In an effort to go green, many tire manufacturers are introducing new products to the market that provide less rolling resistance, which helps boost fuel economy. It's a fine line being walked between ride quality, performance, and handling. Trying to get all three in one tire is nearly impossible. The fine folks from Goodyear were nice enough to stop by our office this week and give us a presentation on the new Assurance Fuel Max tire that went on sale in February 2009.
Mark Cherveny, Product Manager of High Performance Tires, says the new Assurance Fuel Max tire, which joins the Assurance lineup of TripleTred and ComforTred, will give owners 2,600 miles of free gas over the life of the tire, which should be about 65,000 miles for average drivers. The secret behind this, according to Mark, is the new Fuel Max tire is made up of a different, more efficient, chemical compound. It provides 27% less rolling resistance than the previous generation Assurance tire, which equates to 4% greater highway fuel economy. "It helps people save money, that's our message," says Mark. These numbers far exceed the numbers posted by Bridgestone and its new Ecopia EP100 which reduces rolling resistance by only 10%.
Gary Medalis, General Manager Goodyear Brand of Passenger Tires informed us the upcoming Chevy Volt would be wearing Goodyear Fuel Max tires when it rolls off the line to extend its green theme all the way to the pavement. This is something Goodyear hopes more manufacturers might do also.
The original Assurance model lineup was launched in 2008. The brand new Assurance Fuel Max is on store shelves now and is available in 27 sizes. That covers about 80% of passenger cars on the market today. Fuel Max will have the same tire pattern as the original Assurance and will cost the same as an equivalent Assurance, too.