Self-Healing, Puncture-Free Tyres…Where Do I Sign Up?
So picture this: you’ve been on site since early morning, it’s 3:30pm and you’re heading home after a massive day. You notice a vibration in your steering which gets worse as you drive. If you’re lucky, you pull over to find a screw or nail protruding from your tyre, probably from where the apprentice has dropped a pile of screws on the driveway and not picked them up. The tyre then needs to be changed and dropped to the tyre centre for repair. It’s a massive pain in the arse.
If you’re not lucky the tyre blows out, and either yourself or someone else is injured in an accident that should never have happened.
The team at ASV has released Australia’s very first puncture-free tyre. It’s like a repair kit that lives inside your tyre and permanently heals typical punctures on the tread areas for the life of your tyre.
It sounds too good to be true, right? Well, it’s here in Oz right now, and with a set of these on your work truck you won’t ever have to change a tyre again if you get a puncture on the tread areas.
Test #1: How Does It Work?
I figure by now I have your attention, so let’s check out how this tyre works.
The tyre itself contains a sealing gel comprised of three key ingredients: a thermoplastic elastomer, resin and rubber processing/extender oil. When a nail or other sharp object penetrates the tyre, the gel application will immediately self-seal around the object that has caused the puncture. Even if the object becomes dislodged and comes out of the tyre, the gel will fill the hole and permanently seal the puncture without losing any air pressure.
To really put this system to the test I sourced, then screwed, 10 x 30mm screws into both the high and low points of the tread, and in case this wasn’t impressive enough, I also screwed a 50mm bugle screw entirely into the tyre. With a total of 11 screws in the tyre, I drove around for a few hours completing my tasks for the day – all up about 20km or so.
Now, this would’ve completely ruined any other tyre on the market today. A run-flat tyre would have enabled me to get to the tyre centre for repair if I headed straight there, but to abuse a tyre like this and get no loss of air pressure is simply amazing. It’s worth mentioning the laws on a product like this state only punctures on the flat tread of the tyre away from the shoulder can be warranted. Any puncture in the shoulder or sidewall of the tyre can’t be covered. Tears over 6mm are also not covered.
Test #2: The Drive
New technology like this is extremely impressive, but if the tyre handles like a dog then it defeats the purpose of the exercise.
The ASV P-Free tyre handled exceptionally well. If felt smooth on the road and was quiet (except for when I loaded it with screws and I could hear them hitting the road as I drove around). We had a bit of rain and sun on the test day, and the ride felt grippy and smooth in all conditions and at a mixture of speeds. I was in residential areas and couldn’t go above 80kph, but I couldn’t see a whole lot changing with another 30kph.
The team at ASV has put a lot of R&D into this product. ASV claims the puncture-free tyre performs just as well as the rest of its premium tyre range and I would have to agree with them. Comfort is important, but safety is paramount. Blown-out tyres at speed claim way too many lives on Australian roads each year. Honda independently tested this tyre, and it outperformed a similar tyre from a premium brand (even though it was slightly louder). So when it comes to performance, these tyres will more than hold their own against significantly more expensive tyres.
The Good The Bad And The Ugly
There’s no denying the technological innovation of this tyre. If only the rest of the car could self-heal when things went pear-shaped. Imagine panels or bumpers pushing themselves back into shape after a collision.
Just the fact you won’t need to carry a spare with these tyres blows my mind, and considering the tyre is warranted for three years or 40,000km, and the gel application that heals the tyres is guaranteed for the life of the tyre, ASV is more than standing behind this product.
The reduced weight of not carrying a spare will improve fuel performance and the applications for environments like mine sites where spares can’t be changed, and vehicles need to be towed to a safe area for any work, will improve efficiencies massively. How many times do you hear on the news that a driver has been hit on the side of a highway when trying to change a tyre or trying to help someone else to do the same? This tyre can and will save lives.
WTW rates this product 10/10.
Call 1300 854 355
For more information visit www.asvpfree.com.au