Like most of you, my web browser’s default page is set to Japan Rubber Weekly, so I imagine many of you saw the same news I did: you can now buy Hello Kitty tires for your car. Think how awesome your Raptor will look with a set of those!
For whatever reason, some well-connected segment of humanity seems to really want Hello Kitty-branded rubber on their vehicles, with Hello Kitty bicycle tires having been available for over a decade already. Nexen seems to be the first mass-market volume tire manufacturer making Hello Kitty tires for automobiles, though one-offs have been seen before. Because, I guess, some people just couldn’t wait?
If the idea of Hello Kitty tires makes you uncomfortable, don’t worry: Sanrio and Nexen have an option for people who don’t feel like a mouthless kitten with a bow adequately reflects their identity, the Cinnamoroll tire.
According to Wikipedia, Cinnamoroll is
... a male white and chubby puppy with long ears that enables him to fly. He has blue eyes, pink cheeks and a plump and curly tail that resembles a cinnamon roll.
So, you know, if Hello Kitty, somehow, isn’t manly enough for you, there’s always the very, very male little puppy with a cinnamon-roll-like tail and the power of flight.
With these two tire options, I expect Nexen will soon have a monopoly on the global tire market.