Tires are to driving like shoes are to walking. If it’s snowy outside, you want a shoe with better grip, if you’re running, you want something meant to go fast, and if you’re standing on your feet all day, you want something comfortable.
But what kind of tire is that analagous to? Well, I think the best comparison would be a low rolling resistance tire, designed to get you the most mileage for your energy (read: gas). A few years ago there were some of these on the market that came out around the time the Insight and Prius came to the US. These tires helped boost the fuel economy of these cars with the consumers none the wiser, but in the end this ignorance led to low sales a general scarcity of LRR options.
As energy issues have hit the mainstream LRRs have been brought up again and again as low-hanging fruit. These tires can easily be slapped onto all new cars or purchased when replacements are needed, and they provide a tangible, substantial benefit in fuel economy.
So, with that said, GM has decided to go with Goodyear’s latest Fuel Max Tires, which are just coming out now for passenger vehicles but have shown a 4% improvement for truckers (the original application). This isn’t special, as I said, hybrids like the Volt have been using LRRs for years, but it’s nice to see another tire manufacturer bringing LRRs to market.
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