Bridgestone/Firestone accuses Ford Explorer of 'defective design'
USA Today
DETROIT — Bridgestone/Firestone asked federal regulators yesterday to investigate the Ford Explorer for "defective design," charging that the popular sport-utility vehicle is 50 percent harder to control than other SUVs when a tire failure occurs.
Associated Press
The tire company based its report on testing it requested by an Ohio State University mechanical engineering professor.
Norman Woods, a technician at Ford of North Miami Beach, replaces Firestone tires from an Explorer under an ongoing recall program. The dealership received about 200 tires Wednesday and another 600 yesterday. Meanwhile, Bridgestone/Firestone has asked federal regulators to investigate the Ford Explorer for "defective design," charging that the popular sport utility vehicle is 50 percent harder to control than other SUVs when a tire failure occurs.
The report does not attempt to make a case that the design contributed to tread separation in Firestone tires.
The tiremaker and Ford Motor have been locked in a dispute since last year over which company is to blame for Firestone tires losing treads on Explorers, often causing the SUV to roll over.
Last August, Ford pushed Bridgestone/Firestone to recall 6.5 million tires. Last week, Ford said it would replace 13 million more Firestone tires on its trucks. At the same time, Bridgestone-/Firestone said it would no longer do business with Ford.
In a letter, Bridgestone/Firestone asked the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to investigate the Explorer.
It did not say whether it would file a formal petition, which would force NHTSA to make a decision on investigating.
NHTSA spokesman Rae Tyson would say only that the agency will review the material submitted Thursday.
In the report, Dennis Guenther said the Explorer has an oversteer problem. He compared Explorer with the Jeep Cherokee and Chevrolet Blazer.
Oversteer is what happens when a vehicle's back end swings out more than intended.
The back tries to slide sideways off the road and the driver has to compensate by steering in the same direction.
If there's something wrong — as when a tire tread fails in back — merely compensating for the initial skid can amplify the forces and begin a series of gyrations too fast for the driver to halt.
The rear swings back and forth violently and can cause a rollover. NHTSA has never investigated a vehicle for oversteer.
Ford refuted the report.
"Real world data show the Explorer is among the safest vehicles on the road," Ford chief of staff John Rintamaki said in a statement. "The Explorer performs the same as competitive SUVs before, during and after a tread separation."
Bridgestone/Firestone also gave its report to the House Energy and Commerce Committee, which has been investigating the tire recall and plans another hearing soon.
"It's clear that Firestone wants us to expand the scope of our investigation," committee spokes-man Ken Johnson said. "But until we have some compelling evidence that calls into question the safety of the Explorer, we are not going to get caught in the crossfire of the two companies."
