The word sustainability echoes as a mantra in the world of tyres. Many tyre manufacturers have been sinking money in search for materials with a lower environmental impact to use in the construction of their products. Among these is Continental, which has recently launched 19 sizes of the new UltraContact NXT on the market. A tyre, the Group specifies, made with 65% sustainable materials. More specifically, renewable, recycled and mass balance certified materials. According to the data sheet of the UltraContact NXT, renewable materials account for up to 32 per cent of the tyre. These include resins made from waste from the paper and wood industry, which are used in tyre construction to produce flexible compounds for improved grip. The 'Contains recycled materials' logo on the sidewall of the UltraContact NXT certifies the use of recycled materials in the construction of this tyre range, with a percentage of up to 5%. These include rubber from the mechanical processing of end-of-life tyres and recycled steel. The new Continental tyre contains silica made from rice husk ash. Rice husk is, in fact, an agricultural waste product, which can be transformed into silica through a low-energy process, and when used in tyre production, it can help to optimise characteristics such as grip, rolling resistance and tyre life. Continental's innovative ContiRe.Tex technology has also been applied on the UltraContact NXT. This process allows polyester yarn to be generated by recycling pet bottles and then used to reinforce the tyre casing. With its in-house ContiRe.Tex technology, the Group claims to have developed an environmentally friendly and more energy-efficient alternative that reuses between 9 to 15 plastic bottles per tyre, depending on the size. Furthermore, the UltraContact NXT uses up to 28 per cent Iscc Plus certified materials. Specifically, these are synthetic rubber and carbon black obtained from organic, bio-based circular raw materials. The 19 sizes of the UltraContact NXT, an extension of the well-known UltraContact product family launched by Continental in 2022, will replace the existing sizes already in the market. These 19 sizes are already available from tyre dealers while other sizes will be gradually introduced by Continental on the European market. The UltraContact NXT is designed for both electric and ICE engines, offering the highest rating on the EU label. Continental's most sustainable standard tyre therefore carries the EV Compatible logo and will be available for a number of vehicles such as the Kia Niro, VW ID.3, Mercedes-Benz EQA, Tesla Model 3, Audi Q4 E-TRON, Skoda Octavia, VW Golf 8, and Audi A3.
