Just wondering if any one else out there is having / or had problems with their Firestone tires. I have a 99 Superduty F350 4x4 Crewcab 8ft bed (not dualie). It has 7.3 turbo diesel which I love! It is the XLT model and came with the above noted tires. The tires are about wore out at 25K miles (even treadwear). Recently 1 tire had bad valve stem (minor). Another tire blew out sidewall & ruined the alum rim. I don't want more crappy firestone tires so I am trying to get the Ford Dealer (Sterling Ford in VA where I orig purchased truck) to give me new tires at 50% off & replace alum rim but they won't do anything. I've recently learned about some new court cases from FL for people suing Ford/Firestone over deaths from Firestone tires blowing out. My friend who is a parts person says he has had a few people replacing their Firestone tires for blowouts? Anybody else out there having this problem? I love my Ford but HATE the Firestone tires! -Gary

 

THERE IS A RECALL OUT ON SOME OF THE 265/75/16 FIRESTONE TIRES THAT WERE USED ON CHEVY. I DON'T KNOW THE PARTICULARS, BUT YOU SHOULD BE ABLE TO FIND OUT SOMETHING. POST IT HERE WILL YA?

 

The story I saw on 20/20 (i think) that focused on the Firestone Tires used on the Explorer. Nothing about the larger tires we have. I also believe that Firestone saw not problem, one of those "with that many trucks on the road there are going to be some failure" comments. A longtime local TV reporter was killed after a blow-out with the tires in question. The story got some extra press here in Houston because of that. The gentleman was not wearing a seatbelt either.

Rob

1999 F-250 SD CC V-10 4X4 XLT Lariat Red clear coat 33X12.5X16.5 on 12"rims

 

The following was released by Ford Motor Company today:

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is conducting an investigation into Firestone ATX and Wilderness tires, which are used across the industry. Firestone has the lead in working with NHTSA. Ford Motor Company is conducting its own investigation and we will share our findings with Firestone and NHTSA.

We are moving as quickly as possible to understand this issue. We are committed to doing what's right for our customers.

As more info becomes available, I'll post it.

Ken Payne
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Thanx guys.. If I hear more I will post the info to all. Interesting to hear about the recall on same tire for Chevy?? The article I found in WashingtonPost.com was about the Explorer flipping when firestone tire tread ripped off so I haven't seen/heard anything specific on the firstone tires on our BIG fords. Wonder where I can find out more info about the Chevy/firestone recall?? I'll check to see if there is a firesone website but I doubt they would put their own bad advertising there.. thanx -Gary.

 

I have '99 F-250 with 27000 mi. on it. truck has 265/75-16 steeltex a/t Firestones on it. No problems so far, tires don't even loose much air. Believe these are 6 ply tires.

 

Wondering if your tires have any creases or bulges in them?? Not sure that this is a sign of problems since it seems that many Firestones have the bulges / creases in them (something that is supposed to be normal but doesn't make me feel comfortable). It appears that the sidewall on the outside separated from the tread all the way around the tire. Do you still have tread left at 27K miles? I contacted Firestone technical service and they said orig equip tires are not warranted for any specific amount of mileage!? He said you can usually at least expect 40K miles. Basically it appears that Ford puts on cheaper tires on new vehicles but this is something probably all auto makers do.. Since I don't live near a Firestone dealer Firestone is sending me some forms to fill out. I am supposed to ship the tire to them and then they will check to see if tire failed. I don't intend to do this since I will be giving them all of my evidence. When I mentioned that Sterling Ford in VA says that Firestone will not allow any warranty work the Firestone rep mentioned that there is supposed to be some program called 'Around the Wheel' but I think the dealership wants to stay away from the Firestone problems right now. So, I am not sure what my next step will be but there are over 80 lawsuits now. fyi -Gary

 

Here's the latest from Ford:

Jac Nasser, president and CEO of Ford Motor Company, statement in response to National Highway Traffic Safety Administration investigation of some Firestone tires used on SUVs and other light trucks, including Ford vehicles.
Transcribed from live telecast August 4, 2000 at 4:35 p.m. EST

We're clearly very, very concerned about the situation. We're working extremely closely with the U.S. government and Firestone because we want to get to the bottom of this as quickly as we can.

We have teams that are working around the clock. Once we know exactly what the issues are, we will act because we feel a responsibility to our customers, for their safety, and for the safety of their families.


Ken Payne
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Ken, Thanx for the info & I have also seen the recalls. Unfortunately, none of these recalls deal with the larger firestone tire. I have opened a case with NHTSA & they have some other reports of this specific tire having problems but no help from Firestone or Ford. I would like Firestone to allow my Ford dealer to replace my tires & ruined alum rim but I continue to get the run-around. Personally think that firestone waited too long to come to bat on the other tires (1 person dying is too high of a price much less 45 deaths!!). My family would probably be dead if it were not for hauling our camper. The torsion bars / hitch kept truck straight so my wife could miss the tractor trailer next to her when sidewalls blew out. The NHTSA is supposed to be sending me a mailkit so I can mail them the tire. If they rule it defective I may take Firestone/Ford to court since they don't bother to help me any!!

 

Couple of questions, and please do not take the first one to be any sort of blame, as it isn't:

1. Were any of the tires underinflated and when was the last time air pressure was checked (a "must do" IMHO, before towing)? The reason I ask is the problem apparenly happens with underinflated tires. Be prepared to answer this question in any inquiry/investigation.

2. Have you contacted them since the recall? They may be more willing to help out, especially with a lawsuit threat. Then again, they may not.



Ken Payne
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I always have checked personally before every camping trip except this one because I had truck serviced. I specifically asked service rep if tire pressure was checked & he said it checked out.. Prior to getting this truck I had my previous F250 (& other vehicles) maintained there with never a problem so I trust them.. This was the first time I ever had truck serviced at any place other than Sterling Ford since I had bought truck there with 2-yr service plan. I decided to go out & check tire pressure right now since the remaining tires would likely tell the true story here. On tire it says max is 80psi whereas within the Ford truck door panel it says 60 or 65 depending on load. My tires are set at 70psi (with exception of spare which went on to replace defective tire; spare is set at 65psi). I wonder which setting is correct since Ford vs. tire say different things?? Seems they are set above Ford recommendation but below max for Firestone. Very likely tire was NOT underinflated. I may try to contact Sterling Ford one more time before going forward with meeting a lawyer. -Gary

 

I believe the Ford and Firestone states which pressure in the press releases we've put in our news section, don't recall right now what the amount was.

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That is for the Wilderness, & ATX models. fyi -Gary

 

Gary, see post no 5--I know the tires say 80 psi max which I figure is with a max load wt. on truck. I run 50 psi all around on mine, with hiways tore up in my area the way they are, I couldn't stay in the cab with higher psi. Tread wear now at 28000 mi. is fine. I've rotated the tires several times since new. I pull my 24' Coachman camper and my 21' pontoon (seperatly ofcourse) with the 50 psi in tires--so far no problems. Let me know how things turn out.

 

Well if you drive around with the bed empty most of the time 70 psi is overinflated and will cause premature "even" wear. The door panel psi's are what you should use but only for a truck loaded to the max gvwr. A buddy of mine has 40,000 miles on his truck as has never rotated the tires. He drives around mostly unloaded and set his to 70 psi all around. His rears are worn out bad. His fronts are ok due to the weight of the diesel. On a good note the fronts show no uneven wear.