Hankook claims tire has 25% lower rolling resistance.(Hankook Tire Company Ltd. develops car tires)(Brief article)

Tire Business, June, 2006

Hankook Tire Co. Ltd. has developed a car tire that it claims has 25-percent lower rolling resistance than comparable passenger tires while offering better wet grip and equal wear.

Hankook plans to roll out the tire, dubbed the fx-Optimo, initially for hybrid vehicles in South Korea.

The 25-percent reduction in rolling resistance translates into a 3-percent increase in fuel efficiency, Hankook said. The tire also weighs 15 percent less than comparable tires.

The Seoul-based tire maker said it achieved much of the rolling resistance improvement through the use of silica as a reinforcing agent in the tread compound and an advanced computer modeling program. Hankook said it enhanced the use of silica in the tread by splitting the silica into...

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