A batch of tyres that left Bridgestone/Firestone Inc.’s Oklahoma City plant en route to a Ford assembly plant in Kansas City and a memo have marked the end of an almost century-long business relationship begun by the founders of the two firms, Associated Press (AP) reported.

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According to AP, the next day, Bridgestone/Firestone sales executive John Behr said in a note to Ford’s purchasing department, “That shipment (represents) the end of the business relationship between Ford and Bridgestone/Firestone in the US and Canada. I therefore assume that today, April 1, 2003, represents the first day in about 97 years that Ford and Bridgestone/Firestone are not doing business in these markets.”

AP said the break has been nearly two years in the making after John Lampe, chairman, chief executive officer and president of Bridgestone/Firestone Americas, announced in May 2001 that he was severing ties with Ford.

The companies’ relationship unraveled in 2000 with the recall of millions of tyres amid reports that they were prone to losing their tread while travelling at high speed, AP noted. The tyres were standard equipment on the Ford Explorer, the world’s best-selling sport utility vehicle and have been linked to at least 271 U.S. traffic deaths. The controversy has spawned hundreds of wrongful death and personal injury lawsuits, many of which are still pending, AP added.

AP noted that officials from both companies have exchanged blame for the tyre failures since they came to light. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration ultimately sided with Ford, ruling that the Explorer’s design was not unsafe compared with similar SUVs.

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Associated Press said that, since Lampe’s announcement, the company has continued shipping tyres to Ford while the car maker lined up new suppliers. It still will supply tyres to some Ford operations outside the United States.

According to AP, Ford spokesman Paul Wood declined to speculate on any future relationship between the companies.

“We are no longer in business together in North America. That’s all we can really say at this point,” Wood told the news agency.

But AP said that Bridgestone/Firestone has not ruled out a future reconciliation.

“You can never say never,” Bridgestone/Firestone spokeswoman Christine Karbowiak told Associated Press. “There have been conversations at many different levels. You can’t predict what will happen. Relationships are cyclical.”