COOPER TIRE & RUBBER COMPANY COMPLETES SALE OF AUTOMOTIVE UNIT
23 December 2004 - Cooper Tire & Rubber Company

Cooper Tire & Rubber Company announced today that it has completed the sale of its automotive business, Cooper-Standard Automotive, to an entity formed by The Cypress Group and Goldman Sachs Capital Partners for approximately $1.165 billion in cash, subject to certain post-closing adjustments.

As previously announced, $30 million of the purchase price will be held by the buyer until the post-closing working capital adjustments can be finalized.

The sale included the 47 manufacturing facilities and operations of Cooper-Standard Automotive, which is a global manufacturer of fluid handling systems, body sealing systems, and active and passive vibration control systems, primarily for automotive original equipment manufacturers. The group is headquartered in Novi, Mich., and had revenue of approximately $1.6 billion in 2003.

Commenting on the announcement, Thomas A. Dattilo, chairman, president, and chief executive officer of Cooper Tire & Rubber Company, said, ''We are very pleased to conclude this transaction with Cypress and Goldman. The sale will allow us to focus more fully on our core business and will provide the flexibility and capital necessary to grow the tire business to its full global potential. We look forward to pursuing growth opportunities in North America as well as in key strategic markets around the world.''

The company reiterated that the proceeds from the sale will be used for debt reduction, the repurchase of shares, investment in its tire operations, or a combination thereof. In addition, the Company announced that it intends to allocate approximately $60 million of the proceeds to fund various pension plans related to continuing operations. No further specific allocation for the use of proceeds was provided.

www.coopertireandrubber.com

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