Interpretation ID: pedlok.ogm

Mr. Chris Webre
President
Safety Systems and Controls, Inc.
2400 Campbell Rd. #H
Houston, TX 77080

Dear Mr. Webre:

This responds to your letter asking about the applicability of Federal standards to a product you have developed. You stated that your company produces a product known as the PED-Lok. According to your letter, the PED-Lok automatically applies service brake pressure to the rear brakes of a school bus when the loading and unloading warning lights are flashing and the passenger door is opened. You asked if Standard No. 121, Air Brake Systems, or any other Federal motor vehicle safety standard (FMVSS) apply to this product.

By way of background information, Congress has authorized the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to issue FMVSSs applicable to new motor vehicles and items of motor vehicle equipment. NHTSA, however, does not approve or endorse motor vehicles or motor vehicle equipment. Instead, the statute establishes a "self-certification" process under which each manufacturer is responsible for certifying that its products meet all applicable safety standards.

A review of Standard No. 121 indicates that this standard does not contain any provisions directly applicable to your product. However, I note that as your product is directly connected to the air brake system, a leak or malfunction in the device could have an effect on brake performance.

If an auxiliary device such as the PED-Lok is installed as original equipment on a new vehicle, the vehicle manufacturer is required to certify that, with the device installed, the vehicle satisfies the requirements of all applicable Federal safety standards, including Standard No. 121. If the device is added to a previously certified new motor vehicle prior to its first sale, the person who modifies the vehicle would be an alterer of a previously certified motor vehicle and would be required to certify that, as altered, the vehicle continues to comply with all of the safety standards affected by the alteration.

Federal law does limit the modifications that can be made by certain businesses to used vehicles. Manufacturers, distributors, dealers, and repair businesses may not "knowingly make inoperative" any device or element of a design installed on or in a motor vehicle in compliance with an applicable safety standard (49 U.S.C. 30122). Any violation of this "make inoperative" prohibition would subject the violator to a potential civil penalty of up to $1,100 for each violation. Please note that the "make inoperative" prohibition does not require manufacturers, distributors, dealers and repair businesses to certify that vehicles continue to comply with the safety standards after any aftermarket modifications are made. Instead, "make inoperative" prohibits those entities from performing aftermarket modifications that they know or should know will result in the vehicle no longer complying with the safety standards.

Please note that the "make inoperative" prohibition does not apply to modifications vehicle owners make to their own vehicles. Thus, Federal law would not apply in situations where individual vehicle owners install your device in their own vehicles, even if the installation were to result in the vehicle no longer complying with the safety standards. However, individual States have the authority to regulate modifications that individual vehicle owners may make to their own vehicles.

In addition, as the manufacturer of the PED-Lok, Safety Systems and Controls would be a motor vehicle equipment manufacturer. Safety Systems and Controls would be subject to the notification and remedy requirements for products with defects related to motor vehicle safety (49 U.S.C. 30118-30121). A "defect" includes "any defect in performance, construction, a component, or material of a motor vehicle or motor vehicle equipment." "Motor vehicle safety" is defined as "the performance of a motor vehicle or motor vehicle equipment in a way that protects the public against unreasonable risk of accidents occurring because of the design, construction, or performance of a motor vehicle or motor vehicle equipment performance." 49 U.S.C. 30102.

If the manufacturer or NHTSA determined that the product had a defect related to motor vehicle safety, the manufacturer would have to notify all product purchasers of the defect, and either:

1. Repair the product so that the defect is removed; or

2. Replace the product with an identical or reasonably equivalent product that does not have the defect.

The manufacturer would have to bear the full expense of the recall campaign, irrespective of the option chosen, for any owner who purchased the product less than eight years before the determination that defect existed.

I hope this information is helpful. If you have any questions about NHTSA's safety standards, please feel free to contact Otto Matheke at this address or by telephone at (202) 366-2992.

Sincerely,
Frank Seales, Jr.
Chief Counsel
ref:121
d.6/20/00