Interpretation ID: nht73-4.11

DATE: 04/17/73

FROM: AUTHOR UNAVAILABLE; Richard B. Dyson; NHTSA

TO: Habco Inc.

TITLE: FMVSR INTERPRETATION

TEXT: This is in reply to your letters of January 29 and March 20, 1973, concerning the application of the Federal motor vehicle safety standards to trucks to which you add railroad wheels, enabling the trucks to be driven on railroad tracks. In response to our letter to you of February 26, 1973, you enclosed in your letter of March 20 a picture representative of these vehicles, and provided us with certain information. Among other things you state that the vehicles are used on public highways approximately 50 per cent of the time, and that they are licensed under State laws.

Based on our examination of this picture, and the information provided with it, we are of the opinion that these vehicles are motor vehicles, specifically trucks, and are required to conform to all Federal motor vehicle safety standards applicable to trucks. This is true if the vehicles are new vehicles when you modify them, regardless of whether they are your own trucks or whether they are modified for customers.

The Certification requirement which you refer to is based on section 114 of the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act (15 U.S.C. @ 1403), and regulations issued by NHTSA (49 CFR Parts 567, 568, copy enclosed). Essentially, the regulations specify a means for manufacturers to certify their vehicles as conforming to all applicable Federal motor vehicle safety standards. Your responsibilities for Certification will depend upon whether you are an intermediate or final-stage manufacturer, as these terms are defined in the regulations. While it is your responsibility to determine which category applies to you, it appears to us that you are most likely an intermediate manufacturer. We base this opinion on the fact that the truck pictured Jacks a body, even though the railroad wheels have been added. It appears that some form of body will be added, as you state in your March 20 letter that the vehicles are

intended to be "spray trucks". If this is correct, your responsibilities for Certification are found at Part 568, "Vehicles Manufactured in Two or More Stages". Briefly, intermediate manufacturers are required to forward to the final-stage manufacturer the document the intermediate manufacturer received with the incomplete vehicle. If the intermediate manufacturer alters the vehicle so as to affect the validity of statements in the document, he is required to provide an addendum to the document indicating the changes he made.

If the vehicle is a completed vehicle before the rail wheels are added, your responsibilities are contingent upon the extent of the modification you perform. Because these modifications are significant with respect to the vehicle's intended use, we would consider section 567.4, "Requirements for Manufacturers of Motor Vehicles," the appropriate requirements for you to meet. The NHTSA has proposed requirements for vehicle alterers, which might apply to you in this case, but these requirements have not yet been issued in final form.

You may obtain copies of NHTSA requirements as specified on the enclosed form, "Where to Obtain Motor Vehicle Safety Standards and Regulations."

ENCLS.