WASHINGTON – USA safe car The agency and Goodyear have debated for months over whether the Ohio-based company should recall tires used for factories — tires that haven’t been produced in nearly two decades.
Under the pressure of National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Goodyear said on Tuesday it will recall 173,000 units of 275/70R22.5 G159 tires. Tires are used on recreational vehicles because of the potential for serious tire cracking.
NHTSA first opened an investigation in December 2017 and then formally asked Goodyear to issue a recall in February, arguing that the G159 tires had a higher failure rate that “occurred relatively early in the cycle.” usage life”.
NHTSA said in February it appears Goodyear became aware of a safety defect “as early as 2002 when the tire was in production but did not file a recall.”
In a 19-page response to NHTSA in March, Goodyear said it did not believe its tires were defective and questioned whether any of them were still in use, noting that they were not. Produced since 2003.
Goodyear said it’s “not true” that the tires fail earlier than others, and the NHTSA letter reflects a misunderstanding of the underlying data.
On Tuesday, the tire maker said it had agreed to the recall “to address concerns that some of these tires may be still on the market or in use” but did not admit they were defective. .
Goodyear argues that RV manufacturers have a “primary role” in “remember “It affirms NHTSA’s attempt to impose liability on Goodyear for the tire recall is ‘a clear and inappropriate departure from more than 20 years of operation’.” NHTSA on Tuesday urged owners Owner warrants that the recalled tires are not used citing safety concerns.
NHTSA said in February the G159 tire defect was “at the heart of 41 lawsuits involving 98 deaths and injuries filed between 1999 and 2016.” Goodyear said NHTSA had “incorrectly exaggerated” the number of alleged cases.
NHTSA said Goodyear regularly receives court orders prohibiting the release of information about tires discovered in lawsuits. Goodyear said the agency “cannot reasonably state that it is unaware” of tire-related incidents prior to 2017, citing fatal incident reports in the NHTSA database.
