BMW Group of America, LLC, Incorporated, Receipt of Petition for Decision of Inconsequential Noncompliance |
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Topics: BMW, BMW, Rolls-Royce
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Jeffrey M. Giuseppe
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
18 January 2017
[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 11 (Wednesday, January 18, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 5641-5642]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-01005]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
[Docket No. NHTSA-2016-0115; Notice 1]
BMW Group of America, LLC, Incorporated, 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: BMW of North America, LLC (BMW), has determined that certain
model year (MY) 2016-2017 BMW, Mini, and Rolls-Royce vehicles do not
fully comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No.
209, Seat Belt Assemblies. BMW filed a report dated October 13, 2016.
BMW also petitioned NHTSA on November 4, 2016, for a decision that the
subject noncompliance is inconsequential as it relates to motor vehicle
safety.
DATES: The closing date for comments on the petition is February 17,
2017.
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 in the title 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 Delivery: 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 https://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 comments you have submitted by mail were
received, please enclose a stamped, self-addressed postcard with the
comments. Note that all comments received will be posted without change
to https://www.regulations.gov, including any personal information
provided.
All comments and supporting materials received before the close of
business on the closing date indicated above will be filed in the
docket and will be considered. All comments and supporting materials
received after the closing date will also be filed and will be
considered to the fullest extent possible.
When the petition is granted or denied, notice of the decision will
also be published in the Federal Register pursuant to the authority
indicated at the end of this notice.
All comments, background documentation, and supporting materials
submitted to the docket may be viewed by anyone at the address and
times given above. The documents may also be viewed on the Internet at
https://www.regulations.gov by following the online instructions for
accessing the dockets. The docket ID number for this petition is shown
in the heading of this notice.
DOT's complete Privacy Act Statement is available for review in a
Federal Register notice published on April 11, 2000, (65 FR 19477-78).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Overview
BMW of North America, LLC (BMW), has determined that certain model
year (MY) 2016-2017 BMW, Mini, and Rolls-Royce vehicles do not fully
comply with paragraph 4.3(j)(2)(ii) of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety
Standard (FMVSS) No. 209, Seat Belt Assemblies. BMW filed a report
dated October 13, 2016, pursuant to 49 CFR part 573, Defect and
Noncompliance Responsibility and Reports. BMW also petitioned NHTSA on
November 4, 2016, pursuant to 49 U.S.C. 30118(d) and 30120(h) and 49
CFR part 556, for an exemption from the notification and remedy
requirements of 49 U.S.C. Chapter 301 on the basis that this
noncompliance is inconsequential as it relates to motor vehicle safety.
This notice of receipt of BMW'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. Vehicles Involved
Approximately 15,630 of the following MY 2016-2017 BMW, Mini, and
Rolls-Royce vehicles manufactured
[[Page 5642]]
between June 29, 2016 and October 10, 2016 are potentially involved:
2017 BMW X1 SAV (X1 sDrive28i, X1 xDrive28i)
2017 BMW 5 Series Gran Turismo (535i Gran Turismo, 535i xDrive
Gran Turismo, 550i xDrive Gran Turismo)
2016 BMW 5 Series (528i, 528i xDrive, 535i, 535i xDrive, 550i,
550i xDrive, M5)
2016 BMW 5 Series (535d, 535d xDrive)
2016 Mini Cooper Clubman and Mini Cooper S Clubman
Mini Hardtop 4-door Cooper and Mini Hardtop 4-door Cooper S
2017 Rolls-Royce Ghost
III. Noncompliance
BMW explains that the noncompliance involves the Emergency Locking
Retractor (ELR) in the safety belt assembly of the vehicle's front left
seat. These ELRs are equipped with a vehicle-sensitive locking
mechanism and a webbing-sensitive locking mechanism. The noncompliance
specifically involves the vehicle-sensitive locking mechanism, which
does not lock as designed when subjected to the requirements of
paragraph S4.3(j)(2)(ii) of FMVSS No. 209.
IV. Rule Text
Paragraph S4.3 of FMVSS No. 209 states in pertinent part:
S4.3 Requirements for hardware . . .
(j) Emergency-locking retractor . . .
(2) For seat belt assemblies manufactured on or after February
22, 2007 and for manufacturers opting for early compliance. An
emergency-locking retractor of a Type 1 or Type 2 seat belt
assembly, when tested in accordance with the procedures specified in
paragraph S5.2(j)(2) . . .
(ii) Shall lock before the webbing payout exceeds the maximum
limit of 25 mm when the retractor is subjected to an acceleration of
0.7 g under the applicable test conditions of S5.2(j)(2)(iii)(A) or
(B). The retractor is determined to be locked when the webbing belt
load tension is at least 35 N.
V. Summary of BMW's Petition
BMW described the subject noncompliance and stated its belief that
the noncompliance is inconsequential as it relates to motor vehicle
safety.
In support of its petition, BMW submitted the following reasoning:
(a) The vehicle-sensitive locking mechanism functions, but the non-
compliance involves a slight exceedance of the FMVSS No. 209 Section
S4.3(j)(2)(ii) requirement.
(b) The slight exceedance is such that, based upon testing of non-
compliant units, the vehicle-sensitive locking mechanism locks at
approximately 1.0g within 25mm, or at 0.7 g within 90mm.
(c) The tilt-lock function of the ELR is compliant, and locks at
angles greater than 15-deg up to 41-deg when subjected to the FMVSS No.
209 Section S4.3(j)(2) rollover requirements.
(d) The ELR also contains a voluntary webbing-sensitive locking
mechanism which provides crash and rollover restraint performance
comparable to the performance provided by an FMVSS No. 209 compliant
vehicle-sensitive locking mechanism.
(e) Crash test results comparing FMVSS No. 209 S4.3(j)(2)(ii)
compliant ELRs and ELRs in which the vehicle-sensitive locking
mechanism has been disabled (to demonstrate a ``worst-case scenario'',
even though in affected vehicles the vehicle-sensitive mechanism
remains functional) demonstrate comparable results according to FMVSS
No. 208 assessments.
Test results indicate that any performance differences are with
normal ``data scatter'' and are attributed to test tolerances.
(f) Affected safety belt assemblies comply with all other
applicable provisions of FMVSS No. 209.
(g) NHTSA previously granted a petition from General Motors in
which the ELR's vehicle-sensitive locking mechanism was completely non-
functional, whereas the ELR's vehicle-sensitive locking mechanism in
the affected BMW vehicles is functional, but may experience a slight
exceedance of the FMVSS no. 209 S4.3(j)(2)(ii) requirement.
(h) BMW has not received any customer complaints related to this
issue.
(i) BMW is not aware of any accidents or injuries related to this
issue.
(j) Vehicle production has been corrected.
BMW concluded by expressing the belief that the subject
noncompliance is inconsequential as it relates to motor vehicle safety,
and that its petition to be exempted from providing notification of the
noncompliance, as required by 49 U.S.C. 30118, and a remedy for the
noncompliance, as required by 49 U.S.C. 30120, should be granted.
To view BMW's petition, test data and analyses in its entirety you
can visit https://www.regulations.gov by following the online
instructions for accessing the dockets and by using the docket ID
number for this petition shown in the heading of this notice.
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 defect or noncompliance. Therefore, any decision on
this petition only applies to the subject vehicles that BMW no longer
controlled at the time it determined that the noncompliance existed.
However, any decision on this petition does not relieve vehicle
distributors and dealers of the prohibitions on the sale, offer for
sale, or introduction or delivery for introduction into interstate
commerce of the noncompliant vehicles under their control after BMW
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 M. Giuseppe,
Director, Office of Vehicle Safety Compliance.
[FR Doc. 2017-01005 Filed 1-17-17; 8:45 am]
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