Continental Tire unveils Generation 3 construction tire and matching retreads, reintroduces General Tire lines | Dump Truck Company

At its 5,000 acre proving grounds and tire testing facility in Uvalde, Texas, Continental Tire gave us a look at its new Generation 3 line of tires designed for the rigors of the construction world.

The late September event also included briefings on the company’s digital tire technology and announced several additional tires to come—including the reintroduction of the General Tire bias-ply tire product.

Created for the on/off-road and mixed use applications, the new Continental Generation 3 construction truck tires share a common design and technology. The three new models include the Conti HSC 3, Conti HAC 3 and Conti HDC 3. In the company’s code the “H” stands for heavy-duty, “S” is steer axle, “A” is all position and “D” is drive. The number 3 denotes the Generation 3 design. The tires are aimed at a number of diverse applications including construction, cement, utility, forestry, logging and emergency vehicles.

Generation 3 construction truck tires have in common an aggressive on/off road tread for improved mileage and traction, new rubber compounds, a self-cleaning tread with nodes in the bottom of the tread grooves to help eject stones, a four-ply/full width steel belt package, beefed up sidewall protection and an imbedded tire pressure monitoring sensor or TPMS.

Retread packages match the exact tread pattern and rubber compounding of the original tires.

In addition to making a more robust tire, the tread design, belt package and sidewall protection make it possible to retread these tires up to three times. Continental is serious about helping you reduce costs through retreading and makes its own retread packages to match the original tread design and rubber compounding of these tires. With a good casing, these tires can be retreaded up to three times and offer a six year warranty.

• The HSC 3 steer axle tire is available in sizes 11R22.5 LHR, 11R24.5 LHR and 315/80R22.5 LHR and widths of 210 mm, 220 mm, 230 mm and 240 mm.
• The HDC 3 drive axle tire is available in sizes 11R22.5 LHR and 11R24.5 LHR and widths of 210 mm, 220 mm, 230 mm, 240 mm and 250 mm.
• The HAC 3 all-position tire is available in sizes 385/65R22.5 LRL and 425/65R22.5 LRL. Retread packages are available for all sizes of all the tires.

Upcoming products

Continental also used the event in Uvalde to announce the return of the General Tire brand to the North American market in 2020.

The General Tire product is bias ply, rather than radial belted. Bias ply is a lower cost, entry level technology but desirable for skid steers and charlotte nc dump trucks that doesn’t see a lot of hours. Contractors who use telehandlers and rough-terrain forklifts also like bias ply tires because they are stiffer than radial tires and that helps stabilize the machine when the basket or platform is high up in the air.

Additional radial tire products to come include earthmover and wheel loader radial tires including E3/L3, L5, and L5S sizes, and skid steer and backhoe tires to come at a later date.

TPMS and technology

Continental makes a host of sensors and components that you probably haven’t heard about. Most of these go into the global automotive industry, but every Generation 3 tire taps into this high-tech expertise with the addition a Continental-built tire pressure monitoring system mounted on the inner liner of these tires.

Unlike valve-mounted TPMS, which are exposed to potential damage and use algorithms to calculate values, the Continental sensors are physically protected inside the tire and read temperature and air pressure directly.

Data from the Continental TPMS can be collected and read three different ways:

• The ContiConnect Yard Reader station collects the data within a 65 foot radius. It’s typically mounted in the fleet yard guard shack, fueling station or other central point. The data is analyzed and displayed in the online ContiConnect web portal, accessible by phone or tablet. High temperatures, low pressures or other customizable thresholds will trigger texts and email alerts. It is designed primarily for vehicles that return to a home base every day.
• ContiPressureCheck monitors single vehicles in real time and alerts drivers to pressure and temperature issues on an in-cab display. Access to the information comes via a variety of telematics providers including Zonar, PeopleNet, Geotab and Road Ready.
• And if you need to stay compliant with the pending greenhouse gas regulations from the EPA and CARB, the ContiPressureCheckSolo is a stand-alone TPMS for trailer tires. (The GHG 2 legislation as written currently will specify tires’ rolling resistance.)

TPMS equipped tires from Continental can also take advantage of a new service concept, the ContiLogger Live which uses a telematics device with integrated sensors to measure speed, distance, locations, lateral forces, road grade, and production activity in addition to temperature and pressure. ContiLogger Live can be used with thousands of vehicles and used to make customized recommendations on things like haul road design, tire recommendation and process improvements.