[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 123 (Thursday, June 26, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 34492-34494]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-16751]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
[Docket No. 96-119; Notice 2]
Accuride Corporation; Grant of Application for Decision of
Inconsequential Noncompliance
This notice grants the application by Accuride Corporation
(Accuride) to be exempted from the notification and remedy requirements
of 49 U.S.C. 30118 and 30120 for a noncompliance with 49 CFR 571.120,
Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 120, ``Tire Selection
and Rims for Motor Vehicles Other Than Passenger Cars.'' The basis
[[Page 34493]]
of the grant is that the noncompliance is inconsequential to motor
vehicle safety.
Notice of receipt of the application was published on March 7,
1997, and an opportunity afforded for comment (62 FR 10617).
Paragraph S5.2(a) of FMVSS No. 120 requires rims to be marked with
a designation which indicates the source of the rim's published nominal
dimension. Paragraph S5.2(c) requires the rim to be marked with the
symbol DOT, constituting a certification by the manufacturer of the rim
that the rim complies with all applicable motor vehicle safety
standards.
Accuride's description of the noncompliance follows:
The motor vehicle equipment in issue are certain 22.5 &
24.5x8.25 inch, 15 deg. drop center, one-piece, tubeless dual wheels
produced by Kaiser Aluminum and Chemical Corporation at its Erie,
Pennsylvania, forging plant and machined at Ultra Forge, Inc. at
Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. These wheels are designed and marketed by
Accuride Corporation, a division of Phelps Dodge Corporation, under
the brand name Accu-Forge. These wheels were sent to original
equipment manufacturers and would be normal equipment on Class 8
conventional, over the highway trucks and their trailers. A total of
1,256 wheels were produced on line 4 between January 6, 1997, and
January 10, 1997. 682 of these wheels were set aside to go through
the polishing line and were then stamped later before shipment. The
total number of suspect wheels is 574, date stamped December 23,
1996, January 6, 7, 8, or 9, 1997. Six wheels manufactured December
23, 1996 were also stamped during this time frame. 96 of these
wheels were located in the plant and corrected, 478 were shipped.
100% of the 476 wheels shipped contain this condition described
below.
These wheels are the subject of a noncompliance because of a[n]
incorrect stamping of the rim marking. These wheels are 22.5 &
24.5x8.25 inch, 15 deg. tubeless wheels made from a single-piece
aluminum forging. They are manufactured correctly in accordance with
the Accuride specification. However, the symbol ``DOT'' and the
designation which indicates the source of the rim's published
nominal dimensions, in this case ``T'', were not included. All other
stampings specified by Federal Motor Vehicle Safety 120 and by
Accuride, including the part number and the load rating, were
correctly stamped on the product. On January 6, 1997 the rim
stamping equipment on line 4 was replaced. The new equipment was set
up without the complete stamping as stated above. On January 13,
this condition was noted and corrected.
On January 13, Kaiser notified Accuride that a quantity of
wheels had been shipped to customers without the symbols ``DOT-T''.
On January 15, Accuride was notified that 478 wheels had been
shipped to three separate customers. On January 17, Ms. Patricia
Wallace at NHTSA was notified.
Accuride supported its application for an inconsequential
noncompliance with the following:
1. Accuride Corporation is a Delaware corporation and is a
subsidiary of Phelps Dodge Corporation. Accuride is headquartered in
Henderson, Kentucky and is a major manufacturer of truck rims and
wheels.
2. The motor vehicle equipment in question are a small number of
Accu-Forge 22.5 & 24.5x8.25 inch, 15 deg. drop center, one-piece
tubeless dual wheels produced by Kaiser Aluminum and Chemical
Corporation at its Erie, Pennsylvania, forging plant and machined at
Ultra Forge, Inc. in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. In issue are an estimated
478 of the total 1,256 wheels of this size produced between January
6, 1997 and January 10, 1997. Six wheels manufactured December 23,
1996 were also stamped during this time frame. The non-compliance
relates to the mis-stamping of the marking of the rim. The symbol
``DOT'' and the designation which indicates the source of the rim's
published nominal dimensions, in this case ``T'', were not included.
All other stampings and markings required by FMVSS 120 and Accuride,
including the part number and load rating, are correctly identified
on each of the components in questions.
3. The rim marking is for information only and there is no
safety-related issue potentially arising from the exclusion of these
symbols on the wheels.
No comments were received on the application.
The agency has reviewed the Accurride application and agrees that
the noncompliance is inconsequential to motor vehicle safety. Between
January 6, 1997, and January 10, 1997, Accurride manufactured an
estimated 478 Accu-Forge 22.5 & 24.5x8.25 inch, 15 degree drop center,
one-piece tubeless dual wheel rims that were not stamped with two of
the markings required in FMVSS No. 120. Six wheels manufactured
December 23, 1996, were also stamped during this time frame. All of the
other applicable markings are on the rim.
Accuride stated the noncompliance is inconsequential to safety
because ``the omitted stamping of ``DOT-T'' is only for information and
there is no safety-related issue potentially arising from the deletion
of this symbol.'' The agency disagrees in part with Accuride's
argument, although it believes the noncompliance is inconsequential to
motor vehicle safety. The labeling requirement is not ``only for
information.'' Since August 1976, FMVSS No. 120 has required rims to be
marked with five items of information: the size designation (and, in
the case of multipiece rims, the type designation), an indication of
the source of the rim's nominal dimensions, and the DOT symbol which
must appear on the weather side, while identification of the
manufacturer and date of manufacture may appear at any place on the
rim's surface. FMVSS No. 120 established a set of code letters to
indicate the required five items of information to reduce the
possibility of confusion and to minimize the number of characters
stamped on the rim. The symbol ``DOT'' constitutes certification by the
manufacturer of the rim that the rim complies with applicable motor
vehicle safety standards. The symbol ``T'' indicates that the rim's
nominal dimensions are in accordance with the U. S.-based ``The Tire
and Rim Association.'' Thus, the exclusion of information on the tire
rim can be significant. The labeling of motor vehicle tires and rims
with the information required by regulations and the Federal Motor
Vehicle Safety Standards benefits motor vehicle manufacturers and
consumers. Primarily, these labeling requirements help ensure that the
tires are mounted on appropriate rims and that the rims and tires are
mounted on vehicles for which they were intended. If tires and rims
were not labeled, mismatching of tire and rim sizes would likely occur.
This occurrence could often result in poor tire performance, and may
cause tire and rim separation or tire blowouts from an overload.
However, the rims identified in this application are designated for use
on Class 8 vehicles; thereby, eliminating the likelihood that an
unskilled consumer would misapply the rims.
NHTSA's decision to grant Accuride's application is also based on
the fact that all other informational tire markings required by FMVSS
No. 120, particularly the rim type designation, are on the rims, and
correctly marked. Although NHTSA traditionally considers failure to
mark ``DOT'' as a failure to certify under 49 Part 567-Certification
rather than a failure to comply with a FMVSS, the absence of the
``DOT'' symbol will not compromise motor vehicle safety.
Accordingly, for the reasons expressed above, the applicant has met
its burden of persuasion that the noncompliance herein described is
inconsequential as it relates to motor vehicle safety, and the agency
grants Accuride's application for exemption from notification of the
noncompliance as required by 49 U.S.C. 30118 and from remedy as
required by 49 U.S.C. 30120.
(49 U.S.C. 30118, 30120; delegations of authority at 49 CFR 1.50 and
501.8)
(49 U.S.C. 30118, 30120; delegations of authority at 49 CFR 1.50 and
501.8)
[[Page 34494]]
Issued on: June 20, 1997.
L. Robert Shelton,
Associate Administrator for Safety Performance Standards.
[FR Doc. 97-16751 Filed 6-25-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-59-P
