Interpretation ID: 21652.ztv
Mr. Michael L. Wagner
563 Circle Drive
Fairmount, IN 46928-1963
Dear Mr. Wagner:
This is in reply to your fax of May 16, 2000, to Taylor Vinson of this Office. You had talked with him on the 15th regarding modulating motorcycle headlamps, reporting that you are "frequently being pulled over by Indiana State Police telling me it is illegal." You also informed him that you had bought your modulating unit in the aftermarket, and that it was not original equipment on your motorcycle.
I am enclosing three of our interpretive letters setting forth legal opinions of this Office on modulating headlamps. They are addressed to Tracey Wagner of the American Motorcyclist Association (February 1, 1990), Walter Jakobowski of Signal Dynamics Corporation (September 11, 1997), and Henry Winokur (January 21, 1999).
In brief, S.7.9.4, Motorcycle headlamp modulation system, of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 108, Lamps, Reflective Devices, and Associated Equipment, permits, but does not require, the installation of a modulating headlamp system as original lighting equipment on motorcycles, provided that the system meets the performance requirements of S7.9.4. Under S5.8, replacement lighting equipment (which includes a modulator sold in the aftermarket) must be designed to conform to the same requirements as original equipment, and to be certified by its manufacturer as complying with these requirements. Federal law (49 U.S.C. 30103(b)) specifies that, when a Federal motor vehicle safety standard is in effect, a state may not have a different standard covering the same aspect of performance as the Federal standard. This means that any state law covering modulating headlamp systems on motorcycles cannot prohibit such systems or prescribe different performance requirements than those that appear in Standard No. 108.
Many states reserve the use of flashing lights for emergency vehicles. S4 of Standard No. 108 defines the word "flash" in part as a continuing "cycle of activation and deactivation." The cycle required for modulating headlamps, on the other hand, involves going from a higher intensity to a lower intensity, and the lamp is never deactivated. Thus, a headlamp modulating in accordance with S7.9.4 does not "flash" within the meaning of the Federal lighting laws. If the modulating headlamp system on your motorcycle meets Federal requirements, it should be permitted for use in any state under the preemptive language of Section 30103(b).
If you have further questions, you may phone Taylor Vinson (202-366-5263).
Sincerely,
Frank Seales, Jr.
Chief Counsel
Enclosures
ref:108
d.6/20/00