Interpretation ID: bailey.ztv

The Honorable Kay Bailey Hutchison
United States Senate
10440 North Central Expressway, Suite 1160
LB 606
Dallas, TX 75231

Dear Senator Hutchison:

We are replying to your recent inquiry on behalf of your constituent, Walter E. Brown of Tyler. Dr. Brown is the owner of a 1995 BMW. When he attempted to buy a replacement lens for one of his headlamps, he was told by his local dealer that the lens was unavailable, and later, that the part was no longer available and that he would have to replace the entire headlamp assembly. BMW of North America telephoned him and told him that "a new government regulation precluded BMW from selling the lens separately." Dr. Brown was referred to Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 108. He asked that you look into this matter for him.

As Dr. Brown indicated in his letter to you, the applicable regulation is Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 108 (49 CFR 571.108,Lamps, Reflective Devices, and Associated Equipment). This regulation prescribes requirements for both original and replacement motor vehicle headlamps. Until 1983, all headlamps were required to be sealed and indivisible, so that if the bulb burned out or the lens cracked, the entire headlamp had to be replaced. Because headlamps were sealed, contaminants such as dust and moisture could not enter and the integrity of the reflector over the life of the headlamp was assured.

In 1983, Standard No. 108 was amended to allow non-sealed headlamps with replaceable bulbs. To maintain the integrity of the reflector, replaceable bulbs were required to have a seal at their base, and the headlamp lens had to be bonded to the reflector. These non-sealed headlamps had to pass environmental tests verifying their ability to resist heat, dust, and corrosion. However, the requirement that the lens be bonded to the reflector means that if either the lens or the reflector broke or was defective, the entire lens/reflector unit had to be replaced. This appears to be the type of headlamp that was installed on Dr. Brown's 1995 BMW. Therefore, in order to replace a cracked lens, he has to buy a lens/reflector assembly. This is necessary to ensure that his replacement headlamp provides the same continuing level of safety as his original headlamp.

Since December 1995, one specific type of replaceable bulb headlamp (one incorporating an on-board aiming device) has been permitted to have a lens designed to be replaceable, provided that the lamps pass even more stringent environment tests. However, all 1995 model cars were manufactured before the effective date of this new alternative headlamp requirement, and thus were not permitted to have headlamps with replaceable lenses. Since the headlamps in Dr. Brown's car do not have replaceable lenses, his dealer must replace the complete lens/reflector assembly. This has been the practice since 1983 and is not the result of "a new government regulation." It is the December 1995 regulation, not the older one, that permits replacement lenses for one type of headlamp.

I hope that this explanation will be useful to Dr. Brown.

Sincerely,
Frank Seales, Jr.
Chief Counsel
ref:108
d.6/23/98