Goodyear G159 Tires

February 7 , 2018 | Car Accidents

When you purchase a product, you expect it to work well and meet safety standards. While this is an important feature of all products, it is especially important for products such products used on cars and other motor vehicles. Tires are a feature on all motor vehicles and are incredibly important for the safety of the vehicle. If a tire malfunctions or does not meet safety requirements, it can cause accidents and injuries. One tire that is currently under investigation for causing accidents and injuries is the Goodyear G159.

Between the years 1996 and 2003, Goodyear produced over 40,000 G159 tired that were installed on motorhomes and RVs. RVs are commonly used on highways and freeways for road trips and travel at speeds of 65 miles per hour or greater. Beginning in 1999, reports started to come in about tire separations and blowouts were occurring in RVs that were using the G159 tires.  Goodyear has admitted that it has gotten over 95 reports of injury and/or death connected with use of the tire. Filings in the court suggest that 1 in 10 RVs that have been equipped with the G159 tires have experienced a malfunction with the tire that has lead to a claim for property damage, injury or even death. Because of these malfunctions over 41 lawsuits have been filed over the tires in the last two decades.

It seems as though Goodyear has tried to do everything possible to cover up the failures and serious safety concerns of the tires. One way Goodyear has tried to keep the problems with their G159 tires has been by aggressively trying to settle cases.  Goodyear has gotten judges to sign off on protective orders, which allowed Goodyear to withhold incredibly important documents from the plaintiffs, which in tun lead to settlements that were not based on full information. Goodyear also worked to ensure settlements were made confidential and attorneys were not allowed to share information with other attorneys, leading to differing evidence in different cases. Goodyear has tried to defend this by saying they provided information on a case by case basis.

These allegations and evidence against Goodyear is currently being investigated by the NHTSA. Goodyear continues to request that some of their documents be kept confidential. By getting the necessary documents from Goodyear the NHTSA through their investigation will be able to determine if the tires were indeed a safety risk and hazard that Goodyear knew about all along.