Hankook Tire America Corp., Receipt of Petition for Decision of Inconsequential Noncompliance
| Published date | 23 March 2021 |
| Citation | 86 FR 15546 |
| Record Number | 2021-05920 |
| Section | Notices |
| Court | National Highway Traffic Safety Administration |
Federal Register, Volume 86 Issue 54 (Tuesday, March 23, 2021)
[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 54 (Tuesday, March 23, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 15546-15547]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-05920]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
[Docket No. NHTSA-2020-0035; Notice 1]
Hankook Tire America Corp., 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: Hankook Tire America Corp. (Hankook) has determined that
certain Hankook Ventus S1 Noble2 passenger car tires do not fully
comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 139, New
Pneumatic Radial Tires for Light Vehicles, and part 574, Tire
Identification and Recordkeeping. Hankook filed a noncompliance report
dated April 23, 2020. Hankook subsequently petitioned NHTSA on May 19,
2020, for a decision that the subject noncompliance is inconsequential
as it relates to motor vehicle safety. This notice announces receipt of
Hankook's petition.
DATES: Send comments on or before April 22, 2021.
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 in the title of this notice and
submitted by any of the following methods:
Mail: Send comments by mail addressed to the 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 Delivery: Deliver comments by hand to the 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 for Federal holidays.
Electronically: Submit comments electronically by logging
onto the Federal Docket Management System (FDMS) website at https://
[[Page 15547]]
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 comments you have submitted by mail were
received, please enclose a stamped, self-addressed postcard with the
comments. Note that all comments received will be posted without change
to https://www.regulations.gov, including any personal information
provided.
All comments and supporting materials received before the close of
business on the closing date indicated above will be filed in the
docket and will be considered. All comments and supporting materials
received after the closing date will also be filed and will be
considered to the fullest extent possible.
When the petition is granted or denied, notice of the decision will
also be published in the Federal Register pursuant to the authority
indicated at the end of this notice.
All comments, background documentation, and supporting materials
submitted to the docket may be viewed by anyone at the address and
times given above. The documents may also be viewed on the internet at
https://www.regulations.gov by following the online instructions for
accessing the docket. The docket ID number for this petition is shown
in the heading of this notice.
DOT's complete Privacy Act Statement is available for review in a
Federal Register notice published on April 11, 2000 (65 FR 19477-78).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Overview: Hankook has determined that certain Hankook Ventus S1
Noble2 size 235/40R18W XL H452 tires do not fully comply with the
requirements of paragraph S5.5.1(b) of FMVSS No. 139, New Pneumatic
Radial Tires for Light Vehicles (49 CFR 571.139) and with the labeling
requirements of Part 574.5(a) of part 574, Tire Identification and
Recordkeeping (49 CFR 574). Hankook filed a noncompliance report dated
April 23, 2020, pursuant to 49 CFR part 573, Defect and Noncompliance
Responsibility and Reports. Hankook subsequently petitioned NHTSA on
May 19, 2020, 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.
This notice of receipt of Hankook'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. Tires Involved: Approximately 109 Hankook Ventus S1 Noble2 size
235/40R18W XL H452 passenger car tires manufactured on August 17, 2019,
and August 18, 2019, are potentially involved.
III. Noncompliance: Hankook explains that the noncompliance is due
to a mold error in which the subject tires contain a tire
identification number (TIN) with an inverted serial week and year (date
code) as required by part 574.5(a) and paragraph S5.5.1(b) of FMVSS No.
139. Specifically, the date code portion of the TIN was printed upside
down.
IV. Rule Requirements: Paragraph S5.5.1(b) of FMVSS No. 139,
includes the requirements relevant to this petition:
For tires manufactured on or after September 1, 2009, each
tire must be labeled with the tire identification number required by 49
CFR part 574 on the intended outboard sidewall of the tire.
Except for retreaded tires, if a tire does not have an
intended outboard sidewall, the tire must be labeled with the tire
identification number required by 49 CFR part 574 on one sidewall and
with either the tire identification number or a partial tire
identification number, containing all characters in the tire
identification number except for the date code and, at the discretion
of the manufacturer, any optional code, on the other sidewall.
V. Summary of Hankook's Petition: The following views and arguments
presented in this section, ``V. Summary of Hankook's Petition,'' are
the views and arguments provided by Hankook. They have not been
evaluated by the Agency and do not reflect the views of the Agency.
Hankook described the subject noncompliance and contended that the
noncompliance is inconsequential as it relates to motor vehicle safety.
In support of its petition, Hankook submitted the following
reasoning:
1. The relevant information remains readily identifiable,
2. the Agency has granted a similar petition in the past (See 81 FR
43708 (Jul. 5, 2016)),
3. the subject tires otherwise meet the marking and performance
requirements of FMVSS No. 139, and
4. Hankook is not aware of any consumer complaints, claims, or
incidents related to the subject noncompliance.
Hankook's complete petition and all supporting documents are
available by logging onto the Federal Docket Management System (FDMS)
website at https://www.regulations.gov and by following the online
search instructions to locate the docket number as listed in the title
of this notice.
Hankook concluded by again contending 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.
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 tires that Hankook no longer
controlled at the time it determined that the noncompliance existed.
However, any decision on this petition does not relieve vehicle
distributors and dealers of the prohibitions on the sale, offer for
sale, or introduction or delivery for introduction into interstate
commerce of the noncompliant tires under their control after Hankook
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.
Otto G. Matheke III,
Director, Office of Vehicle Safety Compliance.
[FR Doc. 2021-05920 Filed 3-22-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-59-P
