Volkswagen Group of America, Inc., Receipt of Petition for Decision of Inconsequential Noncompliance |
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Topics: Volkswagen, Audi
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Otto G. Matheke III
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
10 July 2020
[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 133 (Friday, July 10, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 41670-41671]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-14847]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
[Docket No. NHTSA-2020-0066; Notice 1]
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc., 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: Volkswagen Group of America, Inc., (Volkswagen) has determined
that certain model year (MY) 2019 2020 Volkswagen and Audi motor
vehicles do not fully comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard
(FMVSS) No. 138, Tire Pressure Monitoring Systems. Volkswagen filed a
noncompliance report dated May 6, 2020, and later amended it on May 15,
2020. Volkswagen subsequently petitioned NHTSA on May 20, 2020, and
later amended it on June 8, 2020, for a decision that the subject
noncompliance is inconsequential as it relates to motor vehicle safety.
This notice announces receipt of Volkswagen's petition.
DATES: Send comments on or before August 10, 2020.
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 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, 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 docket. 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: Volkswagen has determined that certain MY 2019 2020
Volkswagen and Audi motor vehicles do not fully comply with the
requirements of paragraph S6(f)(3) of FMVSS No. 138, Tire Pressure
Monitoring Systems (49 CFR 571.138). Volkswagen filed a
[[Page 41671]]
noncompliance report dated May 6, 2020, and later amended it on May 15,
2020, pursuant to 49 CFR part 573, Defect and Noncompliance
Responsibility and Reports. Volkswagen subsequently petitioned NHTSA on
May 20, 2020, but amended it on June 8, 2020, 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 Volkswagen'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 299,043 of the following MY
2019-2020 Volkswagen and Audi motor vehicles manufactured between
November 26, 2018, and February 19, 2020, are potentially involved:
2019-2020 Volkswagen Atlas
2020 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport
2019 Volkswagen Golf R
2019 Volkswagen Tiguan LWB
2019-2020 Volkswagen Jetta NF
2019-2020 Volkswagen Jetta GLI
2019 Volkswagen Golf Sportwagen A7
2019 Audi Q3
2019-2020 Volkswagen Golf GTI
2019 Volkswagen Golf Alltrack
2019-2020 Volkswagen Golf A7
2019-2020 Audi A3 Sedan
2019 Audi A3 Cabriolet
III. Noncompliance: Volkswagen explains that the noncompliance is
that the subject vehicles are equipped with tire pressure monitoring
systems (TPMS) that do not fully comply with the requirements set forth
in paragraph S6(f)(3) of FMVSS No. 138. Specifically, when there is a
simultaneous pressure loss on all four tires, in which pressure loss
occurs at the same rate and time, the detection may not occur within
the 20-minute timeframe specified in test procedure requirements.
IV. Rule Requirements: Paragraph S6(f)(3) of FMVSS No. 138 includes
requirements relevant to this petition. The sum of the total cumulative
drive time under paragraphs S6(f)(1) and (2) shall be the lesser of 20
minutes or the time at which the low tire pressure telltale
illuminates.
V. Summary of Volkswagen's Petition: The following views and
arguments presented in this section, V. Summary of Volkswagen's
Petition, are the views and arguments provided by Volkswagen. They have
not been evaluated by the Agency and do not reflect the views of the
Agency. Volkswagen described the subject noncompliance and stated their
belief that the noncompliance is inconsequential as it relates to motor
vehicle safety.
In support of its petition, Volkswagen submitted the following
reasoning:
1. A rapid tire pressure loss on one or more tires is accurately
detected and the low tire pressure warning telltale will illuminate and
warn the driver.
2. A pressure loss on fewer than four tires at the same time and
rate will be detected, and the low tire pressure warning telltale will
illuminate and warn the driver.
3. A simultaneous pressure loss on all four tires at the same rate
will be detected and indicated to the driver, but not in the required
20 minutes. Internal tests have shown that in those tests where the
pressure loss was not detected in 20 minutes, a warning to the driver
was still shown in under 50 minutes. Volkswagen believes this behavior
is not relevant for real world driving, as this particular diffusion
scenario, involving all four tires at the same time and same rate, is
very unlikely to happen in real world driving.
4. As of the production dates listed below, the condition has been
corrected:
Volkswagen:
2019-2020 Volkswagen Golf vehicles, as of October 26,
2019;
2019 Volkswagen Golf Alltrack vehicles, as of October 26,
2019;
2019-2020 Volkswagen Golf GTI vehicles, as of October 26,
2019;
2019 Volkswagen Golf Sportwagen vehicles, as of August 28,
2019;
2019 Volkswagen Golf R vehicles, as of August 20, 2019;
2019-2020 Volkswagen Jetta vehicles, as of October 24,
2019;
2019-2020 Volkswagen Jetta GLI vehicles, as of October 24,
2019;
2019 Volkswagen Tiguan vehicles, as of August 18, 2019;
2019-2020 Volkswagen Atlas vehicles, as of February 20,
2020; and
2020 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport vehicles, as of July 25,
2019.
Audi:
2019-2020 Audi A3 vehicles, as of January 25, 2020;
2019 Audi A3 Cabriolet vehicles, as of July 13, 2019; and
2019 Audi Q3 vehicles, as of July 31, 2019.
5. The affected vehicles held at the factory have been corrected,
and unsold units in dealer inventory will be corrected prior to sale.
6. Additionally, Volkswagen is not aware of any field or customer
complaints related to this condition, nor has it been made aware of any
accidents or injuries that have occurred as a result of this issue.
Volkswagen concluded by expressing its 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.
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 Volkswagen 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
Volkswagen 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. 2020-14847 Filed 7-9-20; 8:45 am]
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