[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 122 (Monday, June 27, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 38254-38256]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-13598]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

[Docket No. NHTSA-2018-0106; Notice 2]


Daimler Vans USA, LLC, Denial of Petition for Decision of 
Inconsequential Noncompliance

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

ACTION: Notice of petition denial.

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SUMMARY: Daimler Vans USA, LLC, (Daimler Vans) on behalf of Daimler AG, 
has determined that certain model year (MY) 2016-2018 Mercedes-Benz 
Metris vans do not fully comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety 
Standard (FMVSS) No. 110, Tire Selection and Rims and Motor Home/
Recreation Vehicle Trailer Load Carrying Capacity Information for Motor 
Vehicles with a GVWR of 4,536 kilograms (10,000 pounds) or Less. 
Daimler Vans filed a noncompliance report dated October 24, 2018, and 
later amended it on November 9, 2018. Daimler Vans also petitioned 
NHTSA on November 9, 2018, for a decision that the subject 
noncompliance is inconsequential as it relates to motor vehicle safety. 
This document announces and explains the denial of Daimler Vans' 
petition.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ahmad Barnes, Office of Vehicle Safety 
Compliance, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), 
(202) 366-7236.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    I. Overview: Daimler Vans has determined that certain MY 2016-2018 
Mercedes-Benz Metris vans do not fully comply with paragraphs S4.2.2.2 
of FMVSS No. 110, Tire Selection and Rims and Motor Home/Recreation 
Vehicle Trailer Load Carrying Capacity Information for Motor Vehicles 
with a GVWR of 4,536 kilograms (10,000 pounds) or Less (49 CFR 
571.110). Daimler Vans filed a noncompliance report dated October 24, 
2018, and later amended it on November 9, 2018, pursuant to 49 CFR part 
573, Defect and Noncompliance Responsibility and Reports. Daimler Vans 
also petitioned NHTSA on November 9, 2018, 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 49 U.S.C. 30118(d) and 30120(h) and 49 CFR 
part 556, Exemption for Inconsequential Defect or Noncompliance.
    Notice of receipt of Daimler Vans' petition was published with a 
30-day public comment period, on September 16, 2019, in the Federal 
Register (84 FR 48702). No comments were received. To view the petition 
and all supporting documents log onto the Federal Docket Management 
System (FDMS) website at https://www.regulations.gov. Then follow the 
online search instructions to locate docket number ``NHTSA-2018-0106.''
    II. Vehicles Involved: Approximately 24,438 MY 2016-2018 Mercedes 
Benz-Metris vans, manufactured between June 1, 2016, and September 28, 
2018, are potentially involved.
    III. Noncompliance: Manufacturers are permitted to install 
passenger car tires on a multipurpose passenger vehicle (MPV), truck, 
bus, or trailer. However, when passenger car tires are used in one of 
these other light vehicle applications, paragraph S4.2.2.2 of FMVSS No. 
110, provides that each tire's maximum load rating is to be reduced by 
dividing it by a factor of 1.10 before the manufacturer determines the 
maximum load ratings of the tires fitted to each axle. For the equipped 
tires on the Daimler Vans, the pre S4.2.2.2 adjustment tire 
specifications (based on a tire load rating with a load index of 101) 
yields a load capacity of 825 kg (1,818 pounds) per tire and 1,650 kg 
(3,637 pounds) per axle. Specifically, the subject vehicles were 
certified with a maximum load rating of 775 kg (1,708 pounds) per tire 
or 1,550 kg (3,417 pounds) combined per axle. However, after dividing 
each tire specification tire capacity value by 1.1 and thereby reducing 
the maximum load rating, the tires on the subject vehicles have an 
adjusted maximum load rating of 750 kg (1,653pounds) per tire and 1,500 
kg (3,307 pounds) per axle--values below the certified GAWR (Gross Axle 
Weight Rating) for the front and rear axles.
    IV. Rule Requirements: Paragraphs S4.2.2.1 and S4.2.2.2 of FMVSS 
No. 110 include the requirements relevant to this petition. Section 
S4.2.2.1 requires the sum of the maximum load ratings of the tires 
fitted to an axle shall not be less than the GAWR of the axle system as 
specified on the vehicle's certification label required by 49 CFR part 
567. Section S4.2.2.2, further requires that when passenger car tires 
are installed on an MPV, truck, bus, or trailer, each tire's load 
rating is reduced by dividing it by 1.10 before determining, under 
paragraph S4.2.2.1, the sum of the maximum load ratings of the tires 
fitted to an axle.
    V. Summary of Daimler Van's Petition: The following views and 
arguments presented in this section, ``V. Summary of Daimler Vans' 
Petition,'' are the views and arguments provided by Daimler Vans and do 
not reflect the views of the Agency. In its petition, Daimler Vans 
describes the subject noncompliance and contends that the noncompliance 
is inconsequential as it relates to motor vehicle safety for the 
following reasons:
    1. There is no safety risk posed with this noncompliance because 
the tires are designed to carry significantly more than the GAWR listed 
on the certification label.

[[Page 38255]]

    2. The Metris vans also have installed the same tire size as the 
Metris vans sold in Europe that have the same axle weight ratings and 
those vehicles have performed without incident for years.
    3. Despite the discrepancy in calculating the maximum load rating, 
the Metris vans are more than able to accommodate additional weight 
loaded onto the vehicle. Per the specifications provided by the tire 
supplier, based on the tire's load index rating of 101, each tire, in 
fact, has a maximum load rating of 825 kg (1,818 pounds) per tire and a 
combined maximum load rating of 1,650 kg (3,637 pounds) per axle. Thus, 
the tires were designed and manufactured to safely and effectively 
manage weights that are well beyond the GAWR for each axle.
    4. The GAWR listed on the vehicle certification label is accurate 
so that a consumer relying on and following the values for the front 
and rear GAWR, for purposes of vehicle loading, would not be at risk of 
overloading the axles.
    5. The tires on the Metris vans have a payload reserve of 6.5 
percent at a load of 1,550 kg per axle, which is slightly below the 
payload reserve of 10 percent specified by FMVSS No. 110. Moreover, the 
tire pressure specified for each tire on the Metris Van is at least 11% 
higher (tire pressure reserve) then the ETRTO (European Tyre and Rim 
Technical Organisation) recommended tire pressure. This tire pressure 
reserve reduces the stress on the tire, due to reduced deflection of 
the tire under load.
    6. Further, the Metris vans are equipped with a standard tire 
pressure monitoring system (TPMS) that is compliant with FMVSS No. 138. 
Depending on the severity of the loss of tire pressure, the Metris vans 
display one of three specialized TPMS warnings in the instrument panel 
advising the operator of the loss of pressure and how quickly the 
operator should take corrective action. If the tires were to experience 
a loss of tire pressure, the driver would be alerted to this condition 
and could take appropriate measures. Thus, if there were to be a loss 
of tire pressure, consistent with the standard, the TPMS system would 
warn the operator.
    7. After identifying the discrepancy in the values listed on the 
tire and loading information placard, Daimler Vans reviewed what, if 
any, impact there could be on various vehicle systems that could 
potentially be affected by the discrepancy. This review considered the 
effect on steering, braking, axle strength, and crashworthiness if the 
operator loaded the vehicle to the maximum amount listed on the tire 
and loading information placard. As a result of the review, Daimler 
Vans was able to confirm that the discrepancy will not adversely impact 
any of these systems or otherwise diminish the performance or 
crashworthiness of the Metris vans.
    8. Daimler Vans states that it is not aware of any consumer 
complaints or reports of accidents or injuries related to overloading 
the vehicles that could reasonably be related to not derating the 
reinforced passenger car tires prior to certification. In addition, 
Metris vans sold in Europe are equipped with tires that are the same 
size and the vehicles have the same axle weight ratings. The European 
vehicles have similarly performed without incident.
    9. The Agency has previously granted petitions for inconsequential 
noncompliance involving similar inconsistencies involving tire maximum 
load ratings. In 2017, the Agency granted a petition for 
inconsequential noncompliance where a manufacturer had incorrectly 
overstated the maximum occupant and cargo weight on the tire and 
loading information placard, by a total of 30 kg. Although on its face, 
this discrepancy would have appeared to have led consumers to 
potentially overload the vehicle, the Agency concluded that when the 
vehicle was loaded to the value listed on the placard, the specific 
tires installed on the vehicles were nonetheless technically capable of 
handling the overstated weight and cargo. In this instance, for one 
vehicle variation, the maximum loads were below the GAWR and gross 
vehicle weight rating (GVWR) and for another vehicle variation, the 
maximum loads were ``essentially at the certified GAWR and GVWR 
values.'' The Agency concluded that the tires were ``more than 
adequate'' to manage the additional vehicle and cargo weight and that 
the vehicles could safely manage the additional weight without overload 
concerns. See 82 FR 33547 (July 20, 2017) (Grant of Petition for 
Decision of Inconsequential Noncompliance by Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC).
    10. The noncompliance at issue here is similar to the above 
petition. In this case, there is also little concern of vehicle 
overloading because the specifications for the tires installed on the 
Metris vans are technically capable of managing the additional weight 
even without the reinforced passenger car tires having been derated.
    Daimler Vans concluded by expressing 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.
    Daimler Vans' complete petition and all supporting documents are 
available by logging onto the Federal Docket Management System (FDMS) 
website at https://www.regulations.gov and following the online search 
instructions to locate the docket number listed in the title of this 
notice.
    VI. NHTSA's Analysis: The burden of establishing the 
inconsequentiality of a failure to comply with a performance 
requirement in a standard--as opposed to a labeling requirement--is 
more substantial and difficult to meet. Accordingly, the Agency has not 
found many such noncompliances inconsequential.\1\
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    \1\ Cf. Gen. Motors Corporation; Ruling on Petition for 
Determination of Inconsequential Noncompliance, 69 FR 19897, 19899 
(Apr. 14, 2004) (citing prior cases where noncompliance was expected 
to be imperceptible, or nearly so, to vehicle occupants or 
approaching drivers).
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    An important issue to consider in determining inconsequentiality 
based upon NHTSA's prior decisions on noncompliance issues was the 
safety risk to individuals who experience the type of event against 
which the recall would otherwise protect.\2\ NHTSA also does not 
consider the absence of complaints or injuries to show that the issue 
is inconsequential to safety. ``Most importantly, the absence of a 
complaint does not mean there have not been any safety issues, nor does 
it mean that there will not be safety issues in the future.'' \3\ 
``[T]he fact that in past reported cases good luck and swift reaction 
have prevented many serious injuries does not mean that good luck will 
continue to work.'' \4\
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    \2\ See Gen. Motors, LLC; Grant of Petition for Decision of 
Inconsequential Noncompliance, 78 FR 35355 (June 12, 2013) (finding 
noncompliance had no effect on occupant safety because it had no 
effect on the proper operation of the occupant classification system 
and the correct deployment of an air bag); Osram Sylvania Prods. 
Inc.; Grant of Petition for Decision of Inconsequential 
Noncompliance, 78 FR 46000 (July 30, 2013) (finding occupant using 
noncompliant light source would not be exposed to significantly 
greater risk than occupant using similar compliant light source).
    \3\ Morgan 3 Wheeler Limited; Denial of Petition for Decision of 
Inconsequential Noncompliance, 81 FR 21663, 21666 (Apr. 12, 2016).
    \4\ United States v. Gen. Motors Corp., 565 F.2d 754, 759 (D.C. 
Cir. 1977) (finding defect poses an unreasonable risk when it 
``results in hazards as potentially dangerous as sudden engine fire, 
and where there is no dispute that at least some such hazards, in 
this case fires, can definitely be expected to occur in the 
future'').
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    The intent of FMVSS No. 110 is to ensure that vehicles are equipped 
with tires appropriate to handle maximum vehicle loads and prevent 
overloading.

[[Page 38256]]

Daimler Vans explains that due to an oversight, a 1.10 reduction on 
each tire's maximum load rating was not applied before the overall 
maximum load rating of the tires for each axle was set. As a result, 
the sum of the maximum load ratings of the tires fitted to each axle 
(after being divided by 1.10) are less than the GAWR for the axle as 
specified on the vehicle certification label by 110 lbs. The 1.10 
factor reduction due to the use of passenger tires on a van-truck, 
results effectively in the tires, per FMVSS 110 S4.2.2.2, falling short 
of covering the vehicle's GAWR which results in a 96.8% coverage rate 
(3307 lbs/3417 lbs) of covering the vehicle's GAWR.
    Daimler Vans additionally notated that the Agency has previously 
granted petitions for inconsequential noncompliance involving similar 
inconsistencies involving tire maximum load ratings. The referenced 
granted petition involves passenger vehicles where the vehicle 
manufacturer had incorrectly overstated the maximum occupant and cargo 
weight on the Tire and Loading Information Label. In short, the Agency 
concluded that when the vehicle was loaded to the value listed on the 
placard, the specific tires installed on the vehicles were nonetheless 
technically capable of handling the overstated weight and cargo. It 
should, however, be noted that in the ``similar granted petition,'' the 
maximum load values were either at or below the GAWR/GVWR for the 
subject vehicles.
    VII. NHTSA's Decision: In consideration of the foregoing analysis, 
NHTSA finds that Daimler Vans has not met its burden of persuasion that 
the subject FMVSS No. 110 noncompliance at issue is inconsequential to 
motor vehicle safety.
    Accordingly, Daimler Vans' petition is hereby denied and Daimler 
Vans is consequently obligated of providing notification of, and a free 
remedy for, that noncompliance under 49 U.S.C. 30118 and 30120.
    Authority: (49 U.S.C. 30118, 30120: delegations of authority at 49 
CFR 1.95 and 501.8)

Anne L. Collins,
Associate Administrator for Enforcement.
[FR Doc. 2022-13598 Filed 6-24-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-59-P