At a relatively low cost compared to many competitors, the Kormoran SnowPro B4 winter tire demonstrates good performance on dry and snowy roads. This has been made possible by the use of relatively inexpensive and simple, yet effective, technical solutions in its design. The high quality of manufacture is also worth noting. This model is produced at the Tigar company's plant, which, like Kormoran, is part of the French tire conglomerate Michelin.
Interlocking blocks in the center
Since this model is designed for use on winter roads, it's no surprise that its tread is made in a fairly open design. It contains a large number of blocks that provide a contact patch with a significant number of gripping edges. At the same time, the developers were able to maintain other operational characteristics at a high level by applying several original technical solutions. One of them was the location and shape of the blocks in the central part of the tread. They are elongated, trapezoidal, interlocking elements that are centered. This design gives the tire several advantages, due to the fact that the blocks complement and enhance each other's work. In particular, this provides the tire with improved longitudinal traction and adhesion properties. Additionally, their elongated shape, rounded corners, and arrangement reduce rolling resistance and fuel consumption, as well as improve acoustic comfort, optimize the distribution of load across the contact patch, and reduce the risk of uneven wear. Furthermore, this solution allowed for improved stability during braking.
Wide blocks in the shoulder areas
The design of the shoulder areas of the tread, on the other hand, has classic features characteristic of most tires in this category. Here, massive blocks are arranged across the tire. The significant width of these elements allows them to remain stationary even under strong acceleration forces. This noticeably increases the tire's stability during maneuvering and also provides it with excellent performance during deceleration.
Sine-shaped lamellas
The developers chose to equip it with conventional sine-shaped lamellas, which, despite the presence of more advanced variants of these elements, have high efficiency. They work best on icy and snowy roads. In such conditions, a significant part of the adhesion properties is provided by the numerous edges. At the same time, they are directed perpendicular to the direction of movement, which improves the performance of the tread during acceleration and braking. The sine-shaped shape of the lamella walls limits the mobility of the blocks when lateral acceleration forces are applied, which improves the tire's handling and resistance to lateral skidding.
Key features of the Kormoran SnowPro B4 model
- Interlocking blocks in the center increase longitudinal traction and adhesion properties, and due to their elongated shape and rounded corners, reduce rolling resistance and improve acoustic comfort;
- Massive blocks installed across the shoulder areas provide stability during maneuvering and reduce the length of the braking distance;
- Numerous lamellas enhance longitudinal adhesion properties on icy roads, and their sine-shaped form prevents lateral skidding.
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