Web site attacks safety record at Wilson, other Bridgestone/Firestone plants

ARLINGTON, Va. (Oct. 25)—Firestone Wilderness AT tires manufactured at the Bridgestone/Firestone Inc. facility in Wilson, N.C., have five times as many complaints against them as the recalled Wilderness tires from the company´s plant in Decatur, Ill., according to Safetyforum.com, an auto safety watchdog Web site funded by plaintiffs´ attorneys. "Canadian-made" Wilderness tires have twice as many complaints against them as the Decatur tires, according to the Web site. Safetyforum.com said it came to its conclusions after analyzing the more than 3,500 complaints on Firestone ATX and Wilderness tires that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has on file. The Web site has contended since the recall began Aug. 9 that the Decatur tires are being used as a scapegoat and the Wilderness design is inherently defective. "While NHTSA is studying Tire Mechanics 101, people are dying," Tab Turner, Safetyforum.com´s legal counsel for tires, said in a news release. "The time has come for the agency to quit pandering to the industry and do something to help the consumer." A NHTSA spokesman said the agency doesn´t comment on continuing investigations, while a Bridgestone/Firestone spokeswoman said Safetyforum.com "is a plaintiff´s attorneys´ Web site whose members have a vested interest in saying such things."