Kane wants NHTSA to work with Bridgestone/Firestone North American Tire (BFNAT) and Ford to launch another consumer notification program specifically targeting defective Firestone ATX and Wilderness AT spare tires.

Reports filed by BFNAT and Ford to NHTSA indicate that approximately 12 million of the more than 20 million tires that remained in use were captured by the recalls. Spare tires were forgotten in the drive to replace in-service tires, according to Kane.

"Even though millions of defective tires were collected, there were potentially millions of tires that weren’t – and these campaigns were so huge, the number of uncaptured tires is bigger than the number of tires retrieved in most recalls," said Kane. "While we don’t know how many spares are out there, the number is potentially significant.

"A re-notification to consumers as well as tire and repair shops is needed to prevent these tires being used unknowingly," Kane said.