Three public interest groups filed a lawsuit against the Department of Transportation (DOT) yesterday over the inadequacies of a new tire pressure checking system. In the wake of the Firestone Tire recall, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) issued a rule requiring all vehicles built after November 2003 to have a dashboard indicator that cautions drivers when a tire is underinflated.

The rule called for the installation of tire pressure monitors in each wheel of the vehicle. However, after receiving dozens of complaints from the automobile industry over the cost of the monitors, the government approved a less expensive system to be used at the automaker's discretion. The new "indirect" method works through the vehicle's antilock braking system, but, unlike its counterpart, does not alert a driver to the specific tire that is underinflated or specify if one tire is losing air faster than the others. It also rarely works on bumpy roads and will not operate until after the car has been running for 10 minutes.

The NHTSA will make a formal decision on which system to use in 2006. Public Citizen, the Center for Auto Safety and the New York Public Interest Research Group filed the lawsuit in the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals in New York.