Electrification has ushered in new opportunities for development in the upstream and downstream of the automotive industry chain. Among them, the tire industry, which has been "unknown", has also begun to be active, and related companies have accelerated strategic adjustment and product layout, and are staging an electrified "wheel" battle.
Recently, according to foreign media reports, Hankook Tire said that it will launch the first complete tire product line for electric vehicles in May this year. As far as the information currently available to the reporter is concerned, Hankook Tire's car electrification "stepping on the wave" journey is absolutely not lacking in companions.
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Tire companies blow the "rallying number" of electrification
It is understood that Hankook Tire's first product line designed for electric vehicles, iON, will be the first to be launched in the European market and is expected to be launched in South Korea in August. Developed for high-performance, high-end models, iON tires further reduce rolling resistance, significantly reduce noise, increase tire load capacity, and help increase range. The series consists of 6 products, covering 18 to 22-inch summer, winter and four season tires, suitable for family cars and SUVs.
Lee Sang Hoon, President of Hankook Tire Europe, said, "We recognize the demand for tires related to electric vehicles and the rapid growth of the market. The iON series of tires will help to further optimize the efficiency of electric vehicles in everyday use. ”
Prior to this, in order to comply with the trend of automobile electrification, Michelin has officially released two special tires for electric vehicles for the Chinese market - "e. Listening" and "Racing EV"; Pirelli and LucidMotors jointly launched special tires for new energy models, which can bear an additional weight of 6% to 9% compared with traditional products; Bridgestone has also developed T005EV, a special tire for new energy vehicles, and plans to sell 90% of the vehicle tires for electric vehicles by 2030.
On this new "track", domestic tire companies have also started. In 2018, Linglong Tire launched the first new energy vehicle tire EV100, which is currently matched on Wuling Hongguang MINIEV, BYD Qin PLUS and FAW Hongqi E-HS3 models; Sailun Tire has cooperated with chery, BAIC, Changan, Nezha, BYD and other new energy vehicle companies in some models.
However, compared with fuel vehicles, the current special tires suitable for electric vehicles are still very limited, and the proportion of models using special tires is not high. According to incomplete statistics, the current models with special tires mainly include Tesla Model 3 high-performance version, Model Y long-endurance version and high-performance version, WEILAI EC6 and ES6, Volkswagen ID.4 and ID.6, Wuling Hongguang MINIEV and so on.
Although many electric models use higher-grade tires than similar fuel vehicles, they do not choose special tires. The research report analysis of securities companies shows that in the domestic tire high-end market, there are only more than 10 local enterprises, and more than 20 foreign and foreign-controlled enterprises; foreign leading enterprises have greater advantages in high-end electric vehicle tire support and tire specifications, and domestic tire brands occupy the lead in the support of hot-selling models for the mass market.
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Electric vehicles have special needs for tires
In recent years, with the promotion of new energy vehicles, the market has put forward new demands for iterative upgrading of tires.
For many electric vehicle users, "cost tires" is a more intuitive feeling. "The same is to drive 50,000 kilometers, my car is indeed more expensive than the traditional fuel car tire," a certain brand of new energy vehicle advocates in Beijing told reporters, "although the current vehicle is not equipped with special tires, but recently saw some international brands released related products, I am considering buying." After all, special tires have improved in terms of noise, load bearing, energy consumption, etc., and the price is acceptable. ”
Relevant statistics show that under normal circumstances, the average service life of fuel vehicle tires is about 5 years, and the tire life of new energy vehicles is only 4 years. In this regard, Shi Yifeng, secretary general of the Tire Branch of the China Rubber Industry Association, analyzed: "Compared with traditional fuel vehicles, the three-electric system of electric vehicles replaces the engine, with the characteristics of large torque and low noise, and electric vehicles have put forward higher requirements for tire bearing performance, safety, comfort, economy, grip, noise, handling, wear resistance and other indicators." ”
"For example, because it is equipped with a power battery pack, the curb weight of electric vehicles is large, which directly affects tire loss and vehicle braking distance, coupled with more direct and efficient vehicle power transmission, which brings users better acceleration performance and driving experience at the same time, and instantly outputs torque." Zhang Jing, chairman of Shandong Hongsheng Rubber Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Hongsheng Rubber"), told reporters.
"When the traditional fuel vehicle engine works, it will cover up many other irregular sounds, such as tire noise, wind noise, and the sound of the chassis suspension system. But electric vehicles are equipped with motors, and relatively speaking, the previously obscured sound has become more prominent. Therefore, from the perspective of comfort, electric vehicles require more silence of tires. Shi Yifeng introduced.
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The electric vehicle tire upgrade war has begun
The wave of automotive electrification has stimulated market demand for specialty tires, but also put forward new challenges for tire manufacturers. As more and more suppliers focus on the field of special tires for electric vehicles, market competition is bound to unfold.
"The introduction of special tires for electric vehicles has put forward higher requirements for structural design, product materials, processing technology and corresponding simulation tests." Shi Yifeng said that in this regard, foreign tire companies were previously at the forefront, but in recent years, with the continuous development of the mainland new energy vehicle market, powerful independent tire companies have invested in research and development and manufacturing strength, and the gap is gradually narrowing.
Driven by the electrification of automobiles, how to achieve high-quality development has become an important issue in the domestic tire industry, and promotes enterprises to carry out technological upgrading and product transformation. "We have continuously improved the rubber formula for high-end electric vehicles, such as heavy body weight and high torque, using new green materials, adopting new patterns with low rolling resistance, new tire structure super silent new technology, tire memory self-repair sealing materials and technologies, etc., to better meet the needs of electric vehicle users in terms of tire durability, silence and long-lasting performance." The use of new materials also puts new demands on the production process, so we have also upgraded and added existing process equipment. Zhang Jing said.
Whether it is tire noise reduction or load-bearing performance improvement, it is inseparable from the support of strong technology research and development and manufacturing capabilities. It is understood that Hongsheng Rubber actively conforms to the market trend, in the beginning of 2020, it has carried out the research and development layout of related products, in view of the demand characteristics of electric vehicle tires, in terms of formula design, new material application, pattern design, construction design, production process and other aspects of new design and development, after multiple rounds of trial production, testing, optimization, in the field of passenger cars launched e-Headking series products.
In the future, Hongsheng Rubber will continue to improve its product line according to the more segmented market demand, and it is expected to launch new products after May this year.
"There is considerable market space for tires for electric vehicles." Zhang Jing stressed, "Tires are of great significance to the energy consumption and stability performance of the whole vehicle, and they are also the guarantee of power and braking performance. The performance of the tire must match the performance of the whole vehicle, and when the vehicle model and functional parameters change, the tire must also change accordingly. When supporting vehicle enterprise customers, we also need to carry out customized development according to their individual needs. ”
"The transformation and upgrading of automotive products has put forward a more urgent demand for the improvement of tire performance, and also provided an opportunity for the tire industry to develop to high quality." Whether it is a fuel vehicle or an electric vehicle, low noise, low energy consumption and better grip are the common goals of product upgrades. In the future, with the continuous upgrading of performance, higher standard tires can also be applied to traditional fuel vehicles. Shi Yifeng thinks.
"As a tire supporting enterprise, we closely follow the wind direction of the development of the whole vehicle, and constantly optimize product performance, especially in the context of energy saving and carbon reduction, low carbon has become an important development trend of the tire industry." In the future, whether it is commercial vehicle tires or passenger car tires, the mainstream trend is to change in the direction of more comfortable, safer, greener, less low-carbon and more humanized. Zhang Jing finally said.
Text: Wu Xinmiao Editor: Pang Guoxia Layout: Wang Kun