Interpretation ID: nht74-2.42

DATE: 08/07/74

FROM: AUTHOR UNAVAILABLE; R. B. Dyson; NHTSA

TO: Royal Industries

TITLE: FMVSS INTERPRETATION

TEXT: This responds to your July 23, 1974, question concerning the certification responsibility of a small manufacturer of trailers that must conform to Standard No. 121, Air brake systems. You ask if road testing of any or all vehicles produced would be necessary to satisfy the requirements.

A manufacturer must "exercise due care" in certifying that the vehicles manufactured by him comply with the applicable standards (National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1966, @ 108(b)(2), 15 U.S.C. @ 1392(b)(2)). What constitutes due care in a particular case depends on all relevant facts, including such things as the time to elapse before a new effective date, the availability of test equipment to small manufacturers, the limitations of current technology, and above all the diligence evidenced by the manufacturer.

A small manufacturer of standard and custom trailers might fulfill his due care responsibility to assure that each of his trailers is capable of meeting the standard in several ways. For example, he could establish categories of models which share a common brake and axle system and certify them all on the basis of tests on the most adverse configuration in the category. Calculations should be written down in such a case to establish that reasonable care was taken in these decisions.

Alternatively, joint testing might be undertaken with a trade association or with a major supplier of brake and axle components. In the case of standard models, you might be able to rely on the supplier's warranty of his products' capacities.

Neither of these methods would require road testing of each vehicle manufactured, nor would every model have to be road tested. A manufacturer must simply satisfy himself that the trailer is capable of meeting the stopping performance requirements if it were tested by the NHTSA.

Yours truly,

ATTACH.

PEERLESS DIVISION ROYAL INDUSTRIES

July 23, 1974

Chief Council -- National Highway Safety Administration

Dear Sir:

This concerns a recent telephone conversation between Loretta Carlson of the National Highway Safety Administration in Seattle and myself.

As a custom trailer manufacturer, we seldom manufacture any number of trailers of the axact same model. While we may build saveral trailers a year to perform the same job, there could be sufficient change from order to order that could conceivably classify them as different models.

My question of her was whether or not we, as a custom commercial trailer manufacturer, would be required to road test all models of trailers that we build to meet the requirements of FMVSS121.

Loretta Carlson talked to your office and relayed your answer to me in that for a manufacturer to satisfy the requirements of FMVSS121, he has to exercise due care to certify his equipment as meeting the requirements of FMVSS121.

Also, your office felt that if we road tested a trailer that we felt would be the worst configuration to meet the requirements of FMVSS121, then we could be considered as exercising due care.

I am very grateful for the assistance of Loretta Carlson and would greatly appreciate a letter from your office confirming your conversation with her on this matter.

C. J. Baker -- Research & Development Engineer