[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 12 (Tuesday, January 20, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Page 2810]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-1132]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

[Docket No. NHTSA 2003-15690; Notice 2]


General Motors North America, Inc.; Grant of Application for 
Decision of Inconsequential Noncompliance

    General Motors North America, Inc. (GM) has determined that certain 
2001-2003 Oldsmobile Silhouettes and 2003 Pontiac Azteks did not meet 
requirement S5.2 of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 
120--``Tire Selection and Rims for Motor Vehicles Other Than Passenger 
Cars.''
    Pursuant to 49 U.S.C. 30118(d) and 30120(h), GM has petitioned for 
a determination that this noncompliance is inconsequential to motor 
vehicle safety and has filed an appropriate report pursuant to 49 CFR 
Part 573, ``Defect and Noncompliance Reports.''
    Notice of receipt of the application was published, with a 30-day 
comment period, on August 15, 2003 in the Federal Register (68 FR 
48992). NHTSA received no comments.
    GM produced 55,825 model year 2001-2003 Oldsmobile Silhouettes and 
15,343 model year 2003 Pontiac Azteks, totaling 71,168 vehicles. These 
vehicles are classified as multipurpose passenger vehicles (MPVs). 
According to GM, the rims fitted to the MPVs were originally released 
for use on passenger cars, and meet all the requirements of FMVSS No. 
110, ``Tire Selection and Rims--Passenger Cars.'' FMVSS No. 110 does 
not require marking the rims with either the designation of the source 
of the rims' dimensions or the symbol ``DOT.'' When the rims were 
subsequently released for use on the subject MPVs, they were evaluated 
for the alternative usage with respect to performance requirements, but 
they inadvertently were not reviewed with respect to the marking 
requirements of FMVSS No. 120. These rims meet all requirements of 
FMVSS No. 120, except the marking requirements of S5.2(a) and S5.2(c), 
which require the designation of the source of the rims' dimensions, 
and use of the symbol ``DOT,'' respectively.
    Paragraph S5.2 of FMVSS No. 120 requires that each rim be marked 
with specific information, including a designation indicating the 
source of the rim's published nominal dimensions and the symbol 
``DOT,'' constituting a certification by the manufacturer of the rim 
that the rim complies with all applicable motor vehicle safety 
standards.
    The agency concludes that the noncompliance is inconsequential to 
motor vehicle safety. All other informational markings including the 
correct rim size designation, as required by FMVSS No. 120, are 
present. While the absence of the letter ``T'' could increase the 
possibility of mismatching rims to tires, GM stated and the agency 
verified that the dimensions of these rims, as published in the Tire 
and Rim Association Yearbook (T), and by European Tyre and Rim 
Technical Organisation and the Japan Automobile Tire Manufacturers 
Association, Inc., are essentially identical. In addition, the rims of 
the affected vehicles are properly matched and appropriate with respect 
to all performance requirements and the vehicle placards correctly 
indicate the rim sizes.
    In consideration of the foregoing, NHTSA has decided that the 
applicant has met its burden of persuasion that the noncompliance it 
describes is inconsequential to motor vehicle safety. Accordingly, GM's 
application is hereby granted, and the applicant is exempted from the 
obligation of providing notification of, and a remedy for, the 
noncompliance.

    Authority: (49 U.S.C. 301118, 301120; delegations of authority 
at 49 CFR 1.50 and 501.8).

    Issued on: January 14, 2004.
Stephen R. Kratzke,
Associate Administrator for Rulemaking.
[FR Doc. 04-1132 Filed 1-16-04; 8:45 am]
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