99-31618. General Motors Corporation; Grant of Application for Decision of Inconsequential Noncompliance  

  • [Federal Register Volume 64, Number 234 (Tuesday, December 7, 1999)]
    [Notices]
    [Pages 68409-68410]
    From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
    [FR Doc No: 99-31618]
    
    
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    DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
    
    National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
    [Docket No. NHTSA-99-6034; Notice 2]
    
    
    General Motors Corporation; Grant of Application for Decision of 
    Inconsequential Noncompliance
    
        General Motors Corporation (GM) of Warren, Michigan, has determined 
    that a number of 1998 bi-fueled compressed natural gas (CNG) Chevrolet 
    Cavaliers do not meet the requirements of S5.3 and S5.4 of 49 CFR 
    571.303, Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 303, ``Fuel 
    System Integrity of Compressed Natural Gas Vehicles,'' and has filed an 
    appropriate report pursuant to 49 CFR Part 573, ``Defects and 
    Noncompliance Reports.'' GM has also applied to be exempted from the 
    notification and remedy requirements of 49 U.S.C. Chapter 301--``Motor 
    Vehicle Safety'' on the basis that the noncompliance is inconsequential 
    to motor vehicle safety.
        Notice of receipt of the application was published, with a 30-day 
    comment period, on August 6, 1999, in the Federal Register (64 FR 
    43011). NHTSA received no comments on this application during the 30-
    day comment period.
        FMVSS No. 303, S5.3 requires that CNG vehicles shall be permanently 
    labeled, near the vehicle refueling connection, with the information 
    specified in S5.3.1 and S5.3.2.
        S5.3.1 requires the statement: ``Service pressure ________ kPa 
    (________ psig),'' and S5.3.2 requires the statement ``See instructions 
    on fuel container for inspection and service life.''
        S5.4 requires that, when a motor vehicle is delivered to the first 
    purchaser for purposes other than resale, the manufacturer shall 
    provide the purchaser with a written statement of the information in 
    S5.3.1 and S5.3.2 in the owner's manual, or, if there is no owner's 
    manual, on a one-page document.
        GM has notified us that in model year 1998, it manufactured 385 bi-
    fueled CNG Chevrolet Cavaliers that did not fully comply with the 
    labeling requirements specified in 49 CFR 571.303. GM stated that the 
    noncompliance consists of deviations from the wording required on the 
    CNG vehicle label and in the owner's manual. These deviations are 
    illustrated below.
        GM explained that an out-of-date version of FMVSS No. 303, which 
    did not contain specific requirements, was used by the supplier that 
    prepared the label and owner's manual supplement. As a result, the CNG 
    vehicle label applied near the refueling connection, and the owner's 
    manual for the subject vehicles, did not contain the exact statements 
    required by FMVSS No. 303, S5.3 and S5.4.
        The required words and actual words used by GM are shown as 
    follows:
    
    ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
          FMVSS paragraph                  Required Label Wording                '98 CNG Cavalier label wording
    ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    S5.3.......................  SERVICE PRESSURE 24820 kPa (3600 psig)...  3600 PSI SYSTEM OPERATING PRESSURE.
    S5.3.......................  SEE INSTRUCTIONS ON FUEL CONTAINER FOR     SEE CNG OWNERS MANUAL SUPPLEMENT FOR
                                  INSPECTION AND SERVICE LIFE.               FUEL TANK SERVICE LIFE.
    ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    
    
    ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
          FMVSS paragraph             Required owner's manual wording        '98 CNG Cavalier owner's manual wording
    ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    S5.4.......................  SERVICE PRESSURE 24820 kPa (3600 psig)...  This system operates at pressures up to
                                                                             3600 PSI (24.8 MPa). (p. iv) The CNG
                                                                             fuel system is designed to use a fill
                                                                             pressure of 3,600 psi (24.8 MPa). (P. 6-
                                                                             3).
    S5.4.......................  SEE INSTRUCTIONS ON FUEL CONTAINER FOR     THE CNG FUEL TANK HAS A SERVICE LIFE OF
                                  INSPECTION AND SERVICE LIFE.               15 YEARS.
    ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    
        GM supported its application with the following arguments:
    
        GM believes that the labels and owner's manual supplement 
    information provided with these vehicles are responsive and 
    consistent with the rationale and intent of the requirements, even 
    though the exact words required by the standard are not used. The 
    actual labels and the owner's manual supplement provide equivalent 
    information required by FMVSS 303, S5.3 and S5.4. The CNG refueling 
    valve label clearly states the operating pressure and refers the 
    user to the owner's manual for information about tank service life. 
    Both the refueling valve and the underhood labels include the 
    service expiration date and the owners manual indicates the service 
    life, inspection information, and provide a form to record the 
    expiration date.
        Additionally, virtually all CNG refueling stations incorporate 
    an overfill protection system. Also, the subject vehicles are 
    equipped with a CNG container validated up to 200 percent of the 
    service pressure without leakage as required by FMVSS 304, S7.2.2 
    for such containers. GM has not received any reports of injuries or 
    property damage associated with overfilling of these vehicles and 
    believes it is extremely remote that these deviations from FMVSS 303 
    label and owner's manual requirements could contribute to an injury 
    or property damage incident.
        For all of these reasons, GM believes that this noncompliance is 
    inconsequential to motor vehicle safety. Accordingly, GM petitions 
    that it be exempted from the
    
    [[Page 68410]]
    
    remedy and recall provisions of the Motor Vehicle Safety Act in this 
    case.
    
        We have reviewed GM's arguments. The primary safety purpose of 
    labeling requirements in FMVSS No. 303 is to ensure that the vehicle 
    owner is aware (1) of the service pressure during refueling operations 
    and (2) that the CNG fuel container has a recommended inspection period 
    and a service life. NHTSA concludes that the labels and owner's manual 
    supplement information provided with these vehicles are consistent with 
    the rationale and intent of the labeling requirements in FMVSS No. 303, 
    even though the exact words required by the standard are not used.
        In consideration of the foregoing, NHTSA has decided that the 
    applicant has met its burden of persuasion that the noncompliance 
    described above is inconsequential to motor vehicle safety. 
    Accordingly, its application is granted, and the applicant is exempted 
    from providing the notification of the noncompliance that is required 
    by 49 U.S.C. 30118, and from remedying the noncompliance, as required 
    by 49 U.S.C. 30120.
        (49 U.S.C. 30118, 30120, with delegations of authority at 49 CFR 
    1.50 and 501.8).
    
        Issued on: December 1, 1999.
    Stephen R. Kratzke,
    Acting Associate Administrator for Safety Performance Standards.
    [FR Doc. 99-31618 Filed 12-6-99; 8:45 am]
    BILLING CODE 4910-59-P
    
    
    

Document Information

Published:
12/07/1999
Department:
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
Entry Type:
Notice
Document Number:
99-31618
Pages:
68409-68410 (2 pages)
Docket Numbers:
Docket No. NHTSA-99-6034, Notice 2
PDF File:
99-31618.pdf