ElectraMeccanica Vehicles Corp., Receipt of Petition for Decision of Inconsequential Noncompliance |
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Topics: Electra Meccanica Solo
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Otto G. Matheke III
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
20 September 2019
[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 183 (Friday, September 20, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 49621-49622]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-20374]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
[Docket No. NHTSA-2019-0080; Notice 1]
ElectraMeccanica Vehicles Corp., 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: ElectraMeccanica Vehicles Corp., (EMV) has determined that
certain model year (MY) 2018 ElectraMeccanica SOLO motorcycles do not
fully comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No.
120, Tire Selection and Rims and Motor Home/Recreation Vehicle Trailer
Load Carrying Capacity Information for Motor Vehicles with a GVWR of
More Than 4,536 Kilograms (10,000 Pounds). EMV filed a noncompliance
report dated July 30, 2019. EMV subsequently petitioned NHTSA on August
12, 2019, for a decision that the subject noncompliance is
inconsequential as it relates to motor vehicle safety. This document
announces receipt of EMV's petition.
DATES: The closing date for comments on the petition is October 21,
2019.
ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit written data,
views, and arguments on this petition. Comments must refer to the
docket number and notice number cited in the title of this notice and
may be submitted by any of the following methods:
Mail: Send comments by mail addressed to the 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 the 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 for Federal Holidays.
Electronically: Submit comments electronically by logging
onto the Federal Docket Management System (FDMS) website 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, a 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: EMV has determined that certain MY 2018
ElectraMeccanica SOLO motorcycles do not fully comply with paragraph
S5.2(d) of FMVSS No. 120, Tire Selection and Rims and Motor Home/
Recreation Vehicle Trailer Load Carrying Capacity Information for Motor
Vehicles with a GVWR of More Than 4,536 Kilograms (10,000 Pounds) (49
CFR 571.120). EMV filed a noncompliance report dated July 30, 2019,
pursuant to 49 CFR part 573, Defect and Noncompliance Responsibility
and Reports. EMV subsequently petitioned NHTSA on August 12, 2019, 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, pursuant to 49 U.S.C. 30118(d) and
30120(h) and 49 CFR part 556, Exemption for Inconsequential Defect or
Noncompliance.
This notice of receipt of EMV's petition is published under 49
U.S.C. 30118 and 30120 and does not represent any Agency decision or
other exercises of judgment concerning the merits of the petition.
II. Vehicles Involved: Approximately 20 MY 2018 ElectraMeccanica
SOLO motorcycles, manufactured between March 1, 2018, and June 28,
2019, are potentially involved.
III. Noncompliance: EMV explains that the noncompliance is that the
subject vehicles are equipped with rims that are missing the
manufacturer's name, trademark, or symbol marking as required by
paragraph S5.2(d) of FMVSS No. 120.
IV. Rule Requirements: Paragraph S5.2(d) of FMVSS No. 120 includes
the requirements relevant to this petition. Each rim or, at the option
of the manufacturer in the case of a single-piece wheel, wheel disc
shall be marked with the information listed in paragraphs (a) through
(e) of this paragraph, in lettering not less than 3 millimeters high,
impressed to a depth or, at the option of the manufacturer, embossed to
a height of not less than 0.125 millimeters. The information listed in
paragraphs (a) through (c) of this paragraph shall appear on the
weather side. In the case of rims of multi-piece construction, the
information listed in paragraphs (a) through (e) of this paragraph
shall appear on the rim base and the information listed in paragraphs
(b) and (d) of this paragraph shall also appear on each other part of
the rim. (d) A designation that identifies the manufacturer of the rim
by name, trademark, or symbol.
V. Summary of EMV's Petition: The following views and arguments
presented in this section, V. Summary of EMV's Petition, are the views
and arguments provided by EMV. They have not been evaluated by the
Agency and do not reflect the views of the Agency.
EMV described the subject noncompliance and stated that the
noncompliance is inconsequential as it relates to motor vehicle safety.
EMV submitted the following views and arguments in support of the
petition:
1. The absence of the manufacturer name, trademark, or symbol does
not have any effect on the operation, performance, or safety of the
affected
[[Page 49622]]
vehicles. For example, the manufacturer name, trademark, or symbol is
not required to be marked on rims for use on passenger cars in
accordance with FMVSS No. 110. The marking is helpful for traceability
in the event that a future wheel defect was to be discovered. However,
as EMV has only the single source for supply of the pertinent rim
style, the absence of the marking does not inhibit traceability of the
affected rims. It is noted that the other markings present such as the
date of manufacture, heat treatment lot, and all other markings
required as per FMVSS No. 120, paragraph S5.2, are present and provide
for sufficient traceability of any given rim.
EMV is not aware of any crashes, injuries, or customer complaints
associated with the absence of the rim manufacturer name, trademark, or
symbol marking.
2. EMV states that granting their petition for inconsequential
noncompliance would be consistent with the NHTSA's past decisions
pertaining to rim markings required by FMVSS No. 120 and FMVSS No. 110
(for vehicles other than passenger cars). For example, EMV says NHTSA
has granted petitions for inconsequential noncompliance related to the
incorrect marking of the rim size and absence of required rim markings.
3. All affected MY 2018 and MY 2019 vehicles that are under EMV's
control in, or destined for, the United States have been or are in the
process of being brought into compliance with the FMVSS No. 120
manufacturer marking requirements. EMV has additionally ensured that
all required markings will be present on rims used for future
production.
EMV concluded 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.
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 EMV 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 EMV
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.
Otto G. Matheke III,
Director, Office of Vehicle Safety Compliance.
[FR Doc. 2019-20374 Filed 9-19-19; 8:45 am]
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