NHTSA Complaint #10132784 — 2003 FORD MUSTANG

I WAS DOING SOME ROUTINE MAINTENANCE ON MY 2003 JACK ROUSH EDITION SVT COBRA COUPE WHEN I NOTICED SOMETHING REALLY SCARY. THE INSIDE SIDEWALL SEAM OF A FRONT AND REAR TIRE WAS SPLITTING AROUND ITS CIRCUMFERENCE. I'M CERTAIN THAT HAD I BEEN DRIVING AT SPEED OR ON A HOT ROAD SURFACE THAT PRESSURES WOULD HAVE BUILT TO THE POINT OF CAUSING A BLOW-OUT. I HAD A SIMILAR TIRE DEFECT, COINCIDENTALLY, WITH ANOTHER SET OF BFG-KD'S THAT WERE ON MY ROUSH CONVERTIBLE. UNFORTUNATELY FOR ME THAT TIRE BLEW OUT WHILE I WAS ON THE ROAD FROM THE PORT IN FLORIDA TO MY NEW DUTY STATION IN TEXAS. ANYWAY, I GOT IN TOUCH WITH BF GOODRICH CORPORATE AND INITIALLY ONLY OFFERED 50% REIMBURSEMENT OF ALL FOUR TIRES. LATER THAT CHANGE TO 75% THEN THEY AGREED TO REPLACE THEM WITH 4 NEW BFG-KDS IN MY ROUSH-OEM SIZES. THEY CLAIM THAT DUE TO TREAD WEAR THEIR WARRANTY ALLOWS FOR THAT COMPENSATION. MY POSITION WAS THAT I SHOULD RECEIVE 100% REIMBURSEMENT BECAUSE WHETHER OR NOT THE TIRES HAD X% OF TREAD REMAINING OR WERE NEW, THE FACT REMAINS THAT THEY WERE STILL DEFECTIVE. THE FIRST TIME I WAS UNLUCKY BECAUSE THE TIRE BLEW-OUT RIGHT I WAS GOING TO PUT MORE AIR IN IT. THIS TIME I CAUGHT THE DEFECT BEFORE THE TIRES COULD BLOW-OUT. ONE CAN ONLY IMAGINE WHAT WOULD HAVE BEEN THE RESULT IF A BLOW-OUT OCCURRED ESPECIALLY IF IT HAPPENED WHILE I WAS TRAVELING AT MY "NORMAL" SPEEDS. SINCE THIS CLAIM I HAVE DONE SOME RESEARCH AND DISCOVERED THAT OTHER OWNERS OF BFG TIRES HAVE EXPERIENCED THE SAME DEFECT WHICH HAS RESULTED IN TIRE FAILURE. ADDITIONALLY THE BFG TIRE DISTRIBUTOR IN MY AREA (T.O. HAUS, OMAHA NE) CONFIRMED THAT THEY TOO HAVE SEEN THESE FAILURES BEFORE IN MY EXACT TYPE OF TIRE. BFG CORPORATE KNOWS THAT THERE IS A PROBLEM AND HAS CHOSEN TO IGNORE IT AND ONLY OFFERS PARTIAL REIMBURSEMENT FOR LOSS. I'M CERTAIN THAT IT WILL TAKE MORE TRAGEDIES AND FATALITIES BEFORE THEY ARE HELD ACCOUNTABLE FOR THEIR DEFECTIVE PRODUCT. *NM