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Yokohama Availability in US Expanded by Mopar Dealer Program

A new program initiated by Yokohama Tire Corporation and DaimlerChrysler’s Mopar division is set greatly expand the number of US outlets selling Yokohama tyres. The company’s full range will be made available at more than 3,700 Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep dealers across the US as part of the Mopar TIREWorks program.

“The Mopar TIREWorks program is a tremendous opportunity for Yokohama,” said Yokohama’s manager of original equipment sales Bruce Buckles. “First, it allows our dealers to increase sales by supplying thousands of Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep dealerships with our strong line of tyres, and secondly, it helps us connect with new consumers across the country.”

10th July 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Yokohama Rubber Traded Immunity for Information in Cartel Case

It has been reported that Yokohama Rubber provided evidence against its former associates involved in the recent price fixing controversy in exchange for immunity, allowing the US Justice Department to the break the international price cartel that included Dunlop Oil & Marine, Trelleborg Industrie SAS and domestic rival Bridgestone. The information Yokohama Rubber supplied led to the May arrests of eight senior company officials.

The Justice Department claims that the eight men had met in the United States, Bangkok and London on numerous occasions since 1999 in order to predetermine which company would be awarded contracts. They are also suspected of manipulating the tender prices for marine hoses.

6th July 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Yokohama to Continue Supplying WTCC Control Tyre

Yokohama has announced it will continue to supply its global flagship “Advan” brand as the control tyre for the 2008 and 2009 FIA World Touring Car Championship (WTCC). Yokohama has been the official WTCC tyre supplier since 2006, during which time the Advan tyres have met all the FIA’s sporting and technical requirements.

In 2007 WTCC races are being staged in nine European countries, plus Brazil and China. For each of the races Yokohama supplies the Advan A005 240/610R17 for dry and the Advan A006 230/610R17 for wet conditions. Both of these tyres were developed based on experience the tyremaker has gained through its participation in motorsport, and Yokohama believes the WTCC tyres achieve a good level of balance between speed and durability.

4th July 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Yokohama Releases All-New S.drive in US

(Akron/Tire Review) Yokohama Tire Corp. has introduced the all-new S.drive high performance tyre, featuring nanotechnology. Yokohama said the new line is available now through its U.S. distribution centres. Designed for sports sedans and coupes, the S.drive comes in a range of sizes covering 15- through 20-inch rim diameters. By the end of 2007, Yokohama said, the line will include 70 different sizes. According to the company, the S.drive features a silica-based compound that uses nanotechnology, which allows the tyre to better conform to the road surface for wet and dry grip. The tire also features scoring in the groove walls that Yokohama said helps distribute stress loads to reduce uneven wear.

4th July 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

WTCC: Yokohama Gets Street-Tough in Porto

The weekend of July 7-8 sees the second of this season’s three street circuit races for the FIA World Touring Car Championship, running on Yokohama Advan control tyres. However, unlike the first of the three, the Portuguese round, held in Porto, is likely to be more unpredictable as the city streets were not used as a racetrack for years prior to the course’s re-establishment in 2005. Forming part of the city’s road network, the circuit is made up of streets that in daily life are home to much more mundane traffic than it will see during the weekend.

Arguably, the Yokohama Advan racing tyres will play a crucial part this weekend, as the World Touring Cars will be on the streets just hours after HGVs. Ian explains: “If the race in Porto is anything like it was in Pau, the organisers probably won’t close the streets to form the circuit until a few hours before the day’s session gets underway. And in Pau, they opened the roads between days, closing them around three hours before the cars started running on each day.

3rd July 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Foreign Tire Sales Ordered to Recall Chinese Tyres

(Akron/Tire Review) The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has sent Foreign Tire Sales (FTS) Inc. in Union, N.J., a letter stating that it is legally responsible for the recall of nearly 450,000 tyres imported from China and threatened penalties of up to $6,000 per violation, with a maximum of nearly $16.4 million. The affected tyres were sold under the Westlake, Compass, Telluride and YKS brand names in the following sizes: LT235/75R-15; LT225/75R-16; LT235/85R-16; LT245/75R-16; LT265/75R-16; and LT3X10.5-15.

NHTSA has given the company until Monday to respond. An attorney for FTS claimed the company could only afford about 10% of the approximately $80 million in costs associated with a recall. FTS said it does not have the financial resources for a full recall and would be forced to file for bankruptcy if required to conduct one. The company sent NHTSA a letter earlier this month that said up to 450,000 light truck tyres imported from China-based Hangzhou Zhongce Rubber Co. could suffer tread separation because they were missing a safety feature.

2nd July 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Yokohama Tire Corporation Names New Sales Vice President

The US arm of Yokohama, Yokohama Tire Corporation (YTC), has announced that current director of consumer sales, Dan King, will be promoted to vice president of sales as of July 1. King will take on responsibility for the development and implementation of sales strategy for the company’s consumer sales and the commercial truck divisions.

King, 44, has a tyre industry background dating back to when he was 12 and worked for his family’s tyre business. He joined YTC in 1988 and has served as Director of Marketing and Director of Sales. King graduated from California State University Fullerton with a degree in business and earned his MBA from USC in 1996.

“Dan’s a true success story at Yokohama,” said Jim MacMaster, YTC executive vice president, Business Division. “He climbed the ranks because of his hard work, dedication and creative thinking, and under his leadership, the consumer business division has become more profitable. I believe as vice president of sales, his experience and foresight will continue to bring growth and profit for the company.”

29th June 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Yokohama Appoints Two to Management Posts

(Akron/Tire Review) Yokohama Tire Corp. has named Gregg Vandermark performance marketing manager and Rusty Taylor manager of finance and administration in the business division. Vandermark will oversee corporate and consumer ride and drives, dealer training and work with automotive enthusiast groups and car clubs. Vandermark had previously been motorsports sales manager and ultra-high performance sales manager at Toyo.

Taylor, who earned a master’s degree in business administration from the University of Southern California, will plan and forecast budgets, review proposals, generate financial models and develop business plans for sales, marketing and finance.

27th June 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Three new TSW wheels for the UK market

The UK distributor for TSW Alloy Wheels, Yokohama HPT Ltd, has announced three further additions to the company’s range of replacement alloy wheels – the Demon, Terra and Shadow. The Demon is a ten-spoke wheel, featuring five pairs of flat-faced and hard-edged spokes running to the rim’s outer edge. Not only does these enhance the wheel’s sense of size – it also creates an aggressive appearance, well suited for performance or modified cars.

The faces of the spokes and the outer edge of the rim are machine-cut and lacquered while the recessed, webbed mounting flange and the inside of the spokes and rim are finished in a ‘liquid smoke’ paint. The Demon will suit most five-stud applications and will allow brake conversions to be shown off in their full glory.

The Terra also features hard-edged spokes, but this time there are eight and the appearance is more restrained. Again, the spokes run to the outer edge of the rim to enhance the wheel’s size on the car and are machine-cut, as is the edge of the wheel rim. However, in contrast to the Demon, the Terra features four elongated teardrop details formed in alternate spokes, radiating out from the bolt-holes.

20th June 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

ExxonMobil to Open New Facility for Specialty Tyre Compounds

ExxonMobil Chemical Company has announced it will begin construction of a facility to manufacture new specialty elastomer compounds that can improve the durability of tyres, make them lighter weight by using less raw material and “significantly reduce fuel consumption.” Start-up of the plant is expected in early 2008 to satisfy demand for the products that combine the flexibility and elasticity of rubber with the low air permeability of plastic.

The plant will manufacture a dynamically vulcanized alloy (DVA) of proprietary Exxpro specialty elastomers and nylon. This new Exxpro-based alloy can be blown into films and used as the air barrier inner liner of tyres. ExxonMobil Chemical expects to commercialize the technology in late 2007. Exxpro marks the first major technology advancement to tire inner liner raw materials since ExxonMobil started producing halobutyl products in 1961.

20th June 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Yokohama Chosen for Most Powerful Golf Ever

Volkswagen is releasing the most powerful Golf in the marque’s 33-year history, and has selected Yokohama to handle the hatchback’s phenomenal power. The Golf GTi W12-650, created to celebrate the annual GTi festival in Europe and 30 years of the Golf in the UK, features a twin-turbocharged 650bhp version of the W12 engine normally found in the Phaeton.

The massive engine is engine mounted amidships in the Golf GTi W12, behind the front seats. Power is channelled to the rear wheels via a six-speed Tiptronic automatic transmission. The six-litre W12 engine is usually rated at 450bhp but the addition of two turbochargers raises this by 200bhp and gives the Golf a staggering 553lbft of torque.

12th June 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Yokohama Tyres Launch ‘Buy N Fly’ in Qatar

Ali Bin Khalifa Al Hitmi & Company, Qatar’s sole distributors of Yokohama tyres, is running a “Buy ‘N’ Fly” summer promotion that will last until July 31. The promotion, which entitles the end-user to a raffle coupon upon purchase of two passenger car, SUV or light truck tyres, features prizes including air travel packages for six persons, for three nights from Qatar Airways Holidays to Bangkok and Kuala Lumpur. Other prizes include 10 LG slim televisions of 29 inches, 10 LG DVD players, 25 Nokia 1600 mobile phones and 10 Moulinex Blenders. The raffle draw will be held at Al Hitmi’s main showroom on Salwa Road on August 1.

The details of the draw was announced at a gathering held at the main showroom, attended by Yokohama’s general manager (Middle East) Taketoshi Morita, general manager of Ali Bin Khalifa Al Hitmi & Co, Adli Hashim Sourani, and Karun Menon, sales and marketing manager of the group.
Ali Bin Khalifa Al Hitmi & Co has been sole distributor of Yokohama tyres since in Qatar since 1964.

6th June 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

YTC Chief Named Yokohama Corporate Officer

(Akron/Tire Review) Norio Karashima, president and CEO of Yokohama Tire Corp. and president of Yokohama Corporation of America, was promoted to managing corporate officer, effective June 28. The Seikei University (Tokyo) graduate joined Yokohama 1976, becoming president of Yokohama’s U.S. operations and a corporate officer in 2004. He also served as president of Yokohama Reifen in Germany from 2000 to 2002 and was general manager of the OE Planning Department from 2003 to 2004.

21st May 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Michelin Most Satisfying – J.D. Power

Michelin has come out tops for customer satisfaction in the winter tyre market amongst vehicle owners in Japan for the fourth year in a row, according to the results the J.D. Power Asia Pacific 2007 Japan Winter Tire Customer Satisfaction Index (W-TSI) Study. This particular study is now in its fourth year and employs five criteria to determine overall customer satisfaction with their winter tyres: tyre performance in snow-covered road conditions, icy road conditions and regular road conditions, as well as appearance and quality/durability. Customer evaluations are scored on a 1,000 point scale to determine the across the board winner.

Seven tyre brands were included in the study, and Michelin’s overall index score of 636 points saw the French manufacturer not only securing first place but also topping all five individual criteria that determine satisfaction. Close behind was Bridgestone on 606 points, who also performed strongly in all five individual areas. Both Bridgestone and Michelin earned the highest rating in tyre performance on icy road conditions, and were the only two manufacturers to rate an overall score above the industry average of 587 points. At the other end of the scale the lowest overall score was recorded by Falken, who received 532 points.

18th May 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Yokohama Announces Management Shuffle

A number of senior management changes were decided upon at the Yokohama Rubber Co. Ltd board of directors meeting in early May. These changes will become effective subject to approval being granted at the general meeting of shareholders on June 28.

Three corporate officers, Koichi Tanaka, Takashi Fukui and Norio Karashima, have been promoted to the role of managing corporate officer. Taking their place as corporate officers are Etsuji Hanatate, who on June 28 will become corporate officer deputy general manager of Tire Overseas Sales & Marketing Division and general manager of Tire Overseas Sales & Marketing Department No.2, and Misao Hiza, who will become in charge of MB Technical, general manager of MB Business Development Center, general manager of Hamatite Division and general manger of Hamatite Technical Department.

16th May 2007/by Tyrepress Editors