The Epoch Concept celebrates Kumho's success in this year’s Le Mans 24 hour race, and is aimed at showing "what an environmentally friendly Le Mans car of the future could look like."

The single-seater makes use of futuristic technologies oriented towards environment respect.

Its chassis is grown from bamboo, and the lightweight body panels are formed from recycled tyre tread rubber.

The powertrain adopts Maglev (Magnetic Levitation) units, integrated into the four-wheel hubs.

"Proven in the railway industry, this advanced electromagnetic technology has the advantage of zero friction as well as maximum torque at zero rpm."

The tires are made of an innovative material known as EAP (Electro Active Polymer), which allows the tread and even the shape of the tires to be fundamentally altered simply by passing an electric current through the rubber.

This is achieved via the positioning of magnets on the hubs and within the wheel rims. It effectively allows the characteristics of the tire to be altered at will, to suit different tastes and conditions.

The interior is clad with the type of scented ‘aroma’ rubber, which is already available for tire of several luxury saloons and compact SUVs.

About the Designer

The Epoch Concept was created by Kumho’s in-house designer, Rob Dolton, who "is the only qualified vehicle designer employed within the world’s tyre industry."

He works at Kumho’s European Technical Centre in Birmingham, with the task of exploring future technologies for road and track vehicles, and the tyres they run on.

Rob Dolton has graduated from the Automotive Design Department of Coventry University, and has worked for Fiat Advanced Design in Turin before joining Kumho in 2005.

Speaking about the Epoch Concept, he said, “While delighted at winning the LMP2 class at Le Mans this year, we accept that environmental pressures will not allow motorsport to carry on in its current form indefinitely.

"However, rather than viewing it as an increasingly antisocial pastime, we regard it as a perfect platform for developing green technology solutions. Epoch is an example of just how exciting the future could be."

For further information on Kumho visit http://www.kumhotyre.co.uk/

(Source: Kumho)