Word: tiredly
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...about the Explorer's stability during emergency handling procedures. After a test-track trial in April 1989--one year before the Explorer reached showrooms billed as a rugged and reliable family vehicle--a report noted that the SUV prototype "demonstrated a rollover response ... with a number of tire, tire-pressure [and] suspension configurations." Another report noted that the Explorer's "relatively high engine position ... prevents further significant improvement in the Stability Index [a measure of resistance to tipping] without extensive suspension, frame and sheet-metal revisions," which the company rejected...
Ford's decision to increase the stability of the Explorer by lowering the tire pressure soon had unintended consequences. The mushier tires held the road better but worsened fuel economy. When Ford asked Firestone to fix the problem, Firestone reduced the weight of the tire about...
With the Explorer's 1990 production date approaching, Ford engineers listed four options for improving the stability of the SUV: widening the chassis by 2 in.; lowering the engine; or lowering the tire pressure and stiffening the springs. Ford chose the latter two fixes and recommended a tire pressure of 26 p.s.i.--rather than the 30-to-35 p.s.i. that Firestone normally used in its tires--to produce a more road-gripping ride. This created friction between Ford and Firestone after last year's recall, with Firestone insisting that the low pressure had increased the heat on the tires...
...last year, NHTSA had launched an investigation into the rising number of tire failures--and Ford and Firestone were feuding. The automaker accused Firestone of withholding data that Ford said it needed to determine which tires were problematic...
Ford execs may have also been worried that NHSTA would eventually declare a stricter safety standard than Firestone's Wilderness tires could meet. Ford asked NHSTA about the possibility last month. When the agency was noncommittal, Ford opted to replace the tires on its own. Firestone protested and asked Ford to show it the data so the tire company could decide for itself...