Hanover, Germany, 21 September, 2016 – Premium tyre maker Hankook is presenting a state-of-the-art tyre for long-distance European coach travel at this year's IAA for Commercial Vehicles. The Hankook SmartTouring AL22 will be available in the sizes 295/80R22.5 and 315/80R22.5 from market launch and is suitable for all long-distance coach wheels in all axle positions. Klaus Krause, Vice President and Head of the European Development Centre in Hanover adds: “During development of the SmartTyre line, we focused particularly on ride and rolling comfort as well as on a straight driving performance. The characteristics of the SmartTouring AL22 not only allow maximum travel comfort for passengers, they also maximise driving and handling comfort for the driver on long-distance trips.”
The carcass contour of the SmartTouring AL22 ensures the best suspension properties and contributes to a particularly safe driving style. The longitudinal 5-rib profile with its closed, solid central rib makes an excellent, straight driving performance possible at all times. Special Multi-3D sipes guarantee both good traction and an outstanding braking response.
The bead area of the SmartTouring AL22 has been developed for outstanding retreadability. In addition, its new contour achieves a particularly precise rim joint stiffness, which results in excellent concentricity and travel comfort.
The individual belt layers of the new SmartTouring AL22 are structurally arranged in such a way that significantly less heat is developed in operation compared to conventional tyres. This effect not only reduces rolling resistance, thus economising on fuel, it also considerably extends the service life of the tyre.
Fuel savings through reduced heat development have been achieved not only by the belt structure, but also by the tread compound used for the Hankook SmartTouring AL22. Special soot molecules with a larger volume and a particularly stable structure are used for the basic tread rubber, leading to a significant reduction in energy loss during movement. These so-called highly structured carbon molecules also guarantee enhanced abrasion resistance and, in combination with the other technologies, help to increase the mileage of the SmartTouring AL22 compared with conventional products by more than 17 percent.