Car Articles

The range of car tyres in terms of types, brands, and composition can be quite bewildering in the modern era of car industry. There are various brands and types available in the market and all have their individuality in terms of size, width, speed limit, and load capacity. Based on their attributes, different tyres are suited and recommended for different types of cars. For example, the tyres that are best for passenger cars cannot meet the requirements of a racing car because track tyres are more powerful and strong than road tyres.

The fact that the only point of contact between the car and road is the tyre makes them the most significant part of the car industry. It’s fun to know and learn about various aspects of the tyre industry and how tyres were modified and transformed over the years.

The first rubber tyres were introduced in early 1800s when Charles Mcintosh was experimenting with latex. Latex is the sap from a tree native to Amazon basin of South America. It was brought to the country for waterproofing but unfortunately it did not serve the purpose. Later, in 1839 Charles Goodyear, after a series of experiments, founded that addition of sulphur to melted latex improved the elasticity and strength of the rubber. This new discovery was known as the vulcanized rubber which was then used for cushioning tyres for carriages and cycles.

Then in 1888, pneumatic tyres were introduced by Scotsman John Boyd Dunlop. These were discovered with a desire to place them in his son's bicycle for a more comfortable journey. Unfortunately, a pneumatic rubber tyre was already patented by Robert William Thomson in 1845. Later on the first detachable pneumatic tyre comprising a separate tube and an outer cover was invented by two agricultural engineers in Clermont-Ferrand in France. Furthermore, there were various modifications and improvements done to the detachable pneumatic tyres by W.E. Barlett. The modified tyre had a defect that was rectified by Mr. Welch in conjunction with the newly-formed Dunlop Company. The tyre introduced by W.E. Barlett had to be stretched while fitting but Mr. Welch invented inextensible steel bead wires to resolve the issue.

In 1990s, tyre industry witnessed a new improvement with the invention of cord tyres. It was patented by the Palmer Tyre Company of Detroit. Cord tyres were built by laying parallel strands of rubberised cord fabric, pressing all into sheet rubber. The tyre casings were also built using sheets cord sheets. Further experimentation was carried out on these tyres and finally in 1937 steel cords were introduced that are still found on many of the cars plying on roads.

When new cars with refined engine technologies started entering the market, various advancements and innovations also started entering the tyre market. Radial Tyre that has set a new benchmark in the transport industry was invented in 1947. It was one of the most significant and major innovation in the industry.

Innovation has no end and the industry is still progressing with new strategies and modifications.

Earlier, iron bands were forged to the wooden wheels of carts and wagons. This forging was done for the key purpose of placing metal bands so that they can hold or 'tie' the wooden spokes of the wheel together. The term 'Tyre' came from this significant process of forging.