Michelin Releases Porsche Cayenne Specialist Tyres

Michelin has launched three new ranges of tyres designed and homologated to fit the new Porsche Cayenne. While Michelin’s continuing branding and product development pursuit of ecological savings seems to chime oddly with the SUV, Porsche’s latest strategy, which it calls “Porsche Intelligent Performance”, involves manufacturing vehicles that deliver enhanced performance while also consuming less fuel and are therefore more efficient and less polluting. This strategy, the French giant explains, “corresponds perfectly with Michelin’s strategy of designing and producing tyres that provide the most balanced performance.” Michelin says its tyres, “especially those that will be fitted on the new Porsche Cayenne, are designed for superior performance in terms of safety-enhancing grip as well as fuel-efficiency and total mileage”.

The Michelin tyre ranges for Porsche’s new SUV are organised around three models. All of the tyres display the N marking on the sidewalls, a special feature certifying that they comply with Porsche’s quality standards. The three models are: the Latitude Tour HP, the Latitude Sport and the Latitude Alpin. 

For the latter, Michelin says it developed technological solutions to enable this winter tyre designed to deliver the necessary performance on cold roads – whether dry, wet, icy or snow-covered – the type of conditions found, for example, in Western Europe. One of the solutions was Michelin’s Helio Compound rubber mix, which contains sunflower oil and improves performance on wet surfaces while optimising handling on snow-packed roads. 

The Latitude Sport’s tread is reinforced by a nylon belt that is banded at zero degrees to the tyre’s rotation. It amply extends over the shoulders, right where the tyre experiences the most deformation, to maintain control of the contact patch at high speed. By reinforcing the tyre with a banded-at-zero belt at variable pitches across the tread width, deformations can be selectively resisted with pinpoint accuracy.

The new Michelin Latitude Tour HP, with the ‘Green X’ label on its sidewalls, delivers its energy efficiency thanks to the new tyre casing, which limits heat build-up on the tread and sidewalls, says Michelin. This in turn reduces fuel consumption by 0.2 to 0.4 litres per 100 km.

The manufacturer claims the “balanced performance delivered by both the summer and winter tyres” is the result of the long-term relationship between the companies, which dates back to 1960. The alliance was further strengthened in 2002, when Michelin was awarded a contract as a Porsche Worldwide Cooperation Partner. The partnership covers several areas, extending from development to racing. Michelin also received a Best Supplier award from Porsche in 2004.

Tyre sizes for the new Porsche Cayenne

Michelin Latitude Tour HP ‘Green X’

255/55 R 18 109 V Extra Load N1 

265/50 R 19 110 V Extra Load N0

Michelin Latitude Sport

255/55 R 18 109 Y Extra Load N1

275/45 R 20 110 Y Extra Load N0

295/35 R 21 107 Y Extra Load N1

Michelin Latitude Alpin ‘Green X’

255/55 R18 109V Extra Load N1