Tyre-Safety TV Ad Features Exploding Frogs

(Akron/Tire Review – Detroit News) Federal officials seek to prompt motorists to check their tyres by unveiling a TV advertisement featuring frogs exploding on hot asphalt.

The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration released a 30-second public service message Monday that features a parody of a nature TV show.

A narrator with a British accent describes the “perilous journey” that frogs face crossing the road, especially on hot day. The video depicts eight frogs that appear to explode in a poof of smoke and fire on the asphalt.

“Although always a perilous journey, a trip across the road for our web-footed friend is especially unbearable during extreme summertime temperatures,” the narrator intones.

Another narrator says although this isn’t likely to happen — frogs exploding on the road — it urges motorists to check their tyres during hot weather. It features a woman checking her Ford SUV with a tyre pressure monitor.

“Routinely check your tread wear and the pressure of tyres to make sure they are properly inflated because you don’t want them to go (poof) on a hot road,” the narrator says, as another frog “explodes” on the screen.

No frogs were actually harmed during filming, and NHTSA said a Humane Society observer was present while the commercial was being made.
NHTSA Administrator Nicole Nason said motorists should be especially vigilant about checking tyres during the summer.

“Checking tyres is particularly critical during the summer when roads are hot and families are putting a lot of miles on their cars with their vacation plans,” Nason said. “Overloaded vehicles, under-inflated tyres, and hot weather can all combine to possibly turn a family vacation into a horrific nightmare.”

Extreme heat was a factor in the failure of many Firestone tyres in the deaths of 280 deaths – most on Ford SUVs. In 2001, Ford spent more than $3 billion recalling 13 million tyres.

Nason noted that few people take the time to check the condition of their tyres, or whether the tyre is properly inflated.

A tyre industry survey this year found 85 per cent of drivers fail to properly check tyre pressure. NHTSA estimates that crashes associated with tyre problems kill 660 people yearly and injure 33,000.

Another study said 78,000 accidents are caused yearly by underinflated tyres.