News Release: Firestone's Been On The Road, Now It's Back On The Air

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

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FIRESTONE'S BEEN ON THE ROAD, NOW IT'S BACK ON THE AIR

New Rendition of Popular Theme Song Anchors Ads

 

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (March 18, 2004) - With a hip new rendition of its
popular theme song and images that evoke America, Bridgestone/Firestone
North American Tire, LLC (BFNT) today announced that it will launch a
new, national advertising campaign for Firestone as part of its
commitment to the nearly 104-year-old brand.

            The national television blitz rolls out March 21 and brings
back a completely revitalized and modernized version of the theme song,
"Where the Rubber Meets the Road," which last ran as part of a Firestone
brand ad campaign in 1988.

            "The Firestone brand is back through the loyalty shown by
our consumers, our dealers and our employees. This campaign is just one
more example of how we continue to energize the brand," said John
Gamauf, BFNT president of consumer replacement tire. "We are excited
about this new initiative which draws on our heritage while reaching out
to the next generation of Firestone consumers. It was a great brand ad
back then and it's even better now."

Some of the highlights include the following: The ad shoot used
four-and-a-half miles of film, took five days of filming, and used five
different cameras, 22 models, 30 extras, four stunt drivers, one
helicopter pilot, 98 crew members, 14 vehicles, 56 tires, 123 hours of
edit time and one world-renowned Indy 500 winner. Champion race car
driver Mario Andretti is featured in two of the three new spots, which
were produced by New York City-based Grey Worldwide.

            "It's an exciting challenge to reinvent a classic ad
campaign," said Ron Castillo, creative director and managing partner of
the Fresh Grey unit of Grey Worldwide, NY.  "You have to find a balance
between respecting the original while modernizing the look and feel of
the spots. Updating the theme song was key to this process. We created
numerous demos before finding the appropriate mix of nostalgia and
current musical influence. With the support of an incredibly
enthusiastic group of clients, we feel we delivered a campaign that
takes Firestone confidently into the future while tipping its hat to the
brand's proud heritage."

The three variations of the 30-second brand spots are designed to
emphasize the company's heritage, quality and value. As opposed to
taking a product-focused approach, Firestone has developed a brand
campaign to support its Firestone image across its many product lines.

"When people think of Firestone, we want them to recognize every aspect
of our company," Gamauf said. "Whether you're driving a sedan, heading
cross country in an 18-wheeler, plowing your farm on a tractor, watching
the Indianapolis 500 or getting an oil change at one of our family
channel of retailers - it's all Firestone."

The new commercials will run during the key selling season primarily on
cable television stations nationwide as well as on network television in
selected markets, according to Michael Fluck, advertising manager for
BFNT. In addition, commercials have been adjusted to 25 seconds and 22
seconds in length to accommodate the personalization of a retailer tag.

This marks one of the strongest financial investments the company has
made in promoting the Firestone brand in recent years. In addition, the
company will continue to support its racing heritage and success with
commercials featuring the Firehawk Indy 500 tire, the Indianapolis Motor
Speedway as well as Indy Racing League (IRL) race car drivers revealing
their experiences on Firestone Firehawk racing tires.

Nashville-based Bridgestone/Firestone North American Tire, LLC is a
subsidiary of Bridgestone Americas Holding, Inc., whose parent company,
Bridgestone Corporation, is the world's largest tire and rubber company.
BFNT develops, manufactures and markets Bridgestone, Firestone, Dayton
and associate and private brand tires. The company is focused on
wholesale and original equipment markets, supplying passenger, light
truck, commercial vehicle, off-road, agricultural and other tires to its
customers in North America.

###

[For reference, mpeg versions of the three new commercials can be
downloaded at www.firestonetire.com/newcampaign ]

 

 

Regards,

 

Tiffany Bryant

Public Relations

Bridgestone Americas Holding, Inc.

535 Marriott Drive

Nashville, TN 37214

 

615.937.1418 - voice

1.877.201.2373 - media center