 Question: Tim Miller from Goodyear
Answer: Tim Miller has been with Goodyear for over 35 years. He spent 8 years as a tire design engineer before taking positions as a technical representative to original equipment customers (Freightliner, Paccar, Volvo and Mack) and later as a technical rep to several large commercial tire customers (Penske, UPS and Yellow Freight). After 5 years in commercial
tire sales (account executive to national account fleets), he returned for a second stint in the commercial tire marketing department.
 Question: We are getting Continental HDU-1, 385/55R22.5 tires on some new articulated buses made in Canada. We understand that Goodyear and Michelin make a similar size tire but we cannot find anywhere that these tires have been approved for use in the United States. Do you know if they are?
Answer: Goodyear markets tires all over the world and different markets often
require different size tires. In this case, we imported tires from Europe
to fill the need of a particular customer. These tires are not readily
available in the US market but, they are approved for the US market.
 Question: Are there some tips availible to me about improving our fleet fuel economy from a maintenance perspective as well as from a driver prospective?
Answer: From a tire maintenance prospective, there is nothing more important to improving fuel economy than keeping the right amount of inflation pressure in your tires. This means matching the inflation pressure to the load being carried. Given the fact that there will always be variable loads, you want to make sure to error on the high side (inflate tires to 5-10psi above what is required) rather than underinflate tires. The bad things that happen with underinflation are much worse than the few negative consequences of overinflation.
Tire inflation does not have to be as "hands on" as it was 20 years ago. There are excellent automatic inflation systems available that take labor out of this process.
Next, I suggest that you do everything in your power as a maintenance profession to keep tires running as long as possible. As a tire wears down, its rolling resistance values keep getting lower and lower. As the tread wears away, there is less "squirming" of the tread as it passes through the footprint of the tire so, less energy is lost to heat. Worn tires run cooler and more efficiently than new tires. So, any tire you can run down to your predetermined, removal tread depth is saving fuel.
Beyond maintenance, there is the specing tires on new vehicles and replacement tires. There are fuel efficient tires available from every major brand and the EPA SmartWay website lists tires that are SmartWay verified. Visit this site to see a list of fuel efficient tires.
From the driver perspectve, "easy does it" pretty much sums up what should be done. Jack rabbit starts and heavy acceleration are MPG killers. As they say, drive like there is an egg between the right foot and the "gas" pedal.
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 Question: I work for a small rural fire dept. that owns many trucks that have tires that are coming to an age that NFPA suggests we replace. These tires in almost all cases have less than 10,000 miles on them. These trucks all sit in temperature controlled buildings and the tires are checked at least weekly. I am wondering what the industry is saying about this.
Answer: The tire industry, in general, and Goodyear, in particular, both feel that age alone is not a reason to remove a tire from service. If the tires have been maintained as indicated, there is not reason they can not remain in service. For added assurance, it would be a good idea to have the tires inspected by a local tire expert (reputable dealer). Any issues would be visable (weather checking or tread/sidewall damage) so, the tires would not have to be removed from the wheels.
 Question: Is there any benefit to running 22.5 vs 24.5 low pro tires on tractors or trailers? I've always wondered why someone would choose one over the other.
Answer: From the fuel economy and tread wear standpoints, I don't think you would find a measurable advantage to either size (all other things being equal).
I would go with the 22.5 tire just because it is more common and more readily available in the open market.
 Question: What is your position regarding aluminum wheels vs. steel in the corrosive enviroment of the municipal plow truck?
Answer: There are indeed metallurgical differences between steel and aluminum wheels. Both may be affected by adverse operating environments and corrosive chemicals, however, both aluminum and steel wheels will perform acceptably when properly maintained. In addition there are coating options when specifying wheels and other accessories which may help prevent corrosion issues. Consultation with your wheel manufacturer is recommended.
-Dale Overton from Accuride
 Question: Why is it cheaper to run new tires than recaps?
Answer: Is this a trick question? The real question should be why is it cheaper
to run retreads than new tires?
To that question I would answer the following: A comparable retread costs about 1/3 as much as a new tire tire. With today's technology, the miles per 32nd are very, very similar for like tread designs (but, sometimes the tread depth of a retread is less than a similar new tire). If retreading is done on a quality casing (premium brand tire, that has been kept at an acceptable inflation pressure for the load it was carrying), there is no reason it can not perform at the same level as a new tire. Equal performance for 1/3 the cost.
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