The Yokohama Rubber announced today that its racing team will participate with its original electric vehicle (EV) in the 2012 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb. The event will take place on July 8 in the state of Colorado, U.S.A. The team refers to the race as the "Team Yokohama EV Challenge." Its unique EV racing car is equipped with BluEarth-A tires, a new product in the BluEarth fuel-efficient tire line incorporating the latest environmental technologies, including orange oil compounding technology. Yokohama will thus be competing with a zero-emission vehicle running on fuel-efficient tires.
Bridgestone Corporation announced in January 2012 that it has developed a revolutionary new printing technology for tires that is different from any tire printing or coloring process on the market today.
Until now, white rubber has been used on the sidewalls of tires to manufacture white ribbon and white letter tires. This process requires the use of large amounts of white rubber to prevent discoloration and to also maintain durability.