Bridgestone/Firestone Introduces New `Worn' Tire Technology -- UNI-T AQ(TM)

7 May 1998
Bridgestone/Firestone Introduces New `Worn' Tire Technology -- UNI-T AQ(TM)
    DETROIT, May 7 -- Bridgestone/Firestone announced today a new
technology -- UNI-T AQ(TM) -- that reduces the degradation in worn tire
performance that can occur over the life of a tire, thereby addressing a major
concern about tires expressed by drivers worldwide.
    UNI-T AQ(TM) (Ultimate Tire Technology - Advanced Quality) combines
Bridgestone/Firestone's UNI-T(R) technology -- which was first introduced in
the U.S. in 1995 in the Bridgestone Potenza S-02 ultra high performance tire
-- with a new technology called EPO(TM) (Extended Performance Optimization).
    "Our chief rivals in the tire industry have placed their primary focus on
run flat tire technology, and we will also be introducing a run-flat tire this
summer.  Our main focus is on another issue that is much more applicable in
daily driving -- worn tire performance," said Shu Ishibashi,
Bridgestone/Firestone vice president of consumer tire marketing, speaking at
an Automotive Press Association (APA) luncheon/news conference today in
Detroit.
    "All things wear over time," Ishibashi said.  "Cars do, shoes do, and so
do tires.  According to our research, 41 percent of people surveyed who
purchased our premium tires said they noticed a deterioration in performance
of the tires they replaced.  The various tire brands they replaced still had
usable tread remaining.  The purpose of UNI-T AQ(TM) is to minimize the
decline in worn performance without sacrificing the life of tires."
    According to the company's testing, a worn ultra high performance tire
(50 percent tread remaining) with the new technology provided an average of
8 percent better wet stopping distance at 50 mph than the same worn tire
without the technology.*
    "This is a significant difference when comparing ultra high performance
tires that operate at the very top level of tire performance; even more so
when you realize that we compared a new generation UNI-T AQ(TM) tire with a
tire containing UNI-T(R), one of the most advanced technologies available in
tires today," Ishibashi said.  "We fully expect an even greater wet
performance enhancement once this technology is incorporated into more
conventional tires for mainstream vehicles."
    Tire performance can be impacted by wear and other factors.  But the tire
company's engineers asked, "Can we find ways to minimize the impact on worn
tire performance?"  After a lot of hard work, primarily at Bridgestone's
Technical Center in Tokyo, the engineers succeeded.
    "While there are several highly publicized tires which tout wet
performance, we are the first tire company to take such a comprehensive
approach toward worn tire performance, especially in wet surface conditions,"
Ishibashi said.  "We believe this new technology has significant potential for
improving worn tire performance on America's roads."
    According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, average tire life is
41,000 miles.  Average annual miles driven per vehicle are 13,600 miles, so
there are a lot of worn tires in use on American roads.
    The Potenza S-02 Pole Position, available in the market this month, is the
first tire featuring UNI-T AQ(TM) technology.  While this particular tire is
designed for cars such as the BMW M3, Chevrolet Corvette, Ford Mustang Cobra,
Porsche Boxster and Toyota Supra, Bridgestone/Firestone will introduce more
mainstream tires with UNI-T AQ(TM) technology next year.
    According to Ishibashi, the Bridgestone Group has sold 11 million UNI-T(R)
(called Donuts in Japan) tires worldwide since the technology was first
introduced in Japan in 1994.  He said the company anticipates selling
10 million units with UNI-T(R) or UNI-T AQ(TM) in the U.S. alone by 2001.

    So how does UNI-T AQ(TM) work?

    Tire wear results in shallower tread grooves, loss of elasticity, rubber
hardening, and reduced movement of tread blocks.  This can impact worn tire
performance in some situations.
    UNI-T AQ(TM) combines the original UNI-T(R) technology (L.L. Carbon, CO*CS
and O-Bead) with two new technologies that are part of EPO (EPC(TM) --
Extended Performance Compound and Dual Layer Tread(TM)).
    EPC(TM) reduces the rubber hardening that can result from the heat of
friction.  In layman's terms, EPC(TM) is better than conventional rubber
compounds in terms of keeping rubber soft.  And it accomplishes this without
adversely affecting tread life.
    Bonding among the rubber polymer molecules and carbon black is an
important factor in rubber elasticity.  Tire manufacturers promote bonding in
the vulcanization process by adding sulfur and applying heat to the rubber.
Sulfur bridges strengthen the tire by linking the rubber polymer molecules.
But subsequent re-crosslinking of the sulfur under the heat of friction caused
by everyday driving results in an increasing surface-deformation hardness.
    The newly developed EPC(TM) reduces hardening by suppressing the
re-crosslinking action of the sulfur molecules.  Even when friction generates
heat in a tire in motion, a tire with EPC(TM) experiences minimal sulfur
re-crosslinking.  Less re-crosslinking means less surface-deformation hardness
and more consistent worn tire performance.
    Dual Layer Tread(TM) exposes high-grip rubber as wear progresses.  A tire
with this technology contains two kinds of rubber in the tread, both
containing EPC(TM).  A higher grip rubber is employed for the base layer under
the cap.
   So, as the tread wears down, the higher-grip rubber underneath becomes
exposed.  This minimizes the effect of wear on worn tire performance and helps
maintain more consistent handling.  It also helps to prevent the increase in
noise that tends to occur as the tread wears away.

    Promotional Plans

    Ishibashi said promotional plans for the UNI-T AQ(TM) technology will
focus on auto enthusiast publications this year to support the introduction of
the Potenza S-02 Pole Position tire, but will be expanded greatly into
mainstream media in 1999 as the company introduces additional UNI-T AQ(TM)
tires for a wide range of automobiles and light truck vehicles.
    "This new technology, along with our racing activities, will be the main
focus of our promotional efforts in 1999 and into the next millennium,"
Ishibashi said.  "We're confident that it will be widely accepted by consumers
and will have a significant impact on Bridgestone/Firestone's continued growth
in the North American tire market."
    Nashville-based Bridgestone/Firestone, Inc., with 45,000 employees and
16 tire plants in North and South America (the 17th plant will begin
production in Aiken, S.C., in 1999) is the largest subsidiary of Bridgestone
Corporation of Japan, the world's largest tire and rubber company.
Bridgestone/Firestone develops, manufactures and markets Bridgestone,
Firestone, Dayton, associate and private brand tires.  The company also
produces Firestone air springs, roofing materials, synthetic rubber, and
industrial fibers and textiles.

(* Actual stopping performance will vary with the type of vehicle, type of
brakes, road conditions and other factors.)

SOURCE  Bridgestone/Firestone