Bridgestone, a global leader in tyres and sustainable mobility solutions, has announced the launch of its Bridgestone Duravis Van tyre. This new premium summer tyre for Light Commercial Vehicles (LCV) delivers maximum efficiency during daily operating conditions. From regional to last mile delivery, the Bridgestone Duravis Van minimises downtime and contributes to reducing total cost of ownership, making it the ideal tyre for professionals who want to optimise tyre management, while prioritising safety and reliability.
The EV-ready Bridgestone Duravis Van has been developed to meet customer demands and boost business efficiency. According to tests carried out by independent TÜV SÜD, the new Bridgestone Duravis Van tyre offers best-in-class mileage1 for extended tyre life as well as best-in-class dry and wet braking performances2. The Bridgestone Duravis Van also achieves the highest EU label rating for wet grip, helping to keep drivers safe on the road, even in challenging wet-weather conditions.
Compared to its predecessor, the Duravis R660, the Bridgestone Duravis Van delivers a 21% improvement in rolling resistance3, securing an EU label Grade B for rolling resistance in most sizes. This means greater fuel/energy efficiency3, which translates to enhanced fuel savings or extended battery range for businesses.
Prepared to perform thanks to cutting-edge technologies
The new Bridgestone Duravis Van is the result of many pioneering technologies including the innovative and sustainable ENLITEN Technology. This set of technologies provide best-in-class tyre performance1,2, while delivering sustainability benefits thanks to the tyre’s best-in-class mileage1 and increased fuel/energy efficiency3.
The Bridgestone Duravis Van presents various innovations including a new symmetric tread pattern, cavity crown optimisation, and new sipes design and void distribution – all benefitting from a new enhanced contact technology to amplify its performance capabilities. Innovative mixing also improves chemical reaction control, balancing the reinforcing mechanism and rolling resistance.
The new Bridgestone Duravis Van is perfectly suited to both Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) and electric vehicles (EV), helping to optimise their performance. Specifically for EV drivers, the Bridgestone Duravis Van’s higher wear tolerance counters the increased weight and higher torque of EVs, while its low rolling resistance saves battery life. Compared to its predecessor, the Bridgestone Duravis Van tyre also delivers decreased noise for EV driver comfort owing to the near silence of EV engines — offering a reduction of 2db3 in pass-by noise, earning it an EU label A grade.
Committed to sustainable solutions
Commenting on the Duravis Van tyre, Steven De Bock, Vice President Consumer Replacement and OE at Bridgestone EMIA said: “Fleets today are facing several sizeable challenges. They need to bring down their total cost of ownership, optimise their operations, reduce CO2 emissions, and overcome the logistical challenges of the last-mile delivery model. The new Bridgestone Duravis Van tyre is the answer to all of these – it brings a range of benefits to both ICE and electric vehicles, delivering sustainability benefits, reduced total cost of ownership, and seamlessly connecting heavy load transportation with last mile delivery. It is the tyre to ensure businesses are prepared to perform.”
As a sustainable solutions company, Bridgestone is constantly evolving its R&D process to become more efficient and sustainable. The Bridgestone Duravis Van was developed using Bridgestone’s ground-breaking Virtual Tyre Development technology. This means a digital version of an in-development tyre can be created and tested, helping Bridgestone to predict how a tyre will perform in different conditions before physically building prototypes. In the development phase, this sustainable approach led to a saving of 38% of raw materials and CO2 emissions, while cutting 20,000 kilometres and 4.2 tonnes of CO2 from outdoor testing.
Such innovations are all part of Bridgestone’s vision to provide customer and social value as a sustainable solutions company. At the heart of this is the Bridgestone E8 Commitment – the broad, global corporate commitment that clearly defines the value the company is promising to deliver to society, customers, and future generations in eight focus areas. Specifically, the Bridgestone Duravis Van embodies the following: Energy, Efficiency, Ecology, Ease and Economy.
Developed in our European R&D Centre, the Bridgestone Duravis Van tyre will be available in 26 sizes from January 2023 onwards.