Feb 22 2009
When it comes to developing a tire that can take on tough terrain, such as exploring trails or crawling rocks, engineers at The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company left no stone unturned. The new Goodyear Wrangler MT/R with Kevlar is the company's first off-road tire built with the rugged toughness of DuPont Kevlar(R) for enhanced sidewall puncture resistance.
The use of Kevlar, an innovative material that is, pound-for-pound, five times stronger than steel, brings superb sidewall cut- and puncture-resistance to an area of the tire that demands extra toughness when driving off-road. It also helps reinforce the sidewall for when drivers return to the pavement for the drive home.
"The new Wrangler MT/R with Kevlar updates the legendary off-road performing namesake, which has had a great reputation among serious off-roaders," said Melissa Montisano, Goodyear's general manager for light-truck tires. "This new tire will certainly get the attention of anyone who takes off-road traction seriously."
The Kevlar-reinforced sidewalls in the new tire help increase sidewall puncture resistance by 35 percent, compared to the original Wrangler MT/R, a tire well-known for its toughness.
However, sidewall toughness is not the only feature of the Wrangler MT/R with Kevlar. It also includes a "wraparound" tread for enhanced sidewall traction in deep mud, sand and rocks; an innovative asymmetric tread design that offers aggressive off-road traction while maintaining handling on the road; and advanced rubber silica in the tread for superb off-road and wet traction.
Further, the Wrangler MT/R with Kevlar offers these features:
- Tread Guards, to help resist cuts from stones.
- Advanced Mud-Flow Geometry, to help provide self-cleaning and traction
- in mud.
- Traction Blocks, to help provide additional biting edges on rocks,
- mud, dirt and sand.
- A Three-Ply Sidewall, with opposing cord angles for enhanced side wall
- cut- and puncture-resistance.
- Ramped Tread Blocks, for toughness in off-road driving.
- Staggered Sidewall Shoulder Blocks, to help provide enhanced traction
- on rocks and in deep mud.
- Durawall Rubber, a Goodyear exclusive, which offers rugged toughness
- and helps resist cuts and punctures in the sidewall.
- Rim Protector, to help protect wheels from accidental curb-like
- damage.
- Rim Lock, to help prevent wheel slip for minimal balancing throughout
- the life of the tire.
Each shoulder block of the Wrangler MT/R with Kevlar is stepped "in" and "out" to help give the tire continuous biting edges as it turns through thick mud. Its self-cleaning asymmetric tread design also adds to the performance capability in mud.
Available in March, the new tire is offered in 30 sizes, fitting vehicles such as 1/2-, 3/4- and 1-ton pickups, Hummer H2 and H3, Jeep Wrangler, Nissan Xterra, Toyota FJ Cruiser and more. According to Goodyear research, there are more than four million drivers in the light-truck tire segment who use their vehicles primarily for off-road travel.
The addition of the Wrangler MT/R with Kevlar adds to Goodyear's strong Wrangler family of tires, which also includes the Wrangler DuraTrac and Wrangler SilentArmor.