Interpretation ID: 23498.ztv

Harry Zembillas, Esq.
Gasparis & Zembilla
301 South Main Street
Crown Point, IN 46307

Dear Mr. Zembillas:

This is in reply to your email of July 27, 2001. You have installed aftermarket all-clear taillamps on your 1995 Nissan Maxima, and report that you have been informed by a traffic officer that the lamps are illegal. You cite two Indiana statutes and state that "any help would be greatly appreciated."

You described the original rear lamps on your car as follows: "yellow plastic on the top outer edge, red plastic on the bottom outer edge, white/clear on the upper trunk lens, and red plastic on the bottom trunk lens." You informed us that you have now "installed clear outer lenses with amber bulbs on the top outer half and red bulbs on the bottom outer half." As you informed us, the lenses you bought are shown at www.autodynamic.com as replacements for original equipment on 1995-97 Nissan Maxima passenger cars, and we have downloaded a photo of the lamps you bought (see enclosed photo).

Under Federal law, lighting equipment on motor vehicles must be designed to comply with 49 CFR 571.108 Standard No. 108, Lamps, Reflective Devices, and Associated Equipment. The manufacturer of each vehicle must certify that the vehicle complies with all applicable Federal motor vehicle safety standards, including Standard No. 108. The original rear lighting configuration of the 1995 Maxima consisted of a combination lamp mounted on the body, with a red and amber lens, and a backup lamp and a second red-lensed lamp (or reflex reflector) mounted on the deck lid. The original body-mounted rear lamps on your car incorporated amber and red lenses to provide the amber and red colors required by Standard No. 108 to provide turn signal and stop/taillight functions. They may also have incorporated red reflex reflectors to comply with additional requirements of Standard No. 108 that a vehicle be equipped with red rear and rear side red reflex reflectors (see enclosed photo).

Paragraph S5.8.1 of Standard No. 108 specifies that "each lamp, reflective device, or item of associated equipment manufactured to replace any lamp, reflective device, or item of associated equipment on any vehicle to which [Standard No. 108] applies shall be designed to conform to this standard." This means that a replacement item must be designed to conform to the same standard to which the vehicle manufacturer certified compliance with the original equipment installed. The manufacturer of your Nissan designed its rear body-mounted lamp with a lens incorporating red reflex reflectors, a red lens, and an amber lens. You have replaced this with a lamp that is white instead of amber and red, and which does not incorporate red reflex reflectors. Therefore, the lamp fails to meet the requirement of S5.8.1 that replacement equipment be designed to conform to Standard No. 108. The sale of such a lamp or its installation by a manufacturer, dealer, distributor, or motor vehicle repair business is prohibited by Federal law, and several importers are currently recalling these types of lamps. However, whether it is legal to use a noncomplying item of replacement equipment such as this lamp is not a matter of Federal law but of State law, that is to say, the statutes of Indiana. I am sorry, but we do not provide interpretations of State laws.

Sincerely,

John Womack
Acting Chief Counsel

Enclosures
ref:108
d.3/1/02