WHY WERE FIRESTONE TIRES DE-TREADING (TREAD SEPARATION FAILURES) AND CAUSING ROLLOVER ACCIDENTS ON FORD EXPLORERS ?

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has made an initial decision that a defect related to motor vehicle safety exists in certain P235/75R15 and P255/70R16 Firestone Wilderness AT tires manufactured before May 1998 that are installed on sport utility vehicles (SUV). This Engineering Analysis Report provides the basis for that decision.Belt-leaving-belt tread separation failures of ATX and Wilderness AT tires manufactured by Bridgestone Firestone, Inc. (Firestone), have led to numerous rollover, wrecks, crashes, injuries, and fatalities. In August 2000, Firestone determined that a safety-related defect existed in all Firestone P235/75R15 ATX tires and in Firestone Wilderness AT tires of that size manufactured at its Decatur, Illinois plant, and commenced a recall to replace those tires. Wilderness AT tires were the successor to ATX tires and are similar to them in many respects. NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) has conducted an extensive ...