Interpretation ID: nht92-8.36

DATE: March 2, 1992

FROM: Paul Jackson Rice -- Chief Counsel, NHTSA

TO: Paul N. Wagner -- President, Bornemann Products Incorporated

TITLE: None

ATTACHMT: Attached to letter dated 1/22/92 from Paul N. Wagner to NHTSA

TEXT:

This responds to your letter seeking further information about the extension of the dynamic testing requirements in Standard No. 208, Occupant Crash Protection to light trucks and vans. You indicated that you were particularly interested in the application of the dynamic testing requirements to vehicles manufactured in more than one stage.

Your letter stated that throughout 1991 your company was repeatedly led to believe there would be no delay of the September 1, 1991 effective date for the application of the dynamic testing requirements to light trucks and vans. Your letter also indicated that, after proceeding with testing to ensure that your company's van conversions would comply with the dynamic testing requirements, you found additional complications hampering your testing efforts. In response to these complications, your company filed a petition asking that the applicability of the dynamic testing requirements to light trucks and vans manufactured in more than one stage be delayed from the scheduled September 1, 1991 date until April 1, 1992. NHTSA received your petition on August 29, 1991.

This petition was rejected as untimely and you were notified of the rejection in an October 10, 1991 letter from Mr. Barry Felrice, our Associate Administrator for Rulemaking. Your company proceeded with further testing after you learned that NHTSA had not accepted your petition, and have been able to certify that your conversion vans comply with the dynamic testing requirements. Your letter estimated that the total cost of the research and testing performed by your company to certify compliance with the dynamic testing requirements was nearly $200,000.

Then, on January 21, 1992, your company received a memorandum from the trade group Recreational Vehicle Industry Association (RVIA), announcing that representatives of RVIA had met with representatives of this agency on January 14, 1992. You believed that the RVIA memorandum "indicates (a delay of the September 1, 1991 effective date for the dynamic testing requirements) is on the horizon." Your letter suggested that there is now confusion among van converters and other multistage manufacturers about the status of the dynamic testing requirements for vehicles manufactured in more than one stage. You asked us to state whether a delay in the effective date for the dynamic testing requirements as applied to multistage vehicles is now being considered by the agency. The answer is no.

There was a meeting between representatives of this agency and the RVIA on January 14, 1992. From our perspective, the meeting was informative and constructive, and provided us with further insights into the efforts that were needed for van converters to ensure that their vans complied with the new dynamic testing requirements. We hope to maintain such dialogues with RVIA and any other interested multistage manufacturers.

However, our January 14, 1992 meeting did not change some facts. First, the dynamic testing requirements took effect for light trucks and vans on September 1, 1991, including light trucks and vans manufactured in more than one stage. This means that each light truck and van manufactured on or after September 1, 1991 had to be certified by its manufacturer as complying with the dynamic testing requirements. Second, any member of the public can petition the agency to modify any of its standards, including the dynamic testing requirements as they apply generally to light trucks and vans manufactured in more than one stage. If RVIA should submit a petition to modify the dynamic testing requirements, as it suggested it would in the memorandum you received, NHTSA would consider that petition according to the same procedures followed in the case of your company's petition on this subject or any other petition from the public.

I hope this information is helpful. If you have any further concerns or questions, please let me know.