Interpretation ID: 2398y
5601 Western Avenue
Omaha, Nebraska 68132
Dear Mr. Kmiecik:
This is in reply to your letter with respect to vehicle modification kits you wish to purchase, to be used in conversion of Datsun 240-280Z cars from closed to open vehicles. You have asked for the safety standards that apply to l974-78 convertibles, and whether the conversion kit meets these standards. I regret the delay in responding.
We appreciate your efforts to meet the requirements of the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act. As you appear to realize, the Act requires, in essence, that vehicle alterations by a motor vehicle manufacturer, distributor, dealer or repair business must not render wholly or partially inoperative any device or element of design installed on that vehicle in accordance with a Federal motor vehicle safety standard. This means that a vehicle at the end of its conversion process must continue to meet the standards that applied at the time that it was first manufactured. This does not preclude conversions that render compliance with a standard physically impossible; obviously an open car cannot meet, for example, the standard for roof crush resistance (Standard No. 216), and convertibles, are, in fact, exempt from it. Such a conversion would allow substitution of a two-point (lap belt) restraint system in a convertible for a three-point (lap-shoulder belt) restraint system that may have been installed when it was a closed car (Standard No. 208).
After the vehicle alterations are complete, the vehicle must conform to the barrier tests specified in several standards. We note that the items that comprise the kit are intended to add rigidity to the body and frame after removal of the top, but are unable to advise you of the effect these modifications would have upon the safety performance of the vehicle as converted.
There are no Federal safety standards that apply to the individual items in your kit. The standards that apply to motor vehicles, including convertibles, manufactured from October 1, l973, through September 30, l978, will be found at Title 49 Code of Federal Regulations Part 571. Specifically, the standards appear in volumes titled 49 CFR Parts 200 to 999, revised as of October 1, l973, l974, l975, l976, and l977. Originally, these volumes were available through the U.S. Government Printing Office (which may have an Omaha outlet). If they are no longer available through the GPO, we recommend that you consult a local law library.
Thank you for your interest in motor vehicle safety.
Sincerely,
Stephen P. Wood Acting Chief Counsel
ref:VSA d:4/8/90