How the Pirelli Scorpion ATR tires were developed for the 2021 Ford F-150
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Tim interviews Pireli’s chief technical officer about the new tires on his 2021 Ford F-150 PowerBoost. (Photo by Tim Esterdahl)
The Pirelli Scorpion ATR tire was created just for the all-new Ford F-150. These are the tires Tim’s new truck came with, and he wanted to learn more about them, so he scheduled an
interview with Ian Coke, Pirelli’s chief technical officer to ask a few questions.
Pirelli Scorpion ATR replaces ATL
The ATR tire was developed specifically for the next-gen F-150. It was a 3-year project that required Pirelli and Ford to work together to work on achieving better roll resistance, noise reduction, good traction and still be a good off-road capable tire.
For this project, a lot of simulation and modeling was done before the tire was even built. This saves time, money and materials. Who knew you could fine-tune a tire that hasn’t been built yet?
A unique tread pattern
One of Tim’s questions for Ian was about the tread pattern on the new ATR. He says it’s a lot different from some of the patterns he’s seen when tire shopping and wanted to know if it was completely unique to the ATR.
Ian said you may see similar patterns on some of their other tires, but this specific pattern was developed for the Pirelli Scorpion ATR tire to help with traction and stability. It enhances the tire’s grip in mud and snow and helps to reduce road noise.
Does weight matter?
Weight is always the enemy of fuel economy. So, did Pirelli focus on reducing the tire’s weight in the interest of fuel economy? Yes, but not only for that reason. Roll resistance can also be improved with a reduction of weight. But safety and durability can’t be sacrificed, and Ian says you have to look at the whole package and do what you can to meet your goals while still producing a quality product.
Everything you wanted to know about tires
If you’ve ever wondered how tires are developed, how long it takes to create a brand new tire for a new truck, or what kinds of things a development team has to think about when designing a tire, this video is for you. You’ll definitely learn something. I did.
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