Firestone, Ford settle 90 Latin American rollover lawsuits

WASHINGTON (Oct. 27)—Bridgestone/Firestone and Ford Motor Co. have settled about 90 Ford Explorer rollover lawsuits from Venezuela, Costa Rica, Colombia and Argentina, both companies have confirmed. The settlements actually took place several months ago, but "the checks were just cut," a BFS spokesman said. The tire maker has resolved more than 1,300 lawsuits involving recalled Firestone ATX and Wilderness AT tires since August 2000, including the vast majority of the 600-plus consolidated before the federal district court in Indianapolis, the spokesman said. Some of that number includes dismissals and other dispositions.