Bridgestone/Firestone Target of Another Suit
Firestone tires are under fire again, with a court hearing scheduled for Wednesday in California to determine whether an RV owner’s complaint about alleged defects with the Steeltex brand will be expanded into a national class-action lawsuit.
Attorney Joe Lisoni of Pasadena calls the tires “dangerous and lethal lemons,” responsible for more than a dozen deaths and over 100 injuries. He represents two California residents suing the tire maker.
Lisoni alleges that the company used substandard materials to make the tire and then concealed the defects. He is seeking at least $1 billion in reimbursement to motorists and a recall of Steeltex R4S, R4SII and A/T tires.
However, the federal agency that prompted Bridgestone/Firestone to recall millions of Wilderness tires four years ago found no defect trend with Steeltex tires, which are common on larger vehicles such as RVs, ambulances and popular trucks such as the Ford F-150.
After an 18-month investigation, the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration found that the tires performed better than some competitors.
The lead plaintiff in the case is Robert Littell of Cathedral City, Calif., who had five Steeltex tires on his recreational vehicle disintegrate, Lisoni said. The court hearing will be in Indio, Calif.
Dan MacDonald, a spokesman for the tire manufacturer now known as Bridgestone Americas Holding Inc., said there is no truth to Lisoni’s allegations.
“He is implying some sort of tradeoff between efficiency and safety, that if we could cut costs and compromise the quality of our tire we would do that. That’s absolutely untrue,” MacDonald said. “We are in a very competitive business and we put out the best product using the best materials and processes we can find.”
The U.S. subsidiary of Tokyo’s Bridgestone Inc. already has spent $1.5 billion on costs related to the recall of more than 17 million Wilderness tires, including lawsuit settlements. More than 100 deaths were linked to crashes where the tread on those tires separated.
