Are Car Tires Vegan?

A few months back, the front tire of my car needed replacing. I had heard rumors about tyres not being vegan. Then I started researching this. It might come as a surprise, but tires are not always vegan. tires are made of rubber, and most rubber comes from the latex sap of the rubber tree, while there are some vegan tires on the market, the majority of tires are not vegan.

If you’re looking to buy a vegan tire, make sure to check the ingredients list.

According to Arnold Clark, a new and used car company, if you understand that animal fats are used in car manufacturing, you will realize that it is nearly impossible to buy 100% vegan-friendly cars.

So Are Car Tires Vegan?

Most of the tires are not vegan. The Majority of the tires are manufactured using stearic acid derived from tallow. It is a chemical compound that increases flexibility, strength, and grip in the rubber and is a rendered form of animal fat.

Many companies are beginning to recognize the benefits of using vegan tires, both environmentally and for the safety of their customers.

Can You Get 100% Vegan-Friendly Tires?

Most of the tyres are made from animal fat. Michelin, one of the most reliable Tire manufacturer make 100% vegan-friendly tires. Michelin tires are made from vegan stearic acid collected from plants, and vegetable sources. That means you can get vegan-friendly tires for any type of vehicle.

Car Companies Becoming Vegan-Friendly?

Vegan cars are hard to find. The majority of car companies use leather for their car interiors. Often the seats and the steering wheel are wrapped in leather.

Despite this, some companies are really making efforts to become more vegan-friendly.

A material called SofTex is used by Toyota, in the Prius model, for its interior. SofTex is a synthetic fabric. It looks like leather but it is not made from any animal-based materials. 85% less carbon dioxide and 99% less volatile organic compounds are generated by SofTex rather than other conventional synthetic leather.

Tesla is renowned for making environmentally-friendly car designs and technologies. Vegan-friendly car interiors are already offered by them. Now Tesla is currently producing 100% vegan cars like the Tesla Model 3 and the Tesla Model Y. Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, said that they made a design from synthetic leather for the non-heated steering wheel, and they are working to include synthetic leather on their heated steering wheels too.

Some Vegan-Friendly Cruelty-Free Types Of Cars

Veganism says you need to exclude animal products from your life. Avoiding ars for the rest of our lives is not a practical or possible solution.

Most car manufacturing companies are now concerned about the environmental effects. According to experts, around 2035 car industry will make a full transition to electric vehicles.

However, there are some car companies that are genuinely working to make cruelty-free, vegan-friendly cars and looking forward to making hybrid and electric cars.

Toyota Prius

When you think of eco-friendly cars, most probably Toyota Prius will come to mind first. It earned a reputation in the world of electric vehicles. What Car stated that Toyota gets better with every generation of Prius. Toyota offers synthetic fabrics made from SofTex that are leather-free but mimics leathers.

Renault Twizy

Renault’s Twizy looks like a two-seater cart. This design is 100% electric. It has zero emissions of carbon dioxide and volatile organic compounds. This car offers leather-free interiors made from plastic.

Nissan Leaf

In Europe, best selling electric car is Nissan Leaf. Nissan leaf can be the best solution for the vegan car. According to Buy a Car Nissan leaf is more family-friendly and affordable. This car offers leather-free seats, steering wheels, and a gearshift.

BMW i3

According to Drive, the BMW i3 is the best choice for cruelty-free, environment-friendly cars. 25% of the plastic that is used in the car is recycled. The seat fabric is made from recycled materials.

BMW 5 Series

According to Live Kindly BMW 5 series features  Sensatec leatherette. The same animal product-free material BMW introduced to the world several years back. 100% of the BMW 5 Series will feature Sensatec leatherette in the U.S. The BMW 5 series is not electric, it is rumored that an all-electric version will come in 2023.

BMW iNext

BMW iNext also features a vegan interior. It has a touchscreen on the dashboard and center console.

Fisker Emotion

Fisker Emotion is a similar car to Tesla X. According to Alphr Fiskar emotion has a great mileage of a minimum of 400 miles. Drive Tribe stated that Fiskar the owner of the brand is a vegan, so he made a vegan car for his match.

Tesla Model X

Tesla is the pioneer of the electric car world. Tesla Model X is the safest, fastest, and most capable SUV. There is no use of animal, vegan interior, and vegan leather has been provided and it has a shiny finish look with luxury. Tesla Model X has a wide driving range of 351 miles.

Tesla Model S

Like X, Tesla Model 5 has also no aminal product or animal fat. Previously Tesla provided cloth seats but Tesla Model 5 has offered a faux-leather interior. PETA is working for animal rights and appreciates Tesla for zero-emission powertrains and for being a vegan option for a car.

Bentley’s EXP 100 GT

Luxury car manufacturer company Bently published an electric car concept having two doors and self-driving capacities in there 100 years anniversary. They will use vegan leather made from grape skins!

According to PETA, Buick, Mercedes Benz, Honda, Volkswagen, etc can be easily customized with leather-free seats, steering wheels, and gear sticks.

How To Make Your Car Cruelty-Free

If you believe in veganism and want to avoid all kinds of aminal products, buying a new car is not a good option for you. But still, you can make your car cruelty-free. Some little changes in your car can make a difference in your efforts.

So let’s see what you can do to make your car a little bit more vegan-friendly-

Use Vegan Steering Wheel Cover

If you are in need of replacing the steering wheel cover you can replace your current one with a vegan steering wheel cover. These will protect your steering wheel from cracking or peeling and will keep your hands warm in cold weather.

Use Vegan Seat Cover

Instead of using leather seats in your car, you can use a leather-free vegan seat cover. A vegan interior will not harm the overall look of your car interior. Vegan seat covers are comfortable, and most importantly no animal was harmed to make these.

Use Vegan tires

Do you need to change your tyre? There are so many vegan options for it. Use vegan tires instead.

Use Vegan Products To Clean Your car

A clean car reflects a clean life. If your car is clean that is because of the way you are. It’s easier to control the products you use on your car than to control what they are made from. Clean your car with vegan cleaning products and vegan cleaning brushes.

Conclusion

You may think fuel is vegan, but it’s not. Though the theory that gas and petroleum products derived from dinosaurs have been debunked fully, still fuel indeed came from ancient animals, plants, and microorganisms. No car is 100% vegan, but it’s possible to find vegan tires, vegan leather, or fabric. You need to specify then when you are planning to buy a new car. If you are planning to buy a used car then you can change its interior to vegan.