Goodyear Launches New Dunlop SP WinterSport 3D

(Akron/Tire Review) Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. launched the new Dunlop SP WinterSport 3D, a winter high performance tyre, during its dealer meeting in Nashville. The SP WinterSport will be available in 22 sizes for the 2006-2007 winter season, Goodyear officials said. The new tyre features what the tyremaker calls “3D sipes,” designed to “enhance grip for performance and ultra-performance sports cars,” the company said.

The directional SP WinterSport 3D features three types of sipes – called the “Active Traction Sipe System” – with each designed for changing weather conditions. At lower speeds, the shoulder sipes open to provide more biting edges. At higher speeds or under higher loads, the sipes lock together and close up for shoulder rigidity to aid handling on dry roads.

In the centre block, sipes help traction and braking on ice and snow, and in the intermediate blocks, high-amplitude sipes assist lateral stability and control in wet and slushy conditions.