The Explorer is a safer vehicle than other compact SUVs, as shown year in and year out by the federal safety data. Explorers are Explorers. Jeeps are Jeeps. Our performance on all the vehicles has been very satisfactory. People have taken tires for granted.
Tires are a highly engineered technical masterpiece, but people have to realize that tires fail.
If you don't take care of a tire, we cannot make a tire that is indestructible. In most cases, a vehicle that experiences a tire failure can be brought safely under control. However, we have seen an alarming number of serious accidents from rollovers of the Explorer after a tire failure. One reason, Lampe suggested, was Ford's advice to inflate Explorer tires to 26 pounds per square inch, lower than Firestone's recommendation of 30 pounds and lower than the pressure recommended for other popular SUVs. Heat that can cause a failure builds up faster in a flatter tire carrying a heavy load in hot weather.