zepher Posted February 28, 2020 Share Posted February 28, 2020 (edited) I have been around cars my entire life, well over 50 years, and I had never heard of this little experiment by Goodyear until a friend sent me an article about them. Seems they were a colossal failure but I guess they caused quite a stir at the beginning. How many of you guys had heard about these experimental tires? https://spectrum.ieee.org/tech-history/heroic-failures/goodyears-illuminated-tires-promised-a-whole-new-frontier-in-car-fashion https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/woman-adjusts-her-stocking-by-the-light-of-the-new-goodyear-news-photo/3137865 Edited February 28, 2020 by zepher (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rusty_OToole Posted February 28, 2020 Share Posted February 28, 2020 I remember reading about them in Popular Mechanics and similar magazines back in the day. This was when 2 ply tires and 13 inch tires were the newest thing. Cost and weight had come down a lot from just 10 or 15 years earlier when 16 inch 4 ply tires with tubes were the norm. It seemed the new plastic one piece tires would be even lighter and cheaper. Too bad they didn't prove practical, can you visualize a 3 tone chrome and tailfinned road rocket with chartreuse neon tires? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robert Street Posted February 28, 2020 Share Posted February 28, 2020 No memory here as I got my driver’s license in 61 and should have heard of them robert Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zepher Posted February 28, 2020 Author Share Posted February 28, 2020 33 minutes ago, Rusty_OToole said: I remember reading about them in Popular Mechanics and similar magazines back in the day. This was when 2 ply tires and 13 inch tires were the newest thing. Cost and weight had come down a lot from just 10 or 15 years earlier when 16 inch 4 ply tires with tubes were the norm. It seemed the new plastic one piece tires would be even lighter and cheaper. Too bad they didn't prove practical, can you visualize a 3 tone chrome and tailfinned road rocket with chartreuse neon tires? I would have thought the illuminated tires would have made a pretty big impact at a Motorama Show. Those cars were just static displays so there would have been no need to worry about performance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
8E45E Posted February 28, 2020 Share Posted February 28, 2020 (edited) Seems that was a British thing. One can easily see its a 60's Ford Consul those tires (oops, TYRES!) are mounted on. If I remember right, there was something in a old Autocar magazine on them. Craig Edited February 28, 2020 by 8E45E (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
46 woodie Posted February 29, 2020 Share Posted February 29, 2020 They were a publicity stunt by Goodyear in 1961 or '62. They came in several colors and (I'm not making this up) was aimed at the female driver. In fact they suggested owning several sets of wheels and different colored tires to match her wardrobe. A famous custom car "The Golden Sahara" had them on and would light them up at car shows. It was only a gimmick, as they figured the cost of a set of tires would cost more than the car! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zepher Posted February 29, 2020 Author Share Posted February 29, 2020 According to the article, the tires performed very poorly in the rain and actually melted under heavy braking. Not a good thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1937hd45 Posted February 29, 2020 Share Posted February 29, 2020 Always thought that was a Golden Sahara feature only. Bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 29, 2020 Share Posted February 29, 2020 I think it was a brilliant idea. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James-Wahl Motors Posted March 2, 2020 Share Posted March 2, 2020 The Golden Sahara II was shown last month at the 2020 Chicago Auto Show (the new car show) glowing tires and all. Restored and in a large area collection. Overheard Goodyear helped reproduce the tires with LED illumination. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
padgett Posted March 2, 2020 Share Posted March 2, 2020 Wonder how many revs the wire from the fendewell to the wheel was good for ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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