Baja, Super Swamper, Dick Cepek… Gear heads have grown accustomed to a certain type of tire when they hit the off-road terrain. Samir Sadikhov, however, is trying to change those conventional expectations with his latest, award winning design.
In a contest issued by Hankook asking students at Pforzheim University’s School of Design to create a tire concept for vehicles of the future, Sadikhov– who is also responsible for the design of the Ferrari Xezri and RAD Beast– won the contest by delivering the DACAR tire concept.
Undeniably one of the year’s most unique visions, this DACAR truck tire is designed to adapt to rough off-road terrain through an adaptable inner-wheel profile that pushes the outer hexagonal graphene tread blocks outward and away from each other, providing a knobbier surface and a superior grip.
To help prevent punctures, the tire’s graphene blocks have been equipped air bladders that provide an extra layer of security and can be replaced individually instead of swapping out the entire tire. Further re-enforcement is provided by the sidewall’s flexible carbon fiber and the concept’s wheels, which are made of hardened carbon steel.
As seen in the pictures, Sadikhov not only designed a new tire concept but an entire pod shaped off-road vehicle. Unlike the tires, there are no current plans to bring the concept vehicle to life, but hey, crazier things have happened.
4Wheel Online Blog - Automotive News 