Hercules said it decided to upgrade its all-terrain tire for several reasons: technology and compounding have improved drastically; customers are seeking new sizes; and the segment is very competitive. Plus, the Terra Trac A/T II had reached the end of its lifecycle.
The new products, the company said, needed to maintain the wet traction of the A/T II but enhance winter performance and cut-and-chip resistance and decrease noise.
"Not only did we have the same off-road performance and enhanced it, we were able to significantly decrease the noise level," Mr. Liu said.
The A/T Terra Trac X-Journey is aimed to capture a "crossover" market of SUV and CUV drivers. The tire features dual sidewall and shoulder designs; sawtooth edges; circumferential grooves; tuck grooves; alternating shoulder scallops; 3D sipes and silica tread compound; sound block technology and carries a three-peak mountain snowflake designation.
"This is a very good product for day-to-day driving. It will give you that comfort," Mr. Liu said. "But it allows customers to also be a weekend warrior."
The X-Venture is "bigger and badder" than the X-Journey, Mr. Liu said. The tire's features include enhanced profile shape and tread blocks; dual sidewall and shoulder designs; alternating shoulder scallops; tusk grooves; bevel-edge blocks; sound-block technology, and it carries the three-peak mountain snowflake designation.
"This has a more enhanced profile shape to give you that optimal off-road traction," he said.
Hercules said the tire sizes cover around 80% of market fitments, and the company is already discussing a size expansion.
Hercules, which sources tires from third-party manufacturers around the world, said the X-Venture and X-Journey are produced in the U.S.
The Hercules Terra Trac lineup also includes the most aggressive of the line, the M/T (mud terrain).
"It has really aggressive sidewall elements," Mr. Lui said. "This has been a very popular, very successful product."
The M/T is an all-season mud- terrain tire featuring aggressive open-shoulder design, deep siping to improve wet traction and high void-to-rubber ratio on the outside of the tire to deliver extreme off-road traction.
Hercules said a new M/T will hit the market next year.
The line also includes the Terra Trac T/G Max, a light truck tire designed for commercial applications.
The all-season commercial traction tire features "robust" silica-based compound, aggressive upper shoulder design, stone-ejector ribs and deep tread to ensure dependable traction and grip, the company said.
Mr. Liu said the idea for the tire, which has been on the market for several years, came from a group of tire dealers who said they liked the A/T II but needed something more purpose-built to use on construction sites. He said Hercules added more sizes last year because of demand.
"We've seen consumers will buy this and take it in the back country," he said. "Consumers love it, they can do anything from a commercial application standpoint, but they really like it for off-roading, too."