HQ 963208

March 10, 2000

CLA-2 RR:CR:GC 963208 AML

**CATEGORY:** Classification

**TARIFF NO.:** 8511.80.60

Mr. Michael J. Walsh

Ford Motor Company

17101 Rotunda Drive

P.O. Box 6089 MD-654

Dearborn, MI 48121

**Re:** Starter solenoids for internal combustion engines; NYs C82399
and A85758;

DD847708

Dear Mr. Walsh:

This is in regard to your letter, dated August 20, 1999, directed to the
National Commodity Specialist Division, New York, requesting the
classification of starter solenoids for internal combustion engines
under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS).
Photocopies of schematic drawings were forwarded for examination. Your
letter was forwarded to this office for reply. We regret the delay.

**FACTS**:

You describe the articles as follows:

The starter motor solenoid is a cylindrically shaped component that is
mounted to the top of a motor vehicle's starter motor. The solenoid
consists of a frame and cap assembly which together form a housing
containing a plunger and contact assembly surrounded by a coil assembly.
Two M8 threaded studs protrude from one end of the solenoid. The
solenoid serves 2 functions: it completes the electrical circuit between
the vehicle's battery and the starter motor and engages the starter
motor's pinion gear with the engine's flywheel ring gear. When the
driver turns the vehicle's ignition switch to the start position,
electric current flows through the coil assembly creating a magnetic
field around the plunger and contact assembly. The magnetic field causes
the plunger which is not centered within the coil to be drawn into the
coil. The contact on the end of the plunger bridges the gap between the
battery terminal and the starter motor contacts thus allowing electric
current to flow from the battery to the starter. Meanwhile, at the other
end of the plunger, a lever and fork arrangement slides the starter
motor's pinion gear along the motor's shaft to mesh with the engine's
flywheel ring gear so that the motor may turn the engine for starting
purposes.

**ISSUE**:

Whether the article should be classified under subheading 8505.90.80,
HTSUS, which provides for electromagnets; subheading 8511.80.60, HTSUS,
as electrical ignition or starting equipment of a kind used for
spark-ignition or compression ignition internal combustion engines,
other equipment, other; or subheading 8536.41.00, HTSUS, as other
electrical apparatus for switching or protecting electrical circuits?

**LAW AND ANALYSIS**:

Classification of imported merchandise is accomplished pursuant to the
Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS). Classification
under the HTSUS is guided by the General Rules of Interpretation of the
Harmonized System (GRIs). GRI 1, HTSUS, states in part that "for legal
purposes, classification shall be determined according to the terms of
the headings and any relative section or chapter notes\[.\]"

The HTSUS heading and subheadings under consideration are as follows:

> 8505 Electromagnets; permanent magnets and articles
>
> intended to become permanent magnets after
>
> magnetization; electromagnetic or permanent
>
> magnet chucks, clamps and similar holding
>
> devices; electromagnetic couplings, clutches
>
> and brakes; electromagnetic lifting heads;
>
> parts thereof:
>
> Permanent magnets and articles intended to
>
> become permanent magnets after magnetization:
>
> 8505.90 Other, including parts:
>
> 8505.90.80 Other.
>
> \* \* \*
>
> 8511 Electrical ignition or starting equipment of a
>
> kind used for spark-ignition or compression-
>
> ignition internal combustion engines (for
>
> example, ignition magnetos, magneto-dynamos,
>
> ignition coils, spark plugs and glow plugs,
>
> starter motors); generators (for example,
>
> dynamos, alternators) and cut-outs of a kind
>
> used in conjunction with such engines;
>
> parts thereof:
>
> 8511.80 Other equipment:
>
> 8511.80.60 Other.
>
> \* \* \*
>
> 8536 Electrical apparatus for switching or protecting
>
> electrical circuits, or for making connections to
>
> or in electrical circuits (for example, switches,
>
> relays, fuses, surge suppressors, plugs, sockets,
>
> lamp-holders, junction boxes), for a voltage not
>
> exceeding 1,000 V (con.):
>
> 8536.90 Other apparatus:
>
> 8536.90.80 Other.

When interpreting and implementing the HTSUS, the Explanatory Notes
(ENs) of the Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System may be
utilized. The ENs, while neither legally binding nor dispositive,
provide a guiding commentary on the scope of each heading, and are
generally indicative of the proper interpretation of the HTSUS. Customs
believes the ENs should always be consulted. See, T.D. 89-90, 54 Fed.
Reg. 35127, 35128 (August 23, 1989).

The starter solenoids for internal combustion engines are clearly
classifiable in Chapter 85, which provides for, *inter alia*, electrical
machinery and equipment and parts thereof. Section XVI (in which Chapter
85 is found), note 2, HTSUS, states that:

\[s\]ubject to note 1 to this section, note 1 to chapter 84

and to note 1 to chapter 85, parts of machines (not being

parts of the articles of heading 8484, 8544, 8545, 8546 or

8547\) are to be classified according to the following

rules:

\(a\) Parts which are goods included in any of the headings

of chapters 84 and 85 (other than headings 8485 and

8548\) are in all cases to be classified in their

respective headings;

\(b\) Other parts, if suitable for use solely or principally

with a particular kind of machine, or with a number of

machines of the same heading (including a machine of

heading 8479 or 8543) are to be classified with the

machines of that kind. However, parts which are equally

suitable for use principally with the goods of headings

8517 and 8525 to 8528 are to be classified in heading

8517;

\(c\) All other parts are to be classified in heading 8485 or

8548\.

Subject to certain exceptions not relevant here, goods that are
identifiable parts of machines or apparatus of Chapter 84 or Chapter 85
are classifiable in accordance with Section XVI, Note 2, HTSUS. *Nidec
Corporation v. United States*, 861 F. Supp. 136, *aff\'d,* 68 F. 3d 1333
(1995). Parts, which are goods included in any of the headings of
Chapters 84 and 85, are in all cases to be classified in their
respective headings. See Note 2(a). Other parts, if suitable for use
solely or principally with a particular machine, or with a number of
machines of the same heading, are to be classified with the machines of
that kind. See Note 2(b).

You allege that the articles in question are parts that are suitable for
use solely or principally with a particular kind of machine: a starter
motor for an internal combustion, automobile engine. Therefore, in
accordance with the section note, we must determine whether the articles
are classifiable as electromagnets, as parts of a starter motor or as
electrical switches.

"Solenoid" is not defined in the HTSUS or the ENs. A tariff term that is
not defined in the HTSUS or in the ENs is construed in accordance with
its common and commercial meaning. *Nippon Kogaku (USA) Inc. v. United
States*, 69 CCPA 89, 673 F.2d 380 (1982). Common and commercial meaning
may be determined by consulting dictionaries, lexicons, scientific
authorities and other reliable sources*. C.J. Tower & Sons v. United
States*, 69 CCPA 128, 673 F.2d 1268 (1982).

The HTSUS, which went into effect January 1, 1989, is a relatively new
tariff system with rules of interpretation and application somewhat
different from the Tariff Schedules of the United States (TSUS), the
predecessor to the HTSUS. As noted in House Conference Report No.
100-576, dated April 20, 1998, on the Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness
Act of 1988 (P.L. 100-418), decisions by the Customs Service and the
courts interpreting nomenclature under the TSUS are not to be deemed
dispositive in interpreting the HTSUS. Nevertheless, on a case-by-case
basis, prior decisions should be considered instructive in interpreting
the HTSUS, particularly where the nomenclature previously interpreted in
those decisions remains unchanged and no dissimilar interpretation is
required by the text of the HTSUS.

In *Robert Bosch Corp. v. U.S.*, 63 Cust. Ct. 96, 104 (1969) , the court
was called upon to decide the proper classification of, *inter alia*,
starter solenoid switches. Customs had classified the articles as
\"electrical switches, relays \* \* \*, and other electrical apparatus
for making or breaking electrical circuits,\" a use provision. The
importer claimed that the starter solenoid switches were more properly
classifiable as \"ignition magnetos \* \* \* and other electrical
starting and ignition equipment for internal combustion engines \* \*
\*; all the foregoing and parts thereof,\" another unlimited *eo nomine*
provision. With regard to the starter solenoid switches, the court found
that they were designed to and in fact did function both mechanically
and electrically, *i.e.*, the electrical \"switching\" of the device
caused the mechanical propulsion and retraction of a shaft that meshed
with the starter motor, thus enabling the automobile to be started
\"electrically\" with an ignition key rather than simply mechanically
with, *e.g.*, a crank. Finding thusly, the court stated, \"the principle
is well settled that where an article is in character or function
something other than as described by a specific statutory provision -
either more limited or more diversified - and the difference is
significant, it cannot find classification within such provision.\"
*Bosch*, supra, at 103-104. The court held that the starter solenoid
switches were not electrical switches, but other electrical starting and
ignition equipment for internal combustion engines.

In this case both the merchandise and the nomenclature of the tariff
provisions lend themselves to similar interpretations under both tariff
systems, the TSUS and The HTSUS.

We first address possible classification in headings 8505 and 8536,
HTSUS, because if the solenoid can be considered to be either an
electromagnet or electrical apparatus for switching or protecting
electrical circuits, pursuant to Section XVI, Note 2(a), the article
must be classified in either of those provisions.

[Grolier's Encyclopedia]{.underline} (Grolier Electronic Publishing,
1994) describes a "solenoid" as follows:

> A solenoid is an electromechanical device consisting of a coil of
> wire, usually wound in the form of a long, narrow cylinder, and a
> core, or plunger, made of a magnetic material such as iron placed
> partly within the coil. When an electric current passes through the
> coil of wire, the coil becomes an electromagnet, and a magnetic field
> is created within it. This field exerts a force on the core that tends
> to pull it further into the coil. The motion of the core can, in turn,
> be used to actuate some other device such as a switch or relay.

Under the heading "internal-combustion engines" [Grolier's]{.underline}
states:

> Internal-combustion engines require some type of starting system.
> Small engines are generally started by pulling a starting rope or
> kicking a lever. Larger engines may use compressed air or an electric
> starting system. The latter includes a starter\--a high-torque
> electric motor\--to turn the crankshaft until the engine starts.
> Starting motors are extremely powerful for their size and are designed
> to utilize high currents (200 to 300 amperes). The large starting
> currents can cause a battery to drain rapidly; for this reason a
> heavy-duty battery is usually used. Interrupting this connection is an
> electrical switch called a SOLENOID, which is activated by the
> low-voltage starting switch. In this way the ignition switch can be
> located away from the starter and yet still turn the starter on and
> off.

See also, [McGraw-Hill Multimedia Encyclopedia of Science and
Technology]{.underline}, 1994, "Solenoid (electricity)," describing
construction, design and function of solenoids; and Stockel, Stockel and
Johanson. [Auto Fundamentals]{.underline}. Tinley Park, Illinois: The
Goodheart-Willcox Company, Inc., also describing and illustrating the
construction, design and function of solenoids.

Based upon these descriptions, definitions and illustrations, we find
that solenoids are electromechanical devices that electrically open and
close the starter switch and mechanically engage and disengage the
starter drive gear of the starter motor of an internal combustion
engine. While the electrical function -- opening and closing the starter
switch -- is described by heading 8536, HTSUS, the heading fails to
adequately describe the *mechanical* function of the article. Heading
8536, which provides for electrical apparatus for switching or
protecting electrical circuits, describes only one of the functions of a
solenoid. Therefore, classification cannot be made in heading 8536.

The EN to heading 8505, HTSUS, provides, in pertinent part:

> PARTS
>
> Subject to the general provisions regarding the classification of
> parts (see the General Explanatory Note to Section XVI), parts of the
> goods of this heading are also classified here.
>
> \* \* \*
>
> The heading does not cover:
>
> \* \* \*
>
> \(b\) Electro-magnets, permanent magnets or magnetic devices of this
> heading, when presented with machines, apparatus, toys, games, etc.,
> of which they are designed to form part (classified with those
> machines, apparatus, etc.).

The electromagnet contained in the solenoid performs an ancillary
function within the article. When the electrical connection is made, the
electromagnet causes the plunger to move, engaging the starter motor and
causing it to function. We find that the starter solenoid switches,
because of their mechanical function, cannot be classified as
electromagnets under heading 8505, HTSUS.

The General ENs to Chapter 84, (c) Parts, although concerned with
articles other than those at issue, provide in pertinent part:

> Separately presented electrical parts generally fall in one or other
> of the headings of Chapter 85, for example: . . . electrical starting
> equipment for internal combustion piston engines (heading 85.11);
> electrical switches, control panels, plugs, junction boxes, etc.
> (headings 85.35 to 85.37) . . .. Unless incorporated with other parts
> of the machine*, such goods are classified in those headings*, even if
> designed for use solely or principally with a particular machine of
> this Chapter \[emphasis added\].

The General ENs to Chapter 85 (A) Scope and Structure of the Chapter,
provide, in pertinent part:

> This Chapter covers:
>
> \* \* \*
>
> \(3\) Certain machines and appliances which depend for their operation
> on the properties or effects of electricity, such as its
> electro-magnetic effects, heating properties, etc. (headings 85.05,
> 85.11 to 85.18, 85.25 to 85.31 and 85.43).

The EN to heading 8511, HTSUS, provides, in pertinent part:

> This heading covers electrical starting or ignition equipment and
> appliances for internal combustion engines of any kind (piston or
> other types), whether for use in motor cars, aircraft, boats or the
> like, or for stationary engines. It also covers generators and
> cut-outs for use in conjunction with such internal combustion engines.
>
> \* \* \*
>
> \(F\) Starter motors.
>
> These are small electric motors, usually of the DC series wound type.
> They are fitted with a small pinion capable of travelling up and down
> a screwed shaft, or with some other mechanical device for coupling
> them temporarily to the internal combustion engine to be started.

The solenoid is described by the EN to heading 8511 as "some other
mechanical device for coupling \[starter motors\] temporarily to the
internal combustion engine to be started." We find that the solenoid is
a part designed and intended for use solely or principally with a
particular machine -- the starter motor of and internal combustion
engine. It is an electromechanical device that electrically opens and
closes the starter switch and mechanically engages and disengages the
starter drive gear of the starter motor of an internal combustion
engine. In accordance with Note 2(a) to Section XVI, because they are
"goods included" in heading 8511, HTSUS, the solenoids are classifiable
in heading 8511, HTSUS, as electrical ignition or starting equipment of
a kind used for spark-ignition or compression engine internal combustion
engine.

In your letter you referred to New York Ruling Letters (NYs) C82399
dated December 19, 1997 and A85758 dated August 14, 1996 and ruling
DD847708 dated December 15, 1989, issued by Customs in Hidalgo, Texas.

NY C82399 concerned the classification of an automotive starter solenoid
that acted as both an electrical relay and an electromechanical shift
lever. Customs believes the article was properly classified in
subheading 8511.80.60, HTSUS.

NY A85758 concerned the classification of an automotive starter solenoid
that acted as both an electrical relay and an electromechanical shift
lever. Photographs of the article are virtually identical to those
depicted in the schematic drawing you provided in your submission.
Customs believes the article was properly classified in subheading
8511.80.60, HTSUS.

With regard to DD 847708, which was issued as a pre-classification
ruling by Customs in Hidalgo, Texas, we cannot ascertain what type of
"starter solenoid switch" was analyzed and classified in subheading
8505.90.80, HTSUS, as magnetic articles. The Pre-Entry Classification
Program, which Customs initiated in January 1989, was designed primarily
to benefit importers whose product inventories lend themselves to an
item-by-item review. Among the importers' responsibilities for
participation in the program include a complete product listing with
proposed tariff classification where possible. Preclassification rulings
constitute a contract between the Customs Service and the ruling
recipient only with respect to the classification of the specific
articles covered in the decision. Preclassification rulings are not
full-text rulings issued under the authority of Part 177, Customs
Regulations (19 C.F.R. Part 177), and are not published or otherwise
made available for public inspection. Accordingly, such rulings are not
citable as authority in classifying merchandise of the same class or
kind. For these reasons, Customs is not bound by DD847708 with respect
to the classification of the subject merchandise.

**HOLDING:**

The solenoids are classified under subheading 8511.80.60, HTSUS, as
electrical ignition or starting equipment of a kind used for
spark-ignition or compression engine internal combustion engine, other
equipment, other.

Sincerely,

John Durant, Director

Commercial Rulings Division