[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 8 (Friday, January 12, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Page 1575]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-316]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

[Docket No. NHTSA 2002006-25975; Notice 2]


American Honda Motor Co., Inc., Grant of Petition for Decision of 
Inconsequential Noncompliance

    American Honda Motor Co., Inc. (Honda) has determined that the 
certification labels for certain Pilot trucks that it produced in 2006 
do not comply with S5.3 of 49 CFR 571.120, 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), Honda 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 a petition was published, 
with a 30-day comment period, on October 4, 2006, in the Federal 
Register (71 FR 58660). NHTSA received no comments.
    Affected are a total of approximately 23,000 model year 2006 and 
2007 Honda Pilot trucks produced between February 17, 2006 and August 
10, 2006. S5.3.2 of FMVSS No. 120 requires that the vehicles shall show 
the size designation appropriate for the tires. The noncompliant 
vehicles have certification labels stating that the rim size is 6 
inches, when in fact the rim size is 16 inches. Honda has corrected the 
problem that caused these errors so that they will not be repeated in 
future production.
    Honda believes that the noncompliance is inconsequential to motor 
vehicle safety and that no corrective action is warranted. Honda 
presents the following basis for its petition. Most vehicle owners, 
dealers, and tire service technicians would refer to the vehicles' 
existing tires and/or the separate Tire Placard to determine the 
appropriate size for a replacement tire rather than to the 
Certification Label. If the vehicle owner, dealer or tire service 
technician read the incorrect rim size on the certification label, it 
would be obvious that a full size vehicle could not use 6 inch wheels. 
The owner's manual contains the correct rim size information. The 
correct rim size is cast into the wheel itself.
    NHTSA agrees with Honda that the noncompliance is inconsequential 
to motor vehicle safety. It would be obvious that a full size vehicle 
could not be supported by 6 inch wheels. The correct size information 
is available in the owner's manual, and on the wheel itself, in order 
to determine the correct size for replacement wheels and tires.
    In consideration of the foregoing, NHTSA has decided that the 
petitioner has met its burden of persuasion that the noncompliance 
described is inconsequential to motor vehicle safety. Accordingly, 
Honda's petition is granted and the petitioner is exempted from the 
obligation of providing notification of, and a remedy for, the 
noncompliance.

(Authority: 49 U.S.C. 30118, 30120; delegations of authority at CFR 
1.50 and 501.8).

    Issued on: January 8, 2007.
Daniel C. Smith,
Associate Administrator for Enforcement.
 [FR Doc. E7-316 Filed 1-11-07; 8:45 am]
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