Dunlop bring new tyres to Le Mans 24 hour race
Dunlop will be using new wet tyres designed to ‘improve grip and driver feedback’ at the Le Mans 24 hour race.
The latest Dunlop tyres, which will be used in the LMP1 Le Mans Prototype category, feature a new compound technology and a new tread pattern which it reports have been successfully tested in recent events.
According to the company, this new tread pattern (which will be used on all Dunlop Le Mans wet weather tyres) features design technology that has also inspired Dunlop’s latest high performance road tyres.
Tony Flynn, senior design engineer for Dunlop, said: “Our latest tread design is more rigid. This gives a more precise steering response and increases the high speed stability of the tyre. More importantly, it gives better driver feedback – giving racers the confidence to push to the limit in all conditions.
“Quite often at Le Mans, and particularly during darkness, the track takes time to dry out after rainfall.
“The new tyre performs well in the transition from wet to dry conditions, providing strong pace without teams having to risk an early change back to dry weather tyres. It also gives the teams more flexibility, allowing them to run longer stints between pit-stops – even in changeable weather.”
Nineteen of the cars on the entry list for the 12 – 13 June event are racing on Dunlop tyres, designed, developed and manufactured at the company’s Motorsport Technical Centre at Fort Dunlop in Birmingham, England.
Alex Kapadia, Operations Team
Number: Z8037079
Reg: NKF419
