If you know anything about car tires, you know that Firestone is a giant in the industry. Rivals with other big names like Goodyear, Firestone is all about quality and speed. But if you’re going to use Firestone tires to the best of their capabilities, it’s first important to know where they came from and how they’ve developed over the years. This is a quick history of Firestone tires, exploring what has made them one of the best since their founding.

The Founding

In 1900, business man Harvey Firestone set about creating an Akron, Ohio manufacturing plant for automobile tires. At this time, the popularity of cars was on the rise, and the tire industry was booming with new brands looking to become the best of the best. This included Firestone’s archrival Goodyear Tires. After a few years of operation, Firestone began producing their own rubber compounds for their products and officially became known as the Firestone Tire and Rubber Company.

Firestone Balloon Tires

Over the years, Firestone would go on to make a series of advancements in the industry, such as developing the first non-skid tread design. However, their major break wouldn’t come until 1922 when they invented the first low-pressure balloon tire. At this point, pneumatic tires were already being used by other brands, but they were much more inflated and subject to wear. Firestone’s low-pressure models, therefore, helped improve treadwear and increase a tire’s overall lifespan.

Current Standing

A quick history of Firestone tires wouldn’t be complete without also mentioning where the brand is at today. In the decades that followed, Firestone tires were at the center of quality automotive experiences. Races were won with these very models and the brand quickly became a force to be reckoned with. As such, in order to further extend their market range, Firestone merged with the Bridgestone Corporation from Japan in 1988. Today, they remain one of the largest tire and rubber companies in the world. If you’re looking for a place that sells Firestone tires, RNR Tire Express is just the shop you need. We make it a point to include this brand in our stock of tires in Sumter, SC, because we want to ensure our customers receive only the best products. We also work hard to sell these tires at reasonable prices so there’s no question of whether you can afford them.