Tires and Wheels: Figure Skating
Numerous gripping edges merge into branded ornamentation
At the emergency braking site, the tires showed strong braking and stability
The Japanese company Toyo has presented the Winter studless tire comply with GSI-6, which is optimally adapted to the current realities and needs of drivers. Of course, it was not without branded nuances in design, technology, and even the presentation of new products.
I don’t remember another tire company that pays such attention not only to the content of the presentation, but also to its form. Demonstration of the new model of Toyo to observe the GSI-6 was a real show: Imagine a huge pavilion in Moscow the largest private film studio with furious Japanese-style drummers, lighting and sound effects, catchy graphics.
For the test, which is more correctly called the launch of the presentation, the organizers selected non-standard venues – an indoor ice arena of the largest sports complex. This decision we have seen in other brands of tires, but if as a rule, it is guiding, as soon as the first cautious steps of beginners on the rink, but now the shape of the cones of the distance more hinted at challenging the mandatory program in figure skating.
Studless tires on smooth ice, in the arena you have to rely mainly on the compression of the rubber compound and a little less on the tread elements. Observe GSI-6, as in the previous model GSI-5, starring was placed on an absorbent structure made of bamboo charcoal that absorbs friction, slippery micro-register water, and micro-abrasive micro-bit particles obtained from walnut shells. Recall that the developers chose this exotic component for stability and optimal balance of penetrating properties, sufficient to contain ice, but does not harm the asphalt. To maintain the required elasticity without losing the need, traditional silicon is added with a polymer to increase its dispersion (nano technology).
Remember how in the previous model to observe GSI 5 clung to the ice well even in a frozen Finnish training ground in a 30-degree frost, and now it started up again confidently on a flat surface of the ice arena – the organizers provided an opportunity to refresh your memory before the exam, new tires. It would seem, well, what kind of speed is 10 km / h? But after I almost sat on the splits right in front of the car door, you have to be careful: you just need to add “gas", the car tries to straighten the trajectory in turns, although control will be maintained and maneuvering between the cones does not turn into a bowling alley.
And up and down…
Then, carefully shuffling your feet, moving towards the sedan, "put" in the New Observance GSI 6. And the first desire is to increase the speed in half, half … corners and attachments became noticeably easier to perceive as increased lateral stability of the tire.
Feel confident, the car is deliberately provoked by sudden movements of the steering wheel – if it is set to test the speed limit, it reluctantly breaks into a slip and control the trajectory. Exercise turns into an exciting attraction. Several times, under the disapproving glance of the instructor, I take on the handbrake lever, but again without much extreme. The stability of the tread in a large contact area is affected by the design of the tire with two layers of steel breaker, a particularly strong side ring and rolled on the sidewall layer of the carcass.
Toyo is one of the few companies that pay attention to the aesthetics of the tire, that of the tread to observe the GSI-6 as being adorned with ornate ornaments. In fact, the work of designers and engineers is not visible there, they have seriously worked on density and grip. The straight center rib hit the serrated lugs wider, and the solid sipes in the middle, similar to a pendulum mark, increase longitudinal traction and help water run off.
Large double blocks in the central zone with jagged edges combine an abundance of longitudinal ribs and a high density in different load vectors on the sides, they reinforced the so-called snow claws – the "props" triangle, which are hidden in the channels. Each element of this block-spiral lamella works in all directions, regardless of the rotation of the wheels, as well as long transverse wavy lamellas, in turn, optimized interpenetrating walls, resulting in increased rigidity of the block.
We were given completely new tires for the test, but they may not work to work effectively from the first meters from the surface due to the grooves connecting the first rib. To feel a good balance of strength and density of the tread, it was possible not only to curve, but also during acceleration and especially braking, when the straightness of movement and yaw were excluded on a shortened braking distance.
In the days of the performances on the streets and of course the stadium there was not a lot of snow cover, but after studying the habits of the previous model and comparing the changes in the tread pattern, I can say that, without having a decent throughput, this line should be significantly upgraded. Why are there only complex external lugs in the shoulder area to confidently move in deep snow and trails.
The emergence of new tires to comply with GSI 6, made it possible for the Russian representative office of Toyo in pricing in the upper middle price segment, to provide car enthusiasts with models capable in one area or another to challenge the representatives of the premium class. But for everyday driving in a wide range of winter temperatures and climates, it will be a good and rational choice.