Mack Trucks, Inc., Receipt of Petition for Decision of Inconsequential Noncompliance |
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Topics: Mack LEU
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Jeffrey Giuseppe
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
August 18, 2015
[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 159 (Tuesday, August 18, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 50069-50070]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-20310]
[[Page 50069]]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
[Docket No. NHTSA-2015-0054; Notice 1]
Mack Trucks, Inc., 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: Mack Trucks, Inc. (Mack), has determined that certain model
year (MY) 2014-2016 Mack LEU model incomplete vehicles do not fully
comply with paragraphs S5.3.3 and S5.3.4 of Federal Motor Vehicle
Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 121, Air Brake Systems. Mack has filed an
appropriate report dated April 27, 2015, pursuant to 49 CFR part 573,
Defect and Noncompliance Responsibility and Reports.
DATES: The closing date for comments on the petition is September 17,
2015.
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 at the beginning of this notice and
submitted by any of the following methods:
Mail: Send comments by mail addressed to: 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 Deliver: Deliver comments by hand to: 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
Federal Holidays.
Electronically: Submit comments electronically by: Logging
onto the Federal Docket Management System (FDMS) Web site at http://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 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.
Documents submitted to a docket may be viewed by anyone at the
address and times given above. The documents may also be viewed on the
Internet at http://www.regulations.gov by following the online
instructions for accessing the dockets. DOT's complete Privacy Act
Statement is available for review in the Federal Register published on
April 11, 2000, (65 FR 19477-78).
The petition, supporting materials, and all comments received
before the close of business on the closing date indicated below will
be filed and will be considered. All comments and supporting materials
received after the closing date will also be filed and will be
considered to the extent possible. When the petition is granted or
denied, notice of the decision will be published in the Federal
Register pursuant to the authority indicated below.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Mack's Petition: Pursuant to 49 U.S.C. 30118(d) and 30120(h)
(see implementing rule at 49 CFR part 556), Mack submitted a petition
for an exemption from the notification and remedy requirements of 49
U.S.C. Chapter 301 on the basis that this noncompliance is
inconsequential to motor vehicle safety. After reviewing the petition,
NHTSA requested additional information from Mack by letter dated July
9, 2015. In response to that letter, Mack provided supplemental
information by letter dated July 17, 2015. Copies of NHTSA's request
and Mack's response are available from the petition docket.
This notice of receipt of Mack'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 Involved: Affected are approximately 1,977 MY 2014-
2016 Mack LEU model incomplete vehicles manufactured between July 22,
2013 and April 20, 2015.
III. Noncompliance: Mack explains that the noncompliance is that
the brake actuation and release times slightly (by milliseconds) exceed
the requirements as specified in paragraphs S5.3.3 and S5.3.4 of FMVSS
No. 121.
IV. Rule Text: Paragraph S5.3.3 of FMVSS No. 121 requires in
pertinent part:
S5.3.3 Brake Actuation time. Each service brake system shall
meet the requirements of S5.3.3.1(a) and (b) . . .
S5.3.3.1(a) With an initial service reservoir system air
pressure of 100 psi, the air pressure in each brake chamber shall,
when measured from the first movement of the service brake control,
reach 60 psi in not more than 0.45 second in the case of trucks and
buses, . . .
Paragraph S5.3.4 of FMVSS No. 121 requires in pertinent part:
S5.3.4 Brake Release time. Each service brake system shall meet
the requirements of S5.3.4.1(a) and (b) . . .
S5.3.4.1(a) With an initial service brake chamber air pressure
of 95 psi, the air pressure in each brake chamber shall, when
measured from the first movements of the service brake control, fall
to 5 psi in not more than 0.55 second in the case of trucks and
buses, . . .
V. Summary of Mack's Analyses: Mack stated its belief that the
subject noncompliance is inconsequential to motor vehicle safety for
the following reasons:
(A) Mack conducted pneumatic brake timings tests on a test vehicle
representative of the affected population to show the results compared
to the requirement. The test vehicle was configured similar to a dual-
drive (or twin steer) residential garbage truck equipped with left-hand
and right-hand steering and brake controls. Tests were conducted on
each axle, separately, using the left-hand brake control and then, the
right hand brake control.
Mack's data indicate that, on average, steer axle pneumatic brake
actuation times exceed the requirement by 0.04 seconds, steer axle
pneumatic brake release times, on average, exceed the requirement by
0.09 seconds, and drive axle brake timing results indicate compliance
with the safety standard's requirement.
Mack stated that a change in brake chamber size from type 24 to
type 30, which occurred in 2013 production, may have caused the
noncompliance.
(B) Mack conducted additional brake timing and dynamic performance
tests to evaluate how this noncompliance affects overall brake
performance. The tests were performed by an independent testing and
evaluation company, Link Commercial Vehicle Testing (Link) located in
East Liberty, Ohio. According to Mack, the results of these tests
clearly show that the trucks that are affected by the subject
noncompliance are compliant with the brake stopping distance
requirements. Mack provided a chart to illustrate the stopping distance
test results. (Detailed results from the tests provided by Mack are
available from the docket for this petition).
(C) Mack stated that LEU's are used almost exclusively in
residential garbage collection service. Because of that, Mack
[[Page 50070]]
says there are no concerned vehicles that tow air-braked trailers and
that compatibility with other air brake vehicles is also not cause for
concern.
(D) Mack also stated that brake release timing has been the subject
of previous petitions that it believes are similar to its petition and
were granted by NHTSA.
Mack has additionally informed NHTSA that it is correcting the
noncompliance so that all future production of the subject trucks will
fully comply with FMVSS No. 121.
In summation, Mack believes that the described noncompliance of the
subject trucks is inconsequential to motor vehicle safety, and that its
petition, to exempt Mack from providing recall notification of
noncompliance as required by 49 U.S.C. 30118 and remedying the recall
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 incomplete vehicles that Mack
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 incomplete vehicles under their
control after Mack 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).
Jeffrey Giuseppe,
Director, Office of Vehicle Safety Compliance.
[FR Doc. 2015-20310 Filed 8-17-15; 8:45 am]
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