Start of Manufacturing and Supply of Automobile Components in Thailand Reinforcement of Strategy to Become Global Supplier of Auto Components

OSAKA, JAPAN-15 January, 2013 Toyo Tire & Rubber Co., Ltd. (Kenji Nakakura, president)
announces that it will begin manufacturing and supply of high-performance plastic CV joint boots
in Thailand from April 2014, with an aim of global growth and expansion of the company’s auto
components business in its Diver-Tech Business Segment.
With the rapid expansion of the automobile market in Asia, car makers are ramping up
production in the region, and production volume is expected to continue increasing, particularly in
Thailand. At the same time, in order to boost their price competitiveness in this market car
manufacturers are also aggressively implementing a policy of procuring parts locally.
Against the backdrop of this business environment, Toyo Tires has already planned to begin
sales of anti-vibration rubber for automobiles at Toyo Rubber Chemical Products (Thailand)
Limited (hereinafter “TCT”), which was established in December 2011. Now the company has
decided to begin manufacturing and supply of high-performance plastic CV joint boots used for
automobile drive shaft joints.
A CV joint boot is an automobile component that is mounted on the joint section of the drive
shaft, which delivers the car’s engine power to the wheels. Its function is to keep lubricating oil
sealed within the joint and to maintain the performance of the CV joint while preventing intrusion
of unwanted elements like mud and rocks from the outside. This component must be lightweight,
compact, and highly durable. Toyo Tires will supply high-performance plastic CV joint boots that
achieve these requirements at an unprecedented level by utilizing its high-performance material
development technology and proprietary plastic CV joint boot analysis technology.
Toyo Tires has established bolstering of global development of its Diver-Tech Business
Segment as a strategy in the company’s 2011 Mid-term Business Plan. The company’s products
are highly valued by consumers for their superior technology, and through its efforts to develop
new business as a third hub of business operations following Japan and North America in rapidly
growing Thailand, Toyo Tires will aim to establish its position as a global supplier of its products.
In order to achieve this goal, the company will further boost its capital investment in TCT and
establish a manufacturing base for plastic CV joint boots in Amata Nakorn Industrial Estate in an
effort to optimally supply products to automobile and drive shaft manufacturers in Thailand.
Toyo Tires will aim to further boost the profitability of its Diver-Tech Business Segment
through flexible and effective use of the company’s management resources as well as strategic
business expansion efforts in growth markets.