EQUIPMENT
/ NEW
RUBRIC MATERIALS PREPARED / ALEXEI VOROBYOV-SHOES, MAXIM SACHOKOV, ANATOLY SUKHOV
TO UNDERSTAND - WE NEED TO RACE
SUMMER HIGH-SPEED TIRE FROM "GUDIER"
The company does not hold the experience of creating super tires - for 34 years in the Formula 1, American tire manufacturers have won a record number of titles. In "Goodyear" shod and cars of the overseas CART series, where the speed is even higher, and many national formulas. There are also many fans to “grab” for high-speed autobahns, and the boosted motors are not much inferior to racing ones in terms of power. For such “hot cars” (and hot guys!), Goodyear developed the Eagle F1 GS-D3 tire. Designed and tested it in a research center in Luxembourg, where they create sports tires. Not for nothing and the designation "F1": the new tire is a direct descendant of the rain "formula" tire.
As we already wrote (ЗР, 2002, No. 2), to improve controllability, the tread should be as monolithic as possible. But you can not do without grooves: it is not easy to organize water drainage for a wide high-speed tire. The designers of Eagle F-1 managed to reconcile these two conflicting requirements. The wide trapezoidal grooves on the tread (photo 1) are located at a small angle to the longitudinal axis of the tire - they effectively drain water even at maximum speeds, so the tire can be considered rain without a stretch: braking and accelerating dynamics, as well as maneuverability on wet asphalt, are worthy of the highest rating.
The central part of the tread remained solid around the circumference. The side checkers are also made in one piece, as on a real racing “rubber”: when rolling they do not “break”, but perceive the loads continuously and evenly. This not only improves handling, but also eliminates sudden failures in critical conditions, making the bus behavior more predictable.
The contact spot was made wide enough, almost like on a “formula” pseudo-link. Thanks to this, Eagle F-1 behaves excellently on dry asphalt, and traditional silica (“silica”) in the tread composition provides the tire with an increased resource. Designers also took care of protecting expensive alloy wheels: an annular protrusion on the side of the tire covers the rim flange.
One of the most important indicators for high-speed tires is the noise level. At the novelty it is record low: thanks to the wide grooves, which exclude air pops when the wheel is rolling, and large solid blocks, there is no noticeable resonance in the entire speed range, even on a worn tire.
Journalists were given the opportunity to evaluate the new product by comparing it with the products of competitors at the training ground. Indeed, the Eagle F-1 turned out to be very “sharp”, but at the same time a perfectly balanced tire and, by the sum of the pluses, a clear leader. Its sales began in March 2002, and the line of sizes is even “more democratic” than you might have expected - from 195 / 50R15. For those sizes that are not yet in stock, Goodyear will continue to produce its predecessor, the GS-D2.
