Tires are made mostly with gasoline. Let’s face it, vulcanized rubber, invented way back in 1844, is not good for the environment. That means even you Prius drivers out there have not been able to lower your carbon footprint where the rubber meets the road.

That might be about to change. Tire maker Yokohama announced their new dB Super E-spec line, the first tire made with orange-oil (yes, from oranges). It’s a fire made with 80 percent non-petroleum based materials.

“Yokohama Tire Corporation has effectively re-invented the tire,” the company said in a statement. What? Not going to say “re-invented the wheel?” Come-on. How often do you get to say that and mean it?

“The eco-focused dB Super E-spec mixes sustainable orange oil and natural rubber to drastically cut the use of petroleum, without compromising performance” said Dan King, Yokohama’s vice president of sales. “It also helps consumers save money at the gas pump by improving fuel efficiency via a 20-percent reduction in rolling resistance. With these innovations, the dB Super E-spec could very well be the most technologically-advanced tire ever produced.”

Oil from orange peels combined with rubber was originally a racing idea, Yokohama says. Their ADVAN ENV-R1TM racing tires for Porsche GT3 cup cars use orange oil to improve a tire’s grip on the road.

The tires will initially be available in four sizes: 185/65R15 88H, 195/65R15 91H, 195/55R16 86V and 215/60R16 95V – which fit popular hybrids and other vehicles such as the Toyota Prius, Honda Civic Hybrid/Civic GX NGV, Toyota Camry Hybrid, Honda Accord Hybrid, Nissan Versa and VW Golf.

We think it fits the Corolla, too, yes?

About The Author

John Guilfoil is the editor-in-chief of Blast: Boston's Online Magazine and the Blast Magazine Network. He can be reached at [email protected]. Tweet @johnguilfoil.

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