[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 98 (Tuesday, May 21, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 29810-29811]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-12064]



[[Page 29810]]

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 DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

[Docket No. NHTSA-2013-0061; Notice 1]


Receipt of Petition for Decision That Nonconforming 2003 BMW K 
1200 GT Motorcycles Are Eligible for Importation

AGENCY: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, DOT.

ACTION: Notice of receipt.

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SUMMARY: This document announces receipt by the National Highway 
Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) of a petition for a decision that 
2003 BMW K 1200 GT Motorcycles that were not originally manufactured to 
comply with all applicable Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards 
(FMVSS) are eligible for importation into the United States because (1) 
they are substantially similar to vehicles that were originally 
manufactured for sale in the United States and that were certified by 
their manufacturer as complying with the safety standards, and (2) they 
are capable of being readily altered to conform to the standards.

DATES: The closing date for comments on the petition is June 20, 2013.

ADDRESSES: Comments should refer to the docket and notice numbers above 
and be submitted by any of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the online instructions for submitting 
comments.
     Mail: Docket Management Facility: U.S. Department of 
Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., West Building Ground Floor, 
Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590-0001.
     Hand Delivery or Courier: West Building Ground Floor, Room 
W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. ET, 
Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.
     Fax: 202-493-2251.
    Instructions: Comments must be written in the English language, and 
be no greater than 15 pages in length, although there is no limit to 
the length of necessary attachments to the comments. If comments are 
submitted in hard copy form, please ensure that two copies are 
provided. If you wish to receive confirmation that your comments were 
received, please enclose a stamped, self-addressed postcard with the 
comments. Note that all comments received will be posted without change 
to http://www.regulations.gov, including any personal information 
provided. Please see the Privacy Act heading below.
    Privacy Act: Anyone is able to search the electronic form of all 
comments received into any of our dockets by the name of the individual 
submitting the comment (or signing the comment, if submitted on behalf 
of an association, business, labor union, etc.). You may review DOT's 
complete Privacy Act Statement in the Federal Register published on 
April 11, 2000 (65 FR 19477-78).
    How to Read Comments submitted to the Docket: You may read the 
comments received by Docket Management at the address and times given 
above. You may also view the documents from the Internet at http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the online instructions for accessing the 
dockets. The docket ID number and title of this notice are shown at the 
heading of this document notice. Please note that even after the 
comment closing date, we will continue to file relevant information in 
the Docket as it becomes available. Further, some people may submit 
late comments. Accordingly, we recommend that you periodically search 
the Docket for new material.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Coleman Sachs, Office of Vehicle 
Safety Compliance, NHTSA (202-366-3151).

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 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 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.
    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.
    Wallace Environmental Testing Laboratories, Inc (``WETL''), of 
Houston, Texas (Registered Importer R-09-005) has petitioned NHTSA to 
decide whether non-U.S. certified 2003 BMW K 1200 GT motorcycles are 
eligible for importation into the United States. The vehicles that WETL 
believes are substantially similar are 2003 BMW K 1200 GT motorcycles 
that were manufactured for sale in the United States and certified by 
their manufacturer as conforming to all applicable FMVSS.
    The petitioner claims that it carefully compared non-U.S. certified 
2003 BMW K 1200 GT motorcycles to their U.S. certified counterparts, 
and found the vehicles to be substantially similar with respect to 
compliance with most FMVSS.
    WETL submitted information with its petition intended to 
demonstrate that non-U.S. certified 2003 BMW K 1200 GT motorcycles, as 
originally manufactured, conform to many FMVSS in the same manner as 
their U.S. certified counterparts, or are capable of being readily 
altered to conform to those standards. Specifically, the petitioner 
claims that non-U.S. certified 2003 BMW K 1200 GT motorcycles are 
identical to their U.S. certified counterparts with respect to 
compliance with Standard Nos. 106 Brake Hoses, 116 Brake Fluid, 119 New 
Pneumatic Tires for Vehicles other than Passenger Cars, 122 Motorcycle 
Brake Systems, 205 Glazing Materials.
    The petitioner further contends that the vehicles are capable of 
being readily altered to meet the following standards, in the manner 
indicated below:
    Standard No. 108 Lamps, Reflective Devices and Associated 
Equipment: installation of the following U.S.-certified components: 
front amber reflectors, rear red reflectors, and front running lights.
    Standard No. 111 Rearview Mirrors: installation of U.S.-model 
mirrors.
    Standard No. 120 Tire Selection and Rims for Vehicles other than 
Passenger Cars: installation of a tire information placard and 
inspection of each vehicle to assure compliance with rim marking 
requirements.
    Standard No. 123 Motorcycle Controls and Displays: installation of 
a U.S.-model speedometer/odometer unit.
    WETL further states that labels will be affixed to conform to the 
requirements of 49 CFR part 567: Certification.
    All comments received before the close of business on the closing 
date indicated above will be considered, and will be available for 
examination in the docket at the above addresses both before and after 
that date. To the extent possible, comments filed after the closing 
date will also be considered.

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Notice of final action on the petition will be published in the Federal 
Register pursuant to the authority indicated below.

    Authority:  49 U.S.C. 30141(a)(1)(A) and (b)(1); 49 CFR 593.8; 
delegations of authority at 49 CFR 1.95 and 501.8.

    Issued On: May 14, 2013.
Claude H. Harris,
Director, Office of Vehicle Safety Compliance.
[FR Doc. 2013-12064 Filed 5-20-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-59-P