Michelin has showcased the Uptis airless tyre for the first time in public at IAA Munich 2021, demonstrating its capabilities to members of the public in attendance at the recent motor show in Germany. The new tyre technology was fitted to a zero-emissions MINI Electric.
“Our greatest satisfaction came at the end of the demonstration when our passengers, who were admittedly a little wary at first, said they felt no difference compared with conventional tyres,” Michelin group technical and scientific communications director Cyrille Roget said.
An abbreviation of Unique Puncture-Proof Tire System, the Uptis is on track for its market introduction in 2024, the French brand reiterated. The Uptis combines an aluminium wheel with a load-bearing structure made of glass fibre-reinforced plastic (GFRP) as well as flexible rubber composites, and these fit on conventional wheels.
With punctures no longer a concern for airless tyres such as the Uptis, this development will be kinder to the environment. An in-house survey by Michelin has found that 20% of all tyres are discarded prematurely every year due to flats and rapid pressure loss, as well as due to irregular wear due to incorrect inflation. This totals 200 million wasted tyres, equivalent to 200 times the weight of the Eiffel Tower, says Michelin.
The Uptis comes as the first step in Michelin’s Vision Concept, says the company, towards its goal of becoming a manufacturer of tyres from fully sustainable materials and processes by 2050. As of earlier this year, nearly 30% of the components in the manufacture of Michelin tyres are from natural, recycled or otherwise sustainable sources, Michelin said.
Subsequent tyre innovations under the Vision Concept also include “rechargeable” tread, or in other words worn tread that can be revitalised through additive rubber 3D printing which can offer several possibilities such as different tread patterns for different climates or conditions. The third step in the Vision Concept is to offer connected technologies, where data gathering can be applied towards road safety, fleet management for commercial applications as well as for high-performance scenarios such as track days.
GALLERY: Michelin Uptis airless tyre
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those gaps in the tyres…if a long metal stick got stucked there…kaboom!!!
entire driveshaft or wheel may tear out from the car
You do realise its designed that way to show the concept works and that the production tyres will have sidewalls right? Or are you that naive?
Also you can easily put a long metal stick in any sports rim and have the same kaboom.
Michelin’s Technical and Scientific Communication Director Cyrille Roget, told YouTuber Mr JWW that developing the Uptis has taken Michelin a full decade so far. Its end goal is to aim the airless tire at markets that go through large numbers of them, from carmakers to commercial fleets, to even developing countries where punctures are common. Obviously, the Uptis would need sidewalls on rocky roads to keep debris out, and Roget indeed confirmed the production tire could have sidewalls.
I’m more concerned about getting mud and snow inside them.
The design not aerodynamic…
Are you saying michelin, who’s been making tyres since 1889 and creating one of the best tyres ever since dont know about aerodynamics?
Just guesssing. How much they will charge for it. RM5K each?
Looks like it uses specific wheels. Gonna be a tough one if people have to change wheels just to use these kinda tires…
Usually new tech is not for everyone. It will normally start to roll out in high end cars and slowly make its way to cheaper cars eventually. However, there will be mod fanatics that don’t mind spending and changing rims just to use this on their kancil/kelisa or myvi.
That would be my guess, but the article did say it can be mounted on conventional wheels.
Conventional wheels and tyres have a bead lock that need air pressure to work properly. I wonder how they are going to work around this.
Big question, boleh retread tak?
Now the regulators have a chance to look if these tyres are safe enough too. Tyre makers that banks on airless tech must hope the first mover is good enough that no major issues are found, else it’ll be hard to win back opinions, especially in this social media era.
futuristic airless wheel tyres for new normal world, no more safety concerns of conventional tyre sidewall flex, overheating tyres, slow punctures loosing tyre’s pressure.