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Hundreds of consumers will soon learn how to keep their vehicles in prime condition, fuel efficient, and safe and reliable on the road thanks to Firestone Tire & Service Centers (FTSC). Starting next month and in conjunction with National Car Care Month, consumers can attend free, interactive seminars in 35 cities across the nation, most at select Firestone Tire & Service Centers and TiresPlus stores.

Trisha Hessinger, a nationally recognized automotive education specialist and former race car driver, returns as the spokeswoman for the Car Care Academy program. A leading authority on automotive issues, Hessinger has been a guest speaker for major auto manufacturers, hosted three cable television shows and is a contributing writer for various magazines and newspapers on automotive subjects.

“ All drivers – regardless of age or gender – benefit from car care basics,” said Hessinger. “Consumers who attend a Car Care Academy will leave empowered with safe driving techniques and confident the next time their car needs service or repair.”

Firestone Tire & Service Centers, through its free Car Care Academies, have been educating consumers on the importance of vehicle and tire maintenance for more than 30 years. Consumers are armed with basic but vital car care information, educated about vehicle safety, and made aware of how to save time and money through proper car care fundamentals. FTSC’s Car Care Academies have evolved into a larger and more extensive program; each year reaching more people. This year is no exception as the Car Care Academy program prepares to deliver 37 free academies from April through October. Twenty-seven academies are open to the public and 10 are privately hosted by businesses for their employees.

“ Businesses have been enthusiastic about offering academies to their employees as a training seminar,” said Hessinger.

“ Let’s face it, people don’t often have the opportunity to learn simple, yet important vehicle maintenance procedures like what to check for and when to check it. Or useful driving tips such as ways to stay safe while driving in inclement weather. This is useful information that is always very well received.”

At all the academies, educational information is shared verbally, by demonstration and through helpful informational brochures. Some examples include “Car Care Tips” and “Inflate, Rotate, Evaluate” brochures, which illustrate for consumers the Car Care Academy’s messages on vehicle and tire maintenance and safety, plus tips to help consumers detect preventable problems and avoid costly repairs. Both brochures are free to the public and focus on topics every driver needs to know.

In addition to Firestone Tire & Service Centers’ public Car Care Academy program, the academies have been integrated into some of the company’s key partnerships such as the Girl Scouts of the USA, the nation’s leading authority on girls, and Driver’s Edge, a non-profit driver’s educational program, which teaches defensive driving exercises to teens. This component helps empower the next generation of drivers with basic car care knowledge and makes it smarter and safer on the road.

To find out more about Firestone Tire & Service Centers’ Car Care Academy program, please visit www.MasterCareUSA.com.

Firestone Tire & Service Centers is owned and operated by BFS Retail & Commercial Operations, LLC (BFRC). BFRC operates the largest number of company-owned automotive retail generalist stores in the world. MasterCare® technicians perform part repairs and replacements, routine scheduled maintenance services, and a variety of diagnostic services covering major systems within a vehicle. To learn more about driving tips and maintenance or Firestone Tire & Service Centers locations, visit www.MasterCareUSA.com.

BFS Retail & Commercial Operations, LLC is headquartered in Bloomingdale, Ill., and operates more than 2,200 consumer and commercial vehicle service and tire locations across the United States and Canada, including the Firestone Tire & Service Centers, TiresPlus, ExpertTire and GCR Tire Centers store locations. The company’s credit card operations are also part of BFRC.

Editor’s Note: A list of Firestone Car Care Academies locations and dates is attached. Please visit www.MasterCareUSA.com to sign up for a Car Care Academy near you.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE September 2, 2004

Contact: (877) 201-2373

Avoiding Holiday Highway Headaches

Tips to help keep your road trip on track this Labor Day weekend

BLOOMINGDALE, Ill. (Sept. 2, 2004) – This year millions of travelers will pack up the family car, take to America’s roads over Labor Day weekend and wave good-bye to summer. As part of planning your long-weekend get-a-way – remember that preparing your car and practicing good driving habits are essential to a fun and safe holiday weekend.

“The dramatic increase in holiday travelers creates crowded highways – often full of cars with anxious drivers and cranky youngsters ready to reach their destinations,” said Trisha Hessinger, automotive education specialist and pace car driver. “Firestone Tire & Service Centers are providing drivers with important information and tips on how to stay safe and keep their vehicles running well during the holiday weekend.”

When preparing to travel long distances, make sure all of your vehicle’s regularly scheduled services are up to date. Make sure your car’s filters are clean and that fluids are filled to the recommended levels, specifically the window washer fluid, engine oil, radiator coolant, brake fluid, transmission fluid and power steering fluid.

It is critically important to check your tires! Since tires are the only part of your vehicle that actually touch the ground, keeping them in good condition is essential. Make sure tires are properly inflated, rotated, aligned and replaced as necessary. Tires can lose up to one psi (pound per square inch) per month under normal conditions. All four tires and your spare should be filled to the vehicle manufacturer’s specified levels, which can usually be found on the driver’s side doorjamb or in the glove compartment. Use an accurate tire gauge and only check tire pressure when the vehicle has not moved in three hours or more. Proper tire inflation not only helps prevent excessive tire wear, but also helps maximize fuel efficiency – which can save you money.

Once your vehicle is ready to go, make sure the driver is ready as well. The American Automobile Association estimates that 28.7 million Americans will take to the roads this Labor Day weekend – a 2 percent increase from last year. With the surge of holiday travelers, drivers should be extra cautious and engage in safe driving habits.

Safe driving is usually a matter of common sense and sticking to the fundamentals; keep both hands on the wheel and your eyes on the road at all times. Drive defensively. Keep a safe following distance and give yourself a cushion should you encounter erratic driving. To reduce frustration, allow extra time to reach your destination. Map out your route before driving, not while driving. And with all the electronic gadgets we carry today its extremely important to turn down cell phones and other distracting instruments so you can focus on driving and keeping you and your passengers safer on the road.

On a long trip you have to plan for the unexpected. Pack an emergency kit that includes a flashlight, fresh batteries, jumper cables, a first aid kit, a cell phone and charger, a gallon of water, engine oil, an emergency blanket, a small tool kit, gloves, a tire gauge, reflective light sticks, a jack and a lug wrench. Purchasing an auto club membership is also a good idea – especially if you’re planning a road trip that may take you through less populated areas where assistance can be more difficult to find.

With the proper vehicle preparation and good driving habits, getting to your Labor Day destination can be a lot less work.

Firestone Tire & Service Centers are owned and operated by BFS Retail & Commercial Operations, LLC (BFRC). BFRC operates the largest number of company-owned automotive retail generalist stores in the world. MasterCare® technicians perform part repairs and replacements, routine scheduled maintenance services, and a variety of diagnostic services covering major systems within a vehicle. To learn more about driving tips and maintenance or Firestone Tire & Service Center locations, visit www.MasterCareUSA.com . For more information on proper tire care please visit; www.tiresafety.com.

BFS Retail & Commercial Operations, LLC is headquartered in Bloomingdale, Ill., and operates more than 2,200 consumer and commercial tire and vehicle service locations across the United States and Canada as well as the company’s own credit card operations. The store channels include Firestone Tire & Service Centers, TiresPlus, ExpertTire, Commercial & Farm, and Mark Morris. GCR Tire Centers offer truck tire sales, service and retreading outlets for truck and bus, off-the-road and agricultural tires.

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Posted August 24, 2004

CAR CARE AND BUYING 2004 - FUEL EFFICIENCY

Saving gas and money begins in the driver's seat

By Chandra Orr, Copley News Service

Turning a gas guzzler into a fuel-efficient ride is often as simple as giving it a little TLC.

Driving slower and smoother, performing routine maintenance and improving the aerodynamics of the vehicle are paramount to making those fuel dollars go further, according to Trisha Hessinger, Firestone Tire & Service Center's national spokeswoman.

"You can save quite a bit by just smoothing out the acceleration process," Hessinger said. "By not going flat to the floor with the accelerator when taking off from a stop, you can definitely improve fuel efficiency." She also recommends taking a slower approach once the vehicle is in motion.

"If you drop your speed 5 mph to 10 mph below the speed limit, you might see as much as a 10 percent improvement in fuel efficiency," she said. "Certainly, dropping from 70 mph to 60 mph is going to make a significant improvement. "Also, set the cruise control. A consistent driving speed is going to be more efficient than slowing down and speeding up and so on. It just helps make you a smoother driver."

TUNE-UP TIME

A good tune-up goes a long way toward stretching a fuel budget, but nothing is more important than maintaining proper tire pressure, according to Hessinger.

"Perhaps one of the most overlooked areas is tire pressure," she said. "You tend to lose one 1 pound of pressure per month."

Even a slight loss in tire pressure creates resistance, which makes the engine have to work that much harder to push the vehicle forward. "It should really be a ritual -- once a month check the tires cold and fill them to the correct pressures," Hessinger said. "Don't use the pressures on the tire themselves. Use the pressure recommended for that vehicle in the owner's manual.

"Beyond the tires, keeping the vehicle running efficiently involves several things," Hessinger said. "It means taking care of preventive maintenance and scheduled maintenance -- and keeping the vehicle tuned up according to the manual."

Regularly changing all fluids and filters is imperative to getting the best possible gas mileage, she said, but the key is keeping an eye on the fuel filter.

Many drivers tend to overlook fuel filter changes, as the scheduled intervals are quite generous, she said.

"Fuel filter intervals are much further apart, often every 36,000 to 48,000 miles. But if that filter is not changed, then you accumulate a lot of dirt and debris -- just the sediment that tends to accumulate in the fuel tank over time. You can actually get that dirt and debris passing through the filter, which really causes havoc with the fuel injectors -- and that's definitely going to cause problems with your engine and make it run less efficiently."

ENHANCING AERODYNAMICS

"Another area that most people do not think about is aerodynamics," Hessinger said. "Given the vehicle you have, try to think of things that will make your car more aerodynamic, like keeping it clean and waxed.

"Also, roof racks are quite common, yet 90 percent of people never use them," she said. "You may want to remove the roof rack because it creates air turbulence. Not only will your vehicle be more aerodynamic, but it may be quieter as well."

While popular opinion dictates driving with the windows down and the air conditioning off to save on fuel, Hessinger claims the opposite is in fact more economical.

"Anytime you run with the windows open, it reduces aerodynamics. You want the windows up and the AC on low."

To reduce drag even more, drivers should lighten the load in the back of pickups, sport utility vehicles and station wagons, according to Hessinger.

"How necessary is all that junk in back? If you can lighten the load a little bit and take out the things that aren't necessary, that helps out a great deal in terms of fuel efficiency," she said. "All these things with aerodynamics, when you look at them cumulatively, they have a big impact."

AT THE PUMP

Drivers inclined to pass by the pump, hoping to wait out the small, day-to-day spikes in gas prices, should take note: Never wait too long to fill up.

"Most people tend to wait until the reserve light comes on," Hessinger said. "It really is best not to let the tank get that low. The fuel filter then takes in sediment and that kind of muddies up everything. Fill up at a quarter tank rather than wait until the fuel light comes on."

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Bloomingdale, Ill. (2004) – BFS Retail & Commercial Operations, LLC (BFRC) announced today that Trisha Hessinger will be the company’s new North American spokesperson for Car Care Academies, which are free, interactive seminars held at Firestone Tire & Service Centers and Tires Plus stores across the United States. In addition, BFRC announced the nationwide schedule for its 2004 Car Care Academy campaign.

Other Releases:

• April 27, 2004 Tire Industry Group Teams with Firestone Tire & Service Centers to Educate Johnstown Drivers