Hunt For Elusive Mis-Labelled Tyres Begins

In the US, Goodyear has been ordered by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to recall 18 incorrectly labeled tyres. The offending units were manufactured in the company’s Lawton, Oklahoma factory in the second week of January 2008, and barring roadside mishaps all one and a half dozen of these Goodyear Eagle RS-A P235/55R18 99V passenger car tyres may still be plying the roads of America.

The recall is, says the NHTSA, an essential move. Goodyear had petitioned against any recall, arguing that the noncompliant markings on the tyres’ sidewalls are inconsequential to motor vehicle safety, as the tyres meet or exceed all other applicable performance standards. The NHTSA disagrees, stating that the tyre markings are those that should provide valuable information to assist consumers in determining if their tyres are the subject of a safety recall. Goodyear must now, in accordance with regulation 49 U.S.C. 30120, implement a remedy in line with the NHTSA decision.