Pirelli launches Cinturato Winter 2
Pirelli has launched its new Cinturato Winter 2 for medium-sized cars and CUVs. This new tyre features new technologies pioneered by the Italian firm, such as sipes on the tread pattern that become longer throughout the life of the tyre, capturing more snow to offer more grip.
Available at launch in 36 different sizes from 16 to 20 inches, Pirelli says the Cinturato Winter 2 offers extra control in snowy and wet conditions, also aiding driver comfort during the coldest season.
Pirelli says its newest tyre comes with innovative extendable tyre sipes, which enhance safety in all sorts of winter driving conditions from snow to rain, as well as on both slippery and dry surfaces in cold weather.
Thanks to the tyre’s 3D structure, these sipes actually become longer as the rubber wears down, transforming themselves from a linear into a zig-zag shape. This increases their overall area and efficiency, giving the Cinturato Winter 2 extra performance in snowy, wet and dry conditions: even when worn.
As a result, the Cinturato Winter 2 enjoys a longer useful life than its predecessor, according to Pirelli. In total, there are around 43 metres of sipes to improve grip on snowy surfaces, with a 30 per cent improvement in roadholding on snow compared to the Sottozero 3.
Pirelli claims the new Cinturato Winter 2 delivers more kilometres compared to the previous generation of Pirelli winter tyres thanks to a new compound, tread pattern, and structure, which prolongs the tyre’s performance throughout its life.
The innovative Cinturato Winter 2 compound has been developed using an innovative system of liquid polymers that can improve performance in wet and snowy conditions, following a Pirelli-patented process derived from the company’s extensive motorsport experience.
This process maximises the uniformity of the components within the compound, enhancing the performance of the tyre for longer on snowy or wet surfaces,
Particular attention was paid to environmental sustainability, to help reduce fuel consumption and harmful emissions, Pirelli says. Rolling resistance has come down on the Cinturato Winter 2 compared to its predecessor, which has been classified mainly in the B and C category on the European tyre label.
To improve driving comfort, the Cinturato Winter 2 benefits from low road noise thanks to the specific design of the tread pattern, with consequent benefits for the environment that places the new tyre in the A and B category on the European tyre label.
Pirelli says the specific design of the tread pattern was arrived at via a process of virtual development aimed at optimising pressure over the contact patch. That started with the design of the grooves to guarantee efficient water expulsion – which allow control of the car even in aquaplaning situations – and continued with the definition and placement of the sipes to ensure maximum grip on snow.
The Cinturato Winter 2 is available in some sizes with Pirelli’s Seal Inside technology, to give drivers even more safety. This allows people to keep on driving even in the event of a puncture up to four millimetres.
A specific mousse 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. When the object is extracted, the same material seals up the resulting hole.
For electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids, Pirelli says the Elect-marked Cinturato Winter 2 is available in selected sizes. This is a package of technologies bringing together compound, structure, and tread pattern to guarantee low rolling resistance and maximise battery range.
It adds reduced road noise to benefit from the quiet and comfort of electric cars, as well as instantly available grip to deliver the power and torque typical of electric engines, even from low revs.
The new Cinturato Winter 2 replaces the first-generation Cinturato Winter tyres – in sizes ranging between 16 and 18 inches – as well as the aftermarket Sottozero 3, which complements the P Zero Winter: Pirelli’s winter tyre for more powerful cars with sizes greater than 18 inches, introduced in 2020.