Interpretation ID: 18967.ogm

Daniel J. Selke, Manager
Safety Engineering
Mercedes Benz of North America
One Mercedes Drive
P.O. Box 350
Montvale, NJ 07645-0350

Re: Extended Length Seat Belt Request

Dear Mr. Selke:

This is in response to your letter regarding your company's inquiry as to whether the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) would exercise its enforcement discretion and not institute enforcement proceedings with respect to a special seat belt installation for an overly large customer who had a 300 millimeter seat belt extension installed on a 1998 model year ML 320. You correctly observe that a letter dated March 10, 1993, from John Womack, Acting Chief Counsel of NHTSA, to Mr. Thomas Baloga of Mercedes-Benz of North America, indicated that in regard to the installation of extended seat belts for particularly large persons, NHTSA would consider certain violations of Safety Act provisions as purely technical ones justified by public need and that it would not institute enforcement proceedings. You also note that the letter requested that NHTSA be notified of each such special seat belt installation.

We acknowledge receipt of your letter and that Mercedes-Benz of North America has provided the agency with notice of this extended seat belt installation. We note that the materials provided indicate that the standard belt provided with this vehicle was too short to allow the purchaser to fasten the belt. We would also like to reiterate our earlier statement contained in the March 10, 1993, letter that if Mercedes-Benz wanted to provide extra long seat belts on a routine basis, that the agency would expect it to provide a design that fully complies with Standard No. 209.

Sincerely,
Frank Seales, Jr.
Chief Counsel
ref:208
d.4/30/99