[DMCForum] Re: Firestone, and Ford..

["therealdmcvegas" <dmcvegas@xxxxxxx>]

And independat tests were also done, with a CTIS hooked up to the
Explorer, to randomly deflate tires at high speeds to see if the
vehicle would flip over. They had a pro driver behind the wheel who
knew how to control the vehicle: He let off the gas, and gently
applied the braks, and came to a gental stop. Nothing out of the
ordinary that a regular, calm driver with no training couldn't do
themselves.

I've been in a car with my mom at the wheel a few years ago, when she
had a blow out. She did the exact same thing, and brought the car to a
gentle stop. She didn't freak out and slam the brakes. In fact, she
didn't even know what had happened. So she just calmly pulled over
into the emergency lane.

Yes, SUVs are top-heavy, and yes they are more prone to roll over. But
that doesn't mean that because people don't know how to control them,
that there is somehow an engineering problem with their vehicles.

Hell, I could even go so far as to say that while Firestone may have
been the cause of the proble with their defective tires, they still
had a pretty good run, with as few accidents that there were, in
comparison to how many of the Wilderness A/T tires they produced.

-Robert



--- In DMCForum@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx, DMCVIN6683 <dmcvin6683@xxxx> wrote:
> I also remember seeing a show like 60 Minuets or something similar to 
> that show. They were at the Firestone plant and employees were told to 
> use scratch awl's or something similar to remove "bubbles" in the 
> rubber during the final production of the tires. I am sure Ford made 
> them do that though.......
> 
> 
> Mark V
> 
> 
> 
> On Apr 9, 2005, at 8:53 PM, timnagin wrote:
> 
> >
> > Ah, but what people don't seem to remember is this happened to 
> > Firestone
> > many years previous.  Do you remember the 721 radial tire?  The 
> > commercial
> > went something like, "seven...wrapped by two...wrapped by one..."  
> > Those
> > tires had similar problems and that was before SUV's were so popular.
> >
> > In an effort to essentially cover that up as well, from what I read,
> > Firestone offered a rebuttal.  They claimed that once radial tires
had 
> > been
> > rolling in one direction and you later reversed their rotation, the 
> > belts
> > would unwind.  I also read they claimed another reason was you weren't
> > supposed to mount radials and bias ply tires on the same axle as one 
> > would
> > drag the other.  Of course, this is all bullshit but to this day
people
> > still believe both.  Neither is true, and I bet someone on here will 
> > come up
> > with proof as to why it is true.
> >
> > About the more recent Ford fiasco, and if memory serves, there was a
> > whistle-blower at Firestone who stated they used "old rubber" on some
> > production runs due to pressure from higher up to get the job
done.  I 
> > can
> > see that happening.
> >
> > You are right in that any vehicle with a higher center of gravity
will 
> > react
> > differently.  Perception also plays a huge role as, coincidentally, 
> > Ford
> > announced the redesigned Exploder shortly thereafter.  People 
> > exclaimed that
> > Ford knew about this hazard and this is why the truck was redesigned, 
> > but
> > not because the previous design was tired.
> >
> > Greg
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: Marc Levy [mailto:malevy_nj@xxxx]
> > Sent: Saturday, April 09, 2005 9:38 PM
> > To: DMCForum@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> > Subject: [DMCForum] Firestone, and Ford..
> >
> >
> >
> > All of the stuff I read on the Ford Exploder fiasco
> > clearly put the blame on *FORD*.
> >
> > First off, Ford sent out A TSB to the dealers telling
> > them to lower the tire pressure spec because customers
> > were complaining that the ride was to harsh (DUH, it
> > is a TRUCK moron!)
> >
> > The lower tire pressure was significant in the tires
> > blowing out.
> >
> > Even so, It is a design flaw that the truck would flip
> > in the event of a tire blow out (or any other
> > emergency maneuver).
> >
> > Firestone took the heat for it in order to continue a
> > profitable relationship with FORD...  Kinda like how
> > Exxon took the blame for the Valdez, when it was the
> > harbor master (federal employee) who crashed the boat!
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > Yahoo! Groups Links
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >

---

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