Pirelli & its sidewall symbols

In addition to the sustainability logo that we reported last month, the sidewalls of selected Pirelli tyres feature yet another new symbol. This is an elongated R that resembles the Pirelli P with two small arrows underneath, and it stands for the manufacturer’s RunForward technology.

Pirelli introduced RunForward along with the P Zero E, and this feature refers to the tyre’s emergency running properties. According to Pirelli, RunFoward enables the tyre to travel up to 40 kilometres or 25 miles at a maximum of 80km/h or 50 mph even after a complete loss of inflation pressure.

The concept of reinforced sidewalls upon which RunForward is based is not new, having found its way into the Pirelli portfolio in 2001 under the name Euphori@. Since that time, other manufacturers have worked to further develop run-flat technology, such as Bridgestone with its DriveGuard.

By 2021, Pirelli had produced more than 70 million run-flat tyres. In this respect, RunForward is merely the very latest incarnation of the Italian manufacturer’s reinforced sidewall technology. The company claims that RunForward provides comparable comfort and driving noise levels to conventional tyre, qualities that run-flat tyres struggled to match in past years.