Goodyear's Aquatred 3 Tire Remains Departure from Norm
29 November 2000
Goodyear's Aquatred 3 Tire Remains Departure from NormAKRON, Ohio, Nov. 29 Although Goodyear's new Aquatred 3 all-season tire may appear to be dramatically different from its Aquatred predecessors, first impressions can be deceiving. In fact, the new tire is more like the original Aquatred and Aquatred II than its appearance might suggest. The new Aquatred 3 "look" still relies on Goodyear's famous aquachannel technology for driving on rain-slick roads, but this time, company engineers chose to replace the single Aquatred II deep groove, which made the tire appear as twin motorcycle tires. "In this case, the single aquachannel was replaced with two aquachannels, because two really is better than one," according to Mark Cherveny, product manager for the company's passenger-car tires. "Although Aquatred 3 provides an 8 percent improvement in wet braking distance and the capability to displace 18 percent more water than Aquatred II, the tire's traction on dry pavement is 6 percent better than its predecessor. "We didn't want Aquatred 3 to be a sequel to Aquatred II; we wanted more than a 'rain' tire," Cherveny said. "We wanted a family-car tire that possessed high-performance tire characteristics." Whereas the original deep center groove on the Aquatred tire was dramatic and revolutionary upon its introduction in 1991, the dual aquachannels and wide tread profile on the Aquatred 3 "provide a 21st Century appearance," he said. A 10 percent wider tread footprint on the pavement than its predecessor delivers long treadlife, a quiet ride and excellent dry and wet traction. The new "look" also has played well with retailers, Cherveny said. "The high-performance tire appearance helps retailers to differentiate Aquatred 3 from Aquatred II. Consumers can see the difference, and that's good. "Retailer feedback has been excellent with orders exceeding budget expectations monthly," he added. Consumers loyal to Aquatred tires receive more value for their tire investment, namely touring tire performance and an 80,000-mile treadlife limited warranty, up from Aquatred II's 65,000 miles, Cherveny said. Nearly 65 percent of Aquatred owners replace their worn tires with new Aquatreds (industry average is about 40 percent). The tire is available in 18 popular family-car sizes.