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Leith Cars Blog

Look: These Shape-Shifting, Self-Powering Tires Are the Future

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No matter the car, they all have one thing in common: tires. These unsung heroes are often replaced only when balding, the maximum amount of life extracted from their rubbery flesh as if they were Antonio and we were Shylock. While we don’t hesitate to drop money on things that never last (smartphones, cable TV, Juicy Fruit gum) you will seldom see a more resigned, utterly put-upon expression than on the one who utters, “I had to replace my tires.”

And they do so much for us.

Somehow, these tireless oxen of the American people are on the cusp of serving us even more thanks to a new pair of technologies from Goodyear.

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This is a BHO3 and it looks like the inside of a computer. That’s because the tire itself is an energy souce, aiming to at least partially replace the engine. Can you imagine a car where the wheels provide most of the energy?

The BHO3 captures the energy generated from rolling down the road, which is basically what driving is. Paired with a battery to get the car moving, and you basically have a self-powering car. Plus, without the weight of an engine, less energy will be needed to move the vehicle.

This is a good set-up for Goodyear’s second idea, the Triple Tube.

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This jet turbine-looking tire is basically three separate, distinct tire crammed together to form a single tire. Each section can be hardened or softened depending on your driving mode. So if you wanted to save gas, all three sections are hardened for maximum resistance. If the roads were wet, hardening the middle would reduce hydroplaning. If performance was key, you could soften the middle to increase surface contact.

Plus, the ability to self-inflate would allow your tires to always keep themselves at the correct pressure, which would maximize efficiency.

[Tweet “Goodyear thinks our tires shouldn’t just be static, and we agree.”]

These tires aren’t scheduled to begin production any time soon, so we’ll have to wait and see if they get released. If that happens, you can be sure that we’ll let you know and offer them at our stores.