Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards; Denial of Petition for Rulemaking Publication: Federal Register Agency: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Byline: Raymond R. Posten Date: 22 August 2024 Subjects: American Government , Safety Topic: Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards

[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 163 (Thursday, August 22, 2024)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 67867-67869]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-18714]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

49 CFR Part 571

[Docket No. NHTSA-2023-0025]


Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards; Denial of Petition for 
Rulemaking

AGENCY: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), U.S. 
Department of Transportation (DOT).

ACTION: Denial of petition for rulemaking.

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SUMMARY: This document denies a February 12, 2019 petition for 
rulemaking submitted by Mr. Stevan Panin (``petitioner'') requesting 
that NHTSA amend Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 104 
or create a new FMVSS to require the year-round use of a standardized 
winter specification windshield washer fluid to prevent accidents 
allegedly caused by obstructed visibility from frozen windshield washer 
fluid. NHTSA is denying this petition for rulemaking because the agency 
does not believe the petitioner has demonstrated there is an unmet 
safety need related to windshield washer fluid, or that a mandated 
standardized winter-specification windshield washer fluid would 
effectively decrease or prevent crashes and injuries or fatalities.

DATES: August 22, 2024.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Cynthia Collado, Safety Standards 
Engineer, Office of Rulemaking, National Highway Traffic Safety 
Administration, 1200 New Jersey Ave. SE, Washington, DC 20590, 
Telephone: 202-366-6294; or Natasha Reed, Office of Chief Counsel, 
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 1200 New

[[Page 67868]]

Jersey Ave. SE, Washington, DC 20590, Telephone: 202-366-2992.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Table of Contents

I. Background
II. Petition for Rulemaking
III. NHTSA's Analysis and Decision
    A. The Petitioner Fails To Present Evidence of an Unmet Motor 
Vehicle Safety Need
    B. The Petitioner Fails To Demonstrate That a Standardized 
Winter-Specification Windshield Washer Fluid Would Effectively 
Address an Unmet Motor Vehicle Safety Need
IV. Conclusion

I. Background

    Under the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act (the Safety 
Act), 49 U.S.C. Chapter 301, as amended, the National Highway Traffic 
Safety Administration (NHTSA) has the authority to issue Federal Motor 
Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) for new motor vehicles and motor 
vehicle equipment. Each FMVSS must be practicable, meet the need for 
motor vehicle safety, and be stated in objective terms.
    Petitions for rulemaking are governed by 49 CFR part 552. Pursuant 
to section 552.6, the agency conducts a technical review of the 
petition, which may consist of an analysis of the material submitted 
together with information already in possession of the agency. In 
deciding whether to grant or deny a petition, the agency considers this 
technical review as well as appropriate factors, which include, among 
others, allocation of agency resources and agency priorities.\1\
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    \1\ 49 CFR 552.8.
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II. Petition for Rulemaking

    The petitioner, Mr. Stevan Panin, submitted a letter and rulemaking 
petition dated February 12, 2019, regarding 49 CFR 571.104, 
``Windshield wiping and washing systems,'' expressing concern that the 
use of summer and non-standardized winter-specification windshield 
washer fluid during colder temperatures causes vehicular injuries and 
fatalities because of reduced or zero visibility. The petitioner 
explained that summer-specification windshield washer fluid, if left in 
a vehicle during colder temperatures, freezes at around 32 degrees 
Fahrenheit, leading to frozen fluid smeared on windshields and reduced 
or eliminated visibility. The petitioner also stated that summer-
specification windshield washer fluid may freeze the windshield washer 
system in colder temperatures (including the lines, pump, and 
reservoir), resulting in a potentially damaged windshield washer 
system, smeared road grime across the windshield, and reduced or no 
visibility due to the wipers actuating with no spraying washer fluid. 
Finally, the petitioner stated that there have been manufacturing 
problems at winter-specification fluid production plants, resulting in 
winter-specification windshield washer fluid that does not meet the 
manufacturer's internal requirements and freezes at much higher 
temperatures than specified.
    To address these concerns the petitioner requested that NHTSA 
eliminate summer-specification windshield washer fluid and mandate the 
use of standardized winter-specification windshield washer fluid 
throughout the entire year by modifying FMVSS No. 104 or creating a new 
FMVSS. The petitioner stated that standardized winter-specification 
windshield washer fluid should be designed with a low enough freezing 
point to function properly in the coldest winter temperatures 
encountered in the U.S., down to minus 40 degrees Fahrenheit, to 
eliminate the issue of reduced or zero visibility caused by frozen 
washer fluid on the windshield and/or the freezing of the entire 
windshield washer system.
    Finally, the petitioner suggested that ethanol should be used as a 
windshield washer fluid additive in lieu of methanol to lower the 
freezing point for winter use and to address the potential hazards 
associated with the current use of methanol in windshield washer 
solvents. The petitioner explained that unlike methanol, a poisonous 
substance with potentially severe health consequences if ingested or 
inhaled, ethanol is not poisonous if ingested, does not cause 
blindness, and poses reduced harm when inhaled as vapor. Additionally, 
the petitioner suggested that ethanol may offer cost-effectiveness 
compared to methanol.

III. NHTSA's Analysis and Decision

    After thorough review of the petition requesting implementation of 
a revised or new FMVSS mandating the year-round use of winter washer 
fluid, NHTSA is denying the petition based on the lack of sufficient 
data necessary to proceed under the Motor Vehicle Safety Act. The 
following reasons detail the rationale for the agency's decision.

A. The Petitioner Fails To Present Evidence of an Unmet Motor Vehicle 
Safety Need

    The Safety Act requires that prescribed motor vehicle safety 
standards meet a motor vehicle safety need.\2\ According to the 
petitioner, there is an unmet safety need for vehicles that use summer-
specification windshield washer fluid during cold temperatures and for 
vehicles that use winter-specification windshield washer fluid that 
does not meet temperature freezing requirements. However, the 
petitioner fails to provide any evidence to quantify the extent and 
scale of the alleged safety issue, such as the nature, cause, size, and 
potential severity of the alleged hazard. Instead, after asserting that 
the use of summer-specification and non-compliant winter-specification 
windshield washer fluid causes increased injuries and fatalities, the 
petitioner provides only anecdotal information about such incidents, 
with no data demonstrating their frequency or severity.
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    \2\ 49 U.S.C. 30111.
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    Additionally, although the petitioner raises concerns that colder 
temperatures may cause windshield washer fluid to freeze on the 
windshield or within the windshield washer system, the petitioner does 
not acknowledge FMVSS No. 103, ``Windshield defrosting and defogging 
systems,'' which requires vehicles to have adequate defroster systems 
meeting minimum performance requirements for windshield clearance in 
below-freezing conditions, down to minus 40 degrees Fahrenheit. NHTSA 
notes that a properly functioning and compliant defroster is 
specifically designed to prevent accumulation of frost and frozen 
precipitation on the windshield by actively raising the windshield's 
temperature. FMVSS No. 103 also requires that the washer system not 
fail permanently if it does freeze. Further, for internal combustion 
engines, as the vehicle's engine reaches operating temperature, the 
heat generated under the hood helps to maintain the windshield washer 
system at an elevated temperature during travel, minimizing the risk of 
washer fluid freezing in the system and preventing the system from 
operating (this may not be the case for electric vehicles, which may or 
may not have a heating element to prevent fluid from freezing).
    Finally, NHTSA acknowledges that the petitioner suggested as a 
``side note'' that methanol should be substituted for ethanol in 
winter-specification windshield washer fluid because of methanol's 
potentially dangerous effects on humans. To the extent that the 
petitioner is suggesting that ethanol should be required under FMVSS 
No. 104 or under a new FMVSS, the petitioner does not relate that 
suggestion

[[Page 67869]]

to an unmet vehicle safety need, as required by 49 U.S.C. 30111(a).
    Based on the above reasons, NHTSA believes that the petitioner has 
failed to demonstrate a clear need for safety attributable to summer-
specification or allegedly non-compliant winter-specification 
windshield washer fluid. While we agree that failure of the windshield 
washing system could result in reduced windshield visibility, the 
petitioner did not provide evidence demonstrating the scope of this 
potential safety problem or whether such a problem could be 
attributable to winter-specification windshield washer fluid, nor is it 
clearly established by available safety data. Accordingly, NHTSA has 
concluded that the petitioner has not shown an unmet safety need that 
would justify the mandate to use of year-round standardized winter-
specific windshield washer fluid, as required by 49 U.S.C. 30111(a). 
NHTSA notes that it will not hesitate to exercise its defect and recall 
authority should any windshield washing system fail and create an 
unreasonable risk to safety.\3\
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    \3\ 49 U.S.C. 30118.
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B. The Petitioner Fails To Demonstrate That a Standardized Winter-
Specification Windshield Washer Fluid Would Effectively Address an 
Unmet Motor Vehicle Safety Need

    Even if an unmet motor vehicle safety need exists, the Safety Act 
requires that an FMVSS meet the motor vehicle safety need.\4\ The 
petitioner states that reduced or zero windshield visibility can cause 
accidents resulting in bodily injury and fatalities. The petitioner 
then suggests that an easily implemented solution to solve this problem 
is the elimination of summer-specification windshield washer fluid and 
standardization of winter-specification windshield washer fluid. 
However, the petitioner's primary support for this suggestion is a 
personal anecdotal description of an incident in which the petitioner 
states his windshield washer fluid froze in cold temperatures, 
obscuring his windshield's visibility and requiring him to pull over 
and wait for his windshield defroster system to thaw the frozen washer 
fluid. The petitioner states his belief that this incident occurred 
because summer-specification windshield washer fluid was added to his 
car's washer fluid reservoir in a warmer state and froze after he 
returned to a colder climate. Other than this personal anecdote, the 
petitioner provides no supporting data or research linking frozen 
windshield washer fluid to crashes or fatalities to demonstrate that 
banning summer-specification windshield washer fluid and mandating 
standardized winter-specification windshield washer fluid would 
effectively prevent fatalities or injuries. Further, the petitioner 
provides no supporting data substantiating the scope of the alleged 
safety issue, nor any evidence that the proposed solution would remedy 
the alleged safety issue. Absent such supporting data or evidence, 
NHTSA cannot find that requiring year-round standardized winter-
specification windshield fluid would effectively prevent fatalities and 
injuries.
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    \4\ Id.
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IV. Conclusion

    For the foregoing reasons NHTSA is denying the petition based on 
the lack of sufficient information and evidence discussed above. The 
petitioner has not demonstrated a safety need and a solution that would 
justify NHTSA reallocating its limited resources from rulemakings that 
are mandated by Congress and others that have a demonstrated safety 
need with solutions available to resolve those needs.

    Authority: 49 U.S.C. 322, 30111, 30115, 30117 and 30166; 
delegation of authority at 49 CFR 1.95.

    Issued in Washington, DC, under authority delegated in 49 CFR 
1.95, 501.5, and 501.8.
Raymond R. Posten,
Associate Administrator for Rulemaking.
[FR Doc. 2024-18714 Filed 8-21-24; 8:45 am]
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