"We're starting a three-year plan," Yokohama Rubber Co. Ltd. (YRC) officials told mtdealer.com late last week in Tokyo, Japan.
"In terms of sales, (our) high performance tire brand (share) will be increased," said Hisao Suzuki, representative executive director for YRC's president tire group.
"We'll introduce new machinery to produce ultra-high performance tires."
Yokohama also is planning to increase its "high-end (tire) production," according to Suzuki.
In addition, YRC will roll out "very sophisticated truck tires" that will be made in Japan and introduced to the United States market at the end of next year, possibly early 2005.
"It will be a state-of-the-art product."
Suzuki said that YRC will develop both passenger and medium truck tires "for each market worldwide," most of them sourced from Asian countries.
And the company will double its production capacity for 17-inch and above car tires.
