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A lot of good ’skull sweat’ has gone into the rubber under your car and when it comes to complexity, most people probably wouldn’t put tires very high on the list. After all, they look pretty simple, don’t they?

True, but this apparent simplicity is deceptive. A modern tire is actually a very complex piece of equipment, consisting of many different components. You can’t see many of these but without them your tires simply wouldn’t work.

Let’s take a look at how the most common type of tire, radials, are constructed.

The first step is assembling raw materials. Raw rubber and various chemicals are an obvious starting point, but modern tire manufacturing uses a lot of things you wouldn’t expect to find, such as pigments, wire, and special fabrics.

Tire manufacturers today use many kinds of rubber, both natural and synthetic. Some counts place the different kinds of rubber used in radial tire construction as high as 30. No matter what kind of rubber is used, the manufacturer will add other materials to get the compound they want. These can include antioxidants, oils, carbon black and numerous other additives depending on the type of tire being made and the manufacturer.

Once the raw materials are assembled, they are mixed together in Banbury machines. These are extremely impressive pieces of machinery that look sort of like God’s blender, assuming God wanted his smoothies subjected to intense heat and pressure.

After the Banbury machines have had their way with the rubber compound, it is repeatedly milled by putting it through rollers again and again. After the rubber is milled, it is ready to be formed into sidewalls, treads and other parts. But before they are put to use, the interior of the tire is assembled on a tire building machine.

The first part of the interior is called a bead or bead bundle. This is a hoop shaped length of rubber coated steel cable. The bead fits against the wheel rim and gives the tire the strength to stay seated on the wheel rim.

Next, a double layer of rubber (a synthetic in this case) is added that seals in air. It is this “inner liner” that allows modern tires to be tubeless.

Two layers of rubber coated fabric, the cords, are placed over the inner liner. Synthetic fabrics are commonly used as cords, including polyester, rayon, and nylon. The most common fabric in use today for this purpose is polyester.

The machine then shapes the radials into something very close to their final dimension. This is done to make sure all the parts are in the right position. Next, steel belts are added. These help to hold the tread on the road surface and make the tire more puncture resistant.

The last part to be added is the tread. Rollers press all the parts firmly together, and what we are left with is a tire that looks pretty close to what will go on our car.

However, this “green tire” is not ready yet. For one thing, it needs to be cured. For another, it is as bald as a cue ball.

At this point another reject from God’s Kitchen comes into play. The curing press, which looks similar to a giant waffle iron, gives the final shape to the tire, imprints a tread pattern and vulcanizes the rubber.

Although the tire is now fully constructed, it must still go through one more stage in the manufacturing process, that of inspection. Tire manufacturers use both human inspectors and special machines for different parts of the inspection. Some tires are even X-Rayed to check for internal flaws. Others are randomly selected from the production run to be ripped apart and/or tested to destruction in order to look at every aspect of the tire that could affect safety or performance.

Although they look simple on the outside, a modern automobile tire is truly a masterpiece of engineering. Now that you know how they are made, chances are you will never take your tires for granted again.

The Goodyear Guy is the friendly face of Goodyear Canada…And now he blogs, not just any old blog mind you, nope - this one’s a doozy. So if the ‘behind-the-scenes’ secrets of Goodyear Canada and their favourite spokeperson appeal to your curiosity check it out! Save $100 on your next set of Goodyear tires? Grab your digital rebate coupon today.

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Driving through snow is not on anyone’s list of fun things to do. It becomes even less enjoyable when you feel your tires quit on a particularly slippery patch.

When it comes to ensuring safe winter driving, you have two choices. Either you buy snow tires, or you go with all-season radials. Which one is the correct option depends entirely on the environment you drive in.

The difference between snow tires and all-season radials seems small at first glance, but it is crucial. The treads on a snow tire have treads that are widely spaced. Snow tires are specifically designed so these larger spaces allow the tire to dig into and grip the snow better than a regular tire or an all-season radial would. This is a good choice to go with if you live in an area that experiences regular heavy snowfall.

Since 2001, true snow tires have been manufactured with a special symbol. If you see a stylized picture of a mountain within a snowflake inside it, then you can rest easy knowing that the tire was designed to cope with harsh winter conditions. Snow tires also carry a mud and snow designation, abbreviated to M/S, M+S, or M&S. All-season radials also carry this designation.

The treads on all-season radials are spaced closer together than the ones on snow tires. Although they can’t possibly match the snow traction of a tire specifically designed for winter conditions, they do provide a quieter ride.

It should be noted that heavier cars (and cars with front-wheel or all-wheel drive) usually handle snow better than lighter cars. If this description matches your vehicle and you live in an area that doesn’t get a whole of snow, then all-season radials may be the way to go.

No matter what kind of tire you choose, two things are vitally important. First, make sure all four tires are of the same type. This will provide optimum traction and vehicle handling. Second, exercise caution when driving. This will help you stay safe regardless of the weather.

The Goodyear Guy is the friendly face of Goodyear Canada And now he blogs, not just any old blog mind you, nope - this one’s a doozy. So if the ‘behind-the-scenes’ secrets of Goodyear Canada and their favourite spokeperson appeal to your curiosity check it out! Save $100 on your next set of Goodyear tires? Grab your digital rebate coupon today.

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Don’t ever say it won’t happen to you. Statistics show that the average person will have 5 flat tires in their lifetime. That means you will have a flat and it is best to be prepared for it.

I’ve seen people stuck on the side of the road with no spare, no jack or lug wrench and no cell phone. What if you get stranded down a far out, little traveled country raod at night? You will be stranded for a long time. That is something we want to avoid. So here’s a checklist of what to have with you at all times in your car:

1) spare tire - this may sound mundane, but many people out their are driving on their spare and take a big risk.

2) jack and lug wrench - many people never check to see if these items are in their car. Its a fact that half of the used cars purchased in the U.S. do not have all the tools necessary for a proper tire change. Also make sure you have a lug wrench that fits your car. This may sound stupid, but when I worked at a car dealership if the car didn’t have a lug wrench and the customer wanted one, they just took one out of any car and put it in (never looking to see if it would fit the lugs on the car in question). If you have wheel covers you may need a large screwdriver to pop off the wheel cover (some lug wrenches have this as one of their ends).

3) lock adapter - many people get the chrome, alloy wheels and have a lug lock installed so they can’t easily be stolen. Just, never lose the lock adapter or you won’t be able to change that tire without having the car towed to a car dealership where they’ll have to cut off and replace the lug spindle (a very costly experience).

4) Flares and reflectors - you have to be safe. If you have a flat in a hard to see area you want to warn other drivers of your predicament so you don’t have a worse predicament. Also, pack a flashlight and extra batteries for night use - all the tools in the world won’t help if you can’t see (regularly change the batteries once a year).

Now, for safety, when a flat occurs you need to pull safely off the road. If on a busy interstate drive slowly until you are in a safe and relatively flat spot. Put your car in park and put on the emergency brake.

Place reflectors or flares so as to give adequate warning to other drivers. This spacing will be different depending on whether you are in hilly curves or on a straightaway.

Place the jack under the car on the jack mount area This is a area specially designed for your jack and is covered in the owners manual.

Loosen all of the nuts and then crank the jack until the tire is several inches off the ground. Remove the nuts and wheel. Place the spare on and tighten each lug finger tight to make the whel flush.

Lower the jack so the wheel can’t turn and tighten all nuts with the lug wrench. Then completely lower the jack and remove. Drive to your nearest auto service station and have your flat replaced or repaired and reinstalled. This is essential as many spares are not full spares and aren’t as safe.

David Maillie is an alumni of Cornell University and specializes in automotive safety products and information. He holds numerous patents and awards for his patented headlight cleaner and restorer. For more information please visit: http://www.mdwholesale.com

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