AKRON, Ohio, April 12, 2012 – While this year’s Mid-America Trucking Show in Louisville, Ky., drew a record number of attendees, The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company set its own record of sorts during the three-day event thanks to its DuraSeal Technology.
Mid-America Trucking Show attendees drove approximately 367 nail holes into a Goodyear G394 SST wide-base trailer tire at the tire manufacturer’s booth – without any impact on tire inflation.

Attendees punctured the tire using Goodyear’s “DuraSeal Popper,” a device that enables users to pierce the tread area of a tire by pulling down on a handle. (The tire was mounted on the DuraSeal Popper but not under a load at the time.)

“The results were eye-popping,” said Tim Miller, marketing communications manager, Goodyear Commercial Tire Systems. “DuraSeal Technology is the industry’s first and only built-in tire sealant, and is designed for multiple punctures while maintaining tire pressure.”

DuraSeal is a yellow, gel-like rubber compound that instantly seals punctures of up to ¼-inch in diameter in the tread area of the tire. (It does not seal sidewall punctures.) As a nail enters the tire and reaches the tire’s inner liner, DuraSeal immediately surrounds the puncture to seal the leak.

“If the nail is pulled out, DuraSeal can instantly fill the hole and keep air from escaping,” said Miller. “People are amazed that a truck tire can seal itself.”

Goodyear’s DuraSeal Technology is available in drive and trailer tires for over-the-road applications, plus in all-position tires for mixed service and waste-haul applications. To learn more about DuraSeal, visit www.goodyeartrucktires.com/technology/duraseal.aspx.

Goodyear Commercial Tire Systems offers a broad portfolio of products and services to the commercial fleet industry, including a full range of original equipment and replacement tires; the fleetHQ portfolio of business solutions; national programs, tire management tools; online information; and business problem-solving tools for tomorrow’s commercial fleets. For more information, go to www.goodyeartrucktires.com. For more information about fleetHQ, go to http://www.fleethq.com.