Frequently Asked Questions about the Firestone Recall
2. What vehicles are these tires on
Updated
Jul 7, 2004 20:28:50
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Description: 1. What tires are being recalled? All Firestone ATX tires in the P235/75R15 size. All Firestone Wilderness AT tires in the P235/75R15 size that were built at the Decatur, Illinois tire plant. ? These tires were original equipment on certain Ford Explorer, Mercury Mountaineer, Ford Ranger pick up trucks, and Mazda B4000 pick up trucks. These tires were also sold in the aftermarket and may be on any light truck or SUV that takes the P235/75R15 tire size. Firestone Tires included in the Recall were installed as Original Equipment on these vehicles*†Manufacturer Model Model Years Ford Explorer 1991-2000 Mercury Mountaineer 1996-2000 Ford Ranger (pick up truck) 1991-2000 Ford B-series (pick up truck) 1994-1996
 *Note: Please note that not all tires on these vehicles are included in the recall. See the response to question number 3 below to determine if your tires are included. *Note: Tires are being recalled regardless of the vehicle they are mounted on. You may have these tires installed on your vehicle, if your vehicle is equipped with P235/75R15 tires. Most were recalled Please go to question 3 below to determine if your tires are included. 3. How do I know if my tires are included? If you have an ATX tire: You need to find your tire size on the tire. The tire size is located on both sides of the tire. It is in raised black letters and it is in slightly smaller print than the words, "Firestone ATX". The size will read as follows: P235/75 R15 31X10.50R15 LT215/75R15 etc. Only tire size(s) that begin with P235 are included in Firestone's recall. If you have a Wilderness tire: First you need to read the model name off of the sidewall of your tire. There are several models of Wilderness tires. There are Wilderness AT, Wilderness HT, and Wilderness LE tires. Only certain Wilderness AT tires are involved in the recall. If you have a Wilderness tire other than one that says Wilderness AT on the sidewall your tire is not included. If you have a Wilderness AT tire, you need to check the tire size. The tire size is located on both sides of the tire. It is in raised black letters and it is in slightly smaller print than the words, "Firestone Wilderness". It is located between the words Firestone and Wilderness, slightly above these words. The size may read as follows: P235/75R15 P245/75R16 P255/70R16 P215/75R15 etc. Only tire size(s) that begin with P235 are included in Firestone's recall. Next you need to locate the DOT code to determine where your tire was built. The DOT number is located on the blackwall side of the tire, under the F in Firestone, and it is 10 characters long, and it starts with DOT. Since this code is on the blackwall side of the tire, and not on the outlined white letter side of the tire, you may need to crawl underneath your vehicle with a flashlight to find the code. There may be spaces in between some of the numbers, but be sure to count all 10 characters to ensure you have found the proper code. Examples include: DOT VDHL1PM046 DOT W2HL1M0470 DOT VDHLA16089 The first two letters of the DOT code are the DOT plant code. If the first two letters of the DOT code are VD, your tires were built in the Decatur, Illinois plant and are being recalled. If they are not VD they are not included. For information VD is Decatur, Illinois VN is Joliete, in Quebec Canada HY is in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma W1 is Lavergne, Tennessee W2 is Wilson, North Carolina VC is Albany, Georgia NOTE: If you are unable to find your DOT number, if you are unable to determine whether your tire is included in the recall, or if you would rather not crawl under your vehicle, Firestone is offering to inspect all tires, so you may take your vehicle to a Firestone store and ask them to check your DOT number. Firestone will inspect the tire and let you know whether it is included in the recall. 4. I recently got my tires replaced, can I get reimbursed? There is nothing in the law requiring reimbursement for consumers that have had their tires replaced before a recall was announced. However, manufacturers will often reimburse consumers for customer satisfaction. In this case, Firestone has said that they will do what it takes to make its customers happy. You may need proof that the tires you replaced were included in the recall. See the response to question 3, above, to determine if the tires you have replaced were included in the recall. It is possible that Firestone may decide not to reimburse consumers. Call Firestone for more information at 1-800-465-1904. 5. What brand/model of tires will Firestone be replacing my tires with? The tires being recalled will be replaced with Firestone Wilderness AT tires built at tire plants other than the Decatur, Illinois plant. There may be other Bridgestone/Firestone models that are used to meet the huge demand of tires needed for this recall. 6. I have a Ford Explorer, but I don't have P235/75R15 tires? Your tires are not involved in the recall. Some Ford Explorers also come equipped with P225/70R15 or P255/70R16 and possibly other tire sizes. Only the P235/75R15 tires are included in the recall. 7. When will I get a notice in the mail? When you get a notice in the mail will depend on where you live. Since there are not nearly enough remedy tires currently available, Firestone is prioritizing the recall, with owners in those states where most incidents have occurred (Texas, Florida, California, and Arizona) being served first. Firestone plans to send an interim notification letter to all owners of these tires that would advise them of the defect, indicate that new tires will be provided when available, and suggest actions to minimize the risk of a tread separation in the interim. 8. What should I do now, while I wait to have my tires changed? In the meantime, check your tires. Be sure your tires are properly inflated to the vehicle manufacturer's specifications. Do not drive over the speed limit. Do not overload your vehicle. Wear your seatbelt. If you do need to have a repair performed on your tire, have it professionally repaired by a tire dealer or vehicle dealer. Be sure to check the air pressure in your spare tire. If you must use your spare tire, make sure it is properly inflated. Information about the manufacturer's recommended cold tire inflation pressure and vehicle weight rating can be found in both the owners manual and on an identification sticker in the vehicle, most commonly found on the hinge pillar of the driver's side door. Be aware that while these precautions are good general guidelines to tire safety, if your tread has already started to separate from your tire, these guidelines may not prevent a tire failure. Also, be advised that visual inspection of the tires may not be sufficient to detect potential tread separation. NOTE: If you have a Ford Explorer equipped with tires in the P235 tire size (see question 2 above to determine what size you have on your vehicle), Firestone recommends that you increase the air pressure in the tires to 30 psi. Ford, as noted on the identification sticker mentioned above, recommends 26 psi for Explorers with the P235 tire size. Ford now approves that a range of 26-30 psi is appropriate for the Explorer. Firestone recommends that the air pressure be maintained at 30 psi. Consumers that own Explorers with other tire sizes, such as the P255 or P225, should follow the recommendations of the manufacturer on the identification sticker in the vehicle. 9. How much will the recall cost me? The recall will be conducted at no cost to the consumer. 10. Where do I go to get my tires replaced? If you have a Ford vehicle, you can go to either a Ford dealer or Firestone tire store. If you don't have a Ford vehicle, you must go to a Firestone store. Please be aware that dealers may not have the inventory to begin the recall today. Since there are not nearly enough remedy tires currently available, Firestone is prioritizing the recall, with owners in those states where most incidents have occurred (Texas, Florida, California, and Arizona) being served first. Firestone plans to send an interim notification letter to all owners of these tires that would advise them of the defect, indicate that new tires will be provided when available, and suggest actions to minimize the risk of a tread separation in the interim. 11. What is NHTSA doing with the investigation? NHTSA is keeping the investigation open until we determine whether the scope of Firestone's recall is appropriate. We are awaiting responses from Firestone and Ford in August. We plan to review all of the data that is sent in to determine if the scope of the recall is justified, or if other tire sizes, additional tires built at other plants, or other tire models should be included. 12. What is the difference between tires built at the Decatur, Illinois plant that are involved in the recall and the other tires that are built at other Firestone plants? Firestone believes that the scope of the recall is appropriate based on data they have analyzed and shared with NHTSA. Our investigation will remain open until we verify that the scope of Firestone's recall is appropriate. Firestone has provided us with data. We are awaiting additional responses from Firestone and Ford in August. We plan to review all of the data that is sent in to determine if the scope of the recall is justified, or if other tire sizes, additional tires built at other plants, or other tire models should be included. 13. Will my spare tire be replaced? Yes, if your spare tire is one of the tire models included in the recall, Firestone will replace the spare tire at no charge also. 14. I had a tire failure, what should I do? NHTSA's investigation will remain open until we determine whether the scope of Firestone's recall is appropriate. So, if you have experienced any tire failure, we encourage you to report it to us by calling our Auto Safety Hotline at 1-888-DASH-2-DOT or by completing an electronic complaint form on this website, To report a tire failure, you may also contact Firestone at 1-800-465-1904, Ford at 1-800-392-3673, or whomever is appropriate for your particular tire and/or vehicle if the tire that failed was original equipment. When reporting a tire failure, it would be helpful if you are able to provide us with the following information: Your Name, Address, and Day and Evening Phone Number(s) Describe what happened, you were driving down the road and...How did you know you had a tire problem? How many people were in the vehicle? Was anybody hurt? Do you know what kind of tires were on the vehicle? (example: Firestone, Goodyear, Cooper, General, etc.) Do you know what model of tires were on the vehicle? (example: Firestone ATX, Firestone Wilderness, Goodyear Wrangler, etc.) What vehicle were you driving? Make, Model, and Model Year. (example: 1997 Ford Explorer, 1995 Chevrolet Blazer, etc.) If you have your vehicle identification number (VIN), it is helpful. The VIN is located at the base of the driver's side of the front windshield and is 17 characters long. It is also located on a sticker in the vehicle, usually in the driver's door jam. You may also find your VIN on your car insurance card, insurance paperwork, and/or your state motor vehicle title. Were the tires Original Equipment (sold on the vehicle when it was new) or aftermarket? When did this happen? Date of incident: About how many miles were on your vehicle? Approximate vehicle mileage: About how many miles were on your tire? Approximate tire mileage: How fast were you going? Approximate speed at the time: Can you get the DOT # off of the tire that failed. [On tires involved in the recall, the DOT number is located on the blackwall side of the tire, under the F in Firestone, and it is 10 characters long, and it starts with DOT...., on other tires it is located on at least one sidewall of the tire (please note if your tire is still on the vehicle, it may be on the inner sidewall) and it always begins with the letters DOT] (example: DOT#: VDHL1PM046) Note: Beginning in the year 2000, tires have an 11 digit DOT number. (example: DOT#VDHL1PM0400) Can we get your tire size? (examples: P235/75R15, LT 255/75R16, P255/70R16, 31X10.50R15LT, etc.)  Location on the vehicle: Which tire was it? (example: driver's side rear tire) Do you still have the tire and/or the tread (if the tread separated)? Have you contacted your dealer (e.g., Ford, Toyota, etc.) or the tire store (i.e., Firestone, Goodyear, Michelin, etc.) or your insurance company? What did they say? Do you have a police report, photographs, or any other evidence of what happened? Is it possible to get a copy?
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