A woman whose Ford Explorer flipped the same day she bought it filed a negligence suit Tuesday against Bridgestone/Firestone, Ford and the auto dealer who sold her the vehicle, according to the Tampa law firm of James, Hoyer, Newcomer & Smiljanich, P.A. Virginia Gray, 24, filed the lawsuit in federal court in Tampa. She bought the used Ford Explorer from Jim Quinlan Chevrolet in Clearwater in September 1999, according to the lawsuit.
The Explorer was equipped with Firestone 15-inch ATX radial tyres and, later that same day, the left rear tyre blew out on Interstate 4 near Orlando, causing the Explorer to roll over several times.
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The rollover occurred just six hours and 140 miles after the Explorer’s purchase. Ms. Gray was trapped inside the truck and had to be cut out. Ms. Gray, who is now a resident of Pinellas County, was injured in the accident and has suffered emotional trauma as a result of the injuries sustained in the accident.
Mike Peacock, an attorney with Ms. Gray’s law firm, said that Ms. Gray, “had not been warned of known defects in the tyres, nor of the high incidence of accidents related to the use of said tyres on Ford Explorers. It is unfortunate that Ms. Gray has suffered injury in light of the clear pattern of Bridgestone/Firestone and Ford Motor Company to conceal known information from the consuming public concerning the inherent risks in the use of these tyres.”
The lawsuit seeks damages in excess of $75,000. The complaint alleges counts of breach of express warranty of merchantability, breach of implied warranty of merchantability, strict liability in tort, negligence in design and manufacture, strict liability for failure to warn, and negligence for failure to warn against Bridgestone/Firestone, Inc. and Ford Motor Company; and alleges negligence against Jim Quinlan Chevrolet Company.
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