Interpretation ID: 1982-3.35

TYPE: INTERPRETATION-NHTSA

DATE: 12/22/82

FROM: AUTHOR UNAVAILABLE; Frank Berndt; NHTSA

TO: Automobile Importers of America Inc.

TITLE: FMVSS INTERPRETATION

TEXT: This responds to your letter asking about the identification requirements of FMVSS 101, Controls and Displays. You asked whether it is permissible for a manufacturer to identify a certain manual control with the symbol specified by the European Economic Community (EEC) for the cold start control. According to your letter, the control resets injection timing and actuates cylinder warming.

By way of background information, the agency does not provide approvals of motor vehicles or motor vehicle equipment. The Vehicle Safety Act requires that each manufacturer assure that its products are in compliance with all applicable standards. The following only represents the agency's opinion based on the specific facts provided in your letter.

The answer to your question is yes, since Standard No. 101 does not include any identification requirements applicable to that specific type of control.

Section S5 of Standard No. 101 requires each passenger car manufactured with any control listed in S5.1 or in column 1 of Table I to meet the requirements of the standard for the location, identification and illumination of such control.

Neither section S5.1 nor column 1 of Table I list or include a single control which operates the two functions noted above.

Since Standard No. 101 does not include any identification requirements applicable to that type of control, identification is at the discretion of the manufacturer. It is therefore permissible, under that standard, to identify that type of control with the symbol specified by the EEC.

SINCERELY,

AUTOMOBILE IMPORTERS OF AMERICA, INC.

May 27, 1982

Frank A. Berndt, Chief Counsel National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

Dear Mr. Berndt:

One of our member companies would like an interpretation of FMVSS 101-80, Controls and Displays, as it applies to a specific design.

This passenger car is equipped with a diesel engine but the cold-starting control is not an automatic device linked to the ignition switch as are many designs. This particular model uses a manual control which resets injection timing and actuates cylinder warning.

European authorities require that the cold-start control symbol (Figure 19 of EEC Directive 78/316) be used to identify this control for those vehicles sold in Europe. Is it permissible for this symbol to be used for vehicles sold in the United States?

FMVSS 101-80, Controls and Displays, calls for any control item which is listed in Table I of the standard to be identified as shown in that Table. The diesel cold start control is not listed in Table I; the only similar controls required to be labeled are an engine choke and hand throttle, neither of which pertain to this device.

Does this mean that this device is not required to be identified by words and that the symbol control identification may be used on U.S. cars? If this is the case, the manufacturer will be able to commonize controls with European models and save unnecessary expense.

Bruce Henderson