Problems with 1999 Ford F-350 TIRES

Tire blowout occured at 55 mph on straight section of dry smooth gravel covered highway during daylight conditions with outside air temperature of approximately 75 degrees f. two weeks prior to failure vehicle had tires inspected, inflated (60 lbs psi), and rotated by firestone tire center dealer. after incident the destroyed tire was taken to same firestone tire center dealer where i reported the incident. dealer informed me that this tire was not part of other firestone tire recalls. dealer replaced tire under provisions of firestone road hazard insurance protection which i had perviously purchased. i am submitting this report due to later information in the news reported on 9/29/2000 that nhtsa had begun an investigation of the same type of firestone steeltex at tires as used on my ford f350 pickup truck because of a series of complaints nthsa has received in recent months concerning tire failure situations which seemed to be the same type as i had experienced. (note - this tire failure is the second i have experienced since purchasing the vehicle new in september 1999. the first occured within the first 500 miles of vehicle ownership but did not result in a blowout, but with a sidewall failure above the treadline. this failure was also returned to the same firestone tire center dealer for replacement.) (tiresize: 26575r16)( dot number: tire size: 26575r16 )

Tread separated from the tire body.tire was propeely inflated according to the firestone dealer. (dot number: vdil1xd179 tiresize: lt22575r16)

Pe-00-040- steel tex r4s; original equipment on a 1999 ford f350, tire size p265/75r16, dot number not available, tire had 30 thousand miles on it. when driving between 60-65 mph driver side left rear tire tread middle portion separated from the tire, the tire stayed inflated, consumer was driving on the steel belts. *ak the damaged tire had a pressure of 80 p.s.i. *yh

The tread, in a 1 piece "belt" separated from the tire; both beads remained seated on the rim. tire dealer said no tire defect and required us to buy a new tire. they kept the tire.*ak( dot number: )

Consumer has a 1999 ford, f350. original tires that have 27,000 miles. tire size p265/75r16, dot#vnw31xl. tires have splits were the cap attaches to the tires. also, there are hairline cracks around the wall of the passenger front tire.*ak the failed steel tex at tire was made in canada. *yh

Dealer inspected tires and checked balance for vibration at 30+mph speeds. dealer said no obvious external defects visable but vibration persists that could be an internal deflect like a ply separation causing vibration. (dot number: do 8061 tiresize: 265/75r16)

Catastrophic failure of the tire at high speed preceeded by loss of outer tread lining (dot number: da217pf13d tiresize: 265/75/r16)

Tread separation at 60 mph, no warning!*ak (dot number: vdil1xl188 tiresize: lt22575r16)

Tread separated from sidewall on white lettering side, all other tires cracking on sidewalls, spoke to manufacturer they said it was normal, store manager said it was just weatherchecking. have pictures if needed.*ak (tiresize: 265/75/r16)( dot number: tire size: 265/75/r16 )

Tire sidewall exploded -and two other tires are bulging at the side wall( dot number: vdw81xm419 tire size: lt 265/75r )

While driveing at between 60-65 mph on two consective days i had massive tire failures on the rear of my truck. in both cases i was traving along at the legal speed level with my truck empty, on a dry roadway, temperature around 100 degrees f. in both cases the truck started to shake real bad and then immediately the tires exploded. in neithe case did the tires loose air. the tread came completely off the casing. i did not loose control of my vehicle because it has dual rear wheels. both times it did damage the fenders, fender wells, fender liners and fender braces. the tires had about 4,000 miles on them and were inflated to 65 psi. i have contacted kumho tire company and they want me to send in the blown tires and they may replace them and may repair my vehicle damsge. i still have the two damaged tires and the two that did not seperate. i will hold all four tires until i hear from you.*ak (dot number: hzioycis40 tiresize: lt255/8516)

Tread separeted from the rest of the tire thier was no blow out and no puctures to the tire the tread damaged my running board my fender the inner fender and the horn before i was able to stop the tire was still inflatedand it remained inflateduntill i was able to limp down the road to a ford dealership to see if they could or would assume responsibility for the damages to my truck since the tires were original equiptment. they simply said no and sent me on my way.thier was no reason for this tire to come apart the way it did. it was inflated with the proper air pressureand there were no bumps or potholes in the road just simply poor quality fabrication of ththier product( dot number: vnw8 1xl tire size: lt26575r16 )

Pe00020; original equipment on a 1999, ford f350, tire size p26575r16. tires are splitting at the sidewall starting at the tread and going to the rim of the tire. *ak

On sunday morning at approximately 9:00 a.m. 2miles west of santa rosa, new mexico the right rear tire blew out. we were towing a 30 foot 5th wheel recreational vechicle at about 70 mph. due to where this happened, i had to leave the roadway to keep from being run over by 18 wheelers running 75+ mph. since i was in the left lane, i had to go in the center median. this area was extremely sloped and we were barely able to clear the roadway with the righ side of truck and trailer. new mexico state highway patrol was contacted but never showed up. in order to continue to a location to find a replacement tire. we hap to buy a used tire for a spare. in santa fe, nm we located a firestone dealer. he replaced both rear tires with the same model tire but a different tread design. he did not mention the there being a problem with these tires. after returning home and getting more details and the concern with safety, we bought replace tires from another manufactor. i feel firestone should have ntified me of the possible problem before the incident. i am out over $800 for five replacement tires plus the $1500 damage to my truck. the ford dealer was contacted and ford called and ask a few questions but no futher contact. firestone has made no contact. *ak (dot number: vnw81xm398 tiresize: lt265/7516)

Wife was driving in middle lane on rt95 south toward richmond, va from no-va are when left rear tire blew and absolutely nothing was hit!! tread on outter tire still in tact however outside wall was totall torn apart. fortunately no one was killed since my wife is a excellent driver she waited for traffic to clear in right lane and was able to pull over truck (along with our 30ft camper trailer). all tires are original equip from ford for which we special ordered on truck to ensure we had biggest tire avail as options for truck that year we ordered it. now alum rim is ruined and ford will not replace tire(s) nor rim. closest firestone dealer is very far away 1.5/2 hours. asked sterling ford to replace all four tires (since they no longer feel safe and show bubbles on sidewalls) and the rim but they will not even though i have bumper to bumper warranty saying that it is firestone dealer responsible. however, sterling ford sells firestone tires but obviously doesnot warranty any of them!?!? also, about a month earlier valve stem on right rear tire went bad.. so, i have had two (2) incidents with firstone produce. also, all tires are showing excessive tread wear and there is only 25k miles on tires. i will have to replace all tires before winter and no one can tell me how long these tires are warrantied for; 50 or 60k?? if 60k tire wears out half way and blows out on sidewall somthing is definitely wrong with these tires!!( dot number: tire size: p265/75r16 )

Firestone tire 2757516,front driver side tire tread came apart which almost cause a crash. common problem. please provide further information.*ak

We were traveling hwy 40 at about 60 mph around 2:00 p.m. when our right rear tire exploded. as the tire tread was peeling off, i tried to gain control of my truck/camper to avoid going off the shoulder or a head-on crash. the blowout caused about $2000.00 in damages beside complete tire replacement. i made a claim through farmers insurance agency and the damage has been documented. additionally, i still have the damaged tire and rim. upon my return from this trip, i immediately replaced the tires because i felt i might not be so lucky if i had another blowout like this. i feel this blowout was due to a defect in the tire because of the way the tread unraveled and the steel belts blew out. i would like some information how to pursue reimbursement for these damages. your prompt reply will be appreciated. *ak( dot number: vnw8 tire size: 265/75/r16 )

A tire on 2 separate occasions, completely disentigrated. i've driven a long time, and so has my mother who was with me at the time, and neither of us have ever seen anything like this before. luckily both incidents occured on my rear wheels, and i have a dual rear wheel truck so no accident occurred. *ak (dot number: w10p tiresize: 215/85r16)

The left rear outboard and the right inboard firestone steeltex radial (lt215/85r16) tires experienced tread separation. *mjs

The original tire problem that i had was a 3" slit in the sidewall. upon noticing this i purchased a set of tires from a friend who had just purchased an f250 crew cab and wanted larger tires to lift his truck. the firestone tires we purchased had roughly 3000 miles on them and were the original tires ford sold the truck with. i was simply pulling away from a curb when my tire completely blew out at the sidewall. i was not touching or rubbing the curb in any way. i have to replace this tire but i will save it if you need to see it. i unfortunately do not have the first tire that had a problem. the information on my second tire problem from the new set is as follows: firestone steeeltex radial a/t, lt265/75r16 do #8062 with a bmi 4976-1.( dot number: tire size: lt265rx16e )

The left rear tire blew out an approx. 3inch section of the side wall on the out side of the tire, a section stayed on the rim and the inside of the tire was intact. there was no evidence of tread separation on the tread. the loca firestone dealer inspected the tire and could find no reason for the failure. they replaced the tire with the same type for a prorated price of $64.78. the tires were inspected by me before i left for yosemite national park and inflation and condition appeared ok. the failure occured aprox. 35 miles into the trip at about 9:30 am pdt and the temperature wasapprox. 60 to 70 degrees. the failure occured on business is80, westbound , inside lane. the pickup was empty at the time of failure, if i would have been pulling my fifth wheel trailer with a gross combined vehicle weight og 18560lbs, the results could have been a serious accident as i was in rush traffic and on the inside lane of a six lane freeway. i was able to control the truck and move safely to the outside shoulder to change the tire. i am reluctant to use my trailer with these tires as i do not want my wife because of inacaction by firestone and ford to replace these alledged defective tires. i urge your agengy to initiate an immediate recall of these tires if action is not taken within the next 30 days, i will be contacting my congressional representatives for action on this serior problem. thank you and i added to the fatality list. *ak (dot number: do 8062 tiresize: lt26575r16)

The right rear and left rear firestone steeltex tires p265/75r16 dot vnw81xm failed, the first tire failure occurred while driving and was due to tread separation, causing damage to vehicle, the left rear tire had a large bubble. *slc

1 tire expereinced blowout due to tread separation, another tire on a different company vehicle experienced a split on the exact same type of tire, tires are denman size p285/75r16, super swamper. *slc

Peoo 020 ; she was traveling about 65mph on highway and heard a banging noise. back right rear tire tread separated. firestone#at steel tex 16inch. second blowout occurred, left rear tire blewout, tread separated. there were no injuries.*ak the white walls collapsed in ward on both right rear and left rear tires on two occassions. *yh

Blowout on interstate resulting in damage to vehicle. *ak( dot number: tire size: lt265/75r1 )

Install 4 new bfg tires on my new truck. all 4 failed due to tread separation & blowouts.*ak (dot number: bexfub1124 tiresize: 33x12.5x16)

No summary listed for above vehicle. *ak (tiresize: p265x75r16)( dot number: tire size: p265x75r16 )

I have had three tire blowouts with this vehicle. the first occured one week after purchase. they have all been sidewall blowouts with complete failure of the tire (unable to repair) all occured at less than 40 mph on graded graveled roads. it appeared as if the tires had been cut. (tiresize: lt26575r16)( dot number: tire size: lt26575r16 )

These firestone steel tex at, p26575r16 were (oe) on this ford truck. seperation of tread was noticed while vehicle was sitting. firestone replaced the tire.*ak the tire was made in canada. firestone prorated the tire and replaced it as a road hazard claim. *yh

2 rear tires have developed crack along circumference of sidewall.*ak (tiresize: 265-75-16)( dot number: tire size: 265-75-16 )

I nearly died as a result of a front, passenger tire that failed causing my vehicle to leave the roadway after i tried to correct after the blowout. i struck the end of an irrigation bridge and rolled my truck, breaking my neck, fracturing my skull and being hospitilized for seven weeks. i had a private engineer who is a consultant for goodyear look at the photographs of my tire and give a report that it was a failure due to running low on air. i had my tire pressure checked 1 day prior to the accident and have proof of that. i found two parts of the tire and the wheel recently and as the engineer said i would find melt nylon on the sidewall, i did find melted nylon. i have the two pieces of the tire in my possession. (tiresize: 235/85r 16)( dot number: tire size: 235/85r 16 )

On october 17, 1998 after driving on a us montana 300 miles i had a front passenger tire blow out. the last i recall was jerking the wheel and when i corrected i struck a small irrigation bridge in the on coming lane causing my truck to roll. this caused me to fracture my skull, break my neck, and be hospitilized for seven weeks. i had an engineer, who is a private consultant for goodyear, examine the photographs of my tire and sent me a report saying the tire failed due to lw air pressure. i had my tire checked by a certified ford dealership the day prior to my accident and i have proof of that. if this tire is the fault of goodyear it should be recalled before others nearly die like i did. i have two peices of the tire and the rim in my possession. the engineer said if i found the tire i may find melted nylon on the sidewall which i did find the tire. it does have melted nylon on the rubber and it is a 360 degree seperation with the inside and outside of the tire still on the rim and the tread section missing. (tiresize: 235/85r16)( dot number: tire size: 235/85r16 )