The next rounds of the 2018 French Rally Championship will see Michelin Motorsport debut the sport’s first connected tires.
The new tires will be capable of communicating with drivers and co-drivers thanks to an app (iOS and Android) designed to help competitors improve their performance by optimizing the tire factor.
The unveiling of the new system comes just a year after the launch of Michelin Motorsport’s My Rally Engineer app.
“Our initial My Rally Engineer app, introduced in 2017, is a digital tool designed to allow amateur crews to track and optimize the performance of their tires,” says Serge Grisin, who is in charge of Michelin Motorsport’s innovations program. “Today, we have gone a significant step further ¬– Michelin Motorsport Connect enables competitors to collect data in real time and to benefit from two-way dialogue with their tires by means of a practical and intuitive new application.”
“Connected technology is a reality in today’s tire industry and we are exploring ways of making these innovations a real asset for our customers,” Grisin adds. “Rally crews need information that can help them optimize tire performance.”
With Michelin Motorsport Connect, drivers and co-drivers can permanently monitor tire pressures, while benefiting from tire-related information and the ability to log data during rallies.
Michelin Motorsport Connect connects the new app with reusable sensors located in specific housings glued inside Michelin rally tires and an in-car receiver. Available from approved Michelin Motorsport distributors at prices starting from €400 (US$500), it will be released in France in the coming months before being introduced elsewhere in Europe and the rest of the world.
