Interpretation ID: Lewis.3

Mr. Walter J. Lewis
Manager, Regulatory Affairs
Porsche Cars North America, Inc.
980 Hammond Drive, Suite 1000
Atlanta, GA30328

Dear Mr. Lewis:

This responds to your letter asking about the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 205, Glazing Materials. You ask: (a) whether Item 4A glazing "may continue to be used in the "C" pillar of vehicles and between the B and D pillars in hearses if those locations meet the criteria for Item 4A glazing"; and (b) if Item 4A glazing may be used in certain locations rearward of the B-pillar on the Porsche Cayman S and Porsche 911 GT2 and GT3 vehicles. As explained below, in answer to both questions, we cannot interpret the standard as permitting Item 4A glazing in side windows in locations other than rearward of the "C" pillar.

S5.5, "Item 4A Glazing," of FMVSS No. 205 states:

Item 4A glazing may be used in all areas in which Item 4 safety glazing may be used, and also for side windows rearward of the "C" pillar.I.e., Item 4A glazing may be used under Item 4A paragraph (b) of ANSI/SAE Z26.11996 only in side windows rearward of the "C" pillar.

"Item 4A paragraph (b)" of ANSI/SAE Z26.11996 states that Item 4A glazing may be used in the following locations: "In a vehicle whose rearmost designated seating position is forward-facing and cannot be adjusted so that it is side or rear-facing and, the forwardmost point on the visible interior surface of the glazing, is rearward of the vertical transverse plane that passes through the shoulder reference point (as described in Figure 1 of 49 CFR 571.210 Seat belt assembly anchorages) of that rearmost seating position".

You believe that FMVSS No. 205 permits the use of Item 4A glazing in side windows anywhere in the vehicle as long as the provisions of "Item 4A paragraph (b)," above, are met. You state that the preamble to an August 12, 1996 final rule permitting Item 4A glazing adopted criteria (in former S5.1.2.11) equivalent to those of Item 4A paragraph (b), above, and that the preamble allowed for a wide application of the glazing.You quote the following from the preamble adopting S5.1.2.11:

Since the adopted criteria do not limit Item 4A installation to locations between the "C" and "D" pillars in station wagons and hatchbacks, they permit Item 4A glazing installation in any vehicle location that can meet that approach. Thus, Item 4A glazing could be installed in the "C" pillar of vehicles and between the "B" and "D" pillars in hearses (funeral coaches) if those locations met the criteria. (61 FR 41739)

Discussion

We cannot agree that S5.5 permits Item 4A glazing in side windows in locations other than rearward of the C pillar. The wording of S5.5 is clear that Item 4A glazing may be used only in side windows rearward of the C pillar. The regulatory history of S5.5 also illustrates that the reference to the C pillar was not inadvertent, as explained below.

FMVSS No. 205 incorporates by reference the American National Standard Institutes (ANSI) Safety Code for Safety Glazing Materials for Glazing Motor Vehicles Operating on Land Highways (ANSI Z26.1). In July 2003, NHTSA amended FMVSS No. 205 to update the reference from the then-referenced 1977 version of ANSI Z26.1 to the 1996 ANSI standard (July 25, 2003; 68 FR 43964). At the time, the agency believed that the requirements for Item 4A glazing were adequately presented in the 1996 version of ANSI Z26.1, and accordingly deleted S5.1.2.11 that had specified the locations in which Item 4A glazing may be used. The agency subsequently realized that the 1996 ANSI standard does not contain the location restriction for Item 4A glazing that the agency sought to have. NHTSA published a correction to the final rule (68 FR 55544; September 26, 2003) to add S5.5 to the standard "to make clear that Item 4A glazing is only permitted for use in side windows rearward of the C pillar." The September 26, 2003 final rule takes precedence over the preamble of the August 12, 1996 final rule. In light of the 2003 correction, which reflected the agencys view of the standard as permitting Item 4A glazing only in side windows rearward of the C pillar, ^[1] we cannot interpret S5.5 as you suggest.

We note further that even the August 12, 1996 final rule whose preamble you quote placed the regulatory text permitting Item 4A glazing under the heading, "S5.1.2.11 Test procedures for Item 4ARigid Plastic for Use in Side Windows Rearward of the "C" pillar" (emphasis added). Thus, even S5.1.2.11 did not permit Item 4A glazing to be used forward of the C pillar.

In your letter (with accompanying photographs), you discussed the Porsche Cayman S and Porsche 911 GT2 and GT3 vehicles. The vehicles do not have rear designated seating positions. You ask if Item 4A glazing is permitted for side windows forward of the C pillar "[u]sing the same logic applied to the hearse case discussed in the 1996 final rule (i.e., that there is no opportunity for head contact with this piece of glazing) ." Interpreting S5.5 as you suggest would render meaningless the agencys statements in the September 26, 2003 document, discussed above, that made clear that Item 4A glazing is only permitted for use in side windows rearward of the C pillar. Accordingly, for the reasons discussed above, we cannot interpret the standard as permitting Item 4A glazing in side windows in locations other than rearward of the C pillar.

If you have any further questions, please feel free to contact us at (202) 366-2992.

Sincerely,

Stephen P. Wood
Acting Chief Counsel

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