Interpretation ID: 16957.wkm

Mr. Lewis W. Hopkins
President, Auto-Trans
Post Office Box 771118
Memphis, TN 38177

Dear Mr. Hopkins:

This responds to your letter of January 14, 1998, addressed to Walter Myers of this office asking us to review your "Land Ferry" system, also called the Auto-Trans, and asking for "preliminary National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) approval for this alternative mode of interstate highway transportation." Please be advised that this agency does not grant such approvals, as explained below. In addition, your letter was styled "Confidential." However, when Mr. Myers explained to you in a telephone conversation on March 6, 1998 that we cannot give confidential interpretation letters, you withdrew your request for confidential treatment.

NHTSA has the statutory authority to issue Federal motor vehicle safety standards (FMVSS) applicable to new motor vehicles and new items of motor vehicle equipment (see 49 U.S. Code, Chapter 301). The FMVSSs apply to motor vehicles and equipment up to the first retail sale of such vehicles or equipment. Once a vehicle or item of equipment is sold to its first retail customer, NHTSA's authority terminates, with certain exceptions, and the use of that product becomes a matter of state jurisdiction. The law establishes a self-certification system in which manufacturers themselves certify that their products comply with all applicable FMVSSs. NHTSA enforces compliance with the standards by purchasing motor vehicles and equipment and testing them for compliance with applicable standards. NHTSA also investigates safety-related defects in motor vehicles and equipment. In view of the self-certification system, NHTSA neither approves, disapproves, tests, endorses, nor grants clearances for products prior to their introduction into the retail market.

The term "motor vehicle" is defined in 49 U. S. Code 30102(a)(6) as:

[A] vehicle driven or drawn by mechanical power and manufactured primarily for use on public streets, roads, and highways, but does not include a vehicle operated only on a rail line.

With respect to the Auto-Trans, based on your description and the drawing you enclosed with your letter, both the tractor (driven by mechanical power) and the trailer (drawn by mechanical power), would be classified as motor vehicles. Thus, both parts of the unit would, when manufactured, be required to be certified by their manufacturer(s) as complying with all applicable FMVSSs. As you already know from your correspondence with the Federal Highway Administration, the operation of your Auto-Trans in interstate commerce would be governed by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations and the requirements of individual states through which your Auto-Trans operates.

Enclosed for your information are fact sheets prepared by this office entitled Information for New Manufacturers of Motor Vehicles and Motor Vehicle Equipment, Where to Obtain NHTSA's Safety Standards and Regulations, and Federal Requirements for Manufacturers of Trailers.

I hope this information is helpful to you. Should you have any further questions or need additional information, feel free to contact Mr. Myers at this address or at (202) 366-2992, or by fax at (202) 366-3820.

Sincerely,
John Womack
Acting Chief Counsel
Enclosures
Ref:VSA
d.4/29/98