Interpretation ID: aiam4037
Director
Mutual Trading Corporation
222 West Adams
Chicago
Il 60606;
Dear Mr. Khan: This responds to your letter to this agency, asking how our regulation affect the importation and sale of tires in the United States. There are several applicable requirements set forth in our standards and regulations, which are discussed below.; All tires imported into the United States for use on passenger car must be certified as complying with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 109 and all tires imported for use on other types of motor vehicles must be certified as complying with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 119. I have enclosed copies of both of these standards for your information. You will see that the standards specify performance requirements (strength, endurance, high speed, and, for passenger car tires only, resistance to bead unseating), marking requirements (treadwear indicators and labeling information), and tire and rim matching information requirements which must be satisfied by each tire sold in the United States.; With respect to these performance requirements, you stated that th tires' manufacturers 'have our approval for the DOT markings.' The United States does not give 'approval' for certification markings. For the purposes of our safety standards, a tire manufacturer must itself certify that its tires comply with all the requirements of the applicable safety standards. Once a tire manufacturer determines that its tires satisfy the applicable requirements, it certifies that compliance by molding the letters 'DOT' on one sidewall of each certified tire.; For purposes of enforcement of the safety standards, this agenc conducts spot checks of tires after they have been certified, by purchasing and testing the tires in accordance with the applicable standard. If the tires pass the test, no further steps are taken.; If the tires fail the tests and are determined not to comply with th applicable standards or if it is determined that the tires contain a safety-related defect, the manufacturer of the tires is required to remedy the problem. Your company would be considered the manufacturer of the tires, because you are the brand name owner and the importer. Section 154(a)(2)(B) of the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act (15 U.S.C. 1414(a)(2)(B)) specifies that, in the case of tires that fail to comply with a standard or contain a safety-related defect, the manufacturer may elect to either:; >>>(1) repair the tires so that the defect or noncompliance is removed or; (2) replace the tire with an identical or reasonably equivalent tir that does not have the defect or noncompliance. <<<; Whichever of these options is chosen, the tire manufacturer must bea the expense and cannot charge the tire owner for the remedy.; It is a simple matter to check the tires to see that the markin requirements of the respective standards are satisfied.; With respect to the tire and rim matching information, thi information, together with the loading schedules for the tire size (the loading schedules show the maximum load the tire can carry at designated inflation pressures) must either be set forth in a current standardization organization publication or be furnished by the manufacturer to each of its dealers and in duplicate to this agency. You may wish to obtain a copy of the most current publication by the American standardization organization to see if your company can use the loading schedules and tire and rim matching information published therein for the particular tire sizes you wish to sell in the United States. That publication may be ordered by sending $8.50 plus postage costs to: The Tire and Rim Association, 3200 West Market Street, Akron, Ohio 44313. If the tire sizes and corresponding rims listed in that publication for your tire sizes are satisfactory, you need take no further steps to comply with this requirement. However, if your sizes are not listed or your company believes different values should be assigned, you may consult the publications of other standardization organizations or you may elect to furnish the appropriate information to this agency and to each of your dealers. I am enclosing a copy of another regulation that applies to the tires you seek to import, 49 CFR Part 574, *Tire Identification and Recordkeeping*. Section 574.7 of this regulation requires your company, as the brand name owner of new tires, to furnish an adequate supply of tire registration forms to dealers selling your tires. These forms are used to record the name and address of the first purchaser of each tire. The completed forms will be returned to you, or some party designated by your company. Your company is required to maintain the information on the tire registration forms for a period of not less than three years from the date on which you or some designee receive the information.; Further, Part 574 requires every tire sold in this country to b labeled with certain information (see S574.5), including the identification mark assigned to the manufacturer. To get an identification mark, the actual manufacturer of the tires must provide the information specified in S574.6 of the regulation. A different identification mark will be assigned to each of the manufacturer's different plants. Please note that an identification mark will be assigned only to the actual manufacturer of the tires, and not to your company which only imports the tires. This is because S574.5 requires that this identification mark be molded into or onto all new tires. The only party that can mold the mark into or onto the tire is the actual manufacturer. An identification mark is normally assigned within two weeks after the receipt of such a request.; However, the identification mark will *not* be assigned until thi agency has received a valid designation of agent from the tire manufacturer, as required by 49 CFR Part 551 (copy enclosed). This regulation requires all manufacturers located outside of the United States to designate a permanent resident of the United States as the manufacturer's agent for service of process in this country. Part 551 requires that the designation of agent contain the following six items of information:; 1. A certification that the designation is valid in form and binding o the manufacturer under the laws, corporate by-laws, or other requirements governing the making of the designation at the time and place where it is made,; 2. The full legal name, principal place of business and mailing addres of the foreign tire manufacturer,; 3. Marks, trade names, or other designation of origin of any of tha manufacturer's tires which do not bear the name of the company,; 4. A statement that the designation shall remain in effect unti withdrawn or replaced by the foreign tire manufacturer.; 5. A declaration of acceptance duly signed by the agent appointed b the foreign tire manufacturer, and the agent may be an individual or a U.S. firm or corporation, and; 6. The full legal name and address of the designated agent. If you need any further information or a clarification of some of th information set forth in this letter, please contact Steve Kratzke of my staff at this address or by telephone (202) 426- 2992.; Sincerely, Erika Z. Jones, Chief Counsel