Only now, with at least 8 people dead and 69 more injured, and one cover up by Goodyear, in incidents involving Goodyear G159 tires, has the manufacturer recalled them. The company has not marketed G159 tires in 19 years

The Heagar family had a blow out in 2003, sued Goodyear, but wasn't given full disclosure on an article about Goodyear’s G159 tires, which indicated that Goodyear had done specific testing on those tires.

So, Goodyear had information in its possession, that the family had asked, and it was legally required to present at trial, to settlement, and yet never provided it to the family. 

 Back to court the two parties went.

 The family asked that Goodyear be punished for allegedly committing fraud by refusing to disclose the testing information in discovery. The judge agreed. 

Goodyear appealed; an appeals court agreed with the original ruling. Goodyear appealed again to the U.S. Supreme Court, which remanded the case back to the lower court, which awarded $520,000 for the cover-up.

The tires in question were originally designed for use on local delivery trucks, and then expanded to motorhome use. Consumer groups and lawsuits allege that the tires might be great for stop-and-go delivery trucks. Fitting them on motorhomes and turning them out onto interstates was a recipe for disaster. When the tires got hot on the highway, they were more likely to separate with disastrous consequences.

NHTSA had the authority to order a recall, but for reasons not revealed, waited until Goodyear voluntarily recalled the tires itself. In a news release, the feds said they “pressured” Goodyear to file the recall. Why the long delay? In a statement released by Goodyear, the company says, “This tire hasn’t been made since 2003, it consistently met Goodyear’s demanding safety standards, and we have not received an injury claim related to the tire’s use on a Class A motorhome in more than 14 years.”

How many of the original 173,000 G159 tires are still “out there” is a complete unknown. Goodyear’s recall move will mean if you have any, you can get new replacement tires for your rig.

https://www.rvtravel.com/dead-69-hurt-goodyear-finally-recalls-g159-tires-1056b/

NHTSA first opened an investigation in December 2017 and then formally asked Goodyear to issue a recall in February, arguing G159 tires had higher failure rates that "occurred relatively early in the service life."

NHTSA in February said it appeared Goodyear was aware of a safety defect "as early 2002 while the tires were in production but did not file a recall."

https://www.autoblog.com/2022/06/11/goodyear-nhtsa-tire-recall-fight/