SUV OR R.I.P.:

If it bleeds, it leads. (Ed Wallace, Oct. 24, 2002, Dallas-Fort Worth Star Telegram)

[T]he number of deaths from Firestone tires' separating and a subsequent loss of vehicle control was more likely in the neighborhood of 120-130, not 281, the figure still reported in the ongoing stories. (Certain factors in the other 150-odd deaths effectively made each not solely a Ford or Firestone problem.) Put another way, the database showed that Explorer owners were statistically safer riding on Firestone tires than the average driver on the road was. They had fewer deaths per 100,000 miles than did the driving public at large.

You only have to hit one deer or moose before you decide an SUV is plenty safe enough. Posted by Orrin Judd at October 25, 2002 8:30 PM