[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 54 (Tuesday, March 23, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 15548-15549]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-05922]



[[Page 15548]]

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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

[Docket No. NHTSA-2020-0112; Notice 1]


FCA US 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: FCA US LLC (f/k/a Chrysler Group LLC) ``FCA US'' has 
determined that certain Mopar rear brake hoses for use in model year 
(MY) 2019-2020 Ram 4500/5500 Cab Chassis motor vehicles and sold as 
replacement parts to FCA US dealers do not fully comply with Federal 
Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 106, Brake Hoses. FCA US 
filed two noncompliance reports, both dated October 22, 2020. FCA US 
subsequently petitioned NHTSA on November 13, 2020, for a decision that 
the subject noncompliance is inconsequential as it relates to motor 
vehicle safety. This document announces receipt of FCA US's petition.

DATES: Send comments on or before April 22, 2021.

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 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 docket. 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

    FCA US LLC (f/k/a Chrysler Group LLC) ``FCA US'' has determined 
that certain Mopar rear brake hoses for use in model year (MY) 2019-
2020 Ram 4500/5500 Cab Chassis motor vehicles and sold as replacement 
parts to FCA US dealers do not fully comply with paragraph S5.3.1 of 
FMVSS No. 106, Brake Hoses (49 CFR 571.106). FCA US filed two 
noncompliance reports, both dated October 22, 2020, pursuant to 49 CFR 
573, Defect and Noncompliance Responsibility and Reports. FCA US 
subsequently petitioned NHTSA on November 13, 2020, for an exemption 
from the notification and remedy requirements of 49 U.S.C. chapter 301 
on the basis that this noncompliance is inconsequential as it relates 
to motor vehicle safety, pursuant to 40 U.S.C. 30118 and 49 U.S.C. 
30120, Exemption for Inconsequential Defect or Noncompliance.
    This notice of receipt of FCA US'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. Vehicles and Equipment Involved

    Approximately 26,961 MY 2019-2020 Ram 4500/5500 Cab Chassis motor 
vehicles, manufactured between February 10, 2019, and August 26, 2020, 
and approximately 182 Mopar right rear brake hose replacement parts 
having part numbers 68371722AA and 68371722AB, and left rear brake hose 
replacement parts having part numbers 68371723AA and 68371723AB, 
manufactured between January 29, 2019, and August 26 2020, are 
potentially involved.

III. Noncompliance

    FCA US explains that the noncompliance is that the inside diameter 
in certain Mopar rear brake hoses equipped in certain model year (MY) 
2019-2020 Ram 4500/5500 Cab Chassis motor vehicles and sold to FCA US 
dealers as replacement parts do not meet the required 64 percentage of 
the nominal inside diameter of the brake hose and therefore do not 
fully comply with paragraph S5.3.1 of FMVSS No. 106. Specifically, FCA 
says that in the worst-case scenario, parts measured 52.8 percent of 
the nominal inside diameter.

IV. Rule Requirements

    Paragraph S5.3.1 of FMVSS No. 106 provides that except for that 
part of an end fitting which does not contain hose, every inside 
diameter of any section of a hydraulic brake hose assembly shall be not 
less than 64 percent of the nominal inside diameter of the brake hose.

V. Summary of FCA US's Petition

    The following views and arguments presented in this section, V. 
Summary of FCA US's Petition, are the views and arguments provided by 
FCA US. They have not been evaluated by the Agency and do not reflect 
the views of the Agency.
    FCA US described the subject noncompliance and stated that the 
noncompliance is inconsequential as it relates to motor vehicle safety. 
FCA US submitted the following views and arguments in support of the 
petition:
    1. FCA states that it has completed testing showing that, in this 
particular circumstance, there is no safety concern with the 
noncompliant brake hose assemblies that were built with an under-
specification orifice size. FCA further claims that the testing shows 
there is no concern for hose rupture and

[[Page 15549]]

no risk of brake system failure due to pressure loss. Testing also 
shows there is no meaningful effect on vehicle braking performance 
built with the noncompliant brake hose assemblies.
    2. FCA claims that the Ram 4500/5500 Cab Chassis vehicle achieves 
no more than 2,500 pounds per square inch (PSI) in the brake hose 
assemblies when performing FMVSS No. 105 testing for stopping distance. 
FMVSS No. 106 specifies a minimum burst strength requirement of 7,000 
PSI for brake hoses of 1/8'' or smaller diameter. (The subject brake 
hoses have a diameter of 1/8''.) The FCA internal specification 
requires the supplier to perform burst testing daily, and the minimum 
requirement that all hose assemblies must meet is 9,000 PSI under the 
FMVSS No. 106 test conditions. The brake hose assemblies containing an 
out of specification orifice all surpassed the requirement and showed 
no difference from those containing a compliant orifice.
    3. FCA believes that the viscosity of brake fluid at colder 
temperatures increases, thus, the flow rate of brake fluid will be 
reduced at colder temperatures, making cold temperature testing the 
worst-case scenario. The Ram 4500/5500 Cab Chassis vehicle brake hose 
assemblies containing an out of specification orifice and those with a 
compliant orifice were tested for flow at ambient and at cold 
temperature. The cold temperature test included an overnight soak at -
30[deg] C. The test was conducted using a panic brake application of 
500 Newtons in 0.5 seconds per FMVSS No. 105 pedal force requirements 
and then held for an additional 5 seconds to ensure fluid flow to the 
wheel end. The compliant and noncompliant brake hose assemblies showed 
no meaningful difference in the time they each took to reach 50 bar and 
100 bar at either ambient or cold.
    4. FCA tested the Ram 4500/5500 Cab Chassis vehicle for stopping 
distance according to FMVSS No. 105 testing procedures for vehicles 
over 10,000 pounds (``lbs.'') Gross Vehicle Weight, which is the worst-
case scenario. The test was conducted on a vehicle that was slowed from 
a speed of 60 mph with a maximum pedal effort of 150 lbs. to determine 
if it could meet the required stopping distance requirements. The test 
was conducted six times, and FCA focused on second effectiveness and 
third effectiveness results. The best distance was used to calculate 
the Best Stop Percentage Margin. The test results showed no meaningful 
difference between the second effectiveness and the third effectiveness 
government specifications or the more stringent FCA internal stopping 
requirements between a brake hose with an out of specification orifice 
and a brake hose with a compliant orifice. FCA completed two tests with 
brake hose assemblies with compliant orifice sizes and one test with 
the subject out of specification orifice size.
    5. FCA is not aware of any crashes, injuries, or customer 
complaints associated with the condition.
    FCA concludes by again contending 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, be granted.
    FCA's complete petition and all supporting documents, including 
details of test results, are available by logging onto the Federal 
Docket Management System (FDMS) website at: https://www.regulations.gov 
and by following the online search instructions to locate the docket 
number as listed in the title of this notice.
    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 vehicles and equipment that 
FCA no longer controlled at the time it determined that the 
noncompliance existed. However, any decision on this petition does not 
relieve vehicle distributors and dealers of the prohibitions on the 
sale, offer for sale, or introduction or delivery for introduction into 
interstate commerce of the noncompliant vehicles and equipment under 
their control after FCA 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. 2021-05922 Filed 3-22-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-59-P