Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company, Receipt of Petition for Decision of Inconsequential Noncompliance |
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Topics: Goodyear
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Jeffrey Giuseppe
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
June 11, 2015
[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 112 (Thursday, June 11, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 33336-33337]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-14257]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
[Docket No. NHTSA-2015-0052; Notice 1]
Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company, Receipt of Petition for Decision
of Inconsequential Noncompliance
AGENCY: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA),
Department of Transportation (DOT).
ACTION: Receipt of petition.
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SUMMARY: Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company (Goodyear), has determined that
certain Goodyear G316 LHT commercial truck trailer replacement tires do
not fully comply with paragraph S6.5(f) of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety
Standard (FMVSS) No. 119, New Pneumatic Radial Tires for motor vehicles
with a GVWR of more than 4,536 Kilograms (10,000 pounds) and
Motorcycles. Goodyear has filed an appropriate report dated April 27,
2015, pursuant to 49 CFR part 573, Defect and Noncompliance
Responsibility and Reports.
DATES: The closing date for comments on the petition is July 13, 2015.
ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit written data,
views, and arguments on this petition. Comments must refer to the
docket and notice number cited at the beginning of this notice and
submitted by any of the following methods:
Mail: Send comments by mail addressed to: U.S. Department
of Transportation, Docket Operations, M-30, West Building Ground Floor,
Room W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590.
Hand Deliver: Deliver comments by hand to: U.S. Department
of Transportation, Docket Operations, M-30, West Building Ground Floor,
Room W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590. The
Docket Section is open on weekdays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. except
Federal Holidays.
Electronically: Submit comments electronically by: Logging
onto the Federal Docket Management System (FDMS) Web site at http://www.regulations.gov/. Follow the online instructions for submitting
comments. Comments may also be faxed to (202) 493-2251.
Comments must be written in the English language, and be no greater
than 15 pages in length, although there is no limit to the length of
necessary attachments to the comments. If comments are submitted in
hard copy form, please ensure that two copies are provided. If you wish
to receive confirmation that your comments were received, please
enclose a stamped, self-addressed postcard with the comments. Note that
all comments received will be posted without change to http://www.regulations.gov, including any personal information provided.
Documents submitted to a docket may be viewed by anyone at the
address and times given above. The documents may also be viewed on the
Internet at http://www.regulations.gov by following the online
instructions for accessing the dockets. DOT's complete Privacy Act
Statement is available for review in the Federal Register published on
April 11, 2000, (65 FR 19477-78).
The petition, supporting materials, and all comments received
before the close of business on the closing date indicated below will
be filed and will be considered. All comments and supporting materials
received after the closing date will also be filed and will be
considered to the extent possible. When the petition is granted or
denied, notice of the decision will be published in the Federal
Register pursuant to the authority indicated below.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Goodyear's Petition: Pursuant to 49 U.S.C. 30118(d) and 30120(h)
(see implementing rule at 49 CFR part 556), Goodyear submitted a
petition for an exemption from the notification and remedy requirements
of 49 U.S.C. Chapter 301 on the basis that this noncompliance is
inconsequential to motor vehicle safety.
This notice of receipt of Goodyear's petition is published under 49
U.S.C. 30118 and 30120 and does not represent any agency decision or
other exercise of judgment concerning the merits of the petition.
II. Tires Involved: Affected are approximately 79 Goodyear G316 LHT
size 295/75R22.5 commercial truck trailer replacement tires
manufactured between March 22, 2015 and April 9, 2015.
III. Noncompliance: Goodyear explains that because the sidewall
markings on the reference side of the subject tires incorrectly
identify the number of plies as ``4 Plies Steel Cord'' instead of the
actual number ``5 Plies Steel Cord,'' the tires do not meet the
requirements of paragraph S6.5(f) of FMVSS No. 119.
IV. Rule Text: Paragraph S6.5 of FMVSS No. 119 requires in
pertinent part:
S6.5 Tire Markings. Except as specified in paragraphs, each tire
shall be marked on each sidewall with the information specified in
paragraphs (a) through (j) of this section . . .
(f) The actual number of plies and the composition of the ply
cord material in the sidewall and, if different, in the tread area;
V. Summary of Goodyear's Analyses: Goodyear stated its belief that
the subject noncompliance is inconsequential to motor vehicle safety
for the following reasons:
(A) Goodyear stated that the subject tires were manufactured as
designed and meet or exceed all applicable FMVSS performance
standards.
(B) Goodyear also stated that all of the sidewall markings
related to tire service (load capacity, corresponding inflation
pressure, etc.) are correct.
(C) Goodyear believes that the mislabeling of the subject tires
is not a safety concern and also has no impact on the retreading,
repairing, and recycling industries.
(D) Goodyear also pointed out that NHTSA has previously granted
petitions for non-compliances in sidewall marking that it believes
are similar to its petition.
Goodyear additionally informed NHTSA that the molds at the
manufacturing plant have been corrected so that no additional tires
will be manufactured or sold with the noncompliance.
In summation, Goodyear believes that the described noncompliance of
the subject tires is inconsequential to motor vehicle safety, and that
its petition, to exempt Goodyear from providing recall notification of
noncompliance as required by 49 U.S.C. 30118 and remedying the recall
noncompliance as required by 49 U.S.C. 30120 should be granted.
NHTSA notes that the statutory provisions (49 U.S.C. 30118(d) and
30120(h)) that permit manufacturers to file petitions for a
determination of inconsequentiality allow NHTSA to exempt manufacturers
only from the duties found in sections 30118 and 30120, respectively,
to notify owners, purchasers, and dealers of a defect or noncompliance
and to remedy the
[[Page 33337]]
defect or noncompliance. Therefore, any decision on this petition only
applies to the subject tires that Goodyear no longer controlled at the
time it determined that the noncompliance existed. However, any
decision on this petition does not relieve equipment distributors and
dealers of the prohibitions on the sale, offer for sale, or
introduction or delivery for introduction into interstate commerce of
the noncompliant tires under their control after Goodyear notified them
that the subject noncompliance existed.
Authority: 49 U.S.C. 30118, 30120: Delegations of authority at
49 CFR 1.95 and 501.8.
Jeffrey Giuseppe,
Director, Office of Vehicle Safety Compliance.
[FR Doc. 2015-14257 Filed 6-10-15; 8:45 am]
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