Hyundai Motor Group (the Group), announced today that it has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU), with Michelin, to develop next-generation tires for premium electric vehicles.
On June 17, Bong-soo, who is Vice President and Head at Hyundai Motor Group’s Chassis Development Center, and Georges Levy (Executive Vice President at Michelin Automotive Original Equipment), attended the signing ceremony.
This new MoU will follow the completion of their first partnership. It will allow them to embark on a new journey to develop next-generation tires that are compatible with the Group’s smart, sustainable and clean mobility solutions.
Vice President Kim stated that Hyundai Motor Group’s partnership with Michelin would result in real innovations and solidify its position as a leader within the smart mobility sector. We are confident that we can achieve breakthrough innovations in tire performance enhancement by fully leveraging Michelin’s tire technology and creating synergies through this organic collaboration.
This agreement follows the original five-year partnership that was signed in November 2017. It will jointly develop a tire for IONIQ 5, and conduct experiments and analyses on tires and technology exchange. The Group and Michelin will jointly create the following innovations over the next three years: eco-friendly tires that use more eco-friendly materials; tires optimized for next-generation EVs, and a real-time tire monitoring system that will aid in autonomous driving technology.
Levy stated that the success of the Hyundai IONIQ 5, was possible because of the collaboration between Hyundai Motor Group (Militin) over the past five-years. We are happy to announce that our relationship has been extended for an additional three years in order to continue our collaboration on new technologies to improve safer and cleaner mobility. The partnership between Hyundai Motor Group, Michelin and Michelin was founded on the same vision. We share a passion for excellence and performance. This is a key factor in our ability to meet the mobility-related challenges that we all face today.
The next-generation tires developed through the collaboration will be used in future premium EV models by Hyundai Motor Group. This innovative tire technology is essential to meet the durability requirements for tires as well as driving performance under high loads as the driving range of EVs increases.
Michelin and the Group plan to collaborate on research to examine tire wear, tire loads, and road friction. This will go beyond current tire pressure and temperature standards. New tires will also be expected to improve ride comfort for drivers by reducing vibrations and noises generated by electric vehicles at high speeds.
They will also look at ways to increase the number of eco-friendly tires, which currently weigh in at 20 percent.