Michelin North America this week announced an initiative designed to reduce tire-related fuel consumption for each vehicle to half of what it is now by 2030 – the year when the number of vehicles worldwide is projected to have doubled. The event was held Tuesday, Oct. 30, at New York’s NASDAQ MarketSite Studio.
“Did you know that up to 20 percent of the energy needed to operate your car is due to the tires, and that for commercial trucks the impact may be even higher, up to 30 percent and more?” asked Jim Micali, Michelin North America’s chairman and president. Micali said that up to 9 percent of total worldwide oil consumption can be traced directly to tire performance.
Micali also touted the Michelin Energy Saver tire, a European passenger tire designed to reduce carbon-dioxide emissions by 3 percent, and the X One wide single tire that “converts 18-wheelers to 10-wheelers by replacing two dual tires with one wide single.” Michelin X One tires save 4 percent in fuel economy and reduce the weight of a tractor-trailer by up to 720 pounds, which ultimately means fewer tractor trailers on the road, Micali said.
Over the next two decades, Michelin will dramatically improve tire performance by doubling tire wear life to reduce the amount of raw materials needed by half, and reduce rolling resistance for passenger car tires by an additional 50 percent, Micali said. Braking distance also will be reduced, he said.
“We are all responsible for the state of the environment,” Micali said. “We must all do our part to affect real, sustainable change. Michelin is committed to this effort, and I invite you to join us in this worthy endeavor.”
Following Micali’s announcement, the NASDAQ Marketsite Tower across Times Square was used to display the billions of gallons of fuel saved, and the CO2 emissions reduction produced, since 1992 because of Michelin green fuel-saving tires.
