[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 223 (Tuesday, November 19, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 69809-69810]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-29230]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

[Docket No. NHTSA-2002-10175; Notice 2]


Decision That Nonconforming 2001 Mercedes Benz Gelaendewagen 5-
Door Long Wheel Base Multipurpose Passenger Vehicles Are Eligible for 
Importation

AGENCY: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of decision by NHTSA that nonconforming 2001 Mercedes 
Benz Gelaendewagen 5-door long wheel base multipurpose passenger 
vehicles (MPVs) are eligible for importation.

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SUMMARY: This notice announces the decision by NHTSA that 2001 Mercedes 
Benz Gelaendewagen 5-door long wheel base MPVs not originally 
manufactured to comply with all applicable Federal motor vehicle safety 
standards are eligible for importation into the United States because 
they have safety features that comply with, or are capable of being 
altered to comply with, all applicable Federal motor vehicle safety 
standards.

DATES: This decision is effective as of the date of its publication in 
the Federal Register.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Luke Loy, Office of Vehicle Safety 
Compliance, NHTSA (202-366-5308).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    Under 49 U.S.C. 30141(a)(1)(A), a motor vehicle that was not 
originally manufactured to conform to all applicable Federal motor 
vehicle safety standards (``FMVSS'') shall be refused admission into 
the United States unless NHTSA has decided that the motor vehicle is 
substantially similar to a motor vehicle originally manufactured for 
importation into and sale in the United States, certified under 49 
U.S.C. 30115, and of the same model year as the model of the motor 
vehicle to be compared, and is capable of being readily altered to 
conform to all applicable FMVSS.
    Where there is no substantially similar U.S.-certified motor 
vehicle, 49 U.S.C. 30141(a)(1)(B) permits a nonconforming motor vehicle 
to be admitted into the United States if its safety features comply 
with, or are capable of being altered to comply with, all applicable 
FMVSS based on destructive test data or such other evidence as NHTSA 
decides to be adequate.
    Petitions for eligibility decisions may be submitted by either 
manufacturers or importers who have registered with NHTSA pursuant to 
49 CFR part 592. As specified in 49 CFR 593.7, NHTSA publishes notice 
in the Federal Register of each petition that it receives, and affords 
interested persons an opportunity to comment on the petition. At the 
close of the comment period, NHTSA decides, on the basis of the 
petition and any comments that it has received, whether the vehicle is 
eligible for importation. The agency then publishes this decision in 
the Federal Register.
    J.K. Technologies, LLC, of Baltimore, MD, (``J.K.'') (Registered 
Importer 90-006) petitioned NHTSA to decide whether 2001 Mercedes Benz 
Gelaendewagen MPVs are eligible for importation into the United States. 
NHTSA published notice of the petition on August 1, 2001 (66 FR 39823) 
to afford an opportunity for public comment. The reader is referred to 
that notice for a thorough description of the petition.
    One comment was received in response to the notice of the petition, 
from the Original Automobile Manufacturers' Association of Concord, New 
Hampshire. This comment was signed by a James Linder, who identified 
himself as President of the organization. The comment questioned the 
adequacy of the documentation submitted by J.K. to demonstrate that the 
2001 Mercedes Benz Gelaendewagen MPV complies with, or is capable of 
being altered to comply with, a number of FMVSSs. The comment 
recommended that the NHTSA engineer responsible for each of the 
standards cited (Standard Nos. 103, 104, 105, 108, 113, 114, 118, 124, 
201, 202, 204, 206, 207, 208, 209, 210, 212, 214, 216, 219, 301, and 
302, as well as the Federal Bumper Standard found in 49 CFR Part 581) 
review the data submitted by J.K. to determine whether it is sufficient 
to certify the compliance of the 2001 Mercedes Benz Gelaendewagen MPV 
with the standard. After receiving this comment, NHTSA learned that the 
names of both the organization that purportedly submitted it, and the 
individual who signed it, are fictitious. In light of this 
circumstance, as well as the fact that the comment essentially offers 
little more than suggestions to guide the agency in its review of the 
petition, we have concluded that it does not merit further discussion 
in this document. We do note, however, that in processing import 
eligibility petitions, the agency does obtain, when necessary, input of 
the kind the comment

[[Page 69810]]

recommended from its professional engineering staff.
    After initially reviewing the petition, the agency informed J.K., 
by letter dated December 7, 2001, that it had submitted insufficient 
test data to demonstrate that the 2001 Mercedes Benz Gelaendewagen MPV 
complies with, or is capable of being altered to comply with, Standard 
Nos. 105 Hydraulic Brake Systems, 208 Occupant Crash Protection, 214 
Side Impact Protection, and 301 Fuel System Integrity. The letter asked 
J.K. how it intended to bring the vehicle into compliance with these 
standards.
    In lieu of responding to this request, J.K. asked the agency, by 
letter dated January 24, 2002, to disregard and destroy the data 
submitted in support of its original petition, and to process the 
petition instead under 49 U.S.C. 30141(a)(1)(A), on the basis that 
there is a U.S.-certified version of the vehicle. J.K. identified that 
vehicle as the 2002 Gelaendewagen Type 463 MPV (identified in the 
letter as the ``G500 model'') that Mercedes-Benz had begun to import 
into the United States. The letter asserted that this was an 
appropriate comparative vehicle because the vehicle that was the 
subject of the petition was actually produced after some of the 
vehicles that Mercedes had been importing with a 2002 model year 
designation.
    The agency next received an inquiry concerning the status of the 
petition from an individual who identified himself as a client of 
J.K.'s. The individual stated that he had contracted with J.K. for the 
importation of a 3-door short wheel base convertible version of the 
2001 Mercedes Benz Gelaendewagen. The agency subsequently learned from 
Mercedes Benz North America that the only model year 2002 Gelaendewagen 
being offered for sale in the United States is the 5-door long wheel 
base version of the vehicle. Based on this information, the agency 
asked J.K. to clarify which versions of the vehicle were covered by its 
petition, and to modify the petition if J.K. intended it to cover both 
long wheel base and short wheel base versions. J.K. responded, by 
letter dated April 15, 2002, that it intended the petition to cover all 
versions of the 2001 Mercedes Benz Gelaendewagen.
    The agency then informed J.K., by letter dated May 15, 2002, that 
due to the 18-inch wheelbase difference and weight difference between 
the short wheel base and long wheel base versions of the vehicle, as 
well as the body difference with regard to the convertible model, the 
compliance of the 5-door long wheel base version with Standard Nos. 
201, 204, 208, 210, 214, 216, and 301 does not necessarily demonstrate 
compliance of the 3-door short wheel base and convertible versions with 
those standards. The agency accordingly asked J.K. to supply it with 
additional information substantiating that the 3-door short wheel base 
and convertible models of the vehicle comply with those standards if 
J.K. wished the agency to construe the petition as applying to all 
three models. J.K. responded by letter dated August 12, 2002, 
requesting the agency to process the petition as applicable to the 5-
door long wheel base version of the 2001 Gelaendewagen alone. J.K. 
stated that it would later submit separate petitions covering the other 
versions of the vehicle.
    Since there was no substantially similar U.S.-certified version of 
the 2001 Mercedes Benz Gelaendewagen, 49 U.S.C. 30141(a)(1)(B) provides 
the only basis for the agency to decide that the vehicle is eligible 
for importation. As previously noted, that section permits a 
nonconforming motor vehicle to be admitted into the United States if 
its safety features comply with, or are capable of being altered to 
comply with, all applicable FMVSS based on destructive test or such 
other evidence as NHTSA decides to be adequate. In this instance, the 
fact that there is a U.S.-certified counterpart for the 5-door long 
wheel base version of the 2002 model Mercedes Benz Gelaendewagen has 
led the agency to conclude that the non-U.S. certified 5-door long 
wheel base model built in 2001 has safety features that comply with, or 
are capable of being altered to comply with, all applicable FMVSS. In 
light of this circumstance, the agency has decided to grant import 
eligibility to that model.

Vehicle Eligibility Number for Subject Vehicles

    The importer of a vehicle admissible under any final decision must 
indicate on the form HS-7 accompanying entry the appropriate vehicle 
eligibility number indicating that the vehicle is eligible for entry. 
VCP-21 is the vehicle eligibility number assigned to vehicles 
admissible under this notice of final decision.

Final Decision

    Accordingly, on the basis of the foregoing, NHTSA hereby decides 
that 2001 Mercedes Benz Gelaendewagen 5-door long wheel base 
multipurpose passenger vehicles that were not originally manufactured 
to comply with all applicable Federal motor vehicle safety standards 
are eligible for importation into the United States because they have 
safety features that comply with, or are capable of being altered to 
comply with, all applicable Federal motor vehicle safety standards.

    Authority: 49 U.S.C. 30141(a)(1)(B) and (b)(1); 49 CFR 593.8; 
delegations of authority at 49 CFR 1.50 and 501.8.

    Issued on: November 13, 2002.
Marilynne Jacobs,
Director, Office of Vehicle Safety Compliance.
[FR Doc. 02-29230 Filed 11-18-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-59-P