Goodyear Finally Recalled ‘The Worst Tire Made In History’
Years ago now, we ran some blogs about what one lawyer contended was “the worst tire made in history,” the Goodyear G159, which has been linked to multiple deaths and has been at the center of dozens of lawsuits. The G159 was originally intended for delivery vehicles but ended up on lots of motorhomes, on which they sometimes failed and led to crashes.
Goodyear has known that the tire could be bad for decades, according to court documents, and yet it was never recalled by Goodyear. Until this month, that is, when Goodyear said it would be recalling 173,273 G159s, almost two decades after the last one was made. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration had been investigating the tires since 2017.
From the relevant NHTSA document:
– NHTSA opened a preliminary evaluation (PE17-009) on December 28, 2017 to review and analyze allegations brought forward by a private litigant that the 275/70R22.5 G159 tire contained safety related defects that had caused motorhome crashes resulting in deaths and injuries to occupants of these vehicles.
– As part of PE17-009, NHTSA sent an information request to Goodyear on April 3, 2018. Goodyear submitted a response to that information request in May 2018.
– After a series of conversations and meetings between Goodyear and NHTSA, by letter of February 22, 2022, NHTSA requested that Goodyear conduct a safety recall of the 275/70R22.5 G159 tire (the “Subject Tires”). Goodyear filed its response to that letter on March 8, 2022, declining the request.
– To address concerns that some of these tires may still be in the marketplace or in use, Goodyear has agreed to undertake this recall.
– Any person that presents a recreational vehicle containing a Subject Tire will receive a 275/70R22.5 Goodyear G670 tire free of charge. Goodyear will cover the cost of dismounting and disposing of the Subject Tire and mounting and balancing the new G670 tire. Additionally, any person presenting a Subject Tire on a recreational vehicle will be provided a voucher in the amount of $60 to cover the cost of having the vehicle professionally weighed.
– Any person who owns a Subject Tire not installed on a recreational vehicle can exchange it for $500.
– Instructions to dealers will specify that any tire removed under this recall is to be rendered unsuitable for resale for installation on motor vehicles prior to returning to Goodyear for credit. All removed tires returned to Goodyear will be used by our recycler for various recycling purposes.
– Since the motorhome manufacturers that specified the Subject Tires no longer are in business, and Goodyear does not have, or have access to, any registration data for the Subject Tires, Goodyear will issue an information bulletin describing this campaign. The bulletin will be published on certain Goodyear websites and issued to Tire Service Centers and Tire Dealers. Goodyear also will make contact with leading trade associations and interest groups representing recreational vehicle manufacturers, suppliers and owners, and will request that the bulletin be made available to their membership, including through publication on those organizations’ websites and/or in their monthly publications.
If you own a motorhome, I’d recommend checking out what kind of shoes your baby is wearing. I’d also be remiss not to shout out Jalopnik alum Ryan Felton, whose work on this story has been indefatigable. In the end, it is always a cost-benefit analysis for big companies like Goodyear when it comes to things like this, no matter what actually happens. It only took all this time and many lives.
