an increased number of sizes in the 3G RFT lineup, particularly tires with taller (and necessarily thicker) sidewalls, which will be supplemented by distinctive, paddlelike “cooling fins” designed to create turbulence.
The 3G RFT is already in production in Japan and is set to debut later this year on an unidentified BMW, most likely the 5-series Gran Turismo and/or the X5 M and X6 M SUVs. Bridgestone currently supplies original-equipment runflat tires to Aston Martin, Audi, BMW, Ford, Lexus, Maserati, Nissan, and Toyota. The company developed its first runflat tire for the 1987 Porsche 959. After twenty-two years, though, runflats comprise only one or two percent of the U.S. and Canadian markets; thanks in part to its new third-generation runflat technology, Bridgestone expects that figure to increase to ten percent by 2019.
If runflat tires weren't so darn pricey, I bet even more people would get rid of their spare tires ...
Bridgestone’s new third-generation runflat tire (which the company refers to as 3G RFT), however, has significantly advanced the company’s line of runflats. Whereas the second generation was merely tolerable compared with the suppleness of a conventional tire, the third generation’s variations are almost undetectable from behind the wheel. I can say that confidently, too, because I drove almost identical BMW 5-series vehicles fitted with conventional Bridgestone RE050 tires, second-generation runflats, and 3G RFTs back-to-back-to-back on short sections of the Aprilia test facility. In addition to the new tire’s drastically improved ride, it also transmits slightly less road noise into the cabin of the car.
Bridgestone claims that the 3G RFT’s sidewall is only about 105 percent stiffer vertically than that of a conventional tire, versus the 115 percent stiffer second-generation. A new “NanoPro-Tech” rubber polymer and a new deformation-reducing ply help manage heat in no-air situations; therefore, less sidewall rubber is required to permit the tire to safely travel up to 50 miles at 50 mph, an unchanged target.
Perhaps most importantly, the 3G’s behavior is so similar to that of conventional tires that Bridgestone is willing to recommend this tire as an aftermarket replacement for vehicles that originally came with traditional tires--and have tire-pressure monitoring systems, which were made mandatory in the United States beginning for the 2008 model year. In the past, the company’s runflats have been installed only on vehicles whose suspensions were specifically engineered by their makers to minimize the effects of the shoes’ stiff sidewalls and additional weight.
Bridgestone will also produce an increased number of sizes in the 3G RFT lineup, particularly tires with taller (and necessarily thicker) sidewalls, which will be supplemented by distinctive, paddlelike “cooling fins” designed to create turbulence.
The 3G RFT is already in production in Japan and is set to debut later this year on an unidentified BMW, most likely the 5-series Gran Turismo and/or the X5 M and X6 M SUVs. Bridgestone currently supplies original-equipment runflat tires to Aston Martin, Audi, BMW, Ford, Lexus, Maserati, Nissan, and Toyota. The company developed its first runflat tire for the 1987 Porsche 959. After twenty-two years, though, runflats comprise only one or two percent of the U.S. and Canadian markets; thanks in part to its new third-generation runflat technology, Bridgestone expects that figure to increase to ten percent by 2019.
If runflat tires weren't so darn pricey, I bet even more people would get rid of their spare tires ...
RFTs can shred and you may get a flat 50+ miles away from a repair or replacement.