Interpretation ID: nht71-4.25

DATE: 10/19/71

FROM: AUTHOR UNAVAILABLE; L. R. Schneider; NHTSA

TO: Truck Equipment & Body Distributors Association

TITLE: FMVSS INTERPRETATION

TEXT: RE: MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARD NO. 108 FOR VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH SNOW PLOWS

I appreciate your letter of September 8 and the concern you express about the effectiveness of the Federal motor vehicle safety program.

You have asked for a clarification of the opinion in my letter of August 16 that compliance of a vehicle with the Federal lighting standard, No. 108, would be based upon its "as-sold condition", where the vehicle is equipped with a hoist or mounting bracket and the snow plow, etc., is not sold with the vehicle. This opinion means that compliance with Standard No. 108 is determined without the plow attached even though, to use your hypothetical situation, the purchaser may be invited by the dealer to come back tomorrow and pick up your snow plow so we won't have to put the lights on.

The legal responsibility of a dealer under section 108(a)(1) of the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1966 is limited to ensuring that the vehicle complies at the time of sale. Section 108(b)(1) of the Act terminates compliance responsibility "after the first purchase of [the vehicle] in good faith for purposes other than resale." For this legal reason there is no violation of the Act if, after sale of the vehicle, the purchaser adds equipment (as in the mounting of a snow plow) or removes equipment (e.g., seat belts, head restraints) affecting compliance with Federal standards. A

vehicle equipped with a snow plow, however, would still be subject to State and local motor vehicle safety regulations, "after the first purchase of it in good faith for purposes other than resale."

I hope this clarifies the matter for you.