Interpretation ID: weeengin.crs
Wee Engineer Inc.
P.O. Box 39
Dayton, IN 47941
Dear Mr. Shippee:
This is in response to your letter of December 13, 1996, in which you state that Wee Engineer Inc. wishes to be registered with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) as a vehicle manufacturer under 49 CFR Part 566. You request our assistance in determining the proper classification of the company as a vehicle manufacturer, and in identifying the necessary actions that the company should take.
As described in your letter, Wee Engineer purchases used tractors and trucks and disassembles the components that were added to those vehicles by previous final stage manufacturers, restoring them to the configuration they were in at the incomplete vehicle stage. The company then may either lengthen or shorten the unit, or add or subtract axles and springs, depending on the application for which the vehicle is intended. Additionally, the company may either raise or lower the gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) originally assigned to the vehicle to meet its intended application.
You state that Wee Engineer is aware that the original certification label must remain on the vehicle. However, the company is concerned that the GVWR identified on that label will not be accurate following the modifications that it performs. As a consequence, you have asked whether Wee Engineer could add an additional label, identifying the GVWR of the vehicle as reconfigured by the company. Incident to this request, you have asked whether Wee Engineer qualifies as a vehicle manufacturer subject to the vehicle certification requirements in 49 CFR Part 567, and if not, whether there is an exception to those requirements that would allow the company to affix certification labels. Alternatively, you have asked whether Part 567 could be amended to grant certification responsibilities to manufacturers who modify a used vehicle's GVWR or change its classification.
From the information you have provided, it appears that Wee Engineer modifies used vehicles and then installs new body and work performing components on those vehicles. Because the Federal motor vehicle safety standards that are issued by NHTSA apply only to new vehicles, those are the only vehicles that must be certified as complying with the standards under 49 CFR Part 567.
NHTSA has issued a regulation at 49 CFR 571.7(e) that specifies the applicability of the standards to vehicles that are assembled from both new and old components. That regulation provides that "[w]hen a new cab is used in the assembly of a truck, the truck will be considered newly manufactured . . . unless the engine, transmission, and drive axle(s) (as a minimum) of the assembled vehicle are not new, and at least two of these components were taken from the same vehicle."
From your description of the manufacturing operations that Wee Engineer conducts, it appears that the engine, transmission and drive axles on the vehicles it assembles are used, and were all originally found on the same vehicle. As a consequence, Wee Engineer is not required to certify those vehicles under 49 CFR Part 567, and cannot be considered a manufacturer for the purpose of those requirements. As noted in your letter, Wee Engineer must ensure that the original certification label remains on these vehicles. Additionally, to avoid a violation of 49 U.S.C. 30112(b), the company must not "knowingly make inoperative any part of a device or element of design installed on or in [those vehicles] in compliance with an applicable motor vehicle safety standard . . . ."
The manufacturer identification requirements in 49 CFR Part 566 apply only to manufacturers of motor vehicles and motor vehicle equipment to which a motor vehicle safety standard applies. See 49 CFR 566.3. Wee Engineer would not be subject to those requirements unless it performs operations other than those described in your letter, which would result in the production of what this agency would regard as a new vehicle under 49 CFR 571.7(e) (i.e., a vehicle in which the engine, transmission, and drive axle(s) are new, or if used, are taken from three separate vehicles).
In response to your questions regarding Part 567, there is currently no express exception that would allow a party other than the original manufacturer of a vehicle to certify its compliance with applicable safety standards. However, in prior interpretation letters, this Office has recognized that when modifications are made to a used vehicle that change the GVWR identified on its certification label, the modifier is permitted to install an additional label that identifies the GVWR of the vehicle as modified. We have allowed this practice so that owners and users of the vehicle may be apprised as to how heavily the vehicle may safely be loaded.
I hope this information is helpful. If you have any further questions regarding this matter, feel free to contact Coleman Sachs of my staff at the address above, or by telephone at 202-366-5238.
Sincerely,
John Womack
Acting Chief Counsel
ref:567
d:5/2/97