. These tires were created to help overcome the way that rubber-based tires slowly leak air and the deterioration they face.
The never-go-flat tires are called Metl, and they look similar to slinkies you might have played with as a kid. The spring is made to be shaped just like a normal tire, but it’s made of a nickel-titanium alloy called NiTinol instead of the usual rubber material that tires are made of. SMART Tire Company calls its Metl tires “space-age tires” and says that they’ll never require air pressure, and will ride just as smooth as traditional pneumatic tires. They’ll also feature low rolling resistance, which SMART Tire Company says will mean less work for the rider. The waitlist for the tires currently sits at over 10,000 cyclists, SMART Tire Company explains on itsThe page still has over 20 days to go at the time of writing this article, and it has already garnered close to $80,000.
Never having to worry about your tires going flat sounds like a nice thing to me, so I’m all for what we’re seeing with this kind of technology.