How does the tyre make a difference with fuel savings?

Negative forces are applied to a vehicle when it moves and need to be compensated, this generates fuel consumption.

Tyres represent about one-third of the total force which must be overcome by the engine.

Why does the tyre affect fuel consumption?

- Tyres are made from various rubber compounds

- Rubber by it’s very basic properties, tends to absorb some energy when flexed – think of the tyre as a rubber ball (both are made from the same material!)

- When the rubber ball is dropped to the ground it does not rebound as high as it was launched. Each successive bounce is lower and lower.

- The height of each bounce is lower because the rubber absorbs some energy each time it strikes the ground.

- Like the ball, energy is dissipated when a tyre rolls on the ground and is deformed.
- This phenomenon is called Rolling Resistance and causes a resistive force which must be overcome by the engine.

Fuel Consumption is also greatly affected by the conditions of use for the vehicle.

TYRE CONTRIBUTION to Fuel Consumption by usage segments

Tyre contribution to fuel consumption is the most significant on usages in highway / expressway services. Therefore, a low rolling resistance drive product for long distance vehicles will clearly bring significant fuel consumption reductions to users.

Michelin Radial Tyres Achieve Significant Fuel Savings

Michelin Bus Radial Saves 4.16% and Michelin Truck Radial Saves 8.62%

Fuel savings of 8.62 per cent – this was proven in tests conducted by Michelin to demonstrate lower fuel costs - achieved by using truck tyres with Michelin radial technology.

Conducted over four days, two identical trucks were run during the tests – one on bias tyres from a competitor and the other on Michelin radial tyres (10.00 R20). The fuel and tyre pressures were checked and authenticated to ensure total conformity of the trucks, with the exception of the tyres.

The trucks were driven along a circuit covering the Plus/Elite Highway from the Kota Damansara to Putra Mahkota over a distance of 520km daily or 2080km over the four-day test. Lecturers from Universiti Tenaga Nasional‘s Mechanical Engineering Faculty were on hand to witness and verify the accuracy of the fuel tests.

As a further demonstration that radial tyres are not all the same, tests were run on 2 identical buses, one equipped with Michelin Energy Radial Tyres (295/80 R22.5 XZA 2+ Energy) and the other with normal radial tyres from a competitor. The results showed a 4.16 per cent in fuel savings in favour of the Michelin Energy radials.

Similar tests carried out by Michelin in China, Thailand, India, Singapore, Indonesia and the Philippines resulted in significant fuel savings ranging from 6.5 percent to 11 percent despite the varied usage conditions.