GOODYEAR this week introduced a new line of tyres — the Fuel Max — that the company says will offer better mileage and help ease the high fuel bill faced by motorists.

According to Goodyear representatives at the launch, held Tuesday at the Pegasus Hotel in Kingston, the new technology offers less resistance, allowing the tyre to roll freer on the road surface.

“2600 miles worth of gas can be saved over the life of the tyre,” declared Greg Hanna, Goodyear enterprise product development manager for South America and the Caribbean.

“It looks like any other tyre, but the DNA is significantly different,” said Hanna.

“Fuel Max uses less energy to move the vehicle. It offers lower rolling resistance and significant reduction in fuel consumption,” he added. Fuel savings range between four per cent and seven per cent, the Goodyear representatives said.

Demonstrating the attributes of the new tyre, Goodyear used a roll test where two cars were allowed to coast without power, with the Fuel Max taking its car 375 feet further than the vehicle fitted with another tyre.

Hanna explained that the technology utilised special compounds in manufacturing the tyre, resulting in its special characteristics. The design of the tyre, he said, also contributed to its special qualities.

“The geometry of the tyre distributes load evenly [and] it gives better mileage without sacrificing wet handling.”

Hanna said that the tyre tread integrated different grip features according to the road surface, thus providing better handling in different conditions.

“The tyre tread includes grooves that allow water to disperse quickly providing better traction on wet surfaces. The dry condition area of the tyre includes solid blocks of rubber allowing a better manoeuvering of a vehicle on dry surfaces.”

Goodyear’s Fuel Max tyres cover three important sectors of the car market. For the sedan and minivan vehicle segment, Goodyear developed the Assurance Fuel Max and GPS Duraplus Fuel Max. For the SUV segment, the Assurance CS Fuel Max, and for the heavy-duty and passenger vehicle segment, the G662 RSA Fuel Max.

Goodyear representatives Tuesday were however unwilling to divulge comparative pricing, saying only that the Jamaican market was taken into consideration and the new tyre would be competitively priced.