Automakers and their suppliers love to talk about technology transfers, especially those that move from the highly competitive and exciting environment of racetracks to the mundane but much more important public roadways.

The Yokohama Tire Corp. has a new tech transfer ready to roll -- tires made by using the oil from orange peels to replace much of the petroleum-based oil that goes into tire production.

Officially, Yokohama's new tire is the dB Super E-spec, which the Japanese rubber company calls "the world's first orange oil-infused passenger car tire."

Initially, the tire is available in 15- and 16-inch diameters, with an eye on the hybrid vehicle replacement tire market.

"The idea of combining oil from orange peels with natural rubber was conceived by our racing engineers," explains Mark Chung, director of corporate strategy and planning for Yokohama Tire, the North American manufacturing and marketing arm of Tokyo-based The Yokohama Rubber Co. Ltd.

Yokohama developed its orange oil racing tire to the extent that it is used exclusively for the Patron GT3 Challenge series for Porsche GT3 Cup racers. Chung said the tire has proved its competitiveness and durability in both short and 24-hour racing, and now is ready for the road as well as the raceway.

"The tire has been tested in racing applications to see what the true limitations are," he said. "The level of technology has matured to where we offer it for the passenger car lineup."

Because hybrid owners tend to be early adopters of such new technology, Yokohama chose to produce the tire in sizes that fit vehicles such as the Toyota Prius, Honda Civic hybrid and natural gas-powered GX, Toyota Camry and Honda Accord hybrids, but also non-hybrid vehicles such as the Nissan Versa and Volkswagen Golf.

Chung said sizes for other cars and sport utility vehicles will be added to the dB Super E-spec tire lineup.

He also said that replacing some 80 percent of petroleum use with orange oil not only makes the tire much more environmentally friendly, but the dB Super E-specs are built in Japan in Yokohama's state-of-the-art, "no-emission" factory, which gets the orange oil from a nearby facility that squeezes oranges to make orange juice. The orange peel oil is a byproduct of that process, coming from the discarded rinds.

The dB Super E-spec tire comes in four sizes: 185/65R15, 195/65R15, 195/55R16 and 215/60R16.

The 15s have an H (130 mph) speed rating; the 16s are V (149 mph) rated. The tire has a 460 UTQG durability rating.

For information, including a list of Yokohama tire dealers, visit www.yokohamatire.com.