Volvo launches self-sealing tyres for construction trucks

The Volvo Group, in close co-operation with Goodyear Dunlop, has launched self-sealing tyres for construction trucks. These tyres, with Duraseal technology, automatically seal the damage – permanently.

“A tyre that can handle punctures is a breakthrough in terms of higher operating reliability and greater uptime. Every standstill, short or long, costs money and for our customers this makes a huge difference to the construction truck’s overall economy,” says Gunnar Eliasson, business area manager for construction trucks at Volvo Trucks.

Plugs and seals the damaged area
The big innovation in Goodyear’s self-sealing tyre is a sealing layer, an extra-soft layer of rubber that is inserted between the tread and the belted layer. In the event of a puncture, the elastic, jelly-like material immediately plugs and seals the hole and retains the tyre’s air pressure. The tyre can seal holes of up to 6 mm in diameter.

The truck spends more time on the job
The repair is permanent and the truck does not need to be withdrawn from service. In fact, it can continue to be used right up until the next scheduled service, which means immense benefits in terms of productivity and availability. Major tyre repairs, when the tread layer has to be vulcanised, do not damage the sealing layer.

The Volvo Group is thought to be the first truck manufacturer in Europe to offer this sort of tyre as an option.

The Goodyear tyre will be available as an option in the Volvo range as of July 2007. The tyres that will be available are the MSD for the drive axle, dimension 13R22.5. For steering and tag axles, there is the MSS in dimension 13R22.5. At a later stage the dimension 385/65R22.5 will also be available.