It can be harder and more challenging to locate the right tire for your vehicle and know its origins. We have researched to make research and decision-making simpler and identify the most effective tire manufacturers in the USA. Goodyear produces tires for commercial trucks, consumers, aircraft, and OTR markets. Goodyear also runs the world’s most recognized airship flood, covering major US-based sports events for more than 60 years, thanks to its famous Goodyear Blimp program.
Not every Goodyear tire is made in the USA. The company has subsidiaries based in Europe, Germany, Colombia, Thailand, France, France, Poland, Luxemburg, Turkey, Brazil, Venezuela, Peru, Taiwan, China, India, Malaysia, and South Africa.
Forty-eight Goodyear companies around the planet produce high-performance passenger tires, winter tires, commercial, and other tire systems in 21 countries. Some industries include retreading and repairing tires and manufacturing specialized tires such as OTRs, crops, aircraft, etc. Even though it comes from the United States, only part of the production is made of Goodyear tires produced in the US.
How to easily distinguish tires made in USA
You can check the place the tire was made from the TNT written on the sidewall. The combination of a letter and the number right after DOT shows a particular firm and its facility which manufactured the tire.
How are Goodyear tires manufactured in the USA differ from other countries?
Although the firm has various manufacturing facilities worldwide, the materials, technology, and chemicals come from the USA. Therefore, if you purchase a tire made in Germany, China, or Brazil, you will buy the same tire Americans purchase. The company overseas the manufacturing facilities’ work and the raw materials offered; there is no difference between the tires except the manufacturer code.
The manufacturing facilities outside the United States
For a long time, the Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company has been multinational – the first foreign facility in Ontario, Canada, was established in 1910. This company remains in operation and is specialized in passenger car tires and another Alberta-based Canadian facility that produces consumer tires. The company still has the mark “Made in the USA,” essential for its economic support.
In 1994, it was also one of the first tire firms to reach China. Today, it has its facilities in 11 countries in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, the biggest market outside North America. The organization is one of the leading locations today.
The process of manufacturing tires
Blending
Tire’s rubber blend takes up to 30 ingredients. The proportions of the ingredients depend on what the performance goals of the tire will be. It features various types of fillers, rubber, and other ingredients that are manufactured using Banbury mixers. They create a dark gummy compound that is sent on for milling.
Milling
When rubber is cooled, it is sent to a specific mill in which the rubber is cut into strips that make up your tire base structure. Other tire elements are prepared at the milling stage, and some of these are then coated in a different rubber form.
Build
The tire is built from the inside. Steel belts, textile elements, tread, ply, and other components are placed in the tire machine that ensures every part is precisely located. This leads to a nearly finished product called a green tire.
Cure
The green tire is then vulcanized in a curing press with hot molds, compressing all parts of the tire and giving the tire its final form, including a tread pattern and the maker’s sidewall markings.
Conclusion Although most leading companies have facilities in the United States, there are few genuinely American tire manufacturers left – Goodyear being among them. Others have emerged or sold to other companies such as Bridgestone and Michelin.