Goodyear and Siemens VDO Connect to Improve Tire and Vehicle Safety

    FRANKFURT, Germany, Sept. 11 Goodyear, the world's leading
tire company, and global electronics leader Siemens VDO Automotive have joined
forces to develop an advanced tire pressure warning system to enhance tire and
vehicle safety.
    
    Goodyear Chairman and CEO Sam Gibara made the announcement here today
during a security analyst presentation in conjunction with the Frankfurt
International Motor Show.

    Under their agreement, Goodyear and Siemens VDO Automotive will develop
and market a system to alert drivers to low tire air pressure and excessive
tire temperatures. The joint development agreement, aimed toward a rapid
market entry, will draw on Goodyear's expertise in tires and tire pressure
monitoring, tire sensors and tire temperature and pressure interpretation and
Siemens VDO's proficiency in electronics, radio frequency (RF), wireless and
vehicle system integration technologies.

    The U.S.A.'s new Transportation, Recall, Enhancement, Accountability and
Documentation (TREAD) Act requires that effective November, 2003, all new
vehicles, beginning with the 2004 model year, have a system to alert the
driver to low air pressure in one or more tires. Both companies anticipate
that other countries will soon enact similar legislation. European automakers
and their suppliers, including Goodyear and Siemens VDO, are already
developing low pressure warning systems for those markets.

    "This joint development agreement builds on tire air pressure monitoring
work done by both Goodyear and Siemens VDO," Gibara said. "We intend to help
automakers meet TREAD Act and other requirements worldwide and ultimately help
consumers maintain proper inflation, which leads to improved treadwear, better
fuel economy and optimum overall tire performance."

    "Goodyear's reputation and proven record for placing driver safety at the
top of their product priority list seemed like the perfect fit for our tire
monitoring technology," said Siemens Automotive Corp. President and CEO John
Sanderson. Siemens Automotive Corporation is the United States operating unit
of Siemens VDO Automotive AG and will take on its parent company's name later
this year.

    The jointly developed, passive tire monitoring and display system will be
easily adaptable to new automobiles and light trucks and be available for
industry commercialization worldwide.