Pneumatic tire having a stiffness enhanced tread element and method for manufacturing the same

A tire comprising a carcass (12) and a tread (30) is disclosed wherein a tread cap (32) is formed of a first material (36) and a tread base (34) is formed of a second material (38) having a substantially different stiffness property than the first material. The tread comprises a first tread element (54) having a first strip (44) of the second material (38) that extends from the tread base (32) through the tread cap (32) to an outer ground contacting surface (46) of the tread (30), and a second tread element (56) having a second strip (48) of the second material (38) that extends from the tread base (32) through the tread cap (32) to an outer ground contacting surface (46) of the tread. The tread (30) is formed by simultaneously extruding the tread cap (32) and the tread base (34) to include the first and second strips (44, 46), and/or wherein first strip (44) and the second strip (46) is of the same material and unitary with the tread base (32).