Yokohama at a glance
Yokohama Rubber was founded on 13 October 1917 as a joint venture between Yokohama Electric Cable Manufacturing and America's BFGoodrich. BFGoodrich only sold its stake in 1981. Yokohama achieved several firsts in Japan: in 1921 it made Japan's first cord tyre, and in 1954 Japan's first winter tyre, the Y-29. In 1989 the company built its own winter tyre test track in Hokkaido.
Yokohama is an independent Japanese company headquartered in Hiratsuka. Its tyres are made in Japan, the USA, India and several other Asian countries. The company has also made acquisitions in agricultural and industrial tyres – for example, it bought Alliance Tire Group in 2016. In car tyres, Yokohama is a premium brand that suits keen drivers and family cars alike.
The best-known sporty summer tyre is the Advan Sport V107, with the BluEarth series for everyday driving and Geolandar for SUVs. For Nordic winters, Yokohama offers studded tyres from the iceGUARD series, such as the iceGUARD iG65. The BluEarth-Winter V906 is designed for Central European winters. The Advan name is also well known in motorsport, and Yokohama is the official tyre supplier to Japan's Super Formula series.