Pirelli Run Flat: 20 years of continuous innovation

Non – stop research and development of new materials and processes has helped Pirelli to increase driving comfort in recent years for cars equipped with Run Flat tyres improving rolling resistance with less fuel consumed and fewer harmful emissions as a result. They now offer the same levels of comfort as standard tyres, but with a key advantage. In fact, in the event of a puncture, the car remains stable on the road, continuing to travel up to a maximum of 80 km at a maximum speed of 80 km/h, allowing the driver to reach the nearest tyre shop safely. This is possible thanks to the Run Flat's Self Supporting system that uses special reinforcements inserted into the internal sidewalls, which are able to sustain the lateral and transversal loads on the car even with no tyre pressure. The high standards of product quality and reliability are the result of the innovative process computer driven and guided by Pirelli MIRS robots.

Furthermore, Run Flat technology will also play an important role in future autonomous driving systems, by helping the vehicle remain under control even in an emergency situation, and are already being chosen by some car manufacturers to equip electric vehicles, which do not have a spare tyre to make room for batteries.

20 years of continuous innovation, more than 1,000 models and more than 70 million tyres equipped with this technology, including summer, winter and all – season. These are the numbers of Pirelli Run Flat, a solution adopted, as original equipment, by several premium and prestige car manufactures, including Alfa Romeo, BMW, Jeep, Mercedes Benz and Roll-Royce. All these tyres carry “Run Flat” markings on the sidewalls, together with a marking denoting the individual car manufacturer they are intended for. On some tyres, this technology is combined with Pirelli Elect and PNCS noise-cancelling technology. The former, designed for electric vehicles, offers three advantages: low rolling resistance, noise reduction and immediate grip. PNCS is instead focused on reducing  tyre noise perceived inside the cabin, thanks to the use of special sound – deadening material on the inside of the tyre. There is also another technology to guard against punctures available: Pirelli Seal Inside. In the event of a puncture of up to four millimetres, a specific substance inside the tyre forms a seal that wraps itself around the foreign object as soon as it penetrates the tyre, preventing air from escaping and the tyre from losing pressure.