SEOUL, South Korea — Hyundai Motor Group and Michelin Group have agreed to work together to develop tires optimized for premium electric vehicles (EVs).
The companies signed a memorandum of understanding covering their cooperation June 17 at Hyndai's Namyang Research Center near Seoul. The parties said the MoU will lead to a "new journey" toward developing next-generation tires to be equipped with Michelin's clean and sustainable mobility solutions.
"This partnership with Michelin will result in real innovations in tire technology, solidifying Hyundai Motor Group's position as a leader in the smart mobility industry," Bong-soo Kim, vice president and head of chassis development center at Hyundai, said.
"By fully leveraging our mobility technology and Michelin's tire expertise, we are confident in our ability to achieve 'ground-breaking' innovations in tire performance enhancement and create synergies in this organic collaboration."
The agreement is a follow-up to the first five-year partnership signed in November 2017 to jointly develop an exclusive tire for Ioniq 5 and carry out experiments and analysis methods related to tires as well as technology exchange.
Over the coming three years, Hyundai and Michelin are planning to develop eco-friendly tires with increased use of eco-friendly materials, tires optimized for next-generation EVs and a real-time tire monitoring system that will help advance autonomous driving technology.
"The association between Hyundai Motor Group and Michelin is founded on the same vision and on a shared passion for excellence, performance and innovation that have become increasingly essential factors as we rise to the mobility-related challenges we all face today," Georges Levy, executive vice president of automotive original equipment at Michelin, said.
Tires that are developed due to the collaboration will be used on future premium EV Hyundai models, the partners said. The new technology is considered critical to meet the durability requirements of tires, as well as driving performance and electric efficiency under high load as the driving range of EVs continues to increase.
The companies also said they plan to conduct joint research to analyze tire wear, tire load and road friction beyond the current standards of tire temperature and air pressure. New tires are expected to improve drivers' ride comfort by reducing vibration and noise generated by EVs at high speeds.
The partners also plan to explore ways to increase the use of eco-friendly materials in tires to about 50% of total tire weight from 20% currently.