The Dunlop GranTrek Ice 02 tire is the most advanced winter model of the renowned British brand for SUVs and crossovers. Like a significant part of other representatives of this line, it is designed for operation mainly on asphalt roads. This should be considered an advantage, since most modern crossovers and SUVs are operated mainly on them.
Fast water and slush removal
This model features a tread with a symmetrical directional design. One of its distinctive features is the arrangement of drainage grooves. With rare exceptions, all of them have a significant slope and are directed against the direction of movement. In combination with the large width of the drainage grooves and the increased depth of the tread itself, this allows for high-intensity removal of not only water but also more heavy snow masses from the contact patch, thereby ensuring reliable and stable traction in poor weather conditions.
In addition, it is worth noting another advantage of such a drainage system design. The increased width and depth of the grooves allow the tread to retain and compact much more snow. Due to this effect, the tire demonstrates more reliable traction on snowy roads.
Excellent stability and predictability at high speeds
The blocks in the central part of the tread of this tire are arranged in such a way that when moving, they form a very wide longitudinal rib. At the same time, they themselves are distinguished by massive sizes and increased resistance to dynamic deformation. When driving, this design feature manifests itself in the form of reliable and stable behavior at high speeds, as well as predictable handling. Together, this creates a feeling of ease of driving for the driver.
Special bridges between blocks
One of the key features in the design of the tread pattern of this tire is the special bridges between the blocks in the shoulder zones and the central part. The main functional purpose of these elements is to provide increased stability when maneuvering, accelerating, and braking. In these driving modes, the blocks of the shoulder zones and the center of the tread, due to the presence of a rigid connection between them, work as a single whole, which significantly improves traction with the road, and, in addition, prevents the occurrence and development of uneven wear.
Three-dimensional Miura-Ori lamellas
One of the most original solutions in the design of this model is the three-dimensional Miura-Ori lamellas, named after the Japanese astrophysicist who developed the scheme for folding various flat objects. As you know, most tire manufacturers use 3D lamellas, the walls of which have numerous protrusions and recesses. They do not allow the lamellas to close under the action of the car's weight, thereby limiting the mobility of the block and increasing its stiffness. The walls of the lamellas of this tire have a Z-shaped form in the longitudinal section and a wavy form in the transverse section. Compared to their usual analogs, this solution has a number of important advantages. The main one is a significant increase in the area of the block's contact patch with the road surface, as well as a more even distribution of the external load on it. To this, we should add the rest of the advantages of the lamellas, namely the formation of several thousand additional edges, which significantly improves the tire's traction on ice.
New studding system
This model was one of the first to feature a new studding system. It is significantly different from what was used in previous winter Dunlop tires.
First of all, this is the design of the stud itself. Its hard alloy insert has a rectangular shape, and its long edges have a zigzag shape. It is made of tungsten carbide. This material is characterized not only by very high mechanical strength but also by a low level of heating. When in contact with the road, the hard alloy insert of the stud is located transversely, which significantly improves the efficiency of the tire when accelerating and braking.
The base of the stud has also changed significantly. Its upper part has a hexagonal shape, which prevents it from twisting in the tread, and the lower part has increased dimensions. In addition, it is located in the lower "basic" layer of the tread, made of a more rigid rubber compound. The combination of such design features significantly reduces the likelihood of premature stud loss.
The next feature of the studding system used in this model is the arrangement of the studs. During movement, they form 16 (two on each side) continuous rows. At the same time, the number of studs per linear meter of the tread reaches six dozen. This is more than enough to provide the tire with very confident and stable behavior on any winter roads.
Two-layer tread
As mentioned earlier, the tread of the Dunlop GrandTrek Ice 02 model has a two-layer construction. In addition to more reliable stud retention, its lower layer made of a rigid compound performs a number of other important functions. First of all, this is a reduction in rolling resistance, prevention of uneven wear, improvement of handling, and ensuring maximum speed and accuracy in responses to steering wheel turns.
In turn, the outer layer of the tread, which has direct contact with the road, is characterized by increased elasticity. This is given by the increased content of silica in its compound. In addition, the composition of this rubber mixture includes special polymers that increase the strength of the tread on tear, which not only increases reliability but also protects it from negative high-temperature effects. Moreover, the more elastic upper layer significantly increases the level of comfort by giving the tire's ride softness.
Main features of Dunlop GrandTrek Ice 02
- fast removal of snow slush from under the contact patch due to the large number, large internal volume, and direction of the drainage grooves against the direction of the tire;
- stable behavior at high speeds is ensured by the design of the center of the tread, where massive blocks form a wide longitudinal rib;
- special bridges between the blocks of the shoulder zone and the central part of the tread improve traction in turns and reduce the length of the braking distance;
- an optimized studding system and several thousand 3D lamellas of original design provide reliable traction on icy roads;
- a two-layer tread simultaneously improves handling and comfort level when driving.
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