A month after all the national publicity began about Firestone's voluntary recall of its P235/75R15 Radial ATX, Radial ATX II and Wilderness AT tires, an executive at Bridgestone/Firestone told Truckinginfo.com there was nothing in common between the SUV tires and Firestone's commercial truck tire line.

"The name 'Firestone' is the only thing common between the two," said Rick Skinner, director of commercial tire marketing for Bridgestone/Firestone. "Our commercial tire lines in all sizes are totally different construction. They're also built in two state-of-the-art Tennessee tire plants, each ISO 9001 and QS 9001 certified.
"We are extremely proud of the record of our truck tires. In fact, we have shown gains in market share every year for nine years. Today, one out of four truck tires sold today is either a Bridgestone or Firestone brand," he said. "The SUV tire recall has had no impact on the commercial side of our business and I don't expect any," Skinner continued.
He said the company is comfortable sharing any and all claims or other data about Firestone truck tires.
"We have had only eight reports nationwide (of concern about the use of Firestone truck tires) and we've dealt with each one on a case-by-case basis."
Skinner points out that proper tire pressure management is the backbone of every good tire maintenance program. "Tire reliability is the cornerstone of the trucking industry's proven ability to make JIT (just-in-time) deliveries work. "We are extremely proud of the independent tire dealers who handle our tires and work closely with our customers who, for the most, part are very tire conscious. We wish more car drivers would take the time and interest (in checking and maintaining proper inflation pressures) as truckers do. The trucking audience understands the importance and necessity of good tire maintenance. It's vital to their bottom line."