April launch for Yokohama BluEarth in Europe

Yokohama Rubber says its preparations for the 2010 European tyre label are to be strengthened through the April release of its BluEarth-1 range, which it says has achieved an ‘A’ grade rating – the highest possible – for fuel economy under the upcoming label’s expected classification system. The BluEarth-1 is the first of a series of BluEarth products that will be launched in Europe; the product family was first publicly previewed at January’s Tokyo Auto Show, where the top of the line BlueEarth-1 was displayed alongside the premium BluEarth RV-01 minivan tyre and the standard BluEarth AE-01.

The BluEarth portfolio has been developed based upon the concept of “an environmentally, human and socially friendly tyre,” Yokohama shares. Releasing the BluEarth-1 in Europe is viewed as being “the first step in the global development of the brand” and Yokohama says it will continue to use the “wealth of expertise that it has accumulated over its long history in this industry” to develop products that achieve high levels of both driving and environmental performance.