Tire with coated silica reinforced rubber tread

A method of preparing an unvulcanized tire comprised of an outer, circumferential rubber tire tread of a cap/base construction and a supporting rubber carcass, said carcass rubber and said tread rubber containing at least 40 phr of carbon black;

• wherein the rubber of said tread cap contains about 40 to about 90 phr of silica and up to about 10 phr of carbon black and is characterized by having an electrical resistivity of at least 1,000,000 ohms according to ASTM Test No. D257-66, Mod. G;
• and wherein said method comprises (i) coating said tread cap with a water based composition and drying said composition to provide a coating thereon following by (ii) co-vulcanizing said tire and coating to provide such coating having an electrical resistivity;
• wherein said electrical resistivity is less than 10,000 ohms;
• wherein said coating extends to and contacts at least one of said carcass rubber and said tread base rubber;
• wherein said water-based rubber composition comprises a blend of (A) at least one aqueous rubber latex selected from the group consisting of emulsion polymerization prepared styrene/butadiene copolymer rubber latex, emulsion polymerization prepared polybutadiene latex and natural rubber cis 1,4-polyisoprene latex and (B) an aqueous dispersion of electrically conductive carbon black, wherein said carbon black is present in an amount of about 25 to about 200 phr of said coating composition.