NHTSA Complaint #761630 — 1994 FORD RANGER

I PURCHASED THE FIRESTONE WILDERNESS AT TIRES AT THE TIRE STATION IN SACRAMENTO, CA IN JUNE 1997. THE FIRST PROBLEM I HAD WITH THE TIRES WAS A BLOWOUT OF THE REAR LEFT TIRE TRAVELING AT 60MPH ON INTERSTATE 5 FROM CALIFORNIA TO OREGON. DURING MOST OF THE LIFE OF MY WILDERNESS AT TIRES I WAS LIVING IN BISHOP, CA AND YUCCA VALLEY, CA, WHICH ARE BOTH HOT DESERT CLIMATES, WHICH I UNDERSTAND ARE WHERE MOST OF THE OTHER TREAD SEPARATIONS HAVE OCCURRED. THE TREAD SEPARATION OCCURRED ON THE LEFT FRONT TIRE AS I WAS TRAVELING DOWN A HILL ON HWY 62 FROM YUCCA VALLEY TO PALM SPRINGS, CA. I BARELY KEPT CONTROL OF THE VEHICLE. I THOUGHT THAT IT WAS SIMPLY A FLAT TIRE, BUT THE TIRE PEOPLE SAID THEY COULD NOT REPAIR IT BECAUSE THE TREAD HAD SEPARATED, AND THEY SHOWED ME A LARGE BUBBLED UP AREA OF THE TIRE. BECAUSE I HAD HEARD OF SIMILAR INCIDENTS WITH WILDERNESS AT TIRES INVOLVING FATALITIES, I OPTED TO REPLACE ALL FOUR TIRES (THOUGH I STILL HAVE A WILDERNESS AT UNDER THE TRUCK AS A SPARE). I REPLACED THEM WITH BRIDGESTONE DUELLERS BECAUSE THEY HAD A BETTER REPUTATION FOR QUALITY, AND I HAD HEARD AT THE TIME THAT THE REPLACEMENT TIRES FOR THE FAULTY WILDERNESS AT'S SHOULD BE THROUGHT FIRESTONE OR BRIDGESTONE. WHEN THE RECALL BECAME OFFICIAL, I OBTAINED A LETTER FROM THE TIRE PLACE NOTING THE TIRE SEPARATION SO THAT I COULD BE REIMBURSED FOR THE FAILED TIRES. SHORTLY AFTER OBTAINING THE LETTER, NOT KNOWING WHERE TO SEND IT, MY JOB TRANSFERRED ME TO CHEYENNE WYOMING, AND I ONLY RECENTLY RELOCATED THE LETTER, AS WELL AS LEARNED THAT THE WILDERNESS AT TIRES THAT I PURCHASED WERE OFFICIALLY DEEMED AS FAULTY AND UNSAFE. I WAS ABLE TO ESCAPE INJURY, BUT I ATTRIBUTE THAT TO MY EXCELLENT DRIVING SKILLS - THE TIRES TRULY CREATED AN UNSAFE SITUATION FOR ME.*AK