Company Releases NHTSA
Reports
Company Supports Passage of Federal
Legislation
Nashville, Tenn., (Friday, October
6, 2000) – Bridgestone/Firestone,
Inc., (BFS) today released 166 of the 168 National Highway Traffic
Safety Administration (NHTSA) vehicle owner questionnaires (VOQ)
that led to last Friday’s announcement of a preliminary evaluation
of the Steeltex R4S and Steeltex AT light truck tires. We are
releasing the 166 that have been supplied to BFS. NHSTA is still
processing the remaining two.
While the reported incidents date back
to 1994, all but two were reported to NHTSA after August 9,
2000, when BFS instituted its voluntary safety recall of all
Firestone P235/75R15 ATX and ATX II tires and P235/75R15 Firestone
and Wilderness AT tires produced in Firestone’s Decatur, Ill.,
plant. All were received in 2000.
After an initial review of the data by
BFS, it is clear why the Department of Transportation, NHTSA,
the Rubber Manufacturers Association, Bridgestone/Firestone
and others support changes in how this data is collected, analyzed
and reported.
The review of this information makes
it apparent that the initial data collection, provided by the
VOQs, does not give a clear path to determine whether a problem
exists. For example:
- Some of the VOQs relate to a tire
and size which were the subject of a previous recall on the
Ford F-250, F-350 and F-450 in December of 1997 due to tire
damage caused at the Ford Assembly Plant. At that time, Ford
initiated a tire replacement program through Bridgestone/Firestone
retailers.
- Two VOQs list vehicles for which the
Steeltex R4S and Steeltex AT light truck tires will not fit:
- 870358 (appears to be listed as a
Dodge Monaco)
- 727657 (appears to be listed as a
Chrysler Le Baron)
- One VOQ (869433) is listed as a Honda
Civic, which gives a tire size that is not a Steeltex size
(P175/70R13) and refers to the tire simply as a “steel belted
radial.”
- Other complaints are e-mail messages
to NHTSA with no relevant data.
- On many forms the DOT numbers are
not listed and the tire location is missing. DOT numbers are
important because that will indicate where and when a tire
is made.
- On one VOQ the information provided
appears to say that the tire was original equipment and that
the tire had 91,000 miles on it. Most tires should be replaced
at between 40,000 and 60,000 miles.
The legislation pending before Congress
is designed to address the issue of ensuring the collection
of better and more complete data that will be meaningful to
consumers, manufacturers and regulators, including NHTSA. More
broadly, BFS strongly supports Congressional passage of the
goals of early reporting requirements, increased monitoring
by NHTSA, and enhanced labeling standards in the transportation
recall legislation (S 3959 and H.R. 5164).
Copies of the documents can be obtained
by contacting Amanda Marx at (202) 835-9411.
