AP News Wednesday January 10 10:56 AM ET
TOKYO (AP) - Yamaha Motor Co. will set up a joint-venture in North America with Ford Motor Co. to manufacture and sell boat engines, mainly for the U.S. market, Yamaha's president said Wednesday.
Yamaha, Japan's top maker of boat engines, plans to establish the new company by spring, but its location and other details have not yet been decided, Yamaha president Takehiko Hasegawa told reporters. Ford officials in Japan had no comment.
Yamaha has approached Japan's top carmaker Toyota Motor Corp. to invest in the company, said Yamaha spokesman Tetsuo Osumi.
Toyota said it was prepared to give Yamaha's proposal serious consideration, said Toyota spokesman Shigeru Hayakawa.
In March last year, Yamaha and Toyota agreed to cooperate in the motor sports and marine businesses.
Through the joint venture, Yamaha has eyes on the American market for engines on mid-size recreational boats, the world's biggest market, Osumi said. But the new company will market the engines worldwide, he said.
Yamaha, based in Iwata, 95 miles west of Tokyo, now has four plants in the United States, making golf carts, boats and recreational water vehicles.