Michelin’s New EV Tires are 42% Renewable, 100% Performance

• Michelin has developed an EV tires made with 42% renewable and recycled materials, surpassing their goal of 40% by 2030.
• At the Sustainability Summit, attendees drove EVs on Michelin’s EV-ready tires, including the Lucid Air Sapphire and Daimler Freightliner eCascadia, to test their performance firsthand.
• Michelin’s EV tires are designed to handle the extra torque and weight of electric vehicles, ensuring high performance without compromising sustainability.

Michelin just hosted its very first Sustainability Summit in Sonoma, California, and this event wasn’t just your typical corporate “we’re going green” talk. No, this was Michelin rolling up its sleeves and getting real about the future of mobility. You’ve got to appreciate the move, especially from a company that’s been around for 135 years (and yes, they’re still cranking out tires, but now with a sustainable twist). In addition to a room full of execs in suits making promises, journalists and key players from Daimler, Lucid, and Symbio were in on the action, too.

Now, here’s where it gets really interesting. At the Sustainability Summit, Michelin showed us exactly what their EV tires can do, with hands-on track experiences at Sonoma Raceway. Electric vehicles (EVs) were equipped with Michelin’s EV-ready tires, including a prototype made from 42% renewable and recycled materials. And that’s a pretty big deal in the tire world, especially when we think about the extra wear EV tires go through due to the higher torque and weight of these vehicles.

Michelin’s EV Tires are Sustainable Performance with 42% Renewable Materials

Alexis Garcin, President and CEO of Michelin North America, put it best when he said, “Throughout our 135-year history, we at Michelin have proven that we are never satisfied in our pursuit of sustainable innovation.” Garcin wasn’t just flexing their past achievements, though. He was laser-focused on the future, adding, “Our message remains the same – both when new and when worn – our products are made sustainably without compromise to high performance.”

That last bit is important, right? High performance without sacrificing sustainability. It’s the sweet spot Michelin’s hitting with their EV tires, and they’re not stopping there.

In fact, Michelin has a goal to hit 40% renewable and recycled materials across all of their tires by 2030, but they’ve already blown past that target with this new EV tire prototype. This tire, made with 42% renewable materials.

And they didn’t just let us hear about it; they let us feel it, too. Attendees got behind the wheel of EVs on Michelin’s EV tires, driving everything from the Daimler Freightliner eCascadia to the high-performance Lucid Air Sapphire.(Pro tip: if you ever get a chance to take a Lucid out on a racetrack, do it. It’s wild. In fact, you can drive an EV on an F1 track at Electrify Expo!)

Michelin Showcases Versatile UltraFlex and High-Performance Tires

Michelin also spotlighted some pretty impressive innovations like their UltraFlex tire technology, designed for agricultural vehicles to operate at lower air pressure while still supporting heavy loads. (Talk about versatility.) They also showcased a hydrogen fuel cell from Symbio and the SuperTruck II from Daimler Truck North America, showing just how broad their sustainability reach is.

Let’s get back to the EV tires for a second, though, because that’s where Michelin is really making moves. EV-compatible tires are more than just rubber meeting the road. They’ve got to handle that extra torque, extra weight, and those extra miles. And Michelin’s stepping up with EV tires that perform and last. The Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S tires, for example, were fitted on the Lucid Air Sapphire, proving that you don’t have to choose between sustainability and performance when you’ve got the right EV tire on your vehicle.

Their message is clear: sustainability can and should be woven into everything they do, whether it’s for your daily driver, the big rigs hauling across the country, or even the tractors out in the field. And if you’re driving an EV, you’re going to want a tire that can keep up with all that power, and last longer while doing it.

So, next time you’re thinking about your EV tires, take a closer look at what Michelin’s rolling out. They’ve got the performance, the sustainability, and most importantly, they’re showing us that you don’t have to compromise to get both.

SOURCE | IMAGES: MICHELIN

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