How are Formula 1 Tyres Different From Regular Tyres?

So what makes these tyres so different? They do look broadly the same, but actually how similar are they? We know that F1 tyres are made to strict guidelines while road tyres have this label so we can accurately compare them. The label explains the different measurements and performance metrics of the tyre in a code of letters and numbers. 

Dimensions and Specifications 

Width is the first number on this label. For the road tyre, it's 215 millimeters. This is 17 inches for the road tyre and 18 inches for the 2022 spec tyres London, but this one is a bit older and is 13 inches. 

The label also tells us the loads and speeds that the tyre can cope with, which is 91Y for this tyre. 91 indicates the load and Y is the speed. Looking at this number on the universal load index, 91 means that this tyre can go with 600 kilograms of load compared to the F1 tyre at over 1,000 kilograms. 

Handling Downforce and Speed 

This is the major difference between these two tyres, as the F1 tyre has to be able to cope with so much downforce. Think about an F1 car braking at the end of a straight: you've got two tons of downforce plus the weight of the car plus the braking force down on those front tyres, and that is a lot more than a road tyre has to deal with. 

Cost and Supply in Formula One 

Formula One tyres have been exclusively supplied by Pirelli since 2011. The teams don't pay Pirelli directly for the tyres but pay a flat rate agreed between the tyre manufacturer and the FIA. This rate is actually quite hard to find, but I have it on good authority that a set of four tyres costs around 2,200 pounds.  

With 13 sets supplied to each driver during every Grand Prix weekend, the teams are getting through 57,000 pounds worth of tyres per race. That works out to be 1.3 million pounds for each team per season, and so the 40,000 individual tyres Pirelli produces over the course of a season for F1 are worth 22 million pounds. 

Road Tyre Production and Cost 

On the other side of this comparison, road tyres are manufactured by a whole number of companies from around the world, including massive companies like Michelin, Goodyear, Hankook, and Bridgestone, who made this. These companies produce a lot of tyres 2.2 billion were produced in 2021 alone. Using a 50-pound reference (which is cheap), that totals to 110 billion pounds. 

Shelf Life and Longevity 

The numbers are also very different when it comes to their shelf life, but this is by design. Pirelli’s F1 tyres are designed to only go so far before they lose performance to keep the racing exciting and interesting. This means that the Pirelli F1 tyres will last between 60 and 200 miles. Of course, they do have to cope with loads of up to 5G throughout their lifespan, so it's not from lack of trying. But it wasn't that long ago that F1 tyres used to last an entire race distance. 

On the other hand, your average road tyre will only experience loads of up to 1G during its life, but its performance is equally as impressive just for different reasons. F1 tyres are obviously built for ultimate performance and grip, but normal road tyres are built for comfort, longevity, and to be adaptable. 

Road Tyre Versatility 

A road tyre has to work in the dry, in the rain, on freezing cold tarmac, hot tarmac, gravel roads, and the list goes on and they do this for years. tyre manufacturers advise that tyres should be changed after 20,000 miles, which is at least 100 times more than an F1 tyre lasts. But a normal road tyre should be able to go over 60,000 miles without the driver noticing them and at the cheap end, this is all for only 50 pounds, and that is incredible. 

Materials and Construction 

What's interesting is that they are constructed in a very similar process. Both F1 and road tyres are made of a mixture of natural and synthetic rubbers alongside up to 15 reinforcing materials to create the rubber compound. However, their ratios are slightly different. While normal road tyres are 20% natural rubber and 80% synthetic, F1 tyres Chertsey are 10% natural rubber and 90% synthetic.

The high synthetic rubber content gives the F1 tyre more strength, more heat resistance, and more consistent grip compared to the road tyre. Both contain carbon black, which adds strength and gives them their color, as rubber is actually naturally white. But as you would expect, they include different materials to suit their requirements. 

Specialized Additives 

For example, road tyres include antioxidants to minimize the effects of oxygen and silica to reduce rolling resistance, which helps fuel economy. It's hard to say for sure, but F1 tyres won't include as many antioxidants as they don't last long enough for this to be a problem. As for silica, they'll have less of that because they want that rolling resistance to create as much grip as possible. The power of the F1 car will overcome this resistance, so it shouldn't really affect performance.