Cooper/Pirelli Restructure Alliance

FINDLAY, Ohio and NEW HAVEN, Conn., April 4 Cooper Tire & Rubber Company and Pirelli Tire Worldwide today announced that after a three-year alliance in the U.S. market, Cooper and Pirelli have restructured their agreement in order to improve the competitive strength of both companies. While the results of the alliance were generally positive, it was agreed that a new approach would be beneficial in pursuing separate brand strategies.

The following changes will commence July 1, 2002. Pirelli will resume responsibility for the sales and customer service for the Pirelli brand in the United States. Cooper will continue to manufacture selected lines of Pirelli products for sale in the U.S. and manage logistics support for Pirelli in the United States. Both companies will investigate the possibility of Pirelli's international group supplementing Cooper's performance tire product offering by manufacturing selected UHP sizes or lines.

Transition with regard to existing Pirelli dealers will be handled with a minimum of change or disruption so that customer service will not be affected. Both companies will continue to consider themselves partners in technical and related matters.

D. Richard Stephens, Cooper Tire's President and Francesco Gori, General Manager Pirelli Tire Worldwide, expressed satisfaction at the new arrangement which will be finalized shortly. Together, they released the following statement: ``Our companies have learned to know and appreciate each other since the beginning and are looking forward to a new and different phase of our alliance which will benefit customers for both brands.''

Company Descriptions

Cooper Tire & Rubber Company is headquartered in Findlay, Ohio and specializes in the manufacture and marketing of automotive products. Products for Cooper Tire include automotive, motorcycle and truck tires, inner tubes, tread rubber and equipment. Cooper-Standard Automotive is an original equipment supplier of sealing, trim, NVH control systems and fluid handling systems for the automotive industry in North America, Europe, Australia and South America. Cooper has more than 20,000 employees and 52 manufacturing facilities in 13 countries. For more information, visit the Company's web site at: www.coopertire.com .

Pirelli is centered on three core businesses, Tires, Energy and Telecom Cables and Systems, in which it is among the world leaders and innovators, with companies across five continents. Pirelli Tire North America specializes in the manufacture and marketing of High Performance car, LT and motorcycle tires and is currently installing its highly advanced MIRS technology (Modular Integrated Robotized System) in a new factory near Atlanta, Georgia, to better serve the American OEM and Replacement markets. For more information, visit the Company's web site at: www.pirelli.com .