The factor
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It took a tilt test for leading tyre manufacturer Michelin to confirm that its X One MaxiTrailer tyre, initially designed to increase trailer volume, has also improved stability.
Tyre manufacturer Michelin has proved a significant improvement in trailer stability through the use of its wide X One MaxiTrailer tyre. It compared the performance of the X One and a regular trailer in a tilt test.
The test took place with a tractor and loaded 13.6m tipping trailer combination, weighing 44 tonnes, at the Chobham automotive test facility in Surrey.
The 455/45 R22.5 X One MaxiTrailer tyre reached an angle of 26.2' before losing contact with the tilt table; 6.5% better than the 385/65 R22.5 tyres, which achieved 24.6' before they left the tilt table.
Jeremy Wheeler, Michelin's technical manager product marketing — truck, says the results show that the wider tyre means a vehicle fitted with the X One MaxiTrailer tyre is more stable, and therefore roundabouts and tight corners can he more safely negotiated.
Going into the test, Wheeler admits Michelin hadn't carried out a stability test on the X One before. "We were confident it would show a benefit, and 6.5% is a significant difference," he says.
The original rationale for the tyre, says Wheeler, was to allow mainland European hauliers and logistics companies to increase loadspace on 4m trailers. The lower profile of the 455/45 tyre, compared with the standard 385/65 choice, allows trailer manufacturers to lower the ride-height of the trailer deck by up to 200mm, potentially increasing the volume of a 4m-high trailer by 9m.
Additional benefit
The X One MaxiTrailer tyre is 120mm wider than the 385/65, offering 35% more useable tread rubber, offering an improved contact patch with the road, spreading the weight through a larger area and reducing tread wear, and shoulders more resistant to lateral scrubbing when the trailer turns sideways.
The additional benefit of the tyre is increased mileage. One of the key elements to its longevity is InfiniCoil, which is a continuous steel cable in the construction, says Wheeler.
Today there are 75 fleets in the UK running the 455/45 R 22.5 X One MaxiTrailer tyre. including operators such as Boughey Distribution, which runs more than 130 trailers with the wider tyre. "In the UK, there was a performance aspect where it delivers 50% more mileage.The fuel economy is practically the same.
"We had a number of UK operators coming back saying their tyres didn't need replacing, and the drivers were raving about the trailer's improved stability and manoeuvrability," says Wheeler.
It was the stability that led Exeter-based operator Parsons Nationwide Distribution (see box), a Bardon Aggregates contractor, to push for a tilt test trial with its MAN 6x2 tractor unit and Kel-Berg tri-axle tipping trailer.
Wheeler says there are a few caveats to consider. "One or two adjustments are needed to retrofit X One MaxiTrailer tyres to existing trailers," he says.
"An increased gap between the tyres means you need to fit spray suppression and a new wing to match the tyres, plus the EBS needs to be recalibrated."
There are also considerations for fifth-wheel heights by running smaller tyres on the trailer. "It is better to specify X One MaxiTrailer tyre from new. Plus the 455/45 R 22.5 X One MaxiTrailer is wider and heavier — approximately 95kg a set," he says. •