Patent ID: 7285584

Claim:
A tire having at least one component of a rubber composition comprised of, based on parts by weight per 100 parts by weight elastomer (phr): (A) 100 phr of at least one conjugated diene-based elastomer, (B) about 10 to about 120 phr of reinforcing filler comprised of (1) particulate pre-silanized precipitated silica in situ hydrophobated (within said rubber composition) with an epoxidized oil comprised of epoxidized rubber tree seed oil or (2) said pre-silanized, in-situ hydrophobated, precipitated silica and about 2 to about 100 phr of at least one additional reinforcing filler selected from at least one of carbon black and an additional precipitated silica, wherein said pre-silanized precipitated silica is a precipitated silica having been pre-silanized by treating precipitated silica having hydroxyl groups on its surface with an organomercaptoalkoxysilane or bis(3-trialkoxysilylalkyl) polysulfide having an average from 2 to about 3.8 connecting sulfur atoms in its polysulfidic bridge.