[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 167 (Wednesday, August 28, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 45208-45209]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-18522]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

[Docket No. NHTSA-2019-0007; Notice 1]


Pirelli Tire, LLC, Receipt of Petition for Decision of 
Inconsequential Noncompliance

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

ACTION: Receipt of petition.

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SUMMARY: Pirelli Tire, LLC (Pirelli), has determined that certain 
Pirelli P Zero replacement tires do not comply with Federal Motor 
Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 139, New Pneumatic Radial Tires for 
Light Vehicles. Pirelli filed a noncompliance report dated November 19, 
2018, and subsequently petitioned NHTSA on December 14, 2018, for a 
decision that the subject noncompliance is inconsequential as it 
relates to motor vehicle safety. This notice announces receipt of 
Pirelli's petition.

DATES: Send comments on or before September 27, 2019.

ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit written data, 
views, and arguments on this petition. Comments must refer to the 
docket and notice number cited in the title of this notice and may be 
submitted by any of the following methods:
     Mail: Send comments by mail addressed to the U.S. 
Department of Transportation, Docket Operations, M-30, West Building 
Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 
20590.
     Hand Delivery: Deliver comments by hand to the U.S. 
Department of Transportation, Docket Operations, M-30, West Building 
Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 
20590. The Docket Section is open on weekdays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. 
except for Federal Holidays.
     Electronically: Submit comments electronically by logging 
onto the Federal Docket Management System (FDMS) website at https://www.regulations.gov/. Follow the online instructions for submitting 
comments.
     Comments may also be faxed to (202) 493-2251.
    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 comments you have submitted by mail were 
received, please enclose a stamped, self-addressed postcard with the 
comments. Note that all comments received will be posted without change 
to https://www.regulations.gov, including any personal information 
provided.
    All comments and supporting materials received before the close of 
business on the closing date indicated above will be filed in the 
docket and will be considered. All comments and supporting materials 
received after the closing date will also be filed and will be 
considered to the fullest extent possible.
    When the petition is granted or denied, notice of the decision will 
also be published in the Federal Register pursuant to the authority 
indicated at the end of this notice.
    All comments, background documentation, and supporting materials 
submitted to the docket may be viewed by anyone at the address and 
times given above. The documents may also be viewed on the internet at 
https://www.regulations.gov by following the online instructions for 
accessing the dockets. The docket ID number for this petition is shown 
in the heading of this notice.
    DOT's complete Privacy Act Statement is available for review in a 
Federal Register notice published on April 11, 2000 (65 FR 19477-78).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    I. Overview: Pirelli has determined that certain Pirelli P Zero 
replacement tires do not fully comply with paragraphs S5.5(e) and (f) 
of FMVSS No. 139, New Pneumatic Radial Tires for Light Vehicles (49 CFR 
571.139). Pirelli filed a noncompliance report dated November 19, 2018, 
pursuant to 49 CFR part 573, Defect and Noncompliance

[[Page 45209]]

Responsibility and Reports, and subsequently petitioned NHTSA on 
December 14, 2018, for an exemption from the notification and remedy 
requirement of 49 U.S.C. Chapter 301 on the basis that this 
noncompliance is inconsequential as it relates to motor vehicle safety, 
pursuant to 49 U.S.C. 30118(d) and 30120(h) and 49 CFR part 556, 
Exemption for Inconsequential Defect or Noncompliance.
    This notice of receipt of Pirelli's petition is published under 49 
U.S.C. 30118 and 30120 and does not represent any agency decision or 
other exercise of judgment concerning the merits of the petition.
    II. Equipment Involved: Approximately 28 Pirelli P Zero replacement 
tires, size 265/45R21 104W, manufactured between July 10, 2018, and 
August 08, 2018, are potentially involved.
    III. Noncompliance: Pirelli explains that the noncompliance is due 
to a mold error, and that as a result, the number of tread plies 
indicated on the sidewall of the subject tires does not match the 
actual number of plies in the tire construction as required by 
paragraphs S5.5(e) and (f) of FMVSS No. 139. Specifically, the tires 
were marked ``Tread: 2 Polyester 2 Steel 1 Polyamide; Sidewall: 1 
Polyamide'' when they should have been marked ``Tread: 2 Polyester 2 
Steel 1 Polyamide; Sidewall: 2 Polyester.''
    IV. Rule Requirements: Paragraphs S5.5(e) and (f) of FMVSS No. 139 
provide the requirements relevant to this petition. Each tire must be 
marked on each sidewall with the information specified in paragraphs 
S5.5(a) through (d) and on one sidewall with the information specified 
in S5.5(e) through (i) according to the phase-in schedule specified in 
paragraph S7 of FMVSS No. 139. Specifically, each tire should be marked 
with the generic name of each cord material used in the plies (both 
sidewall and tread area) of the tire and the actual number of plies in 
the sidewall, and the actual number of plies in the tread area, if 
different.
    V. Summary of Petition: Pirelli described the subject noncompliance 
and stated its belief that the noncompliance is inconsequential as it 
relates to motor vehicle safety.
    In support of its petition, Pirelli submitted the following 
reasoning:
    1. The subject tires comply with the performance requirements and 
all other marking requirements of FMVSS No. 139.
    2. The tire construction information for the subject tires have 
been corrected in Pirelli's centralized R&D system that creates the 
drawings used in manufacturing the tire molds. Pirelli is in the 
process of correcting the subject molds before they are used for future 
production.
    3. Pirelli cited the agency as saying that it ``believes that one 
measure of inconsequentiality to motor vehicle safety, in this case, is 
that there is no effect of the noncompliance on the operational safety 
of vehicles on which these tires are mounted. The safety of people 
working in the tire retread, repair, and recycling industries must also 
be considered and is a measure of inconsequentiality.'' See 83 FR 36668 
(July 30, 2018) (Grant of petition for determination of inconsequential 
noncompliance for Continental tires, for tire marked with the incorrect 
number of tread plies).
    4. Pirelli stated that the subject Pirelli tires were manufactured 
as designed and meet or exceed all applicable FMVSS No. 139 performance 
standards. Furthermore, all of the sidewall markings related to tire 
service (load capacity, corresponding inflation pressure, etc.) are 
correct and the tires correctly show that they contain tread plies. 
Pirelli does not believe the mislabeling of these tires presents a 
safety concern for consumers or for the retreading and recycling 
personnel.
    5. Pirelli says that NHTSA has granted similar petitions involving 
tires manufactured by Cooper Tire and Goodyear (Dunlop). See 74 FR 
10804 (March 12, 2009), grant of petition submitted by Goodyear where 
tires were marked ``Tread 3 Polyester + 2 Steel,'' whereas the correct 
marking should have been ``Tread 2 Polyester + 2 Steel + 2 
Polyamide;.'' See 82 FR 17075 (April 7, 2017) grant of petition 
submitted by Cooper Tire & Rubber Company where tires were marked 
``TREAD 1 PLY NYLON + 2 PLY STEEL + 2 PLY POLYESTER,'' whereas the 
correct marking should have been ``TREAD 1 PLY NYLON + 2 PLY STEEL + 1 
PLY POLYESTER.'' See 83 FR 13002 (March 26, 2018), grant of petition 
submitted by Sumitomo Rubber Industries Ltd. where tires were marked 
``TREAD 5 PLIES STEEL'' whereas the correct marking should have been 
``TREAD 4 PLIES STEEL.''
    6. Pirelli is not aware of any warranty claims, field reports, 
customer complaints, legal claims, or any incidents or injuries related 
to the subject condition.
    Pirelli expressed the belief that the subject noncompliance is 
inconsequential as it relates to motor vehicle safety, and that its 
petition to be exempted from providing notification of the 
noncompliance, as required by 49 U.S.C. 30118, and a remedy for the 
noncompliance, as required by 49 U.S.C. 30120, should be granted.
    NHTSA notes that the statutory provisions (49 U.S.C. 30118(d) and 
30120(h)) that permit manufacturers to file petitions for a 
determination of inconsequentiality allow NHTSA to exempt manufacturers 
only from the duties found in sections 30118 and 30120, respectively, 
to notify owners, purchasers, and dealers of a defect or noncompliance 
and to remedy the defect or noncompliance. Therefore, any decision on 
this petition only applies to the subject equipment that Pirelli no 
longer controlled at the time it determined that the noncompliance 
existed. However, any decision on this petition does not relieve 
equipment distributors and dealers of the prohibitions on the sale, 
offer for sale, or introduction or delivery for introduction into 
interstate commerce of the noncompliant equipment under their control 
after Pirelli notified them that the subject noncompliance existed.

    Authority: (49 U.S.C. 30118, 30120: delegations of authority at 
49 CFR 1.95 and 501.8)

Otto G. Matheke III,
Director, Office of Vehicle Safety Compliance.
[FR Doc. 2019-18522 Filed 8-27-19; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4910-59-P