One Million KM and Still Rolling with Michelin

How much mileage do you expect from your tyres? 40,000 kilometres? Does 100,000 kilometres sound impressive? That’s chicken feed for Samworth Brothers – a MAN TGA 6×2 tractor unit belonging to the Plymouth based food distribution company has clocked up a cool million on the same set of Michelin XDE2 drive axle tyre casings.

The company achieved this admirable performance by following Michelin’s Four Lives tyre policy and through stringent tyre maintenance managed in-house by its own Michelin-trained technicians. Not wishing to claim all credit for the Methuselah-like longevity of the XDE2 casings, Michelin adds that the high professional standards of the Samworth Brothers company drivers also made a difference.

The MAN tractor unit originally joined the fleet in 2004 and arrived with OE fitted Michelin tyres. The drive axle tyres covered a total of 562,296 kilometres during their first life – the equivalent distance to approximately two return trips to the moon – before being regrooved during a routine vehicle maintenance inspection. The regrooving enabled them to clock-up a further 119,820 kilometres. After 682,116 kilometres the regrooved tyres were removed and sent back to Michelin’s Remix facility in Stoke-on-Trent, where they were remoulded into a new set of XDE2 Remix tyres.

Remix tyres are designed by Michelin to deliver almost identical performance to that of a new tyre, and the Remix tyres fitted by Samworth Brothers have already travelled an additional 317,884 kilometres, bringing the total distance covered by these drive axle tyres to 1,000,000 kilometres. With a further 10 mm of tread remaining, the tyres will remain on the vehicle until the end of their third life (when the tread reaches 3-4mm), at which point they can be regrooved to deliver yet further performance.

Kelvin Hunn, fleet maintenance controller, Samworth Brothers Distribution, comments: “This is a clear demonstration that our Michelin tyre policy is delivering excellent value and we have worked hard with Michelin to achieve this remarkable standard.

“With our knowledge of Michelin products combined with Michelin’s understanding of our requirements and their ongoing support, it is the perfect example of what can be achieved through commitment, hard work and good tyre management.

“As an added benefit, by selecting a tyre which has the potential to surpass the 1,000,000 kilometre threshold, we are significantly reducing our environmental impact,” he adds.

Samworth Brothers operates primarily on Michelin XZE2 and XDE2 tyres, which are designed for medium haul operations, designed for optimal across a mixture of motorway and A and B road use.