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INDIANAPOLIS, Indiana (CNN) -- A lawyer representing hundreds of people killed or injured in Firestone tire failures on Ford Explorers said Saturday the case now includes a request for a judge to force Ford to recall 4 million of the vehicles.

Irwin Levin, the court-appointed liaison counsel in the class-action case, said papers seeking the recall were filed Friday in U.S. District Court in Indianapolis.

These cases are all about safety," he said. "Hundreds of people have been injured or killed as result of the malfeasance of corporate America. We've asked the court to help save lives in the future just as we're asking compensation for those hurt and killed in past."

Jason Vines, Ford's chief spokesman, told the Detroit Free Press that the request for a forced recall is "frivolous. We'd like to see some facts here."

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The motion asks the judge to order a recall of all Explorers made between 1990, the first year that the model was produced, through 2000. Levin said owners of those vehicles should be given refunds or replacement vehicles.

The nation's No. 2 automaker announced last week it would replace 13 million Firestone Wilderness AT, ATX and ATXII tires on its vehicles because of concerns about the safety of the tires. Replacing the tires will cost Ford more than $2 billion. More than 100 deaths have been linked to accidents associated with tire failures and rollovers in recent years.

Earlier in the week, Bridgestone/Firestone asked the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to investigate the safety of the Explorers after a company-backed study found design flaws in the sports utility vehicle.

Levin said the battle between these two "titans" only helps their case.

"In the beginning of the case, Ford and Firestone were hand in hand," he said. "But now, with the ongoing fight, they are confirming the evidence we have of unsafe practices."

Levin remained hopeful that Ford would "act responsibly" in the case and issue its own recall.

"From the beginning of this lawsuit we suggested that if Ford and Firestone cared about customers they'd resolve this case in a way that would be favorable for consumers," he said. "I hope Ford and Firestone will sit down and address the safety issues that are on the table. If not, a judge will do so."

Recently released sales figures showed Ford had a 12 percent drop in overall domestic sales for May. Sales for the month were down 10 percent compared to May 2000.

Despite that, the Ford Explorer had its best sales month yet for 2001, moving 36,904 units of the popular sports utility vehicle in May 2001. That's down 16 percent, however, from sales of 44,202 units in the same month last year.

More than 200 cases against Firestone and Ford have been consolidated into one case in the district court. The new motion was filed as part of this ongoing case, Levin said, and is not a new lawsuit against Ford and Firestone.