As it prepares to launch a new 7.5-tonne capacity X-Coach HL Z tyre, Michelin says it is setting its sights on the European Euro 6 coach market.
With an improved load capacity (7.5-tonnes, versus 7.1-tonnes for the X-Coach XZ), the Michelin X-Coach HL Z tyre will be available as a 295/80 R 22.5 fitment, which the firm believes will become the dominant tyre size on the majority of Euro 6 coaches in Europe.
The tyre incorporates a new tread design featuring four wide longitudinal grooves, claimed to improve distribution of pressure across the width of the contact patch.
Michelin says it also offers excellent mileage performance on a variety of road surfaces. Wider shoulder ribs and asymmetric tread patterns improve resistance to accidental damage and abnormal tread wear.
The tyre benefits from InfiniCoil architecture, one of the innovations of Michelin Durable Technologies, which consists of a steel cord, several hundred metres long, wrapped continuously around the crown, delivering, says the French manufacturer, "unrivalled robustness, greater longevity and more even wear".
"By incorporating InfiniCoil technology, we've improved load carrying capacity by 400kg on a single front axle, for example, compared with the previous X-Coach XZ tyre," states Brian Porteous, UK technical manager at Michelin.
The new 295/80 R 22.5 Michelin X-Coach HL Z is available immediately and is designed as an all-round fitment for coaches.