A tire blowout at highway speed is one of the most terrifying experiences a driver can have. In a fraction of a second, a vehicle that was under control becomes a projectile — veering across lanes, rolling over, or slamming into barriers. In Arizona, where summer pavement temperatures regularly exceed 150 degrees Fahrenheit and interstate speeds run at 75 mph, the consequences of a blowout can be catastrophic.
Most people who survive a tire blowout accident assume it was bad luck — a road hazard, worn tires, or simply the heat. But a significant number of blowouts are caused by defective tires: products that failed not because of how they were used, but because of how they were made. When a defective tire causes a crash, the manufacturer, distributor, and retailer can all be held legally responsible under Arizona’s product liability laws.
Arizona product liability law recognizes three categories of defects that can give rise to a claim against a tire manufacturer:
Design defects. A design defect exists when the tire’s fundamental design — the way it was engineered — makes it unreasonably dangerous. This is not about a single bad tire coming off the assembly line; it is about the entire product line being inherently flawed. The Firestone ATX and Wilderness AT tire recall of 2000 — which involved tread separation on Ford Explorers and contributed to hundreds of deaths — was a design defect case. The tires were designed in a way that made them prone to tread separation under certain conditions, and the manufacturer knew it.
Manufacturing defects. A manufacturing defect occurs when a specific tire deviates from the manufacturer’s own design specifications due to an error in the production process. This might be an air pocket in the rubber, an improperly bonded tread layer, or a belt that was not properly aligned during assembly. Manufacturing defects can affect individual tires or entire production batches, and they are often not detectable through visual inspection.
Failure to warn. Even a tire that is properly designed and manufactured can give rise to liability if the manufacturer fails to adequately warn consumers of known risks. This includes failure to warn about the tire’s age limitations (tires degrade over time regardless of tread depth), load capacity limitations, speed ratings, and the specific risks of operating in extreme heat conditions.
Arizona’s climate creates tire conditions that are genuinely extreme by national standards. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has documented that heat is the leading environmental factor in tire failure. Pavement temperatures in Phoenix during summer regularly reach 150 to 170 degrees Fahrenheit — temperatures at which the chemical bonds in tire rubber begin to degrade more rapidly than in normal conditions.
Tire manufacturers are aware of this. They test their products for high-temperature performance and assign heat resistance ratings (A, B, or C) to their tires. A tire rated “C” — the lowest heat resistance rating — is technically legal for sale but may be inadequate for sustained high-speed driving on Arizona summer roads. A manufacturer who sells a low heat-resistance tire in Arizona without adequate warning about its limitations in high-temperature environments may be liable for failures that result.
Tire age is another factor that is particularly relevant in Arizona. Rubber degrades over time due to oxidation and UV exposure — and Arizona’s intense sun accelerates this process. Most tire safety experts recommend replacing tires after six years regardless of tread depth. A tire that is seven years old with adequate tread may look fine but have significantly compromised structural integrity. Retailers who sell aged tires without disclosing their age may face liability for resulting failures.
The most catastrophic type of tire failure — and the one most commonly associated with product defects — is tread separation. This occurs when the tread and belt package separates from the tire’s inner structure, typically at highway speeds. The separation causes sudden, dramatic loss of control that gives the driver almost no time to respond.
Tread separation has a distinctive physical signature that tire failure experts can identify: the separation typically begins at the edge of the steel belts, where stress concentrations are highest. The pattern of the failure — where it started, how it propagated, and what the fracture surfaces look like — can tell an expert whether the separation was caused by a design defect, a manufacturing defect, road damage, or improper maintenance.
This is why preserving the failed tire is absolutely critical after a blowout accident. The tire is the primary evidence in a product liability case. If it is discarded, the case becomes dramatically harder to prove. Even if the tire is in pieces, every fragment should be collected and preserved.
Arizona’s product liability law allows claims against every party in the chain of distribution — not just the manufacturer. This means the distributor who warehoused the tires, the retailer who sold them, and the installer who mounted them can all potentially share liability. In practice, the manufacturer typically bears the greatest responsibility and has the deepest pockets, but naming all parties in the chain of distribution is standard practice in these cases.
If the defective tire was on a commercial vehicle — a semi-truck, a delivery vehicle, or a bus — the fleet operator who failed to properly inspect and maintain the tires may also share liability. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration regulations impose specific tire inspection and maintenance requirements on commercial vehicle operators, and violations of those regulations are evidence of negligence.
Preserve the tire — all of it, including every fragment. Do not allow anyone to dispose of it. Photograph the tire in place before it is removed from the vehicle. Photograph the vehicle, the road surface, and any debris field. Get a police report. Seek medical attention immediately.
Do not have the tire repaired or the vehicle repaired until it has been examined by an expert. The vehicle’s damage pattern can also provide evidence about the dynamics of the crash and the nature of the tire failure.
Contact an experienced Arizona defective tire attorney as soon as possible. Tire manufacturers have experienced legal and technical teams that begin managing these cases immediately after an accident is reported. You need representation that can match their resources. At Phillips Law Group, we handle defective tire and product liability cases throughout Arizona. Call us at (602) 222-2222 for a free consultation. We handle all type of auto accident lawsuits in Phoenix, AZ.
Available 24/7 
