Life — September 2, 1920 — page 2: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# Michelin Tire Advertisement This is **not satire or political commentary**—it's a straightforward product advertisement for Michelin full-size inner tubes, likely from the early 1900s. The ad compares Michelin tubes (shown filling the tire casing evenly) against unnamed competitor tubes (which must stretch to fit). The Michelin mascot, Bibendum (the rotund character pointing), endorses the product. The key sales pitch: stretched tubes generate destructive heat during inflation, weakening rubber and making it brittle and puncture-prone. Michelin's full-size tubes avoid this problem. The visual diagrams—cross-sections showing even versus stretched tube profiles—function as technical proof rather than cartoon humor. This represents early automotive advertising emphasizing engineering superiority.