Interpretation ID: nht69-1.45

DATE: 09/11/69

FROM: AUTHOR UNAVAILABLE; H. M. Jackin for W. M. Jacklin, Jr.; NHTSA

TO: Hon. W. Proxmire - U.S. Senate

TITLE: FMVSS INTERPRETATION

TEXT: Thank you for your letter of August 27, 1969, to the Director, Legislative Liaison, Department of Transportation, concerning Mr. Eugene J. Shermeister's comments on headlamps for motor vehicles.

Enclosed for Mr. Shermeister's information is a copy of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 108 on lighting requirements for the vehicles specified in the standard. Standard No. 108 is applicable to new vehicles manufactured on or after the effective date of January 1, 1969. In accordance with the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1966, the initial safety standards were based on existing standards. Headlighting requirements, as specified in Standard No. 108, were therefore based on existing Bureau of Motor Carrier Safety Regulations, certain State regulations and the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) Standards. On this basis, Standard No. 108 specifies that headlamps for all vehicles except motorcycles conform to SAE Standards J579a and J580a, entitled, respectively, "Sealed Beam Headlamp Units for Motor Vehicles" and "Sealed Beam Headlamp." To provide protection from blinding effects to oncoming drivers, SAE Standard J579a specifies a maximum lamp output of 37,500 candlepower. This candlepower value is considerably less than the candlepower output of quartz iodine type headlamps.

As indicated in paragraph S2 of Standard No. 108, the standard is applicable to lighting on new vehicles and not to replacement lighting equipment. Except for vehicles subject to the Bureau of Motor Carrier Safety Regulations, the requirements for replacement lighting equipment, as well as lighting requirements for vehicles in use, are those requirements as set by the regulatory agencies of the individual states.

The National Highway Safety Bureau is sponsoring a research contract on improved forward lighting for motor vehicles. Results of this contract will not only provide us with well-founded data for use in amending the standard, but will also assist us in evaluating the relative merits of sealed beam, quartz iodine and other types of headlamps.

ENCLOSURE