Autonomous Citroën concept wearing Goodyear Eagle 360

A new remit for the Goodyear Eagle 360 – Citroën has fitted a custom-designed prototype of the spherical concept tyre for its latest concept vehicle, the Citroën Autonomous Mobility Vision.

There’s no risk of mistaking the French manufacturer’s vision for the future of urban, autonomous mobility with any car on the road today. The concept vehicle is based on an autonomous, electric multi-directional platform, called ‘The Citroën Skate’, which can host a series of different ‘Pods’ that allow it to cater to a variety of mobility experiences or services.

The Citroën Skate and its Pod concepts were inspired by The Urban Collëctif, a project between Citroën, the international hotel group, Accor, and the JCDecaux media company. The vehicle and tyres were revealed in Paris yesterday.

The Citroën Skate (in foreground) is paired with Pods tailored to various requirements (Image: Goodyear)

“We are proud to be introducing the prototype of our spherical concept tyre as an integral part of the Citroën Autonomous Mobility Vision,” says Hans Vrijsen, managing director, Original Equipment at Goodyear. “The Eagle 360 prototype is compact and its shape makes it agile and manoeuvrable, ideal for future urban and autonomous mobility solutions.”

Goodyear first introduced the Eagle 360 concept at the Geneva International Motor Show in 2016, following up in 2017 with a second iteration, the Eagle 360 Urban concept. Time magazine declared the Eagle 360 concept as one of the 25 best innovations of 2016.

Eagle 360 features

The Eagle 360 prototype draws its inspiration from these concepts and shares several innovative features with them, as well as introducing new features of its own:

High manoeuvrability: With its spherical shape, this multi-orientation prototype tyre can move in all directions, delivering both manoeuvrability and passenger comfort. The Eagle 360 prototype provides a smooth ride by creating a fluid, lateral movement. This helps the Citroën Skate platform to easily overtake obstacles.

Maintenance-free: The Eagle 360 prototype is a non-pneumatic tyre. With no need for pressure monitoring or risk of puncture, it minimises downtime for the Citroën Autonomous Mobility Vision.

Long-lasting: With four times the tread surface of a standard tyre, the Eagle 360 prototype would also wear four times slower than a traditional tyre, leading to less frequent tire replacement.

Extended range: By using a stiff inner structure and low rolling resistance rubber compound, the Eagle 360 prototype is designed for low deflection at the point of contact with the road. This can contribute to reducing energy loss and lowering rolling resistance, which can help to extend the battery range of an electric vehicle.

Consistent grip: By using hexagonal siping, the Eagle 360 prototype is designed to provide consistent grip independent of the driving direction.

In total harmony

This is the latest in a series of partnerships between Goodyear and the Citroën Design Team, building on their recent collaboration on the autonomous, connected, electric Citroën 19_19 Concept that was revealed to mark Citroen’s centenary year in 2019.

Throughout the project, Goodyear’s Advanced Design Studio team collaborated closely with the Citroën Design Team to design and deliver a bespoke Eagle 360 prototype which is “in total harmony” with the vision and objectives of the Citroën Autonomous Mobility Vision.

“Concept tyres are the basis for an innovative company like Goodyear to engage with future mobility challenges and develop new, ground-breaking products and services. We are honoured to have partnered with Citroën on this unique mobility project and to have taken a further step in the development of one of our most innovative concepts,” Vrijsen concludes.