|
|---|
|
Michelin North America, Inc., Receipt of Petition for Decision of Inconsequential Noncompliance Publication: Federal Register Agency: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Byline: Otto G. Matheke III Date: 26 March 2024 Subject: American Government  , Safety, Tires
Topic: Michelin |
[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 59 (Tuesday, March 26, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 21170-21171]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-06423]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
[Docket No. NHTSA-2023-0047; Notice 1]
Michelin North 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.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: Michelin North America, Inc. (MNA) has determined that certain
Michelin LTX AT2 tires do not fully comply with Federal Motor Vehicle
Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 139, New Pneumatic Radial Tires For Light
Vehicles. MNA filed an original noncompliance report dated April 14,
2023, and later amended the report on July 3, 2023. MNA subsequently
petitioned NHTSA (the ``Agency'') on April 17, 2023, and later amended
the petition on July 6, 2023, for a decision that the subject
noncompliance is inconsequential as it relates to motor vehicle safety.
This document announces receipt of MNA's petition.
DATES: Send comments on or before April 25, 2024.
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 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, 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).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jayton Lindley, General Engineer,
NHTSA, Office of Vehicle Safety Compliance, (325) 655-0547.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Overview: MNA determined that certain Michelin LTX AT2 tires
sizes LT275/65R20 and 126/123R do not fully comply with paragraphs
S5.5(e) and
[[Page 21171]]
S5.5(f) of FMVSS No. 139, New Pneumatic Radial Tires For Light Vehicles
(49 CFR 571.139).
MNA filed an original noncompliance report dated April 14, 2023,
and later amended the report on July 3, 2023, pursuant to 49 CFR part
573, Defect and Noncompliance Responsibility and Reports. MNA
petitioned NHTSA on April 17, 2023, and later amended the petition on
July 6, 2023, 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 MNA's petition is published under 49
U.S.C. 30118 and 30120 and does not represent any agency decision or
another exercise of judgment concerning the merits of the petition.
II. Tires Involved: Approximately 7,153 Michelin LTX AT2 tires
sized LT275/65R20 and 126/123R, manufactured between January 15, 2023,
and February 8, 2023, were reported by the manufacturer.
III. Noncompliance: MNA explains that the subject tires contain
incorrect information regarding the general name of cord materials and
actual number of plies on the intended outboard sidewall of the tires,
and therefore, do not fully comply with paragraphs S5.5(e) and S5.5(f)
of FMVSS No. 139. Specifically, the sidewall of the subject tires
states ``TREAD PLIES: 2 POLYESTER + 2 STEEL SIDEWALL PLIES: 2
POLYESTER,'' when they should state ``TREAD PLIES: 2 POLYESTER + 1
POLYAMIDE + 2 STEEL SIDEWALL PLIES: 2 POLYESTER.''
IV. Rule Requirements: Paragraphs S5.5(e) and S5.5(f) of FMVSS No.
139 include the requirements relevant to this petition. Except as
specified in paragraphs (a) through (i) of S5.5, each tire must be
marked on each sidewall with the information specified in S5.5(a)
through (d) and on one sidewall with the information specified in
S5.5(e) through (i) according to the phase-in schedule specified in S7
of this standard. The markings must be placed between the maximum
section width and the bead on at least one sidewall, unless the maximum
section width of the tire is located in an area that is not more than
one-fourth of the distance from the bead to the shoulder of the tire.
If the maximum section width falls within that area, those markings
must appear between the bead and a point one-half the distance from the
bead to the shoulder of the tire, on at least one sidewall. The
markings must be in letters and numerals not less than 0.078 inches
high and raised above or sunk below the tire surface not less than
0.015 inches. Paragraph S5.5(e) requires that the sidewall be marked
with the generic name of each cord material used in the plies (both
sidewall and tread area) of the tire, and paragraph S5.5(f) requires
that the sidewall be marked with the actual number of plies in the
sidewall, and the actual number of plies in the tread area, if
different.
V. Summary of MNA's Petition: The following views and arguments
presented in this section, ``V. Summary of MNA's Petition,'' are the
views and arguments provided by MNA. They have not been evaluated by
the Agency and do not reflect the views of the Agency. MNA describes
the subject noncompliance and contends that the noncompliance is
inconsequential as it relates to motor vehicle safety.
MNA explains that the subject noncompliance occurred as a result of
an error made by a maintenance employee at the manufacturing site. On
January 15, 2023, the employee accidentally used the incorrect
plaquette when replacing a loose one in a mold for the subject tire. A
tire verification employee noticed a gap in the information in the
tread plies plaquette on the intended outboard side of the tire and
notified the Quality team. MNA says that its internal investigation
revealed that of the 7,997 tires produced, approximately 813 affected
tires were identified and contained and approximately 598 affected
tires (8 percent) of the production during this time period had entered
the U.S. market.
MNA asserts that the subject tires comply with all applicable FMVSS
tire safety performance standards and they are marked with the correct
tire size information, including the load range and maximum single and
dual loads at the specified pressures. Further, MNA says that the
subject tires were tested and passed all applicable FMVSS No. 139
performance tests. MNA says that it has taken corrective measures and
removed the incorrect plaquette from the mold used on the subject tires
and replaced it with the correct plaquette.
MNA contends that NHTSA has found petitions for similar
noncompliances to be inconsequential to motor vehicle safety. MNA
provides the following examples:
1. Michelin North America, Inc., NHTSA docket number 2020-0092, granted
7 February 2022
2. Hankook Tire America Corporation, NHTSA docket number 2020-0020,
granted 21 January 2022
3. Continental Tire the Americas, LLC, NHTSA docket number 2017-0040,
granted 30 July 2018
4. Sumitomo Rubber Industries, Ltd., NHTSA docket number 2017-0071,
granted 26 March 2018
5. The Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company, NHTSA docket number 2016-0107,
granted 17 April 2017
MNA concludes by stating its belief that the subject noncompliance
is inconsequential as it relates to motor vehicle safety and 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 tires that MNA no longer
controlled at the time it determined that the noncompliance existed.
However, any decision on this petition does not relieve tires
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 MNA
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. 2024-06423 Filed 3-25-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-59-P