19830 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 68 / Friday, April 8, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 

1North American Industry Classification System 

(NAICS). 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

40 CFR Parts 85 and 86 

[EPA–HQ–OAR–2009–0299; FRL–9289–7] 

RIN 2060–AP64 

Clean Alternative Fuel Vehicle and 

Engine Conversions 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: EPA is streamlining the 

process by which manufacturers of 

clean alternative fuel conversion 

systems may demonstrate compliance 

with vehicle and engine emissions 

requirements. Specifically, EPA is 

revising the regulatory criteria for 

gaining an exemption from the Clean 

Air Act prohibition against tampering 

for the conversion of vehicles and 

engines to operate on a clean alternative 

fuel. This final rule creates additional 

compliance options beyond certification 

that protect manufacturers of clean 

alternative fuel conversion systems 

against a tampering violation, 

depending on the age of the vehicle or 

engine to be converted. The new options 

alleviate some economic and procedural 

impediments to clean alternative fuel 

conversions while maintaining 

environmental safeguards to ensure that 

acceptable emission levels from 

converted vehicles are sustained. 

DATES: The rule is effective April 8, 

2011. 

ADDRESSES: EPA has established a 

docket for this action under Docket ID 

No. EPA–HQ–OAR–2009–0299. All 

documents in the docket are listed in 

the http://www.regulations.gov index. 

Although listed in the index, some 

information is not publicly available, 

e.g., CBI or other information whose 

disclosure is restricted by statute. 

Certain other material, such as 

copyrighted material, will be publicly 

available only in hard copy. Publicly 

available docket materials are available 

either electronically in http:// 

www.regulations.gov or in hard copy at 

the following location: EPA Docket 

Center, EPA/DC, EPA West, Room 3334, 

1301 Constitution Ave., NW., 

Washington, DC. The Public Reading 

Room is open from 8:30 a.m. to 

4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, 

excluding legal holidays. The telephone 

number for the Public Reading Room is 

(202) 566–1744. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Amy Bunker, Compliance and 

Innovative Strategies Division, U.S. 

Environmental Protection Agency, 2000 

Traverwood Drive, Ann Arbor, 

Michigan 48105. Telephone: (734) 214– 

4160. E-mail Address: 

bunker.amy@epa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Affected Entities 

This action will affect companies and 

persons that manufacture, assemble, 

sell, import, or install alternative fuel 

conversions for light-duty vehicles, 

light-duty trucks, medium-duty 

passenger vehicles, and heavy-duty 

vehicles and engines. Such entities are 

categorized as follows: 

NAICS codes 1 Examples of potentially regulated entities 

335312 ........................................................................................ Motor and Generator Manufacturing. 

336312 ........................................................................................ Gasoline Engine and Engine Parts Manufacturing. 

336322 ........................................................................................ Other Motor Vehicle Electrical and Electronic Equipment Manufacturing. 

336399 ........................................................................................ All Other Motor Vehicle Parts Manufacturing. 

811198 ........................................................................................ All Other Automotive Repair and Maintenance. 

This list is not intended to be 

exhaustive, but rather to provide a guide 

regarding entities likely to be affected by 

this action. To determine whether 

particular activities may be affected by 

this action, you should carefully 

examine the regulations. You may direct 

questions regarding the applicability of 

this action to the contact as noted above 

in FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT. 

Table of Contents 

I. Introduction 

II. Authority 

A. Vehicle and Engine Standards and 

Certification 

B. Useful Life 

C. ‘‘Tampering’’ Prohibition 

D. Exemption for Conversions 

E. Authority for Clean Alternative Fuel 

Conversions Program 

III. Program Design Elements Applicable to 

All Clean Alternative Fuel Conversions 

A. Clean Alternative Fuel Conversions 

B. Good Engineering Judgment 

C. Vehicle/Engine Groupings and Emission 

Data Vehicle/Engine Selection 

D. Mixed-Fuel and Dual-Fuel Conversions 

E. Vehicle/Engine Labels, Packaging 

Labels, and Marketing 

F. Compliance 

1. Emission Standards 

a. Light-Duty and Heavy-Duty Chassis 

Certified Vehicle Gross Vehicle Weight 

Classes and Alternative Fuel Exceptions 

b. Heavy-Duty Engine Types and Gross 

Vehicle Weight Classes 

c. Dual-Fuel and Mixed-Fuel Standards 

2. Useful Life 

3. On Board Diagnostics (OBD) 

4. Durability Testing 

5. Warranty 

6. Other Provisions Applicable to 

Conversion Manufacturers 

7. Misapplication 

G. Regulatory Procedures for Small Volume 

Manufacturers, Small Volume Test 

Groups, and Small Volume Engine 

Families 

1. Definition of Small Volume 

Manufacturers, Small Volume Test 

Groups, and Small Volume Engine 

Families 

a. Light-Duty and Heavy-Duty Chassis 

Certified Vehicles 

b. Heavy-Duty Engines 

2. Assigned Deterioration Factors 

3. Changes in Small Volume Status 

IV. Clean Alternative Fuel Conversion 

Program Details 

A. New Vehicle/Engine Clean Alternative 

Fuel Conversion Certification Program 

1. Applicability 

a. New Vehicles and Engines 

b. Older Vehicles and Engines 

2. Test Groups, Engine Families, and 

Evaporative/Refueling Families 

a. Test Groups for Light-Duty and HeavyDuty Chassis Certified Vehicles 

i. Small Volume Manufacturers and Small 

Volume Test Groups 

ii. Large Volume Manufacturers 

b. Engine Families for Heavy-Duty Engines 

i. Small Volume Manufacturers and Small 

Volume Engine Families 

ii. Large Volume Manufacturers 

c. Evaporative/Refueling Families 

3. Certification Demonstration 

Requirements 

a. Exhaust Emissions 

i. Light-Duty and Heavy-Duty Chassis 

Certified Vehicles 

ii. Heavy-Duty Engines 

b. Evaporative/Refueling Emissions 

c. Durability Demonstration and Assigned 

Deterioration Factors 

i. Small Volume Manufacturers and Small 

Volume Test Groups/Engine Families 

ii. Large Volume Manufacturers 

d. On-Board Diagnostics 

4. Certification Notification Process 


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Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 68 / Friday, April 8, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 19831 

2EPA’s emission standards generally are 

associated with either vehicle (chassis) or engine 

test procedures, depending on the vehicle’s gross 

vehicle weight rating and other factors. In this 

rulemaking, we may use the terms ‘‘vehicle/engine,’’ 

‘‘vehicle and engine,’’ or ‘‘vehicle or engine,’’ when 

referring to concepts that are applicable to either 

the vehicle or engine depending on the applicable 

standard. 

3See CAA sections 202, 203, and 206. 

4CAA section 203. 

5These regulations were originally promulgated 

on September 21, 1994 (59 FR 48472) and located 

in 40 CFR part 85, subpart F. 

a. Certificate Expiration and ReCertification 

5. In-Use Compliance 

B. Intermediate Age Vehicle and Engine 

Clean Alternative Fuel Conversion 

Program 

1. Applicability 

2. Test Groups, Engine Families, and 

Evaporative/Refueling Families 

a. Test Groups for Light-Duty and HeavyDuty Chassis Certified Vehicles 

i. Small Volume Manufacturers and Small 

Volume Test Groups 

ii. Large Volume Manufacturers 

iii. Dual-Fuel and Mixed-Fuel Vehicle 

Carry Across 

b. Engine Families for Heavy-Duty Engines 

i. Small Volume Manufacturers and Small 

Volume Engine Families 

ii. Large Volume Manufacturers 

iii Dual-Fuel and Mixed-Fuel Engine Carry 

Across 

c. Evaporative/Refueling Families 

3. Demonstration Requirements 

a. Exhaust Emissions 

b. Evaporative/Refueling Emissions 

c. Durability Demonstration and Assigned 

Deterioration Factors 

i. Small Volume Manufacturers and Small 

Volume Test Groups/Engine Families 

ii. Large Volume Manufacturers 

d. On-Board Diagnostics 

4. Notification Process 

a. Previously Certified Clean Alternative 

Fuel Conversion Systems 

5. In-Use Compliance 

C. Outside Useful Life Vehicle and Engine 

Clean Alternative Fuel Conversion 

Compliance Program 

1. Applicability 

2. Test Groups, Engine Families, and 

Evaporative/Refueling Families 

3. Demonstration Requirements 

4. Notification Process 

5. In-Use Compliance 

V. Technical Amendments 

A. Exhaust Emission Technical 

Amendments 

1. NMHC Multiplicative Adjustment Factor 

2. HCHO Compliance Statement 

B. Evaporative Emission Technical 

Amendments 

C. Additional Technical Amendments 

D. Light-Duty Vehicle Greenhouse Gas 

Compliance for Clean Alternative Fuel 

Conversion 

VI. Environmental Benefits 

VII. Associated Costs for Light-Duty and 

Heavy-Duty Chassis Certified Vehicles 

VIII. Associated Costs for Heavy-Duty 

Engines 

IX. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews 

A. Executive Order 12866: Regulatory 

Planning and Review 

B. Paperwork Reduction Act 

C. Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA), as 

Amended by The Small Business 

Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 

1996 (SBREFA), 5 U.S.C. 601 et seq. 

D. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act 

E. Executive Order 13132: Federalism 

F. Executive Order 13175: Consultation 

and Coordination With Indian Tribal 

Governments 

G. Executive Order 13045: Protection of 

Children From Environmental Health 

and Safety Risks 

H. Executive Order 13211: Actions That 

Significantly Affect Energy Supply, 

Distribution, or Use 

I. National Technology Transfer 

Advancement Act 

J. Executive Order 12898: Federal Actions 

To Address Environmental Justice in 

Minority Populations and Low-Income 

Populations 

K. Congressional Review Act 

L. Administrative Procedure Act 

X. Statutory Provisions and Legal Authority 

I. Introduction 

With the vast majority of motor 

vehicles in the United States designed 

to operate on gasoline or diesel fuel, 

there has been a longstanding and 

growing interest by the public in clean 

alternative fuel conversion systems. 

These systems allow gasoline or diesel 

vehicles to operate on alternative fuels 

such as natural gas, propane, alcohol, or 

electricity. Use of alternative fuels 

opens new fuel supply choices and can 

help consumers address concerns about 

fuel costs, energy security, and 

emissions. The U.S. Environmental 

Protection Agency (EPA) is responsible 

for ensuring that all vehicles and 

engines sold in the United States, 

including aftermarket conversions, meet 

emission standards. EPA is streamlining 

the process by which manufacturers of 

clean alternative fuel conversion 

systems may demonstrate compliance 

with these vehicle and engine emissions 

requirements. The new options reduce 

some economic and procedural 

impediments to clean alternative fuel 

conversions while maintaining 

environmental safeguards to ensure that 

acceptable emission levels from 

converted vehicles and engines 2 are 

sustained. 

The conversion of vehicles or engines 

to operate on fuels other than those for 

which they were originally designed 

may yield certain benefits, but it also 

presents several legal and 

environmental concerns. The concerns 

stem from Clean Air Act (CAA, the Act) 

provisions intended to ensure that 

vehicles and engines remain clean 

throughout their useful life. To this end, 

the Act requires EPA to establish motor 

vehicle emission standards that apply 

throughout useful life, and to verify 

through issuance of a certificate of 

conformity that any vehicle or engine 

entered into commerce complies with 

the established emission standards.3

Once certified, the vehicle or engine 

generally may not be altered from its 

certified configuration.4 The CAA 

prohibition against alteration or 

‘‘tampering’’ is important because 

emission standards apply well beyond a 

vehicle’s or engine’s initial entry into 

commerce. It is extremely difficult to 

reconfigure integrated and sophisticated 

modern automotive systems, precisely 

designed to achieve low pollution levels 

over time, without negatively affecting 

their durability or emissions 

performance. 

EPA has long recognized vehicle and 

engine alteration for the purpose of 

clean alternative fuel conversion as a 

special case because while improperly 

designed or installed conversions can 

increase emissions, properly engineered 

conversions can reduce, or at least not 

increase, emissions. Furthermore, use of 

alternative fuels can help achieve other 

goals such as diversifying the fuel 

supply through use of domestic energy 

sources. Therefore, EPA has established 

policies through which conversion 

manufacturers can demonstrate that the 

conversion does not compromise 

emissions compliance. The previous 

compliance requirements provided 

adequate environmental oversight but 

were not optimal for the conversions 

industry, and especially not for 

conversion of older vehicles and 

engines. To address these concerns, EPA 

is updating the regulations with 

practical, streamlined testing and 

administrative requirements that ensure 

long-term compliance without imposing 

unnecessary burden on converters. This 

action is also consistent with the 

President’s January 18, 2011 Executive 

Order (EO) 13563, ‘‘Improving 

Regulation and Regulatory Review.’’ 

Specifically, this EO directs, under 

Section 4, Flexible Approaches, that 

‘‘where relevant, feasible, and consistent 

with regulatory objectives, and to the 

extent permitted by law, each agency 

identify and consider regulatory 

approaches that reduce burdens and 

maintain flexibility and freedom of 

choice for the public.’’ 

On May 26, 2010, (75 FR 29606) EPA 

proposed rule changes to simplify and 

streamline the process 5 by which 

manufacturers of clean alternative fuel 

conversion systems may demonstrate 

compliance with emissions 

requirements. EPA held a public hearing 

on the proposal on June 23, 2010 and 


emcdonald on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with RULES2
19832 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 68 / Friday, April 8, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 

6See Response to Comments document at http:// 

www.regulations.gov under docket id EPA–HQ– 

OAR–2009–0299 or at http://www.epa.gov/otaq/ 

consumer/fuels/altfuels/altfuels.htm. 

7The term ‘‘requirements’’ is often used in the 

preamble and regulatory text for this rulemaking to 

refer to the notification, demonstration, and other 

regulatory provisions that a conversion 

manufacturer must satisfy to qualify under this rule 

for an exemption from the CAA tampering 

prohibition. These requirements only apply to 

conversion manufacturers seeking an exemption 

under this rule. Any person who does not obtain 

an exemption and whose conduct constitutes 

tampering is liable under the CAA. 

8See Section IV.A and Sections 85.505 and 

85.510. Sections 85.505(b)(1) and 85.510 apply to 

‘‘new and relatively-new’’ vehicles or engines, i.e., 

where the date of conversion is in a calendar year 

that is not more than one year after the original 

model year of the vehicle/engine. In this preamble, 

we refer to these ‘‘new and relatively-new’’ vehicles/ 

engines as ‘‘new’’ only as a shorthand reference to 

the category of ‘‘new and relatively-new’’ engines/ 

vehicles. This shorthand use of ‘‘new’’ is not 

intended to mean that these vehicles/engines are 

‘‘new’’ under the Act or any EPA regulations. 

9CAA section 203(a)(1). 

10CAA sections 202 and 206. 

11 40 CFR 86.1848–01. 

12CAA section 202. 

accepted public comment through July 

23, 2010. Comments generally 

supported the proposed rule changes. 

These comments are available for public 

viewing in Docket EPA–HQ–OAR– 

2009–02999. Docket content can be 

viewed and/or downloaded at http:// 

www.regulations.gov. Our responses to 

these comments are detailed in the 

Response to Comments document, 

which is available in the public docket 

and on our Web site.6 In this final rule 

we present background information and 

provide a description of the content, 

timing, and rationale for the final 

program. For background and details 

regarding the proposal, readers should 

consult the Notice of Proposed 

Rulemaking and related documents. 

EPA is finalizing the rule revisions 

largely as proposed. The revised 

program expands compliance options 

for conversion manufacturers and 

establishes less burdensome 

demonstration requirements that will 

nonetheless sustain EPA’s oversight and 

longstanding commitment to the 

environmental integrity of clean 

alternative fuel conversions. 

This new approach streamlines the 

regulatory process and introduces new 

flexibilities for conversion 

manufacturers, while ensuring that 

converted vehicles and engines retain 

acceptable levels of emission control. 

The revised program also addresses the 

uncertainty some converters may 

previously have experienced in 

determining whether a conversion 

constitutes tampering that could result 

in liability. EPA is revising the 

regulatory procedures in 40 CFR part 85, 

subpart F and part 86 to remain 

consistent with the CAA yet reflect the 

concept that it is appropriate to treat 

conversion requirements 7 differently 

based on vehicle or engine age. The new 

program facilitates age-appropriate 

testing and compliance procedures by 

placing alternative fuel conversions into 

one of three categories: (1) Conversions 

of vehicles or engines that are ‘‘new and 

relatively-new’’ (hereafter referred to as 

‘‘new’’ solely for the purpose of this 

preamble),8 (2) conversions of vehicles 

or engines that are no longer new (i.e., 

no longer ‘‘new and relatively-new’’) but 

that still fall within EPA’s definition of 

full useful life (‘‘intermediate age’’ 

vehicles and engines), and (3) 

conversions of vehicles or engines that 

are outside EPA’s definition of useful 

life (‘‘outside useful life’’ vehicles and 

engines). 

For the first category, conversions of 

new vehicles and engines, EPA believes 

that a requirement for a certificate of 

conformity remains appropriate because 

those vehicles and engines were entered 

into commerce as the subject of a 

recently issued Original Equipment 

Manufacturer (OEM) certificate of 

conformity. Such vehicles/engines 

typically have the majority of their 

useful life remaining. In addition, the 

condition of a relatively new vehicle or 

engine is still likely to be representative 

of the OEM vehicle or engine used in 

certification testing. A certification 

requirement for new vehicle and engine 

conversion also eliminates any 

perceived incentive that might 

otherwise exist for OEMs to convert a 

certified traditional configuration rather 

than to certify an alternative fuel 

configuration in the first place. Thus, 

EPA is finalizing procedures that largely 

retain the current certification protocols 

for manufacturers of conversion systems 

for new vehicles and engines, while 

providing some new flexibility in 

grouping such vehicles or engines for 

certification purposes. For the second 

category, intermediate age vehicles and 

engines, EPA is finalizing 

demonstration protocols whereby fuel 

conversion manufacturers demonstrate 

through testing that the converted 

vehicle or engine still meets applicable 

CAA section 202 emission standards. 

For the third category, vehicles and 

engines outside their full useful life, 

there is no longer an applicable 

standard to serve as a benchmark, 

because the CAA section 202 emission 

standards apply only within the useful 

life. Therefore, EPA sought comment on 

three options through which 

manufacturers of conversion systems for 

older vehicles and engines could 

demonstrate that the conversion is 

technically viable and will not increase 

emissions. EPA also offered an alternate 

approach for comment that would have 

created two subcategories of outside 

useful life vehicles/engines. EPA is 

finalizing the demonstration protocol 

described in the proposal as Option 3 

and is adopting a single outside useful 

life category based on the current 

regulatory definition. Manufacturers of 

conversion systems designed for outside 

useful life vehicles and engines must 

submit detailed technical information 

describing the conversion system and a 

scan tool report showing that both 

vehicle/engine emission controls and 

the On-Board Diagnostic (OBD) system 

continue to work properly. 

The purpose of the revised program is 

to expand compliance options for 

conversion manufacturers while 

sustaining EPA’s oversight and 

longstanding commitment to the 

environmental integrity of clean 

alternative fuel conversions. Consistent 

with this intent and with the CAA, EPA 

requires any conversion to be 

technically sound, regardless of the 

vehicle or engine age category, and will 

continue to hold the conversion 

manufacturer accountable for acceptable 

emissions performance once the 

converted vehicle or engine is in 

customer service. EPA will employ 

compliance tools as appropriate, such as 

confirmatory testing and in-use vehicle/ 

engine emissions monitoring to check 

fleet performance, as it does with OEM 

vehicles/engines. 

II. Authority 

A. Vehicle and Engine Standards and 

Certification 

The CAA grants EPA authority to 

establish, administer, and enforce 

emission standards for motor vehicles 

and engines. The CAA states that a new 

vehicle or engine may not be introduced 

into commerce unless it has been issued 

a certificate of conformity (‘‘certificate’’) 

by EPA.9 A certificate is issued when a 

manufacturer has demonstrated to EPA 

through a regulatory testing and data 

submission process that the vehicle or 

engine will conform for its useful life to 

the standards promulgated by EPA.10

Each certificate is valid for up to one 

model year.11

B. Useful Life 

The CAA directs EPA to promulgate 

emission standards that are applicable 

for a vehicle or engine’s ‘‘useful life’’ and 

to establish the useful life period 

through regulation.12 The full useful life 


emcdonald on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with RULES2
Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 68 / Friday, April 8, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 19833 

13Regulations may also include optional 

standards such as in 40 CFR 86.1805–04(b) and (e). 

14 40 CFR 86.1805–04. 

15 In this preamble we call heavy-duty vehicles 

that are currently regulated under 40 CFR subpart 

S ‘‘heavy-duty chassis certified vehicles’’. In the 

proposal we called this group of vehicles ‘‘heavyduty complete vehicles’’. 

16 40 CFR 86.1805–04. An optional useful life of 

15 years or 150,000 miles, whichever comes first, 

may apply. 40 CFR 86.1860–04 (g). 

17 40 CFR 86.004–2. 

18 40 CFR 86.004–2. 

19Any alteration of a motor vehicle or engine, its 

fueling system, or the integration of these systems, 

which may be classified as ‘‘tampering’’ under 

section 203(a) and which does not satisfy an 

available exemption would be a violation of the 

CAA for which section 205 authorizes EPA to assess 

penalties. See 40 CFR part 19. 

20CAA section 203(a). 

21 59 FR 48477 (Sep. 21, 1994). 

22The term ‘‘flex-fuel’’ was used in the proposal. 

Because there are multiple uses and definitions of 

flexible-fuel in 40 CFR part 86, in this rule we call 

this category of fuel conversion ‘‘mixed-fuel.’’ This 

definition only applies to clean alternative fuel 

vehicle and engine conversions. 

23Note that other Federal agencies may define 

terms such as dual-fuel and bi-fuel differently than 

EPA definitions. 

varies among pollutant standards and 

among vehicle or engine categories.13

For example, recent model year lightduty vehicles (cars and small trucks) 

generally have a useful life of 10 years 

or 120,000 miles, whichever comes 

first; 14 recent model year heavy-duty 

chassis certified 15 vehicles and 

medium-duty passenger vehicles 

generally have a useful life of 11 years 

or 120,000 miles, whichever comes 

first; 16 and current Otto-cycle heavyduty engines have a useful life of 

110,000 miles or 10 years, whichever 

first occurs.17 For current diesel heavyduty engines (also referred to as 

‘‘compression-ignition’’ or ‘‘diesel 

cycle’’), there are different useful life 

definitions based on gross vehicle 

weight, pollutant being controlled, and 

test procedure, ranging from 10 years or 

110,000 miles, whichever first occurs, to 

10 years or 435,000 miles or 22,000 

hours of engine operation, whichever 

first occurs.18

C. ‘‘Tampering’’ Prohibition 

Under CAA section 203(a)(3), it is 

prohibited: 

(A) For any person to remove or 

render inoperative any device or 

element of design installed on or in a 

motor vehicle or motor vehicle engine 

in compliance with regulations under 

this subchapter prior to its sale and 

delivery to the ultimate purchaser, or for 

any person knowingly to remove or 

render inoperative any such device or 

element of design after such sale and 

delivery to the ultimate purchaser; or 

(B) For any person to manufacture or 

sell, or offer to sell, or install, any part 

or component intended for use with, or 

as part of, any motor vehicle or motor 

vehicle engine, where a principal effect 

of the part or component is to bypass, 

defeat, or render inoperative any device 

or element of design installed on or in 

a motor vehicle or motor vehicle engine 

in compliance with regulations under 

this subchapter, and where the person 

knows or should know that such part or 

component is being offered for sale or 

installed for such use or put to such use. 

The CAA prohibition against 

tampering applies to vehicles and 

engines regardless of age or mileage 

accumulation.19

D. Exemption for Conversions 

The CAA provides for several 

statutory exemptions to the prohibition 

on tampering. One of these exemptions 

is for actions which are ‘‘for the purpose 

of a conversion of a motor vehicle for 

use of a clean alternative fuel (as 

defined in this subchapter) and if such 

vehicle complies with the applicable 

standard under section 202 when 

operating on such fuel.’’ 20

E. Authority for Clean Alternative Fuel 

Conversions Program 

The regulatory issue posed by vehicle 

and engine clean alternative fuel 

conversions is how to design a program 

that allows manufacturers to 

demonstrate that their conversion 

system warrants an exemption from the 

prohibition against tampering. The 1994 

rulemaking that created the 40 CFR part 

85, subpart F regulations (‘‘the subpart F 

regulations’’) stated, ‘‘It has always been 

the Agency’s policy that an aftermarket 

conversion not degrade the emissions 

performance of the original vehicle as a 

condition of being exempt from 

prosecution for tampering violations.’’ 21

Today’s final rule is based on EPA’s 

interpretation that section 203(a) 

provides a tampering exemption for 

clean alternative fuel conversions. The 

section 203(a) exemption from 

tampering applies when the otherwise 

prohibited act is for ‘‘the purpose of a 

conversion of a motor vehicle for use of 

a clean alternative fuel (as defined in 

this subchapter) and if such vehicle 

complies with the applicable standard 

under section 202 when operating on 

such fuel.’’ Thus, the threshold 

qualification for the exemption is the 

proper purpose (i.e., ‘‘conversion * * * 

for use of a clean alternative fuel’’). The 

second criterion for the exemption is 

compliance with the applicable 

standard. 

EPA is finalizing a program that 

requires a demonstration to satisfy both 

of these criteria for vehicles/engines that 

are still within their useful life. For 

vehicles/engines that are outside their 

useful life, even though a standard 

under CAA Section 202 is no longer 

applicable, EPA believes it is important 

to provide a legal path under which 

outside useful life vehicles/engines can 

be converted to use alternative fuels. 

Only clean alternative fuel conversion 

systems that comply with the 

regulations will qualify for the CAA 

section 203(a) exemption from the 

tampering prohibition for application to 

outside useful life vehicles and engines. 

Thus, EPA is finalizing a program that 

requires the conversion manufacturer to 

demonstrate that the threshold criterion 

is met (i.e., ‘‘conversion * * * for use of 

a clean alternative fuel’’). To meet the 

threshold criterion, the conversion 

manufacturer is required to demonstrate 

that emissions have not degraded as a 

result of the clean alternative fuel 

conversion. Such a demonstration 

serves to maintain air quality, consistent 

with the congressional intent in creating 

the exemption. 

III. Program Design Elements 

Applicable to All Clean Alternative 

Fuel Conversions 

The revised clean alternative fuel 

conversion program is designed to 

increase flexibility for conversion 

manufacturers while ensuring that 

converted vehicles/engines retain 

acceptable emission levels. Certain 

aspects of the program design depend 

on the age of the vehicle or engine being 

converted, while other program 

elements are common to all 

conversions. This section describes 

those program elements which are 

applicable to all clean alternative fuel 

conversions, regardless of vehicle or 

engine age. 

In general there are three types of 

typical alternative fuel conversions: 

(1) Those that result in dedicated 

alternative fuel vehicles or engines, 

(2) those that result in dual-fuel vehicles 

or engines, and (3) those that result in 

mixed-fuel 22 (also known as bi-fuel and 

flexible-fuel) vehicles or engines.23 The 

first type, dedicated alternative fuel 

vehicles or engines, are only capable of 

operating on one type of fuel. Dual-fuel 

vehicles or engines, the second type, 

can operate on two or more types of 

fuel, either the fuel(s) they were 

originally designed for or the new 

alternative fuel(s). Dual-fuel vehicles 

and engines can run on more than a 

single type of fuel but not on a mixture 

of the fuels. The third type, mixed-fuel 

vehicles or engines, are able to operate 


emcdonald on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with RULES2
19834 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 68 / Friday, April 8, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 

24See 40 CFR 86.1840–01. 

25For example, EPA received a comment 

suggesting that vehicle fuel converters might take 

advantage of the OBD system diagnostic capabilities 

by interrogating the system before and after 

conversion using an OBD scan tool. Monitors 

supported by the OBD system may include misfire, 

oxygen sensors, catalyst monitor, exhaust gas 

recirculation (EGR), and evaporative emission 

controls. The converter could examine exhaust 

emission controls by collecting and interrogating 

Mode $6 data. Fueling system control could be 

examined through interrogation of Mode $1 data 

using the same scan tool. By comparing the 

numerical values read from a scan tool against the 

OBD failure thresholds, the vehicle fuel converter 

would be able to understand the robustness of the 

OBD system when operating on the alternative fuel 

and make any necessary calibration changes to the 

vehicle. This type of OBD information would 

provide greater assurance that the conversion does 

not render the OBD system susceptible to producing 

false negative or false positive results. This type of 

procedure is not a substitute for any other OBD 

demonstration requirements, but would add value 

in demonstrating good engineering judgment. For 

further examples of good engineering judgment, see 

Section IV.C.3. 

on either the original fuel(s) or the 

alternative fuel(s), or on a mix of the 

fuels. Mixed-fuel vehicles/engines are 

capable of combusting the different fuel 

types together in the engine. For 

example, an ethanol flexible-fuel 

vehicle is a mixed-fuel vehicle that can 

operate on 100% gasoline, or on any 

combination of gasoline and ethanol up 

to a mixture of 85% ethanol and 15% 

gasoline (known as ‘‘E85’’). Conversions 

that enable an OEM diesel configuration 

to operate on either diesel fuel or a 

diesel-gaseous fuel mixture represent 

another example of a mixed-fuel 

vehicle/engine conversion system. 

EPA regulates all types of alternative 

fuel conversions pursuant to the 

regulations specified in 40 CFR part 85, 

subpart F and certification provisions in 

40 CFR part 86 and part 1065. EPA will 

continue to regulate typical types of 

conversions, along with newer or 

innovative types of fuel conversions that 

do not fit neatly into one of the general 

categories listed above. These include 

conversions of conventional gasoline or 

diesel vehicles to hybrid-electric 

vehicles, and conversions from hybridelectric vehicles to plug-in hybrid 

electric vehicles. Since alternative fuel 

conversion activity often acts as a 

laboratory for new fuels and new 

technology, it is not possible to present 

an exhaustive list of covered categories 

or special cases. Each special case may 

require unique test procedures that are 

appropriate to new and developing 

technologies.24

A. Clean Alternative Fuel Conversions 

Clean alternative fuel conversions for 

which the conversion manufacturer has 

complied with the revised subpart F 

regulations qualify for the CAA section 

203(a) exemption from the tampering 

prohibition. EPA received comments 

suggesting that the definition of clean 

alternative fuel conversion should be 

limited to a group of fuels with proven 

emission benefits. EPA believes 

however that the public interest is better 

served by a broader definition that 

allows for future introduction of 

innovative and as-yet unknown fuel 

conversion systems. EPA is therefore 

finalizing the proposed definition of 

clean alternative fuel conversion (also 

referred to as ‘‘fuel conversion’’ or 

‘‘conversion system’’) to be any 

alteration of a motor vehicle or engine, 

its fueling system, or the integration of 

these systems, that allows the vehicle or 

engine to operate on a fuel or power 

source different from the fuel or power 

source for which the vehicle or engine 

was originally certified; and that is 

designed, constructed, and applied 

consistent with good engineering 

judgment and in accordance with all 

applicable regulations. A clean 

alternative fuel conversion also includes 

the components, design, and 

instructions to perform this alteration. A 

clean alternative fuel conversion 

manufacturer (also referred to as 

‘‘conversion manufacturer’’ or 

‘‘converter’’) is a company or individual 

that manufactures, assembles, sells, 

imports, or installs a motor vehicle or 

engine fuel conversion for the purpose 

of use of a clean alternative fuel. EPA 

received comments expressing concern 

that a definition of conversion 

manufacturer that includes multiple 

parties potentially involved in a 

conversion process is too broad. EPA is 

finalizing the conversion manufacturer 

definition as proposed. The broad 

definition is intentional because any of 

the listed entities could potentially 

conduct the required compliance 

demonstration and thereby achieve 

eligibility for the tampering exemption. 

However, for any given test group or 

engine family, EPA expects that only 

one entity will function as the ‘‘clean 

alternative fuel conversion 

manufacturer.’’ Should none of the 

listed entities satisfy the subpart F 

regulations for a covered fuel 

conversion, then all could potentially be 

liable for a tampering violation. 

To demonstrate clean alternative fuel 

conversion compliance and gain 

exemption from the CAA tampering 

prohibition, conversion manufacturers 

are required to submit data and/or other 

information to EPA. For purposes of this 

preamble we will refer to the 

appropriate submission as a 

‘‘demonstration’’ and to the process of 

submitting the demonstration as 

‘‘notification.’’ The specifics of the 

demonstration depend on the age of 

vehicles or engines being converted, but 

the general demonstration and 

notification requirements apply to all 

conversion systems. Section IV contains 

a detailed description of the age-specific 

demonstration and notification 

requirements. EPA will maintain lists of 

conversion systems that have satisfied 

the age-appropriate demonstration 

requirements through the EPA 

notification process and will make this 

information publicly available. 

Any previous requirement that is not 

specifically addressed in this final rule 

will remain in place. 

B. Good Engineering Judgment 

A clean alternative fuel conversion 

manufacturer is eligible for the 

exemption from the CAA tampering 

prohibition only if the conversion 

system is designed, constructed, and 

applied using good engineering 

judgment. EPA understands that in the 

context of exempting clean alternative 

fuel conversions from the CAA 

tampering prohibition, certain aspects of 

good engineering judgment may vary as 

a function of clean alternative fuel type, 

OEM technology, and other factors. In 

general, good engineering judgment 

means that the conversion manufacturer 

has provided sufficient technical 

documentation for EPA to ascertain that 

the converted vehicle or engine will 

continue to satisfy emissions 

requirements, such as meeting standards 

within useful life or maintaining 

emissions performance after conversion 

outside useful life. Such documentation 

must be submitted to EPA in writing 

before any conversion kit is distributed 

or installed. EPA will evaluate several 

factors in assessing whether a 

conversion system represents good 

engineering judgment. These factors 

may include the following: Whether the 

system employs technology that is at 

least equivalent and equally effective in 

design, materials and overall 

sophistication to that of the OEM 

system, uses components that are sized 

to match the engine power 

requirements, uses instantaneous 

feedback control, and maintains proper 

OBD system function. 

Documentation provided to support a 

claim of good engineering judgment 

may include emissions test data or other 

engineering analysis to demonstrate that 

the conversion technology will sustain 

acceptable emissions performance in the 

intended vehicles or engines.25 Good 

engineering judgment also dictates that 

any testing or data used to satisfy 

demonstration requirements must be 

generated at a quality laboratory that 


emcdonald on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with RULES2
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26Certain fuels such as diesel fuel do not have 

evaporative emissions standards. 

27See 40 CFR 86.1827–01 and 40 CFR 86.001–24 

for test group and engine family criteria. See 40 CFR 

86.1839–01 for OEM carry-over provisions for lightduty and heavy duty chassis certified vehicles. 

28EPA requested and received comment on the 

proposed test group/engine family grouping criteria, 

including the carryover of test data from one group 

to another, and on the related issue of EDV or EDE 

selection. The issues are interconnected because the 

narrower the grouping and carryover criteria, the 

less technical variability among vehicle or engine 

models within the group and the more likely that 

a single EDV or EDE will be representative. 

exercises good laboratory practices and 

is capable of performing emission tests 

that comply with EPA regulations. 

C. Vehicle/Engine Groupings and 

Emission Data Vehicle/Engine Selection 

The unit of vehicle certification and 

compliance under the CAA and under 

EPA’s implementing regulations is a 

group of vehicles that share similar 

technologies, design features, and 

emission control characteristics. Thus 

each OEM certificate of conformity can 

and usually does cover several vehicle 

models that have in common a unique 

combination of exhaust emission 

controls, evaporative emission controls, 

and OBD system features. The common 

exhaust emission system characteristics 

are represented by a grouping called a 

‘‘test group.’’ The common evaporative 

emission system characteristics are 

represented by an ‘‘evaporative/refueling 

family.’’ The OBD system features are 

represented by an ‘‘OBD group.’’ Lightduty vehicles and chassis certified 

heavy-duty vehicles receive a single 

certificate covering a unique 

combination of test group, evaporative/ 

refueling family, and OBD group. 

The unit of certification is slightly 

different for heavy-duty engines. Instead 

of receiving a single certificate that 

covers both exhaust and evaporative 

emission control characteristics, heavyduty engines are issued separate 

certificates by ‘‘engine family’’ for 

engines having common exhaust 

characteristics and by evaporative/ 

refueling families, if applicable.26 Even 

though heavy-duty engine certificates 

are based on a different compliance 

unit, the concept behind allowable 

groupings remains consistent between 

light-duty vehicle and heavy-duty 

engine certification and compliance. 

Groupings share similar technologies, 

design features, and emission control 

characteristics. EPA proposed to slightly 

broaden grouping criteria for clean 

alternative fuel conversions and 

generally received favorable comment 

about the proposed flexibilities. EPA is 

adopting broader grouping criteria for 

both light-duty vehicles and heavy-duty 

engines. 

The general concept behind groupings 

for the conversion program applies to all 

vehicle and engine age categories, 

although the specific criteria for 

designating conversion groups vary 

somewhat among the new, intermediate 

age, and outside useful life programs 

(see Section IV). Conversion 

manufacturers must use the applicable 

criteria to designate a conversion group, 

and must select a ‘‘worst case’’ emission 

data vehicle (EDV) or emission data 

engine (EDE) to represent the group for 

demonstration and notification 

purposes. The conversion EDV or EDE 

should represent the most challenging 

emissions compliance technology of all 

the models it represents. Use of a worstcase EDV/EDE gives EPA confidence 

that all models covered by a certificate 

in the case of OEM certification, or by 

EPA’s acceptance of the conversion 

group demonstration in the case of 

conversion, comply with all applicable 

emission requirements, including 

exhaust emission standards, evaporative 

emission standards, OBD compliance 

requirements, and other criteria. 

Therefore conversion manufacturers 

may need to submit data from more than 

one EDV or EDE to represent the worst 

case condition for each of the applicable 

requirements. 

OEMs have considerable ability to 

carryover test data between test groups/ 

engine families and evaporative/ 

refueling families of different model 

years. A manufacturer may use one set 

of data to support the certification 

application of a subsequent year’s test 

group/engine family as long as the 

groups meet the regulatory grouping 

criteria and meet the same emission 

standards.27 EPA is finalizing 

provisions that allow converters the 

same flexibility, that is, a converter is 

allowed to carryover data if the OEM 

did. 

In addition to these data carryover 

provisions, EPA proposed to broaden 

the grouping criteria for clean 

alternative fuel conversions, but 

received comments requesting that the 

proposed criteria for designating test 

groups/engine families be broadened 

even further.28

Commenters especially sought the 

ability to combine vehicles/engines 

from multiple model years and/or 

multiple OEMs within a single 

conversion test group/engine family. 

EPA does not agree that the grouping 

flexibilities should be further expanded 

to allow conversion test groups/engine 

families to span multiple OEM model 

years or manufacturers. Emission 

control strategies may and often do 

differ in critical ways among 

manufacturers, or even among product 

lines of a single manufacturer. EPA did 

not receive any data or other evidence 

to alleviate concerns that these 

differences could result in variable 

emissions performance among vehicles/ 

engines in a broader grouping, even if 

some features such as engine 

displacement are identical. For 

example, even in vehicles with the same 

engine displacement and cylinder 

configuration, other technical features 

are likely to be different enough to 

warrant concern that the emissions will 

be very different after the vehicles are 

converted. Different manufacturers 

rarely use identical emissions-related 

hardware and software. Furthermore, 

manufacturers often change components 

and strategies between model years as 

technology improves. The engine 

controller software will likely reflect 

these different strategies, so there is no 

assurance that a given conversion 

system will operate similarly or remain 

durable on one manufacturer’s vehicle 

compared to another, or on different 

model year vehicles of an individual 

manufacturer. EPA does not have 

confidence that significant broadening 

of conversion test group/engine family 

criteria, or expansion of carryover/carrybackward/carry-across provisions can be 

allowed without compromising our 

assurance that the conversion system 

will achieve equivalent emission control 

across the full test group/engine family. 

EPA believes the criteria for conversion 

test group/engine family combinations, 

which were first presented in guidance 

on June 20, 2009 and which EPA is 

codifying in this final rule, represent an 

appropriate balance between reducing 

compliance burden for converters and 

fulfilling EPA’s responsibilities to 

ensure that all vehicles/engines remain 

clean. 

Because of the integral link between 

grouping criteria and selection of a 

worst case EDV/EDE to represent that 

group, EPA also requested comment on 

whether a worst case EDV/EDE would 

adequately represent test groups/engine 

families created under the proposed 

criteria. Most commenters stated that a 

worst case EDV/EDE is a reasonable 

approach. One commenter expressed 

concern about whether a worst case 

EDV/EDE would be sufficient to 

represent broader test groups. EPA will 

address this concern by retaining the 

ability to examine the conversion 

manufacturer’s basis for EDV/EDE 

selection. Should EPA have concerns 

about whether the EDV/EDE adequately 

represents the grouping, EPA may 

request additional data from other 


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29See, e.g., 40 CFR 86.1810–01, 40 CFR 86.1811– 

04, 40 CFR 86.1812–01, 40 CFR 86.1813–01, 40 CFR 

86.1814–02, 40 CFR 86.1815–02, 40 CFR 86.1816– 

08. 

30Compliance testing and data submission 

requirements vary by vehicle age and mileage. See 

Section IV. 

31 Id. 

32The proposal discussed dual-fuel vehicles/ 

engine evaporative emissions concerns; however, 

these flexibilities and restrictions are also 

applicable to mixed-fuel vehicles/engines, since 

mixed-fuel vehicles/engines function similarly to 

dual-fuel vehicles/engines. Vehicles and engines 

converted to mixed-fuel operation can generally 

operate on the new alternative fuel(s), on the 

original fuel(s), or on a mixture of the fuels. 

vehicles or engines in the group. Please 

see the Response to Comments 

document for further discussion of this 

issue. 

D. Mixed-Fuel and Dual-Fuel 

Conversions 

EPA regulations require mixed-fuel 

and dual-fuel vehicles and engines to 

comply with all requirements 

established for each fuel or blend of 

fuels on which the system is capable of 

operating.29 These requirements 

continue to apply to mixed- and dualfuel conversions. Certain demonstration 

requirements could potentially be 

waived for clean alternative fuel 

conversions if the conversion 

manufacturer has not altered the OEM 

configuration of the vehicle or engine 

when operating on its original fuel. 

However, if the conversion of the 

vehicle or engine to dual-fuel or mixedfuel operation alters the OEM certified 

configuration in any way while 

operating on the original fuel, then EPA 

requires the conversion manufacturer to 

demonstrate compliance for each fuel 

with all applicable exhaust emission 

standards, evaporative/refueling 

emission standards and OBD 

demonstration and notification 

requirements, appropriate for the age of 

the vehicle/engine as described in 

Section IV. 

EPA will continue to allow a 

statement of compliance in lieu of test 

data for operation on the original fuel if 

the conversion manufacturer can attest 

that the conversion retains all the OEM 

fuel system, engine calibration, and 

emission control system functionality 

when operating on the fuel with which 

the vehicle/engine was originally 

certified. The conversion must also 

retain all the functionality of the OEM 

OBD system (if so equipped) when 

operating on the fuel with which the 

vehicle/engine was originally certified. 

The conversion manufacturer is 

required to submit data demonstrating 

compliance with the applicable 

requirements when the vehicle/engine 

is operating on the new alternative 

fuel.30

Because a mixed-fuel vehicle or 

engine operates on a fuel mixture, with 

the fuels combusted together at a variety 

of fuel blend ratios, mixed-fuel vehicles/ 

engines are expected to demonstrate 

compliance when tested on any fuel 

blend ratio that is expected to occur 

during normal operation. EPA may 

require a mixed-fuel vehicle or engine 

conversion manufacturer to demonstrate 

compliance with applicable 

requirements on more than one fuel 

blend ratio.31 For example, E–85 

flexible-fuel vehicles would generally be 

tested on two fuel blend ratios—100% 

gasoline/0% ethanol and 85% ethanol/ 

15% gasoline. Other types of mixed-fuel 

vehicles/engines would generally be 

tested on a fuel blend ratio that 

represents the worst case emission 

scenario. Conversion systems designed 

for a fluctuating fuel mix, such as a 

CNG/diesel fuel mixture, would 

generally be tested as they would 

normally operate rather than on a 

discrete mixed fuel blend ratio. 

Conversion manufacturers should work 

with EPA to make good engineering 

judgment decisions about the worst case 

EDV or EDE for mixed-fuel vehicles and 

engines. 

EPA has specific concerns about 

canister purge in dual-fuel and mixedfuel 32 conversions because of potential 

for uncontrolled evaporative emissions 

when the converted vehicle or engine is 

operating on the new alternative fuel. 

Although much of the OEM 

functionality is likely to remain fully 

operational on the original fuel after 

conversion to dual-fuel or mixed-fuel, 

OEM canister purge may have been 

designed to depend on the frequency 

and duration of engine operation on the 

original fuel. Therefore, for dual-fuel 

and mixed-fuel conversions, EPA is 

requiring the conversion manufacturer 

to test canister purge and submit data or 

to provide a separate attestation for 

evaporative emission canister purge. For 

vehicles and engines converted to dualfuel or mixed-fuel operation, the 

attestation must include statements that 

the evaporative emissions canister purge 

continues to operate as originally 

designed while operating on each fuel. 

EPA expects the clean alternative fuel 

conversion manufacturer to supply a 

description of the canister purge 

operation while the vehicle or engine is 

operating on the alternative fuel. 

Conversion manufacturers may submit a 

statement of attestation rather than test 

data only if the canister purge operation 

properly purges hydrocarbon vapor 

from the evaporative emission canister 

when the vehicle/engine is operating on 

the alternative fuel. 

E. Vehicle/Engine Labels, Packaging 

Labels, and Marketing 

EPA proposed to maintain existing 

labeling requirements and also proposed 

to require some additional content on 

the conversion label. Comments on the 

labeling proposal were mixed. Some 

commenters suggested additional 

labeling requirements beyond those that 

were proposed. Other commenters 

opposed any new labeling requirements 

beyond those required in the original 

subpart F regulations. One commenter 

suggested allowing conversion 

manufacturers to supply the new 

information in marketing material rather 

than on the underhood or engine label. 

Several commenters supported the new 

labeling mandates, expressing that the 

new information would help with 

proper identification and application. 

EPA is finalizing the labeling 

requirements as proposed. We 

acknowledge that it may be challenging 

to fit all the information on an 

underhood or engine label; however, 

EPA believes that the new label content 

is important, as is clear labeling in 

general, to reduce the potential for 

misapplication (e.g., installing a 

conversion system on a vehicle/engine 

that is not covered by the 

manufacturer’s demonstration and 

notification to EPA). To address 

concerns about space limitations, EPA 

will allow the label information to be 

logically split between two labels that 

are both placed as close as possible to 

the original Vehicle Emission Control 

Information (VECI) or engine label. The 

newly required content includes: 

(1) The conversion test group/engine 

family and evaporative/refueling family; 

(2) the OEM test group/engine family 

and evaporative/refueling family, plus 

the OEM vehicle/engine model year to 

which the conversion system is 

applicable; and (3) a description of the 

age-based demonstration through which 

the conversion system obtained its 

tampering exemption. 

Conversion manufacturers are 

required to submit the vehicle/engine 

label information to EPA as part of the 

notification process. Failure to supply 

or install compliant labels leaves 

conversion manufacturers and installers 

subject to prosecution for tampering. 

EPA sought comment about whether 

conversion manufacturers should be 

required to submit to EPA the Vehicle 

Identification Number (VIN) of any 

converted vehicle, in addition to vehicle 

label information. EPA received some 

comments stating that VIN tracking is 

not necessary and other comments 


emcdonald on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with RULES2
Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 68 / Friday, April 8, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 19837 

33 If any marketing material implies or states that 

the installation of the conversion system is legal or 

appropriate for vehicles/engines not listed in the 

documentation provided to EPA, EPA would deem 

the marketing material to be evidence that the 

marketer caused a customer to install an 

inappropriate conversion system and thus tampered 

with the vehicle/engine. 

34The OEM certification requirements and 

warranty, defect, and recall requirements apply 

even if they are moved to other locations in the 

CFR. 

35 In almost all cases the standards in place for 

an OEM vehicle or engine continue to apply to the 

converted vehicle or engine. The only exceptions 

involve fuel specific standards (or exemptions from 

standards) that were not applicable to the OEM 

configuration but are applicable to the converted 

configuration, or vice versa. In those cases the 

converted vehicle/engine will be held to the fuelspecific standard that would have been in place for 

an OEM vehicle/engine certified to operate on that 

fuel. For example, diesel-fueled vehicles are 

currently exempt from evaporative emission 

standards but vehicles fueled with most other fuels 

are not. If a diesel fuel vehicle is converted to run 

on an alternative fuel, the converted vehicle will be 

held to the evaporative emission standards that 

would have applied to an OEM vehicle certified 

operating on that fuel. 

36For purposes of this preamble, this group of 

vehicles will be described as light-duty and heavyduty chassis certified vehicles from this point 

forward. 

37All medium-duty passenger vehicles are also 

currently exempt from SFTP standards, regardless 

of fuel type. 40 CFR 86.1811–04(f)(1). Medium duty 

passenger vehicles, operating on gasoline, do have 

a cold CO standard (40 CFR 86.1811–04(g)). 

38 40 CFR 86.1810–01(i)(4) and 40 CFR 86.1811– 

04(g). 

39 40 CFR 86.1811–04(f). 

40 75 FR 29613 (May 26, 2010). 

41See 40 CFR 86.1801–12(j). 

stating that VIN tracking could be 

useful. EPA has evaluated comments 

and is not adopting a VIN tracking 

requirement. It is neither practical for 

EPA to develop and maintain a VIN 

tracking system nor is it feasible for EPA 

to enforce against installers who may 

fail to report VINs. EPA believes that the 

required label is sufficient to inform 

concerned parties that a vehicle or 

engine has been converted. 

EPA expects any marketing material 

associated with any aftermarket fuel 

conversion product to be consistent 

with and not contravene the information 

required on the vehicle/engine or 

packaging labels. In addition, the 

marketing material and label 

information for a given conversion 

system must always be consistent with 

the conversion manufacturer’s 

demonstration and notification to EPA 

for that system.33 Conversion 

manufacturers who market conversion 

systems for use on vehicles/engines 

other than the test group/engine families 

and evaporative/refueling families 

covered by the demonstration and 

notification may be liable for a 

tampering violation for each vehicle/ 

engine to which conversion system is 

misapplied. 

F. Compliance 

Clean alternative fuel conversion 

manufacturers will continue to be 

subject to all certification requirements 

and warranty, defect, and recall 

requirements applicable to new vehicle/ 

engine manufacturers in 40 CFR parts 

85 and 86.34

EPA plans to audit conversion 

manufacturers and enforce against 

violations. 

1. Emission Standards 

EPA has previously determined that it 

is appropriate to require vehicle and 

engine fuel conversions to meet the 

same emission standard as required for 

the originally certified OEM vehicle or 

engine. OEM standards continue to 

apply for the required test cycles, 

including intermediate useful life 

standards and full useful life standards 

where applicable.35 If a converter 

designates a conversion group that 

combines multiple OEM test groups/ 

engine families, the most stringent OEM 

standards represented within that group 

become the applicable standards for the 

conversion group. For example, if a 

converter establishes a conversion test 

group that includes OEM test groups 

originally certified to Tier 2, Bin 4 and 

Bin 5 standards, all the vehicles in the 

combined conversion test group are 

subject to the more stringent Tier 2, Bin 

4 standard. 

All applicable OEM certification 

standards are also applicable to fuel 

conversions unless specifically 

exempted, including heavy-duty Family 

Emission Limits (FELs), light-duty 15 

year/150,000 mile Tier 2 standards, and 

greenhouse gas standards. In addition, 

any newly-required test procedures or 

standards that apply to the certification 

of OEM alternative fuel vehicles/engines 

would also apply to fuel conversions. 

EPA sought comment about whether 

to require a statement of compliance or 

exhaust demonstration requirement for 

light-duty vehicle US06 standards. Most 

commenters stated that EPA should not 

add the US06 drive cycle and standard 

to the demonstration requirements for 

alternative fuel vehicles. At this time, 

EPA is not adding a US06 standard for 

clean alternative fuel vehicle 

conversions, since US06 testing is not 

required for certification of OEM 

alternative fuel vehicles. 

EPA received comment requesting 

clarification about whether a 

manufacturer may certify a clean 

alternative fuel conversion to a more 

stringent standard than the OEM did. 

EPA does allow fuel conversion 

manufacturers to certify to more 

stringent standards than the standards 

to which the OEM vehicle/engine was 

certified as long as the vehicles/engines 

in the test group/engine family 

demonstrate compliance with the 

standard in all modes of operation (see 

III.F.1.c). 

a. Light-Duty and Heavy-Duty Chassis 

Certified Vehicle Gross Vehicle Weight 

Classes and Alternative Fuel Exceptions 

Emission standards for light-duty 

passenger cars, light-duty trucks, 

medium-duty passenger vehicles, and 

Otto-cycle heavy-duty chassis certified 

vehicles less than 14,000 pound gross 

vehicle weight are codified in 40 CFR 

part 86, subpart S.36 Standards are 

specific to vehicle type and gross 

vehicle weight ratings. 

Light-duty vehicles, both OEM 

vehicles and conversions, are currently 

exempt from Supplemental Federal Test 

Procedure (SFTP) standards and cold 

carbon monoxide (CO) standards when 

certified on alternative fuels.37

However, for dual-fuel and mixed-fuel 

light-duty vehicles, SFTP and cold CO 

standards do apply while the vehicle is 

operating on gasoline or diesel fuel.38 At 

this time, EPA is not adopting SFTP 

standards and testing for alternative 

fueled light-duty vehicles for either 

OEM vehicles or clean alternative fuel 

conversions (see Section IV.A.3.a).39

However, as stated in the proposed 

rule,40 if future SFTP standards are 

amended to apply to vehicles operated 

on alternative fuels, those standards and 

test procedures would also be 

applicable to fuel conversions. 

A commenter questioned whether 

light-duty vehicle conversions are 

subject to greenhouse gas standards. 

Conversions are subject to the same 

standards that applied to the OEM 

vehicle. Thus vehicle conversions are 

subject to greenhouse gas standards if 

the OEM vehicle was subject to 

greenhouse gas standards, unless the 

conversion manufacturer qualifies for 

exemption as a small business.41 There 

are also conditional exemptions for 

light-duty greenhouse gas requirements 

available to low volume manufacturers. 

See 40 CFR 86.1801–12(k) for more 

information. See Section V for technical 

amendments relating to light-duty 

greenhouse gas compliance. 

b. Heavy-Duty Engine Types and Gross 

Vehicle Weight Classes 

Heavy-duty engine standards are 

categorized in several ways. There are 


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19838 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 68 / Friday, April 8, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 

42These provisions (and available options) apply 

to 8,500 to 14,000 GVWR Otto-cycle complete and 

incomplete heavy-duty vehicles for model year 

2001 and forward, and for 8,500 to 14,000 GVWR 

compression ignition engines in complete and 

incomplete heavy-duty vehicles for model year 

2007 and forward. See 40 CFR 86.1801–01, 

86.1816–05, and 86.1863–07. 

43The proposed rule referred to dual-fuel 

vehicles/engine standards; however, the flexibilities 

and restrictions applicable to dual-fuel vehicles/ 

engines are also applicable to mixed-fuel vehicles/ 

engines, since mixed-fuel vehicles/engines function 

similarly to dual-fuel vehicles/engines. Vehicles 

and engines converted to mixed-fuel operation can 

generally operate on the new alternative fuel(s), on 

the original fuel(s), or on a mixture of the fuels. 

44For mixed-fuel vehicles, a demonstration may 

be required on the new fuel(s), on the original 

fuel(s), and on a worst-case mixture of the fuels. 

45 59 FR 48488 (Sep. 21, 1994). 

46Examples of optional useful life include those 

described in 40 CFR 86.1805–04(b) and (e). 

47OBD systems were phased in for light-duty and 

heavy-duty complete vehicles beginning in model 

year 1994. See 40 CFR 86.1806–01, 86.1806–04, and 

86.1806–05. OBD systems were phased in for 

heavy-duty vehicles weighing less than 14,000 

pounds GVWR beginning in model year 2004. See 

40 CFR 86.005–17. OBD requirements for heavyduty engines for vehicles over 14,000 pounds began 

phase-in in model year 2010. See 40 CFR 86.010– 

18. According to 40 CFR 86.010–18(o)(1)(v), engines 

in vehicles over 14,000 pounds GVWR certified on 

alternative fuels are exempt from OBD requirements 

for model years 2010–2012. 

48Multi-fueled vehicles, such as dual-fuel and 

mixed-fuel vehicles must be compliant on both 

fuels. See, for example, 40 CFR 86.1811–01. 

divisions by engine type, either 

compression ignition or spark ignition, 

and there are divisions by application 

gross vehicle weight. Standards for 

heavy-duty engines are set forth in 40 

CFR part 86, subpart A. Generally, 

heavy-duty engine standards apply to 

engines installed in vehicles with a 

gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) 

greater than 8,500 pounds. OEM 

manufacturers of compression ignition 

engines in complete heavy-duty 

vehicles between 8,500 and 14,000 

pounds may optionally chassis certify 

using the provisions in 40 CFR part 86, 

subpart S. EPA proposed to require 

conversion manufacturers to meet the 

same standards that applied to the OEM. 

Thus converters of engine certified 

heavy-duty vehicles between 8,500 and 

14,000 pounds would have been 

required to meet engine standards, even 

if chassis certification test procedures 

were available to the OEM. EPA 

received numerous comments 

requesting relief from this proposed 

requirement. EPA evaluated these 

comments and has determined that it is 

appropriate to allow conversion 

manufacturers to use chassis test 

procedures that were available to the 

OEM, even if the OEM chose to engine 

certify. Thus EPA is adopting provisions 

whereby manufacturers of conversion 

systems for engines that would have 

qualified for chassis certification at the 

time of OEM certification may use those 

procedures, even if the OEM did not.42

Conversion manufacturers choosing this 

option must designate test groups using 

the appropriate criteria as prescribed in 

this rule and meet all vehicle chassis 

certification requirements set forth in 40 

CFR part 86, subpart S. 

c. Dual-Fuel and Mixed-Fuel Standards 

EPA as a matter of policy requires 

dual-fuel and mixed-fuel 43 vehicles and 

engines to certify operation on all fuel 

types to the same emission standards. A 

dual-fuel natural gas-gasoline vehicle, 

for example, must certify to the same 

Tier 2 bin level for both natural gas and 

gasoline. The same policy applies to 

evaporative/refueling standards and 

family emission levels (FELs) for 

engines. Therefore, conversion 

manufacturers of systems that convert 

single-fuel OEM systems to dual-fuel or 

mixed-fuel systems must certify to the 

OEM standard, even if test data 

demonstrate that the converted vehicle 

or engine is able to meet a more 

stringent standard while operating on 

the alternative fuel. If a conversion 

manufacturer wishes to certify to a 

lower standard on all fuels, a 

demonstration showing compliance 

with the lower standard is required on 

all fuels.44 This policy will continue to 

apply to all vehicle/engine fuel 

conversions, regardless of age or 

compliance program. The notification 

process for a dual-fuel or mixed-fuel 

vehicle/engine will require separate 

submissions for groups of vehicles/ 

engines with different standards, unless 

testing is conducted which 

demonstrates compliance on all fuels 

with the most stringent standards in the 

group. However, test data from an EDV 

or EDE demonstrating compliance with 

a lower standard may be able to be 

carried across to other vehicles or 

engines that meet the criteria available 

for the combination test groups and 

engine families, described in Sections 

IV.A.2 and IV.B.2. 

2. Useful Life 

In the rulemaking that established the 

original aftermarket conversions 

certification program, EPA determined 

it was not appropriate to extend the 

useful life of a conversion beyond that 

of the original vehicle given that 

conversions generally rely on many 

original vehicle components for proper 

operation.45 EPA’s revised program 

leaves this determination unchanged 

such that the applicable useful life of a 

converted vehicle or engine does not 

extend beyond the useful life of the 

original vehicle or engine. Thus, the 

useful life of the conversion will 

continue to end at the same time as the 

useful life of the original vehicle/engine, 

including any optional useful life 

standards to which the OEM certified 

the original vehicle/engine.46

3. On Board Diagnostics (OBD) 

As part of the good engineering 

judgment requirement described in 

Section III.B, OEM vehicles or engines 

subject to OBD requirements are 

required to have properly functioning 

OBD systems once converted.47 OBD 

systems are designed to monitor critical 

vehicle or engine emission control 

components and to alert the vehicle 

operator or State emissions inspection 

official to malfunction, deterioration, or 

other problems that might cause 

excessive emissions. States rely on OBD 

systems to flag vehicles that exceed 

Inspection and Maintenance thresholds 

and that may require repair. OBD 

systems are also designed to store 

diagnostic information in the vehicle’s/ 

engine’s computer to assist technicians 

in diagnosing and repairing the 

problem. The conversion OBD system is 

part of the emission control system and 

must include any new monitoring 

capability necessary to identify 

potential emission problems associated 

with the new fuel. In addition, 

consistent with other EPA regulations, 

this regulation requires that any dualfuel or mixed-fuel clean alternative fuel 

conversion OBD system remain fully 

functional on the original fuel and 

function properly on the conversion 

fuel.48

4. Durability Testing 

Conversion manufacturers must 

conduct durability testing for both 

exhaust and evaporative emissions to 

determine expected useful life 

deterioration. Durability procedures for 

light-duty vehicles and heavy-duty 

chassis certified vehicles are codified in 

40 CFR 86.1823–01, 86.1824–01, 1824– 

07, 1824–08, and 86.1825–01, 85.1825– 

08. Durability procedures for heavyduty engines are currently set forth in 

40 CFR 86.096–24, 86.098–24, 86.001– 

24, 86.094–26, 86.001–26, 86.0004–26, 

86.094–28, et al. In lieu of durability 

testing, these regulations provide that 

small volume manufacturers and 

qualified small volume test groups/ 

engine families may be eligible to use 

EPA assigned deterioration factors to 

predict the emission rates at the end of 

a vehicle’s or engine’s useful life. See 

Section IV.B.3.c for more information. 

EPA requested comment as to 

whether the proposed durability 

procedures were appropriate for small 


emcdonald on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with RULES2
Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 68 / Friday, April 8, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 19839 

49 42 U.S.C. 7541. 

50CAA section 207(i)(1). 

51CAA section 207(i)(2). 

52 40 CFR 86.004–2. 

53The labeling, warranty and certification 

requirements apply even if they are moved to other 

locations in the CFR. 

54The 1994 rulemaking did not require fuel 

economy labeling to qualify for an exemption from 

the tampering prohibition. Similarly, this rule does 

not add a fuel economy labeling requirement or 

ABT provisions. 55CAA section 207(c). 

and large volume conversion 

manufacturers. EPA also requested 

comment on whether the proposed 

procedures provided adequate 

assurance that the emission control 

systems in converted vehicles and 

engines would continue to function 

properly over time. Comments ranged 

from requests for small volume 

conversion manufacturer relief from the 

stringency of the EPA assigned 

deterioration factors to comments that 

the regulations should require more 

durability assurance from conversion 

manufacturers. EPA is adopting the 

durability procedures largely as 

proposed. See the assigned deterioration 

factors discussion in Section III.G.2 and 

the Response to Comments document 

for a more detailed discussion. 

5. Warranty 

The CAA requires manufacturers to 

warrant that a vehicle or engine is (1) 

designed, built, and equipped to 

conform to applicable regulations and 

(2) free from defects in material and 

workmanship which cause the vehicle 

or engine to fail to conform to 

applicable regulations for its useful 

life.49 For light-duty vehicles, this defect 

warranty is applicable through two 

years or 24,000 miles of use (whichever 

first occurs).50 Specified major emission 

control components, including catalysts, 

engine control units (ECUs), and OBD 

are warranted for eight years or 80,000 

miles of use (whichever first occurs).51

For Otto-cycle heavy-duty engines and 

vehicles (complete and incomplete) and 

light heavy-duty diesel engines, the 

warranty period is at least 5 years or 

50,000 miles, whichever first occurs. 

For all other heavy-duty diesel engines, 

the warranty period is at least 5 years or 

100,000 miles, whichever first occurs. 

For all heavy-duty engines the warranty 

period may not be shorter than the basic 

mechanical warranty period that the 

OEM provides.52 Under EPA’s previous 

aftermarket conversions program, 

conversion manufacturers had to accept 

in-use liability for warranty and recall 

as a condition for gaining exemption 

from tampering. 

EPA will continue to apply this 

approach to in-use liability for warranty 

for all clean alternative fuel 

conversions. Under this policy, the 

clean alternative fuel conversion 

manufacturer would normally be held 

accountable for fixing problems that 

occur as the result of conversion, while 

the OEM would generally retain 

responsibility for the performance of 

any parts or systems that retain their 

original function following conversion 

and are unaffected by the conversion. It 

is important that both clean alternative 

fuel conversion manufacturers and 

consumers understand these provisions 

because they could result in a transfer 

of warranty liability for certain failed 

components from the OEM to the 

converter. A reasonable indicator of 

cause and accountability might be 

whether the failure of the part or system 

is also occurring in non-converted 

configurations of the same vehicle/ 

engine. If so, the problem is most likely 

not related to conversion, and the OEM 

would typically remain liable for 

performing repairs. If only converted 

vehicles/engines are experiencing the 

problem, it would be appropriate to 

trace the problem to the conversion and 

to hold the converter responsible for 

warranty repairs. 

EPA sought comment on the best way 

to inform consumers about the 

possibility that converting their vehicle 

or engine, even with an EPA compliant 

system, may transfer portions of their 

OEM warranty liability to the converter. 

EPA received mixed comment on this 

issue. OEMs stated that EPA should 

require information on the underhood 

and other vehicle labels to indicate that 

conversion might void the OEM 

warranty. Alternative fuels advocates 

stated that EPA should mandate label 

statements that conversion does not 

void the OEM warranty. For practical 

reasons involving space restrictions on 

the underhood/engine label, EPA is not 

finalizing any additional labeling 

requirements with regard to warranty. 

However, EPA recognizes that 

consumers need to understand the 

warranty implications of conversions 

and plans to convey this information to 

the public through outreach materials, 

Web site postings, and other 

communication channels. 

6. Other Provisions Applicable to 

Conversion Manufacturers 

As stated above, all clean alternative 

fuel conversion manufacturers continue 

to be subject to labeling, warranty, and 

certification requirements applicable to 

new vehicle and engine manufacturers 

in 40 CFR parts 85 and 86.53 54

Conversion manufacturers will also 

continue to be exempt from fleet 

averaging and the averaging, banking, 

and trading credit programs available to 

OEMs as well as from the fuel economy 

labeling program in 40 CFR part 600. 

Conversion manufacturers are subject 

to the recall regulations in 40 CFR part 

85, subpart S and the emission defect 

reporting requirements in 40 CFR part 

85, subpart T. If EPA determines that a 

substantial number of vehicles or 

engines in a class or category do not 

meet applicable emission standards in 

actual use even though they are 

properly maintained and used, EPA can 

require the conversion manufacturer to 

recall and fix affected vehicles/ 

engines.55 All conversion manufacturers 

are also required to report to EPA 

certain defects affecting emissionrelated parts. 

Sections 206, 207 and 208 of the Act 

authorize EPA to establish procedures to 

ensure that production vehicles and 

engines comply with emission 

standards when they are new and 

continue to comply with emission 

requirements after they are in customer 

service. These provisions provide EPA 

broad authority to conduct testing as the 

Administrator deems necessary to 

monitor in-use vehicle and engine 

compliance. These emission testing 

programs cover clean alternative fuel 

conversions as well as OEM vehicles/ 

engines. 

7. Misapplication 

EPA may revisit the age-based 

approach should there at any time be 

evidence of widespread conversion 

system misapplication that can be 

traced to differences among the agebased demonstration or notification 

requirements. For example, if exempted 

outside useful life conversion systems 

are commonly marketed to vehicles/ 

engines that are still within their useful 

life, EPA would not only consider the 

misapplication to be tampering, but 

would also consider revising this rule to 

eliminate or constrain the age-based 

demonstration approach. 

G. Regulatory Procedures for Small 

Volume Manufacturers and Small 

Volume Test Groups, and Small Volume 

Engine Families 

EPA regulations afford certain 

flexibilities to small volume 

manufacturers in recognition of special 

compliance challenges they may face. 

The clean alternative fuels conversion 

industry has historically been 

comprised of companies that qualify for 

small volume manufacturer status. 

Eligibility criteria and special 

procedures available to small volume 


emcdonald on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with RULES2
19840 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 68 / Friday, April 8, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 

56 40 CFR 86.1838–01. Because conversion 

manufacturers, unlike OEMs, can sell their products 

for multiple model years, to determine small 

volume status, the number of conversions is the 

sum of the calendar year intermediate age 

conversions, outside useful life conversions, and 

the same conversion model year certified clean 

alternative fuel conversions. The number of 

conversions will be added to any other vehicle and 

engine sales accounted for using 40 CFR 86.1838– 

01 or 40 CFR 86.098–14 as appropriate to determine 

small volume status. 

57See 40 CFR 86.1838–01(c)(1). Manufacturers 

not eligible for small volume manufacturer or small 

volume test group status are required to follow 

durability procedures in 40 CFR 86.1823–01, 

86.1923–08, 86.1824–01, 86.1824–07, 86.1824–08, 

86.1825–01, and 86.1825–08. 

58The current light-duty and heavy-duty 

complete vehicles assigned deterioration factor 

guidance document issued pursuant to 40 CFR 

86.1826(b)(1)(ii) and (b)(2)(i)(c), is available 

electronically at http://iaspub.epa.gov/otaqpub/ 

display_file.jsp?docid=14285&flag=1. The current 

heavy-duty engine assigned deterioration guidance 

letter is available electronically at http:// 

iaspub.epa.gov/otaqpub/ 

display_file.jsp?docid=14183&flag=1. 

59See 40 CFR 86.094–14, 40 CFR 86.095–14, 40 

CFR 86.096–14, 49 CFR 86.098–14, 40 CFR 86–096– 

24(e)(2). 

60To determine small volume manufacturer 

status the number of conversions is the sum of the 

calendar year intermediate age conversions, outside 

useful life conversions, and the same conversion 

model year certified clean alternative fuel 

conversions. The number of conversions will be 

added to any other vehicle and engine sales 

accounted for using 40 CFR 86.1838–01 or 40 CFR 

86.098–14 as appropriate to determine small 

volume manufacturer status. 

conversion manufacturers and small 

volume test groups and engine families 

are discussed below. 

1. Definition of Small Volume 

Manufacturers, Small Volume Test 

Groups, and Small Volume Engine 

Families 

a. Light-Duty and Heavy-Duty Chassis 

Certified Vehicles 

EPA regulatory procedures specific to 

light-duty and heavy-duty chassis 

certified vehicle small volume 

manufacturers and small volume test 

groups are set forth in 40 CFR 86.1838– 

01. A conversion manufacturer is 

eligible for small volume manufacturer 

status for most light-duty and heavyduty chassis certified vehicle 

procedures if the conversion 

manufacturer’s annual model year 

motor vehicle and engine total sales 

volume in all States and territories of 

the United States (or aggregate sales 

volume for manufacturers in an 

aggregate relationship) is less than 

15,000 units.56 (For sales aggregation 

rules for related manufacturers, refer to 

40 CFR 86.1838–01(b)(3)). A large 

volume manufacturer may also use 

small volume manufacturer certification 

procedures for test groups of vehicles 

which total less than 15,000 units under 

certain circumstances. For small volume 

test group eligibility criteria for large 

volume manufacturers who participate 

in aggregate relationships, refer to 40 

CFR 86.1838–01(b)(2) for more details. 

b. Heavy-Duty Engines 

The EPA regulatory provisions for 

small volume heavy-duty engines and 

qualified small volume engine families 

are promulgated in 40 CFR 86.094–14, 

86.095–14, 86.098–14, and 86–096– 

24(e)(2). Heavy-duty engine small 

volume manufacturer status is tiered. 

Certain procedures apply to 

manufacturers with aggregate sales of 

less than 301 units, and other 

procedures may apply to manufacturers 

with aggregate sales volumes less than 

10,000 units. For sales aggregation rules, 

refer to 40 CFR 86.094–14(b)(2) and 

86.094–14(b)(5). For small volume 

engine family eligibility criteria for large 

volume manufacturers, refer to 40 CFR 

86–096–24(e)(2) for more details. 

2. Assigned Deterioration Factors 

All light-duty and heavy-duty chassis 

certified vehicle small volume 

manufacturers or qualified small 

volume test groups are eligible to use 

assigned deterioration factors in lieu of 

durability testing to predict emission 

rates at the end of a vehicle’s useful 

life.57 EPA assigned deterioration 

factors for light-duty and heavy-duty 

chassis certified vehicles are authorized 

in 40 CFR 86.1826–01 and are 

periodically updated by EPA via 

manufacturer guidance letters.58

Heavy-duty engine small volume 

manufacturers and qualified small 

volume engine families may also be 

eligible for assigned deterioration 

factors instead of conducting durability 

demonstrations.59 Under the current 

regulations, heavy-duty manufacturers 

with sales volumes of less than 10,000 

units may be eligible to use assigned 

deterioration factors determined by 

EPA. 

Because assigned deterioration factors 

are determined assuming the vehicle or 

engine is new, EPA is adopting an 

allowance for small volume conversion 

manufacturers and qualified small 

volume conversion test groups/engine 

families to use deterioration factors, 

proportionate to the vehicle or engine 

age under certain conditions. This will 

help create a level playing field for older 

vehicles and engines that have already 

experienced some of their expected 

emissions degradation. Conversion 

manufacturers are eligible to use scaled 

deterioration factors for vehicles or 

engines that have accumulated more 

than 10,000 miles. Scaled deterioration 

factors allow a proportionate scaling of 

the EPA assigned deterioration factor, if 

applicable, to demonstrate compliance 

with the intermediate and/or full usefullife standards. See Section IV.B.3.c.i for 

more detail. 

EPA received several comments about 

the use of assigned deterioration factors 

for conversion manufacturers. One 

commenter suggested that EPA should 

require converters who use assigned 

deterioration factors to submit a 

statement confirming conversion system 

durability and explaining why the 

system will not harm the emission 

control system or degrade the emissions. 

EPA agrees with this comment. 

Assigned deterioration factors, whether 

scaled or not, are intended to provide 

small volume manufacturers with a 

streamlined pathway for demonstrating 

that the vehicle or engine will meet full 

useful life standards. However, fuel 

conversion presents new challenges to 

assessing whether the engine and 

emission components will remain 

durable for the full useful life of the 

vehicle/engine. Therefore, EPA is 

adopting a requirement that conversion 

manufacturers using assigned 

deterioration factors must present 

detailed information to confirm the 

durability of all relevant new and 

existing components and to explain why 

the conversion system will not harm the 

emission control system or degrade the 

emissions. 

3. Changes in Small Volume Status 

If a conversion manufacturer’s annual 

sales volume may surpass the threshold 

for small volume manufacturer or 

qualified test group/engine family status 

for a given model year,60 the conversion 

manufacturer must satisfy the regulatory 

requirements required for large volume 

manufacturers, even if the conversion 

manufacturer initially complied 

properly (in a previous model year) with 

the small volume requirements. 

Conversion manufacturers should be 

aware that this status change could 

result in new demonstration and 

notification requirements involving new 

testing under both the new and 

intermediate age programs. EPA is 

requiring conversion manufacturers to 

report to EPA the number of conversion 

systems they have sold annually in an 

end-of year submission. 

A change from small volume status to 

large volume status could occur in 

several different situations. First, if a 

conversion manufacturer has changed 

volume status and is therefore required 

to recertify a vehicle or engine as a large 

volume manufacturer, all large volume 

test procedures and requirements would 

need to be conducted prior to the 

issuance of the new certificate. Second, 


emcdonald on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with RULES2
Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 68 / Friday, April 8, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 19841 

61See Section X of this preamble for more 

compliance details. 62This example is for Light-duty Tier 2 vehicles 

operating in the 2011 calendar year which have a 

useful life of 10 years or 120,000 miles. 63Exhaust and evap refers to all exhaust emission 

testing and all evaporative emission and refueling 

emission testing required for OEM vehicle/engine 

certification, unless otherwise excepted. OBD 

testing refers to all OBD demonstration testing as 

required for OEM vehicle/engine certification. OBD 

scan tool test refers to the procedure described in 

section IV.B.3.d. 

64The compliance notification process for 

intermediate age and outside useful life conversions 

will be electronic submission of data and 

supporting documents. 

65The technical justification may include data 

from exhaust and evaporative emissions testing. 

66See footnote 8. 67CAA 203(a)(3). 

if a small volume conversion 

manufacturer crosses the annual sales 

volume threshold and becomes a large 

volume conversion manufacturer, the 

conversion manufacturer must update 

the demonstration and complete all 

applicable large volume requirements 

for the intermediate age vehicle or 

engine conversions which are no longer 

eligible for small volume manufacturer 

or small volume test group/engine 

family. 

EPA received comment asking for 

compliance lead-time for conversion 

manufacturers that have outgrown small 

volume status and have become a large 

volume conversion manufacturer. EPA 

does not agree that a defined lead-time 

is necessary, since conversion 

manufacturers should be able to predict 

in advance and plan for changes in 

small volume status. 

IV. Clean Alternative Fuel Conversion 

Program Details 

As summarized earlier in this 

preamble EPA is revising the 

demonstration and notification 

procedures for clean alternative fuel 

conversions based on the age of the 

vehicle or engine to be converted. All 

conversion manufacturers are required 

to demonstrate to EPA that the 

conversion satisfies technical criteria to 

qualify as a clean alternative fuel 

conversion, but demonstration and 

notification requirements are different 

depending on vehicle or engine age. The 

age-specific requirements are 

summarized in Table IV–1 and are 

presented in detail below. 

The age-based demonstration and 

notification requirements stem from 

both legal and practical considerations. 

The distinctions between the 

demonstration required for new, 

intermediate age, and outside useful life 

vehicles/engines address the issues 

posed by the absence of applicable 

emission standards for converted 

vehicles/engines that have exceeded full 

useful life. This approach also 

recognizes that new vehicles/engines, at 

the time of conversion, should resemble 

the certified OEM configuration from 

the perspective of emissions 

degradation and should therefore be 

held to the same durability and 

deterioration factor demonstrations 

required for OEM certification. 

Intermediate age vehicles/engines fall 

between the new and outside useful life 

categories. While useful life standards 

still apply, certain certification 

requirements are no longer suitable for 

aging vehicles/engines. 

As with demonstration protocols, EPA 

believes different notification protocols 

are appropriate for the three age classes. 

The notification protocols reflect the 

level of detail EPA has determined to be 

necessary for conversion manufacturers 

to adequately document and for EPA to 

review the required emissions 

demonstration. The age-based 

notification system should streamline 

the notification process and create a 

simple system that both small and large 

conversion manufacturers can easily 

understand and follow. 

TABLE IV–1—OVERVIEW OF PROGRAM ELEMENTS 61

Vehicle/engine age Conversion manufacturer requirement 

Certificate of 

conformity 

Compliance detail 

preamble section Category Applicability Example for 

2011 62 Demonstration Notification 

New ........................ MY > or = current 

calendar year— 

1.

MY 2010, 2011, 

2012 and < 

useful life mileage.

Exhaust, evap, 

and OBD testing 63.

Certification application.Yes ...................... IV.A 

Intermediate age .... MY < or = current 

calendar year— 

2 and within 

useful life.

MY 2002, 2003, 

2004, 2005, 

2006, 2007, 

2008, 2009 and 

< useful life 

mileage.

Exhaust and evap 

testing 63 + 

OBD scan tool 

test and attestation.

Compliance submission 64.No ........................ IV.B 

Outside useful life .. Exceeds useful 

life.

MY 2001 and 

older or > full 

useful life mileage.

Technical justification 65 and OBD 

scan tool test 

and attestation.

Compliance submission 64.No ........................ IV.C 

A. New Vehicle and Engine Clean 

Alternative Fuel Conversion 

Certification Program 

EPA is requiring that conversions of 

new vehicles/engines (as defined for 

purposes of this preamble) 66 be covered 

by a certificate of conformity in order to 

qualify for an exemption from the 

tampering prohibition. EPA will also 

allow, but not require, conversions of 

intermediate age vehicles and engines to 

qualify for an exemption from the 

tampering prohibition by obtaining a 

certificate of conformity (see Sections 

IV.A.1.b. and IV.B). Certification 

satisfies the statutory tampering 

exemption prerequisites that the 

conversion is ‘‘for use of a clean 

alternative fuel’’ and that the converted 

vehicle ‘‘complies with the applicable 

standards under section 202.’’ 67

EPA believes that certification of 

clean alternative fuel conversions 

remains an appropriate demonstration 

of compliance with useful life standards 

for new vehicles and engines. New 

vehicles and engines have not yet 

experienced deterioration and are still 

likely to be representative, for purposes 

of emissions, of the technical condition 

of the vehicle or engine that the OEM 

used for EPA certification. Thus the 

certification process is suitable for and 

may be directly applied to new vehicle 

and engine clean alternative fuel 

conversions. 


emcdonald on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with RULES2
19842 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 68 / Friday, April 8, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 

68The exemption from tampering conferred by 

certification continues even after the certificate has 

expired. See Section IV.A.4.a. 

69Technical amendments are described in 

Section V. See section IV.B.3.c.i for a description 

of the scaling of assigned deterioration factors for 

small volume manufacturers who conduct 

demonstration testing on a vehicle/engine with over 

10,000 miles. 

70OEM model years are often introduced ahead 

of the calendar year. Thus, to calculate which 

conversions must be certified, subtract the original 

vehicle/engine model year from the current 

calendar year. If the difference is one or less than 

one, then a certified conversion is required to 

qualify for the tampering exemption. If the 

difference is more than one, then the conversion 

may comply with the intermediate age or outside 

useful life provisions as applicable. 

71 40 CFR 86.1827–01. 

72 40 CFR 86.1826–01. 

EPA also believes that a certification 

demonstration requirement for new 

vehicle and engine conversions is 

prudent to maintain a level playing field 

for OEMs and conversion 

manufacturers. The certification 

requirement for new vehicle and engine 

conversions reduces any incentive that 

might otherwise exist for OEMs to 

circumvent requirements by certifying a 

traditional configuration and then 

converting it, rather than certifying the 

alternative fuel configuration in the first 

place. New vehicles represent the vast 

majority of clean alternative fuel 

conversion activity. For model year 

2009, only two light duty vehicle fuel 

conversion certificates out of 60 were 

issued based on data from a vehicle that 

was more than one year old. EPA 

believes that a new vehicle and engine 

certification requirement will continue 

to cover most newly developed clean 

alternative fuel conversion systems and 

therefore will preserve existing EPA 

control over their technical viability and 

environmental performance. While new 

vehicle and engine clean alternative fuel 

conversion manufacturers will continue 

to be subject to certification 

requirements, they will benefit from 

reduced burden because the tampering 

exemption conferred by certification is 

generally retained as the conversion test 

group/engine family covered by the 

exemption ages. This allows conversion 

manufacturers to continue to sell their 

products as vehicles and engines age 

without renewing certificates and 

paying further certification fees.68

This final rule retains existing 

regulatory procedures for 

demonstration, notification, and 

compliance documents for clean 

alternative fuel conversion of new 

vehicles and engines. The 

demonstration of compliance with 

applicable standards will continue to 

use the same certification procedures 

previously applicable to conversion 

manufacturers with a few technical 

amendments and other allowances.69

The notification process will also 

remain unchanged for conversion of 

new vehicles and engines. Conversion 

manufacturers will continue to submit 

applications, including test data, 

certification fees, and other required 

information to EPA. The compliance 

document, a certificate of conformity, 

will also remain unchanged for 

conversion of new vehicles and engines. 

1. Applicability 

a. New Vehicles and Engines 

EPA defines ‘‘new and relatively-new’’ 

(as discussed above in Section I in this 

preamble we refer to ‘‘new and 

relatively-new’’ vehicles and engines as 

‘‘new’’) vehicle or engine clean 

alternative fuel conversions as those for 

which the date of conversion is in a 

calendar year that is not more than one 

year after the original model year (MY) 

of the vehicle or engine.70 For example, 

in calendar year 2011, certified 

conversion systems are required for MY 

2010, MY 2011, and MY 2012 vehicles 

or engines. 

As stated previously, EPA believes 

that certification is an appropriate 

requirement for new vehicles and 

engines because their emissions and 

mileage accumulation still largely 

reflect the vehicle’s/engine’s condition 

at the time of OEM certification. For 

consumer and conversion manufacturer 

clarity, it makes sense to compare 

vehicle model year to the current 

calendar year. This can be accomplished 

by applying the formula presented in 

Table IV–1 above. In practice this means 

that certification is required for vehicles 

or engines that are less than about two 

years old. 

EPA received a few comments 

concerning the certification age 

threshold. Some comments suggested 

that the certification age threshold be 

shortened to one year, while other 

comments suggested that the 

certification provisions in the 1994 

rulemaking be retained to keep the 

certification requirement for fuel 

conversion of all vehicles or engines 

within their useful life. 

When developing the proposed and 

final rules, EPA considered many 

options for the age threshold between 

the new and intermediate age programs. 

The decision to finalize a threshold of 

about two years reflects several factors. 

These include the interest described 

previously in maintaining consistency 

with OEM requirements; the need for an 

OEM-like demonstration when 

converting vehicles and engines that 

still resemble the technical condition of 

the original product; and the fact that 

most conversions under the previous 

subpart F regulations took place within 

the first two years of a vehicle’s or 

engine’s regulatory useful life. We chose 

two years as the cut-off point for the 

‘‘new’’ program to cover the vehicles and 

engines which are most likely to be 

converted, and which, because most of 

their useful life still remains, should be 

subject to the most rigorous 

demonstration requirement. No 

commenters provided data or technical 

justification to support a different age 

threshold than the one EPA proposed. 

Absent substantive evidence to support 

a different approach, EPA is finalizing 

the certification age threshold in the 

definition of ‘‘new and relatively-new’’ 

as proposed. 

b. Older Vehicles and Engines 

Manufacturers of clean alternative 

fuel conversion systems for vehicles and 

engines that are older than the age range 

defined above for new vehicles and 

engines, but still fall within the original 

vehicle’s or engine’s useful life, may opt 

for certification as their demonstration 

of compliance with useful life 

standards. These systems are also 

eligible for the intermediate age program 

described in Section IV.B. 

2. Test Groups, Engine Families, and 

Evaporative/Refueling Families 

a. Test Groups for Light-Duty and 

Heavy-Duty Chassis Certified Vehicles 

i. Small Volume Manufacturers and 

Small Volume Test Groups 

EPA will allow conversion 

manufacturers to combine several OEM 

test groups into larger conversion test 

groups, where the regulatory 

requirements of 40 CFR 86.1827–01 and 

86.1820–01 are still satisfied. Test 

groups cannot span multiple durability 

groups.71 However, all clean alternative 

fuel conversion manufacturers who 

meet the small volume manufacturer or 

small volume test group criteria in 40 

CFR 86.1838–01 are eligible to use EPA 

assigned deterioration factors.72 By 

default the assigned deterioration 

factors define the durability group. 

Therefore, select criteria in the 

durability group determination, 40 CFR 

86.1820–01, the test group 

determination, 40 CFR 86.1827–01, and 

other additional criteria allow OEM test 

groups to be combined into a single 

clean alternative fuel conversion test 

group. 

Vehicles may be placed into the same 

clean alternative fuel conversion test 


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73Of the criteria listed, 4–6 are from 40 CFR 

86.1827–01(a) and 7–11 are from 40 CFR 86.1820– 

01. To provide flexibility in combining OEM test 

groups, these criteria do not include the precious 

metal composition and catalyst grouping statistic 

criteria in 40 CFR 86.1820–01. 

74Fuel conversion manufacturers will continue to 

be able to use carry-over of test results from one 

model year to the next if the OEM exercised such 

flexibility in accordance with EPA regulations. 

75On rare occasions, an OEM test group contains 

multiple OBD groups. When this occurs, EPA will 

allow the conversion test group to include the 

multiple OBD groups that are covered by the OEM 

test group. 

76These criteria are consistent with the 2009 

guidance letter, CISD 09–14, which can be accessed 

electronically at http://iaspub.epa.gov/otaqpub/ 

display_file.jsp?docid=20194&flag=1. This guidance 

letter was amended in October 2010 as CISD 10– 

24. CISD 10–24 can be accessed electronically at 

http://iaspub.epa.gov/otaqpub/ 

display_file.jsp?docid=23319&flag=1. 77See Section III.F.1.c. 

group using good engineering judgment 

if they satisfy the following: 73

(1) Same OEM and OEM model year 74

(2) Same OBD group 75

(3) Same vehicle classification (e.g. 

light-duty vehicle, heavy-duty 

vehicle) 

(4) Engine displacement is within 15% 

of largest displacement or 50 CID, 

whichever is larger 

(5) Same number of cylinders or 

combustion chambers 

(6) Same arrangement of cylinders or 

combustion chambers (e.g. in-line, 

v-shaped) 

(7) Same combustion cycle (e.g., two 

stroke, four stroke, Otto-cycle, 

diesel-cycle) 

(8) Same engine type (e.g. piston, rotary, 

turbine, air cooled versus water 

cooled) 

(9) Same OEM fuel type (except 

otherwise similar gasoline and E85 

flexible-fuel vehicles may be 

combined into dedicated alternative 

fuel vehicles) 

(10) Same fuel metering system (e.g. 

throttle body injection vs. port 

injection) 

(11) Same catalyst construction (e.g. 

beads or monolith, metal vs. 

ceramic substrate) 

(12) All converted vehicles are subject 

to the most stringent emission 

standards used in certifying the 

OEM test groups within the 

conversion test group 

EPA received many comments 

requesting broader test group criteria 

and one comment suggesting that EPA 

retain the narrower OEM test group 

criteria. No data were provided to 

support either position, and EPA is 

finalizing the criteria as proposed. See 

the Response to Comments document 

for further discussion of this issue. 

a. Dual-Fuel and Mixed-Fuel Vehicle 

Carry-Across Procedures for Small 

Volume Manufacturers and Small 

Volume Test Groups 

As described in Section III.F.1.c, dualfuel and mixed-fuel vehicles cannot be 

certified to different standards for each 

fuel. Conversion test groups for dualfuel and mixed-fuel vehicles cannot 

include vehicles subject to different 

OEM emission standards unless 

applicable exhaust and OBD 

demonstrations are also conducted for 

the original fuel(s) demonstrating 

compliance with the most stringent 

standard represented in the test group. 

However, if the vehicles otherwise meet 

the test group criteria described above, 

the exhaust emissions test data for the 

new alternative fuel from dual-fueled or 

mixed-fuel EDVs may be carried across 

to vehicles which otherwise meet the 

test group criteria above. Test data can 

only be carried across if the data 

demonstrate compliance with the most 

stringent standard among the vehicles to 

which they are being applied. This 

means that for dual-fuel or mixed-fuel 

conversions a conversion manufacturer 

must apply for multiple certificates if 

the OEM vehicles in the proposed test 

group combination were originally 

certified to different standards; 

however, the data acquired on the 

alternative fuel may be applicable to 

multiple certificates when the test group 

criteria above are otherwise met and the 

data demonstrate that the most stringent 

standard within the group is met. 

ii. Large Volume Manufacturers 

Large volume clean alternative fuel 

conversion manufacturers must create 

test groups according to the regulations 

in 40 CFR 86.1827–01. As required by 

these regulations, the conversion 

manufacturer must first create durability 

groups pursuant to 40 CFR 86.1820–01, 

and then divide those groups into test 

groups for the purposes of exhaust 

emissions testing. 

b. Engine Families for Heavy-Duty 

Engines 

i. Small Volume Manufacturers and 

Small Volume Engine Families 

This final rule allows combinations of 

several original OEM engine families 

into larger conversion engine families. 

Engines can be placed into the same 

clean alternative fuel conversion engine 

family using good engineering judgment 

if they satisfy the following: 76

(1) Same OEM 

(2) Same OBD group after 2013 

(3) Same service class (e.g. light heavyduty diesel engines, medium heavyduty diesel engines, heavy heavyduty diesel engines) 

(4) Engine displacements is within 15% 

of largest displacement or 50 CID, 

whichever is larger 

(5) Same number of cylinders 

(6) Same arrangement of cylinders 

(7) Same combustion cycle 

(8) Same method of air aspiration 

(9) Same fuel type (e.g. diesel/gasoline) 

(10) Same fuel metering system (e.g., 

mechanical direct or electronic 

direct injection) 

(11) Same catalyst/filter construction 

(e.g., metal vs. ceramic substrate) 

(12) All converted engines are subject to 

the most stringent emission 

standards. For example, 2005 and 

2007 heavy-duty diesel engines may 

be in the same family if they meet 

the most stringent (2007) standards 

(13) Same emission control technology 

(e.g., internal or external EGR) 

a. Dual-Fuel and Mixed-Fuel Engine 

Carry-Across for Small Volume 

Manufacturers and Small Volume 

Engine Families 

Heavy-duty dual-fuel and mixed-fuel 

engines cannot be certified to different 

standards for each fuel.77 Conversion 

engine families for dual-fuel and mixedfuel engines cannot include engines 

subject to different OEM emission 

standards unless applicable exhaust and 

OBD demonstrations are also conducted 

for the original fuel(s) demonstrating 

compliance with the most stringent 

standard represented in the engine 

family. However, if the engines would 

otherwise meet the engine family 

criteria described above, the exhaust 

emissions test data for the new 

alternative fuel from dual-fuel or mixedfuel test engines may be carried across 

to engines which otherwise meet the 

engine family criteria above. Test data 

can only be carried across if the data 

demonstrate compliance with the most 

stringent standard among the engines to 

which they are being applied. This 

means that for dual-fuel and mixed-fuel 

conversions, a conversion manufacturer 

must apply for multiple engine family 

certificates if the OEM engines in the 

proposed engine family combination 

were originally certified to different 

standards; however, the data acquired 

on the alternative fuel may be 

applicable to multiple certificates when 

the engine family criteria above are 

otherwise met and the data demonstrate 

that the most stringent standard within 

the conversion engine family is met. 

ii. Large Volume Manufacturers 

All large volume heavy-duty engine 

conversion manufacturers must create 


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19844 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 68 / Friday, April 8, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 

78This is due in part to the Fuel Economy testing 

requirements which effectively limit the testing of 

vehicles with more than 10,000 miles. 

79This statement was described in the proposal 

under statements of compliance that may be 

permitted; however, EPA believes that it is 

important to ask each conversion manufacturer to 

attest to this statement, even if OBD testing is 

conducted. 

engine families as set forth in 40 CFR 

86.001–24. 

c. Evaporative/Refueling Families 

Conversion manufacturers are 

required to follow the regulatory 

provisions for designating evaporative 

and refueling families. These provisions 

are located in 40 CFR 86.1821–01 for 

light-duty vehicles and heavy-duty 

chassis certified vehicles and in 40 CFR 

86.096–24(a)(12)–(13) for heavy-duty 

engines. If the clean alternative fuel 

conversion system continues to use the 

OEM evaporative/refueling emissions 

system in its original configuration, the 

conversion evaporative/refueling family 

will remain identical to the OEM 

evaporative/refueling family. If, 

however, the conversion requires an 

alternative evaporative/refueling system 

(as for pressurized fuels, such as CNG 

and LPG), then the conversion 

manufacturer may create a single 

evaporative/refueling family as long as 

the regulatory criteria for evaporative/ 

refueling families are met. Small volume 

conversion manufacturers may use EPA 

assigned evaporative/refueling 

deterioration factors in lieu of 

evaporative/refueling durability 

demonstrations. 

Clean alternative fuel conversion 

evaporative families for dual-fueled and 

mixed fuel vehicles and engines must 

not include vehicles and engines that 

were originally certified to different 

evaporative emission standards. 

Conversion evaporative/refueling 

families for dual-fuel and mixed-fuel 

vehicles/engines cannot include 

vehicles/engines subject to different 

OEM evaporative/refueling standards 

unless evaporative/refueling 

demonstrations are also conducted for 

the original fuel(s) demonstrating 

compliance with the most stringent 

standard represented in the evaporative/ 

refueling family. 

3. Certification Demonstration 

Requirements 

Certification for clean alternative fuel 

conversions will follow the certification 

procedures, such as those specified in 

40 CFR part 86, subpart A, B and/or S 

and 40 CFR part 1065 as applicable, 

subject to the exceptions and special 

provisions described in Section III.F.1.a 

and Section V, if applicable. 

a. Exhaust Emissions 

i. Light-Duty and Heavy-Duty Chassis 

Certified Vehicles 

The exhaust emissions testing 

demonstration for light-duty and heavyduty chassis certified vehicles must be 

conducted on a test group basis. The 

worst-case EDV from each test group 

must be used to demonstrate 

compliance with the most stringent 

standards represented among the OEM 

vehicles when they were originally 

certified. All applicable exhaust 

certification requirements and test 

procedures which are required in 

regulations for OEM certification are 

required for fuel conversion 

certification. Test procedures and 

certification requirements are currently 

located in 40 CFR part 86 and 40 CFR 

part 1065. 

ii. Heavy-Duty Engines 

The exhaust emissions testing 

demonstration for heavy-duty engines 

must be conducted on an engine family 

basis. The worst-case EDE from each 

engine family must be used to 

demonstrate compliance with the most 

stringent standards represented among 

the OEM engines when they were 

originally certified. All exhaust 

certification requirements and test 

procedures that are required in 

regulations for OEM certification are 

required for fuel conversion 

certification. Test procedures and 

certification requirements are currently 

located in 40 CFR part 86 and part 1065. 

b. Evaporative/Refueling Emissions 

EPA will retain the evaporative and 

refueling emissions test procedures and 

requirements promulgated in 40 CFR 

part 86 and part 1065 as the 

demonstration requirement for clean 

alternative fuel conversion certification. 

Please see the technical amendments 

discussed in Section V for fuel-specific 

amendments that apply to conversions 

to CNG (or LNG), LPG, or hydrogen 

fuels. 

c. Durability Demonstration and 

Assigned Deterioration Factors 

i. Small Volume Manufacturers and 

Small Volume Test Groups/Engine 

Families 

a. Light-Duty and Heavy-Duty Chassis 

Certified Vehicles 

As noted in Section III.G.2 above, 

small volume light-duty and heavy-duty 

chassis certified vehicle conversion 

manufacturers and eligible small 

volume test groups are permitted to use 

EPA assigned deterioration factors in 

lieu of exhaust and evaporative/ 

refueling durability demonstrations. If 

the EDV has accrued more than 10,000 

miles, the conversion manufacturer may 

use scaled assigned deterioration factors 

described in Section IV.B.3.c below.78

b. Heavy-Duty Engines 

For consistency with light-duty 

vehicles, EPA also will allow heavyduty engine conversion manufacturers 

who are eligible to use EPA assigned 

deterioration factors to use scaled 

assigned deterioration factors when the 

EDE has accrued more than 10,000 

miles. 

ii. Large Volume Manufacturers 

Large volume conversion 

manufacturers are required to conduct 

all applicable durability testing 

demonstrations. 

d. On-Board Diagnostics 

EPA believes that a fully functional 

OBD system is valuable in sustaining 

long-term emissions control and 

therefore the same OBD requirements 

that apply to OEMs continue to apply to 

clean alternative fuel conversion 

systems. The certification 

demonstration requires a submission of 

emissions data to prove that the OBD 

continues to function and the 

Malfunction Indicator Light (MIL) 

illuminates at the proper thresholds as 

set forth in 40 CFR 86.1806–01, 

86.1806–04, and 86.1806–05 for lightduty vehicles and heavy-duty chassis 

certified vehicles. If an OEM heavy-duty 

engine was certified with an OBD 

requirement, the conversion must also 

meet the applicable OBD requirements, 

unless an alternative fuel OBD 

requirement is otherwise excepted from 

the OBD regulations. Heavy-duty engine 

OBD requirements are promulgated in 

40 CFR 86.007–17, 86.007–30, 86.010– 

18, and 86.010–38. In addition to 

conducting OBD testing as required for 

certification, conversion manufacturers 

must submit the following statement of 

compliance, if the OEM vehicles/ 

engines are OBD equipped. ‘‘The test 

group/engine family converted to an 

alternative fuel has fully functional OBD 

systems and therefore meets the OBD 

requirements such as those specified in 

40 CFR 86, subparts A and S when 

operating on the alternative fuel.’’ 79

4. Certification Notification Process 

The conversion certification 

notification process is based on the 

OEM certification procedures, such as 

those specified in 40 CFR part 86 and 

part 1065, as applicable. The 

notification requirement continues to 

incorporate the entire OEM certification 

process. If the OEM certification process 


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80 If a conversion manufacturer projects sales in 

the following calendar year, EPA will issue the 

certificate of conformity for the later model year, so 

that fees are paid based on sales that include the 

first full year of sales. 

81This exemption is only permitted if all program 

requirements continue to be met and no new testing 

is required, such as new testing required for 

conversion manufacturers who change from small 

to large volume manufacturer status. The exemption 

from tampering is valid only if the conversion is 

installed on the OEM test groups/engine families 

and/or evaporative emissions/refueling families 

listed on the notification. 

82The exemption from tampering conferred by 

certification continues even after the date of 

expiration on the certificate has passed causing it 

to expire. 

83Alternatively, conversion manufacturers may 

choose to re-certify, as described above, or they may 

submit data and other notification requirements for 

inclusion in the intermediate age and outside useful 

life programs at any time concurrent with or 

subsequent to certification. This can occur even if 

the test group or engine family includes vehicles/ 

engines that would otherwise not have reached the 

intermediate age threshold. 

is amended in the future, the fuel 

conversion certification procedures will 

also change, unless otherwise specified 

at that time. 

In addition, an OBD attestation is 

required as described in section 

IV.A.3.d and small volume conversion 

manufacturers and qualified small 

volume test groups/engine families 

using EPA assigned deterioration factors 

must present detailed information to 

confirm the durability of all relevant 

new and existing components and to 

explain why the conversion system will 

not harm the emission control system or 

degrade the emissions. 

The certification process may permit 

several statements of compliance or 

attestations in lieu of test data in the 

application for certification. Some of 

these are found in the OEM certification 

regulations, such as 40 CFR part 86, 

subparts A, B, and S and 40 CFR part 

1065. In addition, the following 

statements specific to dual-fuel and 

mixed-fuel clean alternative fuel 

conversion may be permitted in lieu of 

test data, if appropriate: 

1. ‘‘The test group/engine family 

converted to dual-fuel or mixed-fuel 

operation retains all the OEM fuel 

system, engine calibration, and emission 

control system functionality when 

operating on the fuel with which the 

vehicle/engine was originally certified.’’ 

2. ‘‘The test group/engine family 

converted to dual-fuel or mixed-fuel 

operation retains all the functionality of 

the OEM OBD system (if so equipped) 

when operating on the fuel with which 

the vehicle/engine was originally 

certified.’’ 

3. ‘‘The test group/engine family 

converted to dual-fuel or mixed-fuel 

operation properly purges hydrocarbon 

vapor from the evaporative emission 

canister when the vehicle/engine is 

operating on the alternative fuel.’’ 

a. Certificate Expiration and ReCertification 

Conversion certificates expire on 

December 31 of the conversion model 

year for which they are issued. 

Conversion manufacturers who wish to 

renew a certificate that has expired may 

re-certify the same conversion group in 

subsequent years using the same data. 

To re-certify, the manufacturer would 

update the cover page of the 

application, re-enter the necessary data 

into EPA’s on-line data submission Web 

site, and submit the certification fees.80

EPA received numerous comments 

about recertification. Many comments 

requested that EPA issue non-expiring 

certificates to spare manufacturers from 

the burden of re-certifying an alreadycertified test group or engine family. 

Manufacturers stated that they must recertify to retain eligibility for various tax 

credits and other incentives that require 

a valid certificate, as well as to retain 

protection from a tampering violation. 

EPA agrees with commenters who 

note that annual certificate renewal 

confers little benefit when there are no 

changes to the manufacturer, conversion 

technology, or vehicles/engines to 

which the technology will be applied. 

However, EPA believes these concerns 

can be better addressed by clarifying 

that a certified conversion system does 

not lose its tampering exemption when 

the certificate expires, rather than by 

creating a new type of non-expiring 

certificate. Thus, the program EPA is 

finalizing provides compliance options 

for conversion manufacturers who wish 

to retain protection against a tampering 

violation but who do not wish to 

recertify. First, EPA has determined that 

an exemption from the CAA tampering 

prohibition secured through 

certification does not expire with the 

certificate, as long as the conditions 

under which the certificate was issued 

remain unchanged. If conditions 

change, the exemption would not 

remain valid and the manufacturer 

would need to re-certify or apply for the 

intermediate age or outside useful life 

programs, if applicable, to retain 

protection against a tampering violation. 

A change from small to large volume 

manufacturer status, for example, would 

necessitate a new demonstration and 

notification since large volume 

conversion manufacturers have different 

requirements than small volume 

conversion manufacturers. Second, 

manufacturers who obtained a clean 

alternative fuel conversion certificate 

under the previous subpart F 

regulations retain the tampering 

exemption conferred by certification, as 

long as conditions have not changed.81

Third, EPA will consider the tampering 

exemption conferred by certification to 

remain with the test group/engine 

family as it gets older, extending 

protection through intermediate age and 

outside useful life status. This allows 

conversion manufacturers to continue to 

sell their products without renewing the 

certificate and paying further 

certification fees, again assuming no 

change to conditions under which the 

certificate was issued.82 This means that 

conversion manufacturers only need to 

interact with EPA once as long as the 

conditions under which the certificate 

was issued remain unchanged.83 Fourth, 

EPA will clarify with State, Federal, and 

other organizations offering alternative 

fuel incentives that EPA considers a 

certified conversion system to retain its 

tampering exemption, even after the 

certificate has expired. 

5. In-Use Compliance 

Clean alternative fuel conversion 

manufacturers are subject to in-use 

requirements. Many of these are 

described in Section III above, including 

warranty, defect reporting and recall 

requirements, as well as EPA’s authority 

to perform in-use testing. 

B. Intermediate Age Vehicle and Engine 

Clean Alternative Fuel Conversion 

Program 

EPA is adopting an alternative to 

certification to satisfy the compliance 

demonstration and notification 

requirements for vehicles and engines 

that are no longer new but still fall 

within their useful life. The 

intermediate age vehicle and engine 

compliance program (intermediate age 

program) requires conversion 

manufacturers to demonstrate through 

testing that the converted vehicle or 

engine will continue to meet applicable 

standards through its useful life. 

Alternatively, to qualify for an 

exemption from the tampering 

prohibition, manufacturers may opt to 

certify conversion systems for 

intermediate age vehicles and engines as 

if they were new vehicles and engines. 

See Section IV.A. 

The establishment of an alternative to 

certification for intermediate age vehicle 

and engine conversion systems 

addresses EPA’s interest in creating a 

streamlined compliance process that is 

appropriate for vehicles and engines 

that have been subject to real-world 

aging. EPA does not believe certification 


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19846 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 68 / Friday, April 8, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 

84This is due in part to fuel economy testing 

regulations which limit the accrued mileage for a 

fuel economy test vehicle to 10,000 miles. 40 CFR 

600.007–08(b)(1). 

85The technical amendments described in 

Section V and the scaling of assigned deterioration 

factors described in section IV.B.3.c.i are available 

for the intermediate age program. 

86See Section IV.B.4 for more information about 

the required OBD attestations. See section IV.B.3.d 

for a description of the OBD scan tool procedure. 

87Aftermarket fuel converters are currently 

permitted to use carry-over of test results from one 

model year to the next if the OEM exercised such 

flexibility in accordance with EPA regulations. 88Note that a functional OBD system means that 

it must function properly, must not be disabled, 

there are no MILS, no false MILs or false Diagnostic 

Trouble Codes, and all readiness flags must be set. 

of intermediate age vehicles and engines 

is necessary because they are generally 

no longer representative of certification 

vehicles/engines. EPA originally 

developed the certification test 

procedures for new OEM vehicles and 

engines. Typical OEM vehicles 

delivered to EPA for confirmatory 

testing are recently manufactured preproduction models with about 4,000 

miles of engine and emission control 

system stabilization mileage. No OEM 

vehicles with more than 10,000 miles 

are tested for certification.84

The program for intermediate age 

vehicles and engines maintains many of 

the existing certification test 

procedures, but departs from new and 

relatively-new vehicle or engine 

certification requirements in several 

notable areas. The demonstration of 

compliance with applicable standards 

employs the same procedures required 

of certified conversion manufacturers 

for exhaust and evaporative emissions 

testing.85 However, the OBD 

demonstration requirement is different. 

Instead of conducting OBD 

demonstration testing as required for 

certification, conversion manufacturers 

may be able to meet the intermediate 

age OBD demonstration requirement by 

attesting that the OBD system is fully 

functional and by submitting an OBD 

scan tool report.86 The notification 

process is also different for intermediate 

age vehicles and engines. Conversion 

manufacturers submit test data, 

attestations, and other required 

information to EPA using an electronic 

submission process. The application 

process is streamlined and conversion 

manufacturers participating in the 

intermediate age program are not 

required to pay certification fees. 

Conversion manufacturers participating 

in the intermediate age program will not 

receive a certificate of conformity. 

Rather, EPA will maintain a publicly 

available list identifying conversion 

systems that have satisfied the 

intermediate age demonstration and 

notification requirements. 

1. Applicability 

Vehicles and engines become eligible 

for the intermediate age compliance 

program when the date of their 

conversion is in a calendar year that is 

at least two years after the original 

model year of the vehicle or engine, i.e. 

when they are about two years old. For 

example, in calendar year 2011, model 

year 2009 and earlier vehicles and 

engines are eligible for the intermediate 

age program. 

Manufacturers of conversion systems 

for vehicles and engines that are outside 

their full useful life may also use the 

intermediate age program as a 

demonstration sufficient to qualify for 

the clean alternative fuel conversion 

exemption from tampering. Conversion 

manufacturers that choose to participate 

in the intermediate age program must 

demonstrate compliance with the full 

useful life standards, even if the vehicle 

or engine has surpassed its useful life in 

age or mileage. Outside useful life 

converters who choose to seek 

exemption from tampering through the 

intermediate age program will not be 

required to generate or use deterioration 

factors. 

2. Test Groups, Engine Families and 

Evaporative/Refueling Families 

a. Test Groups for Light-Duty and 

Heavy-Duty Chassis Certified Vehicles 

i. Small Volume Manufacturers and 

Small Volume Test Groups 

Small volume conversion 

manufacturers and qualified small 

volume test groups of conversion 

systems for intermediate age vehicles 

are permitted some additional flexibility 

in creating test groups to which the 

conversion is applicable. The primary 

difference between test group criteria for 

the new and intermediate age programs 

is the elimination of the OBD group 

criterion under the intermediate age 

program. Vehicles can be placed into 

the same clean alternative fuel 

conversion test group using good 

engineering judgment if they satisfy the 

following: 

(1) Same OEM and OEM model year 87

(2) OBD still functional 88

(3) Same vehicle classification (e.g., 

light-duty vehicle, heavy-duty 

vehicle) 

(4) Engine displacement (within 15% of 

largest displacement or 50 CID, 

whichever is larger) 

(5) Same number of cylinders or 

combustion chambers 

(6) Same arrangement of cylinders or 

combustion chambers (e.g., in-line, 

v-shaped) 

(7) Same combustion cycle (e.g., two 

stroke, four stroke, Otto-cycle, 

diesel-cycle) 

(8) Same engine type (e.g., piston, 

rotary, turbine, air cooled versus 

water cooled) 

(9) Same OEM fuel type (except 

otherwise similar gasoline and E85 

flexible-fuel vehicles may be 

combined into dedicated alternative 

fuel vehicles) 

(10) Same fuel metering system (e.g., 

throttle body injection vs. port 

injection) 

(11) Same catalyst construction (e.g., 

beads or monolith, metal vs. 

ceramic substrate) 

(12) All converted vehicles are subject 

to the most stringent emission 

standards used in certifying the 

OEM test groups within the 

conversion test group 

ii. Large Volume Manufacturers 

Large volume manufacturers may use 

the same test group combination 

flexibility as small volume 

manufacturers when designating 

intermediate age vehicle test groups. See 

Section IV.B.2.a.i for details. However, 

large volume manufacturers are required 

to conduct durability testing, as noted 

below. 

iii. Dual-Fuel and Mixed-Fuel Vehicle 

Carry-Across 

Dual-fuel and mixed-fuel vehicles 

which have different standards must 

create a separate submission to EPA for 

each OEM test group with different 

standards. Conversion test groups for 

dual-fuel and mixed-fuel vehicles 

cannot include vehicles subject to 

different OEM emission standards 

unless applicable exhaust and OBD 

demonstrations are also conducted for 

the original fuel(s) demonstrating 

compliance with the most stringent 

standard represented in the test group. 

However, as is described above in 

Section IV.A.2.a.i.a, test data from an 

EDV on the alternative fuel may be used 

to satisfy the demonstration requirement 

of multiple OEM test groups if the 

conversion test group criteria described 

above are otherwise met and the data 

demonstrate compliance with each 

standard. 

b. Engine Families for Heavy-Duty 

Engines 

i. Small Volume Manufacturers and 

Small Volume Engine Families 

The same engine family combination 

criteria that are described in Section 

IV.A.2.b.i are permitted for clean 

alternative fuel conversion of 

intermediate age engines, except that 


emcdonald on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with RULES2
Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 68 / Friday, April 8, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 19847 

89 Intermediate standards only apply to those 

vehicles originally certified with intermediate 

standards. 

the same OBD grouping is not a 

criterion. 

ii. Large Volume Manufacturers 

Large volume manufacturers are 

permitted to use the same flexibility as 

small volume manufacturers when 

designating intermediate age heavy-duty 

engine families. See Section IV.B.2.b.i 

for details. However, large volume 

manufacturers are required to conduct 

durability testing. 

iii. Dual-Fuel and Mixed-Fuel Engine 

Carry-Across 

Data carry-across procedures for dualfuel and mixed-fuel new engines 

described in Section IV.A.2.b.i.a are also 

applicable for dual-fuel and mixed-fuel 

intermediate age engines. 

c. Evaporative/Refueling Families 

The evaporative family criteria under 

the intermediate age program remain as 

provided in 40 CFR part 86. If the OEM 

evaporative system is no longer 

functionally necessary (e.g., conversion 

to dedicated CNG or LPG), then 

conversion manufacturers may create 

new evaporative conversion groups 

following the criteria in 40 CFR 

86.1821–01 for light-duty and heavyduty chassis certified vehicles and 40 

CFR 86.096–24(a)(12)–(13) for heavyduty engines. Clean alternative fuel 

conversion evaporative/refueling 

families for dual-fueled or mixed-fuel 

vehicles/engines cannot include 

vehicles/engines that were originally 

certified to different evaporative 

emission standards. Conversion 

evaporative/refueling families for dualfuel and mixed-fuel vehicles/engines 

cannot include vehicles/engines subject 

to different evaporative emission 

standards unless evaporative/refueling 

demonstrations are also conducted for 

the original fuel(s) demonstrating 

compliance with the most stringent 

standard represented in the evaporative/ 

refueling family. 

3. Demonstration Requirements 

The demonstration requirements for 

clean alternative fuel conversions are 

based on the certification procedures, 

such as those specified in 40 CFR part 

86, subparts A, B and/or S and 40 CFR 

part 1065 as applicable, subject to the 

exceptions and special provisions 

described in this section, Section 

III.F.1.a and Section V, if applicable. 

a. Exhaust Emissions 

The exhaust emissions demonstration 

is conducted on a test group (light-duty) 

or engine family (heavy-duty) basis. The 

worst-case EDV or EDE from each test 

group or engine family must be used to 

demonstrate compliance with the most 

stringent standards represented among 

the OEM vehicles or engines when they 

were originally certified. All exhaust 

demonstration requirements and test 

procedures which are required in 

regulations for OEM certification are 

required for fuel conversion 

compliance. Test procedures and other 

requirements are currently located in 40 

CFR part 86 and 40 CFR part 1065. 

b. Evaporative/Refueling Emissions 

The test procedures to demonstrate 

that a vehicle or engine will meet 

evaporative standards during normal 

vehicle operation, including refueling, 

are currently specified in 40 CFR part 86 

and part 1065. These test procedures 

and other requirements continue to 

apply for the intermediate age vehicle 

and engine fuel conversion program. 

Please see the technical amendments 

discussed in Section V for fuel-specific 

amendments which apply to 

conversions to CNG (or LNG) and LPG 

or hydrogen fuels. 

c. Durability Demonstration and 

Assigned Deterioration Factors 

i. Small Volume Manufacturers and 

Small Volume Test Groups/Engine 

Families 

As noted in Section III.G.2 above, 

small volume manufacturers and 

eligible small volume test groups/engine 

families are permitted to use EPA 

assigned deterioration factors in lieu of 

exhaust and evaporative/refueling 

durability demonstrations. EPA is 

retaining this option for purposes of 

evaluating conversion systems that will 

be applied to intermediate age vehicles 

and engines. In addition, EPA is 

finalizing a new concept which is 

applicable to EDVs and EDEs with more 

than 10,000 miles. EPA will allow small 

volume manufacturers to use ‘‘scaled 

deterioration factors.’’ Scaled 

deterioration factors are derived using 

current assigned deterioration factors to 

determine mileage applicable 

deterioration factors from 10,000 miles 

through intermediate useful life and 

from intermediate useful life through 

full useful life.89 Although the actual 

rates of emissions deterioration from 

10,000 miles to intermediate useful life 

and from intermediate useful life to full 

useful life may vary, EPA assumed a 

linear increase of emissions with 

increasing mileage in order to facilitate 

a simple scaling of the EPA assigned 

deterioration factors. In the future, EPA 

may issue guidance to adjust these 

scaled assigned deterioration factors if 

we find the rate of deterioration nonconstant or the rate differs by fuel type. 

Mathematically, a constant rate of 

deterioration can be expressed as: 

Note: This does not mean that the 

deterioration factor increases linearly with 

mileage. The equation assumes that the 

grams of pollutant per mile increases at a 

constant rate as vehicle mileage increases. 

In addition to this primary 

assumption, EPA will use these two 

definitions: 

Where: ADF(FUL) is the full useful life assigned 

multiplicative deterioration factor. 

FULgpm is the grams per mile of pollutant 

projected at full useful life. 


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INITgpm is the grams per mile of pollutant 

measured at the beginning of the vehicle 

or engine’s useful life. 

SDF(FUL) is the scaled full useful life 

multiplicative deterioration factor. 

MGgpm is the grams per mile of pollutant at 

the actual mileage of EDV or EDE. 

Based on the assumption in equation 

1: 

Where: 

FULMG is the appropriate full useful life 

mileage. 

MG is the actual mileage of the EDV/EVE. 

INITMG is the mileage at the beginning of the 

useful life. Note that this value is zero for 

heavy-duty vehicles, since evaluation is 

done at the zero-hour level. 

From this expression, equations 2 and 

3 can be used to ultimately arrive at: 

This equation shows how the scaled 

full useful life multiplicative 

deterioration factor can be calculated 

using the emissions data vehicle or 

engine mileage and the assigned full 

useful life multiplicative deterioration 

factor. 

By carrying out the same processes, 

scaled intermediate useful life of 

deterioration factors, where applicable, 

can be determined by the expression: 

Where: 

SDF(MID) is the scaled intermediate useful 

life multiplicative deterioration factor. 

MIDMG is the intermediate useful life 

mileage. 

ADF(MID) is the intermediate useful life 

assigned multiplicative deterioration 

factor, where applicable. 

In the same manner, additive scaled 

deterioration factors could also be 

derived. The resulting equation is: 

Where: 

ODF is the OEM’s original additive 

deterioration factor and ASDF is the 

additive scaled deterioration factor. 

Only the full useful life scaled 

additive deterioration factor equation is 

presented here. However, the 

intermediate useful life scaled additive 

deterioration factor equation follows the 

same syntax except that the 

intermediate useful life additive 

deterioration factor is substituted in 

Equation 6 for ODF, and the 

intermediate age useful life is 

substituted for FULMG. 

Equations 4, 5 and 6 are used to scale 

deterioration factors of vehicles with 

more than 10,000 miles used in the 

testing of clean alternative fuel 

conversions, for demonstration of 

compliance with exhaust and 

evaporative/refueling emissions 

standards. EPA may issue guidance to 

update or adjust these equations. 

ii. Large Volume Manufacturers 

a. Light-Duty and Heavy-Duty Chassis 

Certified Vehicles 

Durability testing is required for large 

volume manufacturers of clean 

alternative fuel conversions of 

intermediate age vehicles. Durability 

groups for intermediate age vehicles 

shall be designated using the provisions 

set forth in 40 CFR 86.1820–01, except 

the durability grouping criteria for 

intermediate age vehicles need not 

include the precious metal composition 

and catalyst grouping statistic criteria, 

since they are not included in the test 

group criteria for clean alternative fuel 

conversions. 

b. Heavy-Duty Engines 

Durability testing is required for large 

volume manufacturers of clean 

alternative fuel conversions for 

intermediate age engines. 

d. On-Board Diagnostics 

EPA believes a properly functioning 

OBD system is essential to maintaining 

emissions compliance in aging vehicles 

and engines. However, EPA believes 

that the OBD demonstration for 

intermediate age vehicles and engines 

can be streamlined relative to the 

current certification requirements. In 

lieu of submitting OBD test data as is 

required for certification, manufacturers 

of intermediate age clean alternative 

fuel conversion systems may be able to 

submit an OBD scan tool report showing 

results of an OBD scan tool test 

procedure and attest that the OBD 


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Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 68 / Friday, April 8, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 19849 

system remains fully functional in the 

converted vehicle/engine. The 

attestation must state that the test 

group/engine family converted to an 

alternative fuel has fully functional OBD 

systems and therefore meets the OBD 

requirements such as those specified in 

40 CFR part 86, subparts A and S when 

operating on the alternative fuel. This 

includes any new monitoring capability 

necessary to identify potential emission 

problems associated with the new fuel. 

Typical OBD monitors include but are 

not limited to: Fuel trim lean and rich, 

catalyst deterioration, engine misfire, 

oxygen sensor deterioration, EGR 

system (if applicable), and vapor leak (if 

applicable). Conversion manufacturers 

are not allowed to alias, remove, bypass, 

or turn off any applicable original OBD 

system monitor. Furthermore the MIL is 

required to continue to function 

properly and not illuminate unless 

system indicators or emission 

thresholds are truly being exceeded. 

EPA also requires readiness flags to be 

properly set for all monitors that 

identify any malfunction for all 

monitored components. 

EPA requested comment as to 

whether the scan tool procedure 

proposed as ‘‘Option 3’’ for outside 

useful life vehicles/engines would also 

be appropriate for the intermediate age 

program. Comments stated that this 

demonstration would provide 

additional assurance that the OBD 

system remains fully functional. EPA 

agrees and is including use of this 

procedure in the OBD demonstration 

requirement for intermediate age 

vehicles. The procedure involves: using 

an OBD scan tool to clear all readiness 

codes (set codes to ‘‘not ready’’); driving 

the vehicle/operating the engine until it 

triggers all codes to be set to ready; and 

then using an OBD scan tool to 

interrogate the OBD system. 

Intermediate age converters may 

satisfy the OBD demonstration 

requirement either by completing the 

OBD demonstration described in new 

vehicle certification (Section IV.A.4) or 

by following the procedures described 

in the preceding paragraph. 

EPA proposed using the procedures 

described in 40 CFR 85.2222 to satisfy 

the OBD demonstration requirements 

for the intermediate age conversions. 

These regulations establish a test 

procedure which checks the status of 

OBD readiness monitors, checks to 

determine if the OBD MIL is functional 

(bulb check), checks for commanded-on 

MIL illumination, and records all 

diagnostic trouble codes if the MIL is 

illuminated. However, these regulations 

reference Society of Automotive 

Engineers (SAE) OBD diagnostic mode 

assignments that are specific to lightduty vehicles and light-duty trucks. In 

order to be clear that the OBD scan tool 

procedure described above applies to all 

vehicles and engines that are required to 

comply with OBD regulations, we are 

adding the process described in 40 CFR 

85.2222 to the new subpart F 

regulations, without the specific 

references to the light-duty vehicle OBD 

procedures. Any scan tool that displays 

the supported monitors, lists their 

corresponding readiness status, and 

reports all emission related pending and 

confirmed diagnostic trouble codes is 

considered acceptable. 

An acceptable OBD demonstration 

under the intermediate age vehicle and 

engine program must include a printout 

of scan tool results following the fuel 

conversion showing that all supported 

monitors have been set to ready and 

there are no pending or confirmed 

diagnostic trouble codes. The vehicle/ 

engine information number (VIN/EIN) 

must be provided with the scan tool 

report. Given the changes to the vehicle/ 

engine resulting from the fuel 

conversion process, some monitors in 

the OEM OBD system may no longer be 

supported. For example, the evaporative 

emissions readiness monitor may need 

to remain unset for conversions in 

which the original evaporative 

emissions system is no longer 

functionally necessary. 

EPA received comments that 

expressed concerns about the adequacy 

of a scan tool test. Although EPA 

believes the scan tool test will be 

sufficient in most cases, EPA may 

require OBD testing as described for 

certification in Section IV.A.3.d if the 

OBD scan tool report is not sufficient to 

demonstrate proper OBD operation. 

4. Notification Process 

Intermediate age clean alternative fuel 

conversion manufacturers must 

complete and submit EDV/EDE 

information, test data, compliance 

statements and all other appropriate 

information electronically. EPA intends 

to provide information about the 

notification process through its Web site 

and other information dissemination 

mechanisms. 

The conversion manufacturer must 

enter information about the EDV or EDE, 

emission results from the exhaust and 

evaporative emissions testing, including 

any permissible carry-over data, 

applicable exhaust and evaporative 

emission standards and deterioration 

factors, and the OEM test groups or 

engine families and evaporative/ 

refueling families for which the 

conversion system is intended. In this 

submission, the conversion 

manufacturers may use the appropriate 

exhaust and evaporative emissions 

scaled deterioration factors for vehicles 

and engines with greater than 10,000 

miles as described in Section IV.B.3.c.i 

to demonstrate that the converted 

vehicle/engine meets the same 

standards to which the OEM vehicle or 

engine was certified. In addition, small 

volume conversion manufacturers and 

qualified small volume test groups/ 

engine families using EPA assigned 

deterioration factors must present 

detailed information to confirm the 

durability of all relevant new and 

existing components and to explain why 

the conversion system will not harm the 

emission control system or degrade the 

emissions. 

The conversion manufacturer must 

submit the scan tool demonstration data 

resulting from an interrogation of the 

OBD system as described in Section 

IV.B.3.d and submit the OBD statement 

of attestation as described in that 

section. 

The intermediate age program 

notification requirements also include 

submission of any required compliance 

statements and other supporting 

documents such as an example label 

and packaging information, warranty 

provisions, and maintenance 

requirements. The specific set of 

necessary compliance statements will 

depend on the vehicle or engine 

category, the applicable standards, the 

alternative fuel type, and other factors. 

The intermediate age vehicle and 

engine notification process will permit 

conversion manufacturers to submit 

statements of compliance or attestations 

instead of submitting test data for 

certain system features. Some of these 

compliance statements are found in the 

OEM certification regulations, such as 

in 40 CFR part 86, subparts A, B, and 

S and 40 CFR part 1065. In addition, the 

following statements specific to dualfuel and mixed-fuel clean alternative 

fuel conversion may be permitted in 

lieu of test data, if appropriate: 

1. ‘‘The test group/engine family 

converted to dual-fuel or mixed-fuel 

operation retains all the OEM fuel 

system, engine calibration, and emission 

control system functionality when 

operating on the fuel with which the 

vehicle/engine was originally certified.’’ 

2. ‘‘The test group/engine family 

converted to dual-fuel or mixed fuel 

operation retains all the functionality of 

the OEM OBD system (if so equipped) 

when operating on the fuel with which 

the vehicle/engine was originally 

certified.’’ 

3. ‘‘The test group/engine family 

converted to dual-fuel or mixed-fuel 

operation properly purges hydrocarbon 


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vapor from the evaporative emission 

canister when the vehicle/engine is 

operating on the alternative fuel.’’ 

EPA also proposed a statement of 

compliance that would have required 

the conversion manufacturer to attest 

that the test group/engine family 

converted to an alternative fuel uses 

fueling systems, evaporative emission 

control systems, and engine powertrain 

components that are compatible with 

the alternative fuel and designed with 

the principles of good engineering 

judgment. This attestation is still 

relevant, and is explicitly required for 

an outside useful life notification. 

However, the statement has been 

adjusted for the new and intermediate 

age programs to tie this requirement to 

a description and statement of 

attestation for the durability program. 

See Section IV.C.4. 

This information must be submitted 

electronically in a format specified by 

the Administrator. If the test results 

meet both the intermediate and full 

useful life standards, after applying the 

deterioration factors (see Section 

IV.3.c.i), all supporting documents are 

included, and all compliance statements 

are attested, then the conversion 

manufacturer may submit the test data 

form to EPA. 

EPA will periodically update its list of 

conversion systems that are appropriate 

for installation on intermediate age 

vehicle/engine test groups/engine 

families and evaporative/refueling 

families. The exemption from the 

tampering prohibition may be void ab 

initio if the conversion manufacturer 

fails to meet all of the requirements for 

the program. This is the case even if a 

submission has been made and the 

conversion system has been publicly 

posted. 

a. Previously Certified Clean Alternative 

Fuel Conversion Systems 

EPA will allow the tampering 

exemption conferred by certification to 

continue to apply to the test group/ 

engine family as it reaches intermediate 

age and outside useful life status. The 

conversion manufacturer does not need 

to generate new data or reapply to the 

intermediate age or outside useful life 

programs to retain the exemption, as 

long as the conditions under which the 

certificate was issued remain 

unchanged. The exemption from 

tampering is valid only if the conversion 

is installed on the OEM test groups/ 

engine families and/or evaporative 

emissions/refueling families listed on 

the certificate. EPA will make publicly 

available the list of certified conversion 

systems which may be used on 

intermediate age and outside useful life 

vehicles and engines. 

5. In-Use Compliance 

Clean alternative fuel conversion 

manufacturers are subject to in-use 

requirements. Many of these are 

described in Section III above, including 

warranty, defect reporting and recall 

requirements, as well as EPA’s authority 

to perform in-use testing. 

C. Outside Useful Life Vehicle and 

Engine Clean Alternative Fuel 

Conversion Program 

As discussed in Section II, vehicle 

and engine emission standards 

established under the CAA apply not 

only at the time of production but also 

until the vehicle or engine reaches an 

age or usage threshold known as ‘‘full 

useful life.’’ EPA regulations defining 

useful life are described in section II.B. 

Once a vehicle or engine has exceeded 

the useful life threshold there is no 

longer a statutory or regulatory 

obligation to comply with the applicable 

standard. However, the prohibition 

against tampering in section 203(a)(3) 

still applies to vehicles and engines 

outside their useful life. Thus, EPA is 

finalizing a program that enables 

converters of outside useful life vehicles 

and engines to qualify for an exemption 

from the tampering prohibition. 

The absence of an applicable section 

202 standard for vehicles and engines 

outside their useful life necessitates a 

different demonstration requirement 

than the demonstration of compliance 

with the applicable section 202 standard 

that we are finalizing for conversion of 

vehicles and engines still within their 

useful life. EPA considered and sought 

comment on several possible 

approaches to a demonstration that 

would help assure that outside useful 

life conversions are consistent with the 

CAA prohibition on tampering and do 

not cause environmental degradation. 

The approaches differed in the method 

by which manufacturers would 

demonstrate the emissions integrity of 

the conversion. EPA is adopting the 

approach described as ‘‘Option 3’’ in the 

proposal. This approach requires 

manufacturers to submit a technical 

description of the conversion that 

provides sufficient detail for EPA to 

evaluate emissions performance and 

durability. EPA may require that the 

technical description include emission 

test data if the description alone does 

not provide adequate assurance that the 

conversion system will not degrade 

emission control system performance or 

durability. Conversion manufacturers 

must also submit an OBD scan tool 

report. See Section IV.C.3 for a detailed 

explanation of the outside useful life 

demonstration requirement. A variation 

of this approach, described as ‘‘Option 

1’’ in the proposal, would have required 

the technical description but not the 

OBD scan tool report. A different 

approach, Option 2 in the proposal, 

would have applied a testing 

requirement similar to the inside useful 

life demonstration requirement. 

Manufacturers would satisfy the Option 

2 demonstration in one of two ways, 

either by submitting data to show that 

the converted configuration would meet 

inside useful life standards for the OEM 

vehicle/engine, or by submitting data to 

show that there was no deterioration in 

emissions before and after conversion. 

EPA received comments in support of 

all the outside useful life options 

presented in the proposal. However, the 

comments favoring Option 2 did not 

provide data or other substantive 

evidence sufficient for EPA to conclude 

that the additional cost and burden 

associated with testing outside useful 

life vehicles/engines would be justified 

relative to the environmental impact of 

these conversions. EPA believes that the 

good engineering judgment 

demonstration requirement, which 

could include testing, in combination 

with the OBD scan tool report, will 

provide a sufficient basis for assessing 

the technical viability and emission 

control system integrity of conversion 

systems intended for older vehicles/ 

engines. This demonstration must 

include sufficient evidence to show that 

the conversion system will maintain or 

improve upon emissions of the 

unconverted vehicle/engine, and to 

explain why emissions will not increase 

as a result of the conversion. See the 

Response to Comments document for 

further discussion of this issue. 

The notification process for outside 

useful life vehicles/engines will be 

similar to the notification process for 

intermediate age conversion systems, as 

will the public listing of conversion 

systems that have satisfied EPA 

demonstration and notification 

requirements. Also, the exemption from 

the tampering prohibition may be void 

ab initio if the conversion manufacturer 

fails to meet all of the requirements for 

the program. This is the case even if a 

submission has been made and the 

conversion system has been publicly 

posted. 

1. Applicability 

Vehicles and engines are eligible for 

the outside useful life program once 

they have exceeded their useful life. As 

vehicle and engine technologies have 

advanced and changed, so have the 

regulatory definitions for useful life. 


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Please refer to Section II.B for current 

useful life references. 

Manufacturers of conversion systems 

for outside useful life vehicles/engines 

may also qualify for exemption from the 

tampering prohibition through the 

intermediate age vehicle and engine 

compliance program. See Section IV.B. 

EPA sought comment on whether to 

establish a subcategory of outside useful 

life vehicles and engines that reach the 

applicable mileage threshold for outside 

useful life status before they reach the 

applicable age threshold in years (see 

Section II.B for discussion of useful 

life). EPA received several comments 

opposing this subcategory approach on 

technical grounds. EPA has no data or 

other information to suggest that a 

different outside useful life definition 

should be applied for clean alternative 

fuel conversions than for other vehicle/ 

engine emission standards. In addition, 

EPA believes that creating a separate 

subcategory of outside useful life 

vehicles may create unnecessary 

confusion and has therefore decided not 

to finalize a separate subcategory of 

outside useful life vehicles/engines. 

2. Test Groups, Engine Families, and 

Evaporative/Refueling Families 

EPA is finalizing the same 

requirements and criteria for test 

groups/engine families and evaporative/ 

refueling family designations as for 

intermediate age vehicles and engines. 

See Section IV.B.2. 

3. Demonstration Requirements 

Manufacturers of conversion systems 

for outside useful life vehicles and 

engines may satisfy the demonstration 

requirement by submitting to EPA a 

detailed description of the conversion 

system. The submission must provide a 

level of technical detail sufficient for 

EPA to confirm the conversion system’s 

ability to maintain or improve on 

emission levels in the intended vehicle 

or engine. The technical information 

should include, but is not limited to, a 

complete characterization of exhaust 

and evaporative emissions control 

strategies, and specifications related to 

OBD system functionality. EPA may 

audit the submission and may require 

the conversion manufacturer to supply 

additional information, including test 

data, to support the claim that the 

technology was developed using good 

engineering judgment and is being 

applied for purposes of conversion to a 

clean alternative fuel. 

EPA would expect an outside useful 

life demonstration to include 

information such as data from before 

and after conversion FTP testing, 

component or part specifications, 

technical descriptions or diagrams, and 

any other information necessary for EPA 

to evaluate the technical viability of the 

conversion system and the use of good 

engineering judgment in its design. 

Some examples of good engineering 

judgment are provided below. This list 

is not comprehensive. It is not intended 

to exclude other approaches to the 

demonstration or to imply that a 

demonstration involving these features 

will be satisfactory in all cases: 

Exhaust Control System: The original 

engine controller, sensors, actuators, 

catalysts and other emission control 

components are connected and 

functional, and actively monitored by 

the OBD system. 

Evaporative Control System: The 

alternative fuel system is leak free and 

uses materials compatible with the 

alternative fuel. Dual-fuel and mixedfuel vehicles/engines retain the 

components and the functionality of the 

OEM evaporative emission control 

system. For dual-fuel and mixed-fuel 

systems the evaporative emission 

control system purges the evaporative 

emission canister in a manner identical 

to the OEM designed purge system 

when the vehicle/engine is operating on 

the alternative fuel. 

Fuel Delivery System: The alternative 

fuel delivery system employs 

technology that is at least equivalent in 

sophistication to the OEM fuel delivery 

system. For example, conversions of 

vehicles/engines with multiple port 

injectors employ alternative fuel 

systems with multiple port injectors; 

engines with throttle injection use 

alternative fuel systems with throttle 

injection; OEM carbureted vehicles/ 

engines are able to use alternative fuel 

systems with central air mixers. 

Conversions of OEM vehicles/engines 

with closed loop feedback fuel control 

systems are expected to have similar 

closed loop control systems to maintain 

stoichiometric air/fuel control. 

Acceptable fuel control may also be 

achieved by using a secondary 

electronic control unit which adjusts 

fuel injector pulse width based on 

existing sensor inputs and on the 

alternative fuel’s properties. Good 

engineering design precludes the use of 

driver actuated controls for engine 

starting or fuel adjustment, other than 

for selecting the fuel type for a dual-fuel 

vehicle/engine. EPA received comment 

from some conversion manufacturers 

concerned that their approach, while 

not equivalent in sophistication to the 

OEM technology, would still be 

sufficiently robust to meet applicable 

standards and/or prevent emissions 

deterioration. Certain aspects of good 

engineering judgment described in the 

exhaust control system, evaporative 

control system, and fuel delivery control 

system sections may be approached 

differently than described above, but 

EPA expects that test data 

demonstrating compliance is required 

rather than optional in such cases. 

Durability: A discussion of the 

durability of the alternative fuel system 

is necessary to support a good 

engineering judgment determination. 

The conversion to a clean alternative 

fuel must not increase the deterioration 

rate of the exhaust or evaporative 

emission system components. Fueling 

system components whose material is 

known to prematurely deteriorate due to 

the alternative fuel’s properties must be 

upgraded. 

OBD: Good engineering judgment 

dictates that vehicles/engines equipped 

with OBD systems produce no false 

MILs or diagnostic trouble codes during 

normal operation, nor may there be any 

modifications that prevent OBD 

readiness flags from being properly set 

while operating on the alternative fuel. 

The OBD system must properly detect 

and identify malfunctions in all 

monitored emission related powertrain 

systems or components, including any 

new monitoring capability necessary to 

identify potential emission problems 

associated with the alternative fuel. 

In addition to satisfying the good 

engineering judgment requirement, 

manufacturers of conversion systems for 

outside useful life vehicles/engines that 

were equipped with OBD systems in 

their OEM configuration must also 

submit a report containing OBD checks 

following conversion to the alternative 

fuel. This report must be based on the 

OBD information from the EDV/EDE 

that is selected to represent the outside 

useful life program test group or engine 

family. See Section IV.B.3.d for a further 

description of the OBD scan tool 

procedure and demonstration 

requirements. 

Additional OBD emission test data, 

such as from the OBD testing 

procedures described in Section 

IV.A.3.d, may be required if the OBD 

scan tool report is not sufficient to 

demonstrate proper OBD operation. 

4. Notification Process 

Manufacturers of outside useful life 

conversion systems must use the same 

notification procedures to submit the 

required information as those for the 

intermediate age vehicle and engine 

compliance program (see Section IV.B). 

The notification submission must 

include documentation of the required 

demonstration as well as labeling 


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19852 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 68 / Friday, April 8, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 

90The attestation statements to be reviewed and 

signed for the outside useful life program are 

identical to the attestation statements required for 

the intermediate age vehicle and engine compliance 

program (See Section IV.B.4) with one addition. 

The outside useful life program requires that the 

conversion manufacturer attest to the following 

statement: ‘‘The test group/engine family converted 

to an alternative fuel uses fueling systems, 

evaporative emission control systems, and engine 

powertrain components that are compatible with 

the alternative fuel and designed with the 

principles of good engineering judgment.’’ 91 59 FR 48472 (September 21, 1994). 

information and all appropriate 

attestation statements.90

EPA will periodically update its list of 

conversion systems that are appropriate 

for installation on outside useful life 

vehicle/engine test groups/engine 

families and evaporative/refueling 

families. The exemption from the 

tampering prohibition may be void ab 

initio if the conversion manufacturer 

fails to meet all of the requirements for 

the program. This is the case even if a 

submission has been made and the 

conversion system has been publicly 

posted. 

5. In-Use Compliance 

EPA may test vehicles and engines 

that have been converted under the 

outside useful life program to assess 

their performance in actual customer 

use. EPA may test such vehicles in their 

original and converted configurations, 

and revoke the tampering exemption for 

conversion systems that fail to 

demonstrate acceptable emissions 

performance. 

V. Technical Amendments 

EPA is finalizing several technical 

amendments to 40 CFR part 86, subpart 

S. Several of the amendments are 

applicable to the exhaust and 

evaporative emission testing 

requirements for vehicles using gaseous 

alternative fuels. The purpose of these 

amendments is to allow flexibility in 

determining compliance with EPA nonmethane organic material (NMOG) 

standards for vehicles, and also to allow 

statements of compliance in lieu of test 

data for meeting exhaust emission 

standards for formaldehyde (HCHO), 

and evaporative emissions. For 

purposes of this regulation, compressed 

natural gas (CNG) or liquefied natural 

gas (LNG), liquefied petroleum gas 

(LPG), or hydrogen fuels are eligible for 

the technical amendments described 

below. 

Other technical amendments provide 

clarity and consistency to regulatory 

references for clean alternative fuel 

conversion and technical corrections 

and clarifications for the light-duty 

greenhouse gas clean alternative fuel 

conversion procedures. 

A. Exhaust Emission Technical 

Amendments 

1. NMHC Multiplicative Adjustment 

Factor 

Prior to this rulemaking, 40 CFR 

86.1810–01(p) allowed manufacturers of 

gasoline- and diesel-fueled vehicles to 

use a multiplicative adjustment factor to 

convert non-methane hydrocarbon 

(NMHC) exhaust emissions to an 

equivalent NMOG result to demonstrate 

compliance with NMOG standards. EPA 

is expanding the provision in 40 CFR 

86.1810–01(p) to also allow 

manufacturers of CNG, LNG, LPG, and 

hydrogen-fueled vehicles to 

demonstrate compliance through use of 

a multiplicative adjustment factor. 

Manufacturers may optionally 

determine compliance with NMOG 

standards by measuring NMHC and then 

applying a manufacturer-provided 

multiplicative adjustment factor to 

convert the NMHC results to an 

equivalent NMOG value. The 

multiplicative adjustment factors must 

be based on fuel specific data and must 

be approved in advance by EPA. 

2. HCHO Compliance Statement 

Prior to this rulemaking, 40 CFR 

86.1829–01(b)(1)(iii)(E) and (F) allowed 

vehicle manufacturers to submit a 

statement of compliance in lieu of 

submitting HCHO test data to 

demonstrate compliance with HCHO 

exhaust standards for vehicles tested 

with gasoline or diesel. EPA is finalizing 

the same flexibility for vehicles 

operating on CNG, LNG, LPG, or 

hydrogen. 

B. Evaporative Emissions Technical 

Amendments 

1. Evaporative Emissions, Running Loss, 

Refueling Loss Compliance Statement 

EPA is finalizing a technical 

amendment to 40 CFR 86.1829– 

01(b)(2)(i) to allow waiver of 

evaporative emissions reporting 

requirements, including running loss 

and refueling loss, and to allow 

compliance with the requirements in 40 

CFR 86.1811–04(e) for CNG, LNG, LPG, 

or hydrogen fuels by making a 

compliance statement in the application 

for certification. 40 CFR 86.1829– 

01(b)(2)(i) previously allowed a 

compliance statement for CNG-, LNG,- 

or LPG-fueled vehicles in lieu of 

submitting data to demonstrate 

compliance with evaporative emission 

standards in 40 CFR 86.1811–04(e). This 

amendment simply clarifies that 

manufacturers using hydrogen fuels, for 

example blends of hydrogen and 

methane, may use an evaporative 

emissions statement of compliance. 

Compliance statements do not alleviate 

the OEM or aftermarket fuel converter 

from complying with evaporative 

emissions, running loss and refueling 

standards in 86.1811–04(e). Compliance 

statements are expected to be supported 

by development testing data or other 

engineering data. 

The rationale for allowing compliance 

statements in lieu of test data for 

evaporative emissions, running loss, 

and refueling emissions requirements is 

based on the expectation that fueling 

systems for gaseous-fueled vehicles will 

have a closed-system design with zero 

evaporative emissions. For LPG-fueled 

vehicles, a refueling statement of 

compliance is only allowed for systems 

in which the LPG fuel tank has no open 

vent (sometimes referred to as an 

‘‘outage’’ valve) during the refueling 

operation. 

The flexibilities described above for 

evaporative emissions are consistent 

with the original subpart F 

rulemaking.91 Adding these technical 

amendments to section 86.1829– 

01(b)(2)(i) will provide clarity to EPA 

regulations for OEM manufacturers and 

clean alternative fuel conversion 

manufacturers desiring to certify 

vehicles on gaseous fuels. 

C. Additional Technical Amendments 

There are several regulatory terms and 

references in 40 CFR part 86 that link to 

the previous subpart F regulations. 

These are being updated to the 

appropriate terms and references for the 

new subpart F regulations. In addition, 

this rule is clarifying other 40 CFR part 

86 statements referencing clean 

alternative fuel conversion to ensure 

that the references are consistent with 

the clean alternative fuel conversion 

program. 

Specifically, EPA is removing and 

revising language found in 40 CFR 

86.1818–12, 40 CFR 86.1864–10 and 

86.1865–12 that could be read to imply 

that clean alternative fuel conversions 

are subject to OEM fleet average 

standards. These provisions are being 

revised to eliminate potential confusion 

about applicability of fleet average 

standards to conversions. Fleet average 

standards are not generally appropriate 

for clean alternative fuel conversion 

manufacturers because the ‘‘fleet’’ of 

vehicles/engines to which a conversion 

system may be applied has already been 

accounted for under the OEM’s fleet 

average standard. The OEM fleet average 

is derived from the production- or salesweighted average of individual test 

group/engine family certification levels 


emcdonald on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with RULES2
Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 68 / Friday, April 8, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 19853 

92See preamble discussion at 75 FR 25484 (May 

7, 2010) and regulations at 40 CFR 86.1801–12(b). 

93 75 FR 25472 (May 7, 2010). 

94 75 FR 25474 (May 7, 2010). If the OEM 

complied using the light-duty greenhouse gas fleet 

averaging option for nitrous oxide (N2O) and 

methane (CH4), as allowed under 40 CFR 86.1818– 

12(f)(2), the calculations of the carbon-related 

exhaust emissions require the input of grams/mile 

values for N2O and CH4. 

95 75 FR 25473 (May 7, 2010). 

96See footnote 94. 97 59 FR 48472 (September 21, 1994). 

in a given model year. Under the clean 

alternative fuel conversion program, 

conversion manufacturers will comply 

with the certification standard 

applicable to OEM vehicles or engines, 

if the vehicle/engine is within its useful 

life, or will demonstrate that emissions 

are not degraded after conversion, if the 

converted vehicle/engine is outside 

useful life. Accordingly, clean 

alternative fuel conversions will be 

consistent with the applicable OEM 

standard and will not affect the OEM 

fleet average standard. Therefore it is 

not necessary to require compliance 

with an additional clean alternative fuel 

conversion fleet average standard. 

D. Light-Duty Vehicle Greenhouse Gas 

Compliance for Clean Alternative Fuel 

Conversion 

EPA’s greenhouse gas regulations 

require that all alternative fuel 

conversion manufacturers comply with 

greenhouse gas standards for light-duty 

vehicles and light-duty trucks beginning 

in model year 2012 (unless exempted 

under the provisions of 40 CFR 

86.1801–12).92 EPA is clarifying how 

alternative fuel conversion 

manufacturers demonstrate compliance 

with the applicable greenhouse gas 

emission standards. 

OEMs are subject to two types of 

light-duty greenhouse gas standards: a 

fleet-average standard and an in-use 

standard for the full useful life of the 

vehicle.93 The light-duty greenhouse gas 

regulations require that test groups 

remain the OEM basis for certification, 

however carbon-related exhaust 

emissions (CREE) are reported to EPA 

by OEMs at the model type and 

subconfiguration levels (smaller units 

than test groups), and productionweighting of those values determines 

compliance with the fleet average 

standard. Consistent with current EPA 

policy under the Tier 2 program, the 

conversion manufacturer is not subject 

to the fleet average standard, but each 

converted vehicle must meet the 

vehicle-specific standards that the 

original OEM vehicle was certified to 

meet. This ensures that the in-use fleet 

of vehicles will sustain the OEM fleet 

average levels, or even improve upon 

overall fleet emission levels. 

To demonstrate clean alternative fuel 

conversion compliance with light-duty 

greenhouse gas standards, EPA 

considered asking the conversion 

manufacturers to submit test data for 

every subconfiguration within a test 

group to demonstrate that the fuel 

converted vehicle meets the applicable 

greenhouse gas emission standards. 

However, testing at this granularity (as 

is currently done for fuel economy 

labeling and the CAFE program) would 

be especially burdensome for an 

industry that is not subject to fuel 

economy labeling and to which the 

CAFE program does not apply. Instead, 

EPA believes it is reasonable to require 

emissions data on the typical light-duty 

vehicle compliance basis, the test group. 

However, any subconfiguration within 

the test group—if selected for testing by 

EPA—must meet the applicable N2O, 

CH4, and CO2 subconfiguration 

standards that apply to the OEM 

vehicles as set forth in 40 CFR 86.1818– 

12(d) and 40 CFR 86.1818–12(f).94 The 

CREE standard contains a 10% 

adjustment factor applied to the initial 

OEM test results to account for test-totest variability and OEM production 

margin.95

The clean alternative conversion 

manufacturer must submit CREE, N2O 

and CH4 data from the same EDV that 

is used to support criteria pollutant 

testing and standards, and the results 

must demonstrate that the converted 

vehicle meets the OEM N2O and CH4

standards set forth in 40 CFR 86.1818– 

12(f) and the OEM subconfiguration CO2

standard set forth in 40 CFR 86.1818– 

12(d) 96 for the OEM subconfiguration 

that matches the conversion EDV. In 

addition, EPA may test or request the 

conversion manufacturer to test other 

sub-configurations within the 

conversion test group, and those results 

must also demonstrate compliance with 

the appropriate sub-configuration 

standard in 40 CFR 86.1818–12(d). 

40 CFR 86.1818–12(f)(2) sets forth an 

alternative to meeting the N2O and CH4

exhaust emission standards in 40 CFR 

86.1818–12(f)(1). However, 40 CFR 

86.1818–12(f)(2) is not available to fuel 

conversion manufacturers, since there is 

no greenhouse gas fleet average standard 

for fuel converted vehicles. Therefore, 

EPA is adding a third option, specific to 

fuel conversion manufacturers, that 

allows the same process set forth in 40 

CFR 86.1818–12(f)(2) but is adapted for 

the unique situation of clean alternative 

fuel conversion manufacturers. This 

alternative requires that the fuel 

conversion manufacturer determine a 

CREE value (including N2O and CH4) 

specific to the fuel conversion EDV, 

even if the OEM did not use N2O and 

CH4 in the CREE calculation. This value 

must meet the sub-configurationspecific in-use CO2 exhaust emission 

standard, set forth in 40 CFR 86.1818– 

12(d) and determined by the OEM. 

VI. Environmental Effects 

As in the original subpart F 

rulemaking,97 the primary purpose of 

this revised rulemaking is to maintain 

emissions performance and air quality 

while removing a potential barrier to the 

commercial production of clean 

alternative fuel conversion systems. The 

Agency has not attempted to quantify 

the environmental effects of this 

regulation because the goal of this 

rulemaking is to preserve environmental 

benefits from existing EPA vehicle and 

engine standards by creating a clear, 

legal pathway for clean alternative fuel 

conversion while maintaining existing 

emissions control levels. Therefore the 

Agency’s best assessment of 

environmental impacts due to this 

rulemaking is that the environmental 

effects are at worst, neutral. 

VII. Associated Costs for Light-Duty 

and Heavy-Duty Chassis Certified 

Vehicles 

The cost associated with achieving a 

regulatory exemption from tampering 

for clean alternative fuel conversions 

under this amended regulation is 

expected to be less than the previous 

cost of compliance. The amount of cost 

reduction will vary based on conversion 

technology, fuel type, vehicle age, 

applicability, conversion manufacturer 

preference, and the conversion 

manufacturer’s annual sales volume. 

The baseline cost estimates are 

summarized in Section VII.A below and 

are based on the regulatory program in 

place before this amended regulation. 

Additionally, there are two vehicle-age 

dependent cost estimates summarized 

in Section VII.B and VII.C for certified 

conversions (VII.B) and intermediate age 

vehicle conversions (VII.C). 

The baseline and projected costs will 

also depend on the original vehicle fuel 

and on the specific fuel to which the 

vehicle is being converted. This cost 

analysis is intended to apply to 

conversions to any fuel. Some test 

procedures are not required for either 

dedicated CNG or LPG or dual-fuel 

gasoline/CNG or dual-fuel gasoline/LPG. 

Since more than 98% of the alternative 

fuel conversion certificates issued by 

EPA in recent years were for these types 

of conversions, EPA conversion 

requirements or testing exemptions 


emcdonald on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with RULES2
19854 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 68 / Friday, April 8, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 

98 40 CFR 86.1838–01. 99For electronic access to the Bureau of Labor 

and Statistics Data, see http://www.bls.gov/oes/ 

2008/may/oes_nat.htm#b11-;0000. 

which are specific to CNG and LPG are 

noted in a separate section. However, 

any description in this section which is 

not specified as applying to CNG or LPG 

specifically should be assumed to apply 

to all conversion fuels. 

The baseline and projected costs also 

depend upon the conversion 

manufacturer’s annual sales volume. 

Since almost all current conversion 

manufacturers have sales volumes low 

enough to be eligible to use Small 

Volume Manufacturer certification 

procedures, this cost analysis only 

describes baseline and projected costs 

for small volume conversion 

manufacturers.98 If sales volumes were 

to increase such that manufacturer(s) 

surpassed small volume thresholds, 

EPA expects costs for large volume 

manufacturer fuel conversion 

compliance to remain unchanged or to 

decrease from the baseline costs for 

large volume manufacturer fuel 

conversion compliance. 

This cost estimate does not consider 

expenses converters may incur to 

develop and design their conversion 

system. Typical product development 

costs include research, expert 

consultation, preliminary or shakedown 

testing, and other expenses associated 

with perfecting system functionality. 

Rather, this analysis estimates the 

expected cost of satisfying the EPA 

testing and/or demonstration 

requirement. The estimate includes the 

cost of creating a certification 

application, submitting test data to EPA, 

confirmatory testing, and certification 

fees. Costs associated with confirmatory 

testing requirements include preparing a 

vehicle and shipping it to the EPA 

laboratory for testing. All hourly wage 

data for conversion manufacturer labor 

is based on the Bureau of Labor and 

Statistics. 

All conversion manufacturers 

reported that a senior manager is 

conducting testing oversight and 

application preparation, so this estimate 

applies the same labor rate for 

conversion manufacturer labor across 

tasks. Engineering managers are 

reported to earn an average of $57.97 

per hour according to a May 2008 report 

by the Bureau of Labor and Statistics.99

EPA has applied a suggested 100% labor 

overhead cost to all conversion 

manufacturer labor costs. In addition, 

EPA typically applies a 6.5% general 

and administrative overhead cost to all 

costs. Technology research and 

development costs were not considered 

in this analysis because these costs are 

not expected to change as a result of this 

rulemaking. 

Conversion manufacturers generally 

try to apply one set of test data to as 

many vehicle makes and models as EPA 

will allow to minimize testing costs. 

Because costs can be scaled when 

certifying multiple test groups and/or 

multiple evaporative/refueling families, 

and conversion manufacturers each 

have different testing and compliance 

strategies and different target market 

plans, this analysis will derive the 

baseline costs for converting vehicles 

based on the assumption that costs can 

be scaled when certifying multiple test 

groups and/or multiple evaporative/ 

refueling families. The scaling factors 

were determined by the following 

applicable ratios: (1) Number of OEM 

exhaust test groups to number of OEM 

certificates and (2) number of OEM 

evaporative/refueling families to 

number of OEM certificates. This 

allowed EPA to create a scaled unit cost 

for each certificate which adequately 

represents that manufacturers apply test 

data to multiple certificates. To create a 

real-world example, and allow a clear 

comparison of baseline versus projected 

costs of the revised programs, this cost 

analysis ultimately compares the cost of 

fuel conversion for four OEM 

certificates after applying all 

appropriately scaled unit costs. This 

same logic was then used to derive the 

approximate cost of compliance for the 

vehicle fuel conversion of four OEM 

certificates under the amended 

regulations, as described previously in 

this preamble. 

A. Baseline Costs 

Baseline costs are derived by first 

determining the cost of one certificate 

without any scaled costs. These costs 

would be applicable if a conversion 

manufacturer chose to convert vehicles 

represented by only one OEM 

certificate. This is rarely done in 

practice because conversion 

manufacturers choose to take advantage 

of using one set of test data to apply to 

multiple certificates. 

Next the baseline cost of one 

certificate is calculated assuming the 

conversion manufacturer chooses to 

take advantage of the application of data 

to multiple certificates. Average scaled 

costs are calculated on a unit basis of 

one certificate with scaled costs. 

Lastly, EPA calculated the baseline 

cost of converting vehicles represented 

by four OEM certificates. This is done 

to create a real-world example which 

allows a clear comparison for the cost 

reductions created under the revised 

regulatory program. 

1. Costs of One Certificate Without 

Scaling Costs 

During development of this 

regulation, EPA contacted several 

aftermarket conversion manufacturers 

and an independent test laboratory to 

estimate the aftermarket fuel conversion 

certification costs under 40 CFR part 85, 

subpart F. The basic certification testing 

requirements included: (a) 

Demonstration of compliance with 

exhaust emissions on a test group basis: 

One FTP75 test and CO, NOX, and 

NMHC analysis; HCHO and NMOG 

speciation; one HFET NOX test; (b) 

Demonstration of compliance with 

evaporative/refueling emissions on an 

evaporative/refueling family basis: Hot 

soak, canister purge and 2 or 3 day 

evaporative emissions tests; and (c) 

Compliance with the Federal OBDII 

demonstration tests which is generally 

done at the Federal level on the same 

basis as the exhaust test group. Lodging, 

labor and general and administrative 

costs are appropriated to each 

requirement category in order to provide 

a clear examination of costs under the 

new programs. 

a. Costs Associated With Exhaust 

Emission Testing (Test Group Basis) 

All estimated independent test 

laboratory costs associated with exhaust 

emissions testing are listed in Table 

VII.A–1 and Table VII.A–2 below. 

TABLE VII.A–1—EXHAUST EMISSIONS TESTING COSTS TYPICALLY INCURRED AT INDEPENDENT TEST LABORATORY

Average costs 

Coast Down Coefficient Determination ......................................................................................................................................... $360.00 

One FTP75 Test and CO, NOX, NMHC Analysis ......................................................................................................................... 1,116.67 

(NMOG Speciation)—Aldehydes and Ketones ............................................................................................................................. 1,500.00 

(NMOG Speciation)—Alcohols ...................................................................................................................................................... 250.00 


emcdonald on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with RULES2
Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 68 / Friday, April 8, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 19855 

TABLE VII.A–1—EXHAUST EMISSIONS TESTING COSTS TYPICALLY INCURRED AT INDEPENDENT TEST LABORATORY— 

Continued 

Average costs 

One HFET NOX Test ..................................................................................................................................................................... 430.00 

Exhaust Independent Test Lab Billable Labor Costs .................................................................................................................... 702.50 

Total Exhaust Independent Test Lab Costs ........................................................................................................................... 4,359.17 

TABLE VII.A–2—TOTAL ESTIMATED EXHAUST EMISSIONS TESTING COSTS FOR FUEL CONVERSION OF ONE OEM 

CERTIFICATE (NO SCALING APPLIED) 

Testing costs for 

one aftermarket 

fuel conversion 

certificate (no 

scaling for multiple 

certificates 

applied) 

Total exhaust independent test lab costs ...................................................................................................................................... $4,359.17 

Total exhaust testing oversight labor costs (including 100% labor overhead) ............................................................................. 1236.69 

Lodging .......................................................................................................................................................................................... 280.00 

Subtotal ................................................................................................................................................................................... 5,875.86 

6.5% G & A .................................................................................................................................................................................... 381.93 

Total Cost for Exhaust Tests .................................................................................................................................................. 6,257.79 

b. Costs Associated With Evaporative/ 

Refueling Emission Testing 

(Evaporative/Refueling Family Basis) 

TABLE VII.A–3—TOTAL ESTIMATED EVAPORATIVE EMISSIONS TESTING COSTS FOR FUEL CONVERSION OF ONE OEM 

CERTIFICATE (NO SCALING APPLIED) 

Total evap independent test lab costs .......................................................................................................................................... $5,980.00 

Total evap testing oversight labor costs (including 100% labor overhead) .................................................................................. ..............................

Lodging .......................................................................................................................................................................................... ..............................

Subtotal ................................................................................................................................................................................... 5,980.00 

6.5% G & A .................................................................................................................................................................................... 388.70 

Total Cost for Evap Tests ...................................................................................................................................................... 6,368.70 

c. Costs Associated With OBDII 

Demonstration Testing (Test Group 

Basis) 

TABLE VII.A–4—TOTAL ESTIMATED OBD DEMONSTRATION TESTING COSTS FOR FUEL CONVERSION OF ONE OEM 

CERTIFICATE (NO SCALING APPLIED) 

Total OBD independent test lab costs .......................................................................................................................................... $16,325.00 

Total OBD testing oversight labor costs (including 100% labor overhead) .................................................................................. 7,265.57 

Lodging .......................................................................................................................................................................................... 1,120.00 

Subtotal ................................................................................................................................................................................... 24,710.57 

6.5% G & A .................................................................................................................................................................................... 1,606.19 

Total Cost for OBD Demo Tests ............................................................................................................................................ 26,316.76 

d. Other Certification Costs 

TABLE VII.A–5—OTHER CERTIFICATION ESTIMATED COSTS FOR FUEL CONVERSION OF ONE OEM CERTIFICATE

(NO SCALING APPLIED) 

Travel to oversee testing at independent test lab ......................................................................................................................... $1,000.00 

Shipment of vehicle to independent test lab ................................................................................................................................. 4,000.00 


emcdonald on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with RULES2
19856 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 68 / Friday, April 8, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 

100For an electronic version of the current fee 

filing form, see http://www.epa.gov/otaq/cert/ 

documents/on-hwy2010feeform-01-07-10.pdf. 

101 40 CFR 1027.120. 

TABLE VII.A–5—OTHER CERTIFICATION ESTIMATED COSTS FOR FUEL CONVERSION OF ONE OEM CERTIFICATE

(NO SCALING APPLIED)—Continued 

Prep and shipment of vehicle to EPA for confirmatory tests ........................................................................................................ 6,200.00 

Preparation of Application for certification labor costs (including 100% labor overhead) ............................................................ 4,637.60 

Subtotal ................................................................................................................................................................................... 15,837.60 

6.5% G & A .................................................................................................................................................................................... 1,029.44 

Total Costs for Travel, Vehicle Shipments, and Application Preparation .............................................................................. 16,867.04 

e. Certification Fees 

The certification fee for a light-duty 

vehicle certificate issued in 2010 was 

$34,849.100 However, there is a reduced 

fee program which allows most 

conversion manufacturers to pay far 

less. The reduced fee is calculated based 

on sales volume and value added.101

The formula can be described as 1% 

* number of units * retail value added. 

Because most conversion manufacturers 

sell less than 50 vehicle conversions per 

test group and conversion kits vary 

greatly in price, for purposes of this 

estimate, EPA is using 50 units and a 

retail value of $8,000. Therefore, for this 

cost estimate the baseline certification 

fees are estimated at $4,000. 

The baseline cost of compliance for 

one certificate, including all testing, 

associated labor, overhead, and general 

and administrative costs if costs are not 

scaled due to test group, OBD, or 

evaporative/refueling family 

combinations is about $59,810 

2. Cost of One Certificate When Testing 

Costs Are Scaled for Multiple Certificate 

Groups 

OEM test groups, evaporative/ 

refueling families, and Federal OBD 

approvals are combined to form a 

unique certificate. These same test 

groups and evaporative/refueling 

families, when taken separately, can 

often apply to multiple certificates. 

Here, EPA examined 418 model year 

2007 light-duty certificates to determine 

appropriate scaling factors for exhaust 

test groups, evaporative/refueling 

families, and OBD demonstrations tests. 

EPA reviewed model year 2007 data 

because these data were complete, 

readily available, and deemed to be 

representative. Of the 418 certificates, 

there were 335 unique test groups each 

with exhaust emission data, meaning 

the OEMs used 335 sets of exhaust test 

data to apply for 418 certificates. The 

ratio represented here (335/418 = 0.8) 

provides an approximate scaling factor 

which can be applied to the cost of one 

set of exhaust emissions data to 

determine the average unit cost per 

certificate for exhaust emission testing. 

Of those same 418 certificates, there 

were only 189 evaporative/refueling 

families, therefore the average scaling 

factor for evaporative/refueling family 

testing costs (189/418 = 0.45) times the 

cost for one set of evaporative emissions 

testing represents the average unit cost 

per certificate for evaporative/refueling 

emissions testing. For the purposes of 

this cost estimate we assumed that all 

Federal OBD approvals for conversion 

manufacturers were done in parallel 

with exhaust test group testing and 

therefore applied the same scaling factor 

to OBD testing costs as determined for 

exhaust emissions testing. 

TABLE VII.A–6—COST OF ONE CERTIFICATE WHEN TESTING COSTS ARE SCALED FOR MULTIPLE CERTIFICATE GROUPS

Testing costs for 

one aftermarket 

fuel conversion 

certificate 

(no scaling for 

multiple certificates 

applied) 

Scaling factor 

Scaled testing 

costs for 

conversion of one 

OEM certificate 

Total Cost for Exhaust Tests ................................................... $6,257.79 0.80 ................................................... $5,015.22 

Total Cost for Evap Tests ........................................................ 6,368.70 0.45 ................................................... 2,879.63 

Total Cost for OBD Demo Tests .............................................. 26,316.76 0.80 ................................................... 21,091.18 

Total Costs for Travel, Vehicle Shipments, and Application 

Preparation.

16,867.04 Weighted appropriately to each task 11,385.68 

Certification Fees ..................................................................... 4,000.00 1 ........................................................ 4,000.00 

Total Cost for OEM Test Group of Vehicles ..................... 59,810.30 ........................................................... 44,371.70 

Thus, the baseline cost of compliance 

for one certificate, including all testing, 

associated labor, and overhead and 

general and administrative costs if costs 

are scaled is about $44,372. 

3. Baseline Cost Analysis Based on Four 

OEM Certificates 

EPA estimated the baseline cost of 

conversion of four certificate groups of 

vehicles after applying appropriately 

scaled testing costs, including all 

testing, confirmatory testing, associated 

labor, overhead, and general and 

administrative costs to be about 

$177,487. 

B. Certified Conversion Costs Under the 

Revised Regulation 

Under this revised regulation the 

projected cost for a certified conversion 

will be similar to the previously 

applicable fuel conversion certification 

process, with three exceptions: (1) A 

statement of compliance using good 

engineering judgment will be accepted 

in lieu of HCHO testing analysis for 


emcdonald on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with RULES2
Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 68 / Friday, April 8, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 19857 

certain alternative fuels, and the use of 

conversion factors to calculate NMOG 

from NMHC will be accepted in lieu of 

speciation testing for some alternative 

fuels; (2) statements of compliance are 

accepted for sealed gaseous fuel systems 

in lieu of evaporative emissions test 

data; and (3) test group combinations 

will allow one set of test data to apply 

to a broader range of vehicles. These 

changes all reduce costs associated with 

compliance testing. 

1. HCHO and NMOG Cost Reductions 

for CNG (or LNG), LPG, and Hydrogen 

In lieu of testing, EPA will accept a 

statement of compliance for HCHO 

emissions for conversions to CNG (or 

LNG), LPG, or hydrogen fuels. In 

addition, conversions to CNG (or LNG), 

LPG, or hydrogen need only submit 

engineering data and analysis 

supportive of the usage of a conversion 

factor from NMHC to NMOG, in lieu of 

speciation testing. Testing for HCHO is 

generally done in conjunction with 

NMOG speciation, and the average cost 

for both tests is $1,750 per test group, 

which would be scaled to an average of 

$1,400 per certificate. Under this 

revised regulation, testing cost for 

HCHO and NMOG analysis for 

conversions to CNG (or LNG), LPG, or 

hydrogen would be $0. 

2. Evaporative Emissions Cost 

Reductions for Gaseous Fuels 

The average cost for evaporative 

emissions hot soak, and diurnal SHED 

testing, including labor costs is $6,369. 

After scaling the average is $2,879 per 

certificate. The revisions to 40 CFR 

86.1811–04 allow a manufacturer 

statement of compliance for evaporative 

testing for gaseous fuels. This eliminates 

all evaporative emissions testing costs 

for gaseous fuels such as CNG (or LNG), 

LPG, or hydrogen fuels. 

3. Test Group Combination Cost 

Reductions for All Conversions to Clean 

Alternative Fuel 

This revised regulation defines 

criteria which may allow the 

combination of several OEM test groups 

into a single clean alternative fuel 

conversion test group. Cost savings 

associated with combining test groups 

will be significant, depending upon the 

exact number of OEM test groups 

combined. For example: If two OEM test 

groups are combined, the testing costs 

for exhaust emission testing are halved; 

if three test groups are combined, these 

testing costs are about one-third. 

The quantity of OEM test groups 

which can be combined into a single 

clean alternative fuel conversion test 

group will vary depending on the 

available OEM vehicle individual 

certification compliance strategies. EPA 

examined the 2007 light-duty OEM test 

group data and has conservatively 

estimated that on average conversion 

manufacturers will be permitted to 

combine about 25% of the OEM exhaust 

test groups. Therefore, the cost 

reduction estimate for our comparative 

grouping, four test groups, would 

conservatively result in a 25% cost 

reduction in exhaust emissions and 

OBD testing which can be applied to the 

scaling factors for comparison 

simplicity. 

4. Total Cost Reductions for 

Certification Under the Amended 

Regulation 

TABLE VII.B–1—ESTIMATED COST FOR NEW VEHICLE CONVERSION FOR ONE CERTIFICATE WHEN TESTING COSTS ARE

SCALED FOR MULTIPLE CERTIFICATE GROUPS

Testing costs for one 

aftermarket fuel 

conversion certificate 

(no scaling for multiple 

certificates applied) 

Scaling factor 

Scaled testing 

costs for 

conversion of one 

OEM certificate 

Scaled testing 

costs for 

conversion of four 

OEM certificates 

Total Cost for Exhaust Tests ........................ $6,257.79 0.60 .................................. $3,761.41 $15,045.65 

Total Cost for Evap Tests ............................. 6,368.70 0.45 .................................. 2,879.63 11,518.51 

Total Cost for OBD Demo Tests ................... 26,316.76 0.60 .................................. 15,790.06 63,160.23 

Total Costs for Travel, Vehicle Shipments, 

and Application Preparation.

16,867.04 Weighted appropriately to 

each task.

10,313.03 41,252.14 

Certification Fees .......................................... 4,000.00 1 ....................................... 4,000.00 16,000.00

Total Cost for OEM Test Group(s) of 

Vehicles.

59,810.30 .......................................... 36,744.13 146,976.52 

The total cost for the certification of 

the conversion of four OEM certificates 

to any clean alternative fuel under the 

final rule is $146,977. This represents 

an estimated cost reduction of more 

than $30,000 compared to previous fuel 

conversion certification testing costs for 

conversion of four OEM certificates. If 

the conversion certification is for 

conversions to CNG (or LNG), LPG, or 

hydrogen fuels, the costs may be further 

reduced due to the technical 

amendments described above. 

C. Intermediate Age Vehicle Compliance 

Costs 

The previous fuel conversion 

compliance process required 

certification. Therefore the baseline 

costs presented in Section VI.A also 

apply to intermediate age vehicles. 

1. HCHO and NMOG Cost Reductions 

for CNG, LPG, and Hydrogen 

In lieu of testing, this revised 

regulation permits a statement of 

compliance for HCHO emissions for 

conversions to CNG (or LNG), LPG and 

hydrogen. In addition, conversions to 

CNG (or LNG), LPG, or hydrogen need 

only submit engineering data and 

analysis supportive of the usage of a 

conversion factor from NMHC to 

NMOG, in lieu of speciation testing. 

Testing for HCHO is generally done in 

conjunction with NMOG speciation, and 

the average cost for both tests is $1,750 

per test group, which would be scaled 

to an average of $1,400 per certificate. 

Under this new rule, testing cost for 

HCHO and NMOG analysis for 

conversions to CNG (or LNG), and LPG 

is $0. 

2. Evaporative Emissions Cost 

Reductions for Gaseous Fuels 

The average cost for evaporative 

emissions hot soak, and diurnal SHED 

testing, including labor costs is $6,369. 

After scaling the average is $2,879 per 

certificate. The amendment to 40 CFR 

86.1811–04 allows a manufacturer 

statement of compliance for evaporative 

testing for gaseous fuels. This will 

eliminate evaporative emissions 

compliance testing costs for gaseous 

fuels. 


emcdonald on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with RULES2
19858 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 68 / Friday, April 8, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 

102Because this analysis assumes that capital and 

development costs are unchanged by this 

rulemaking, we have chosen to amortize the cost of 

a scan tool over 10 conversion test groups, 

attributing $40 per required data submission. In 

addition, two hours labor cost at $57.97 per hour 

+ two hours overhead + 6.5%.general and 

administrative are also attributed to this test. This 

results in a total of about $287 per OBD scan tool 

test. 

103 75 FR 29624 (May 26, 2010). 

3. Conversion Test Groups Cost 

Reduction 

Under this revised regulation, 

intermediate age conversion test groups 

share the same grouping criteria as the 

conversion test groups for new vehicles, 

except the intermediate age conversion 

test groups do not require the same 

OEM OBD grouping. This provision is 

likely to result in a further reduction in 

testing costs due to further scaling. 

However, the scaling appropriate due to 

these combinations is variable from year 

to year and from OEM manufacturer to 

OEM manufacturer. Therefore, for the 

purposes of this cost estimate, we will 

assume that the exhaust conversion test 

group costs for intermediate age 

vehicles are the same as the test group 

costs for certification of new vehicles 

under this regulation. 

4. OBD Demonstration Testing Cost 

Reduction 

The OBD demonstration requirement 

for intermediate age vehicles is different 

than the new vehicle OBD 

demonstration requirement. 

Intermediate age conversions do not 

necessarily require the OBD 

demonstration tests that are required for 

certification. Instead the intermediate 

age conversion manufacturer must attest 

that the OBD system works properly and 

submit an OBD scan tool report. The 

conversion manufacturer must still 

conduct any development and bear 

associated costs necessary to ensure that 

the post-conversion OBD system 

remains functional and meets the EPA 

standards, but the costs associated with 

conducting certification OBD 

demonstration testing for data 

submission to EPA may not be required 

for the intermediate age vehicle 

program. Since a scan tool is a one-time 

cost of around $300–$400 and we 

estimate labor at less than two hours, 

EPA estimated the scan tool testing 

costs at about $287 per scan tool test.102

The intermediate age cost reduction 

from the OBD certification 

demonstration testing cost baseline 

could result in a cost savings up to 

$26,000 per conversion test group. 

5. Total Cost Reductions for 

Intermediate Age Vehicles Under the 

Revised Regulation 

TABLE VII.C–1—REVISED REGULATION COST FOR INTERMEDIATE AGE VEHICLE CONVERSION WHEN TESTING COSTS ARE

SCALED FOR MULTIPLE CONVERSION TEST GROUPS

Testing costs for one 

aftermarket fuel conversion compliance unit 

(no scaling for multiple 

OEM certificates 

applied) 

Scaling factor 

Scaled testing 

costs for 

conversion of one 

OEM certificate 

Scaled testing 

costs for 

conversion of four 

OEM certificates 

Total Cost for Exhaust Tests ........................ $6,257.79 0.60 .................................. $3,761.41 $15,045.65 

Total Cost for Evap Tests ............................. 6,368.70 0.45 .................................. 2,879.63 11,518.51 

Total Cost for OBD Scan Tool Demo Tests 286.95 0.60 .................................. 172.17 688.69 

Total Costs for Travel, Vehicle Shipments, 

and Data Submission.

12,915.81 Weighted appropriately to 

each task.

6,361.80 25,447.20 

Total Cost for per Conversion of OEM 

Test Group(s) of Vehicles.

25,829.25 .......................................... 13,175.01 52,700.04 

The total cost for the intermediate age 

compliance program for the conversion 

of vehicles represented by four OEM 

certificates to any clean alternative fuel 

under the amended rule is estimated to 

be $52,700. This represents an estimated 

cost reduction of more than $100,000 

from the baseline cost of compliance for 

conversion of vehicles represented by 

four OEM certificates. If the conversion 

certification is for conversions to CNG, 

LPG or hydrogen, the costs may be 

further reduced due to the NMHC/ 

NMOG technical amendment described 

under Section V.1.B. 

D. Outside Useful Life Vehicle 

Compliance Costs 

EPA examined the potential costs for 

the three outside useful life 

demonstration options 103 presented in 

the proposal for comment. We estimated 

that the cost for the outside useful life 

program could vary significantly based 

on the finalized option and the 

technology employed by the converter. 

As described above for the new and 

intermediate age categories, the costs 

converters might incur for technology 

research and development are not 

considered in the cost analysis because 

they are not expected to change as a 

result of this rulemaking. 

The first outside useful life 

demonstration option in the proposal 

(‘‘Option 1’’) would have required 

converters to submit sufficient 

information about the conversion 

technology for EPA to determine that 

emissions would not increase. For 

purposes of this cost estimate, we 

assumed that testing, as is required for 

the intermediate age program, would 

sufficiently satisfy the Option 1 good 

engineering judgment demonstration 

requirement. See Section VII.C 

references to total costs for exhaust and 

evaporative emissions testing. 

The second outside useful life option, 

(‘‘Option 2’’) would have required 

outside useful life converters to submit 

test data showing compliance with the 

numerical inside useful life standard, or 

Federal test procedure data from before 

and after testing showing that emissions 

did not increase after conversion. The 

potential need for two sets of tests, 

before and after conversion, means that 

the testing costs for exhaust and 

evaporative emissions tests under 

Option 2 could range from the same as 

Option 1 to double what they would be 

under Option 1. See Section VII.C for 

references to total costs for exhaust and 

evaporative emissions testing. 

EPA is finalizing the third option 

(‘‘Option 3’’), which adds the 

intermediate age OBD scan tool test 

procedure to the Option 1 good 

engineering judgment demonstration 

requirement. Thus the estimated 

compliance cost for outside useful life 

conversions would be similar to the 

intermediate age compliance cost. 

Testing costs may be higher should a 


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104See for example, 40 CFR 86.010–18(o)(1)(v). 

conversion manufacturer perform preconversion and post-conversion testing 

to demonstrate that the conversion 

system maintains the performance of the 

emission control system. 

VIII. Associated Costs for Heavy-Duty 

Engines 

The costs associated with achieving 

compliance under this final rule are 

expected to be the same or less, on an 

engine family basis, than the current 

cost of compliance for clean alternative 

fuel conversion of heavy-duty engines. 

The amount of cost reduction will vary 

based on specific circumstances such as 

conversion technology, fuel type, engine 

age and model year, conversion 

manufacturer sales volume, and the 

gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of 

the application on which the converted 

engine is intended to be used. The costs 

converters might incur for technology 

research and development are not 

considered in the cost analysis because 

they are not expected to change as a 

result of this rulemaking. 

EPA analyzed the cost of obtaining a 

certificate of conformity under previous 

fuel conversion regulations and used 

those estimates as a baseline cost. All 

cost analyses in this section are 

intended to apply to conversions to any 

fuel. 

The information available to EPA 

about heavy-duty conversion costs is 

limited. For example, EPA received 

seven MY 2008 certification 

applications from four conversion 

manufacturers and only three MY 2009 

applications from three different 

manufacturers. Based on the limited 

historical data on heavy-duty 

conversions, EPA has estimated the cost 

a converter would incur to satisfy the 

demonstration requirements under these 

revised regulations compared to the 

baseline certification costs. 

A. Baseline Costs 

Baseline costs were derived by 

determining the cost of obtaining 

exhaust and evaporative emission 

certificates for a new engine family 

under previous regulations and 

procedures. A new engine family is a 

family that has not been previously 

certified as an alternative fuel 

conversion. After the first certification, 

the manufacturer may use the same test 

data to obtain certificates of conformity 

in subsequent years, if desired. Engine 

families certified this way are referred to 

as ‘‘carry-overs.’’ The cost of a carry-over 

family is mostly limited to the 

certification fee and minor labor costs. 

Some converters who have obtained 

certificates in recent years may notice 

that the estimated baseline cost is higher 

than the costs they actually incurred. 

This is because EPA’s baseline cost 

analysis includes expenses for 

evaporative emissions and OBD testing. 

Many heavy-duty engine converters to 

date have been exempt from these 

testing requirements.104 However, it is 

important to include these testing costs 

in the baseline estimate because engine 

converters will be subject to OBD testing 

in the future, and evaporative emissions 

testing is required for all fuel types to 

which an evaporative emissions 

standard applies. 

This cost estimate does not consider 

expenses converters may incur to 

develop and design their conversion 

system. Typical product development 

costs include research, expert 

consultation, preliminary or shakedown 

testing, and other expenses associated 

with perfecting system functionality. 

Rather, this analysis estimates the 

expected cost of satisfying the EPA 

testing and/or demonstration 

requirement. 

Estimated labor costs include the 

time, engineering, managerial, legal and 

support staff spends performing the 

various activities associated with 

completing an application for 

certification and any necessary updates 

(running changes). These activities 

include data gathering and analysis, 

reviewing regulations, and 

recordkeeping. To estimate labor costs, 

EPA used the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ 

(BLS) National Industry-specific 

Occupational Wage Estimates (May 

2008) for the Motor Manufacturing 

Industry under the North American 

Industry Classification System (NAICS) 

Code 336100. Mean hourly rates were 

used and then increased by a factor of 

2.1 to account for benefits and overhead. 

Table VIII.A–1 summarizes this 

information and presents the Standard 

Occupational Classification (SOC) code 

for each occupation used to estimate 

labor costs. 

TABLE VIII.A–1—LABOR CATEGORIES AND COSTS USED TO CALCULATE HEAVY-DUTY ENGINE COSTS BASIS

Occupation SOC code No. 

Mean hourly 

rate 

(BLS) 

210% 

Mechanical Engineers ................................................................................................................. 17–2141 $37.59 $78.94 

Engineering Managers ................................................................................................................. 11–9041 54.56 114.58 

Lawyers ........................................................................................................................................ 23–1011 67.14 140.99 

Secretaries, Except Legal, Medical and Executive ..................................................................... 43–6014 19.76 41.50 

Mechanical Engineering Technicians .......................................................................................... 17–3029 31.53 66.21 

Engine and Other Machine Assemblers ...................................................................................... 51–2031 24.56 51.58 

Truck Drivers, Heavy and Tractor-Trailer .................................................................................... 53–3032 26.69 56.05 

Conversion manufacturers are also 

required to pay a certification fee under 

the authority of Section 217 of the CAA 

and the Independent Offices 

Appropriation Act (31 U.S.C. 9701). 

This fee is updated every calendar year 

to reflect changes in EPA labor costs and 

the number of certificates issued each 

year. The costs basis analysis includes 

the appropriate 2010 fee for exhaust 

($35,967) and evaporative ($511) 

certification. The fees rule allows for a 

reduction in fee based on the ‘‘projected 

aggregate retail price of all vehicles or 

engines covered by that certificate’’ (69 

FR 26226, Section F). Converters have 

historically been able to take advantage 

of the reduced fee provision; however, 

EPA has used the full fee for the cost 

basis in this analysis. 

1. Baseline Costs of Certification for One 

Heavy-Duty Exhaust Engine 

Historically, all conversion 

manufacturers who have certified 

converted heavy-duty engines are small 

manufacturers that do not own testing 

facilities. They hire independent 

laboratories to test their engines. EPA 

does not expect that to change in the 

foreseeable future. EPA estimates that 

the cost of testing a heavy-duty engine 


emcdonald on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with RULES2
19860 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 68 / Friday, April 8, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 

105See 40 CFR 86.005–17 and 40 CFR 86.007–17. 

for exhaust emissions in an independent 

laboratory is approximately $30,000. 

Other operation and maintenance costs 

include shipping engines to test sites, 

lodging for manufacturer employees to 

oversee testing, recordkeeping costs, 

and the cost of preparing and submitting 

the application for certification. 

Since EPA does not expect 

manufacturers to build testing 

laboratories or facilities in response to 

this rule, no capital costs have been 

added to the cost basis. 

a. Baseline Costs Associated With 

Obtaining One Heavy-Duty Exhaust 

Certificate of Conformity 

TABLE VIII.A–2—BASELINE COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH OBTAINING ONE HEAVY-DUTY EXHAUST CERTIFICATE

Item Estimated cost 

Exhaust Testing ........................................................................................................................................................................... $30,000 

Labor ............................................................................................................................................................................................ 9,653 

Shipping Engines to Test Site ..................................................................................................................................................... 2,500 

Lodging ........................................................................................................................................................................................ 250 

Other Operating and Maintenance Costs .................................................................................................................................... 19 

Exhaust Certification Subtotal .............................................................................................................................................. 42,422 

Certification Fee for 2010 ............................................................................................................................................................ 35,967 

Total ...................................................................................................................................................................................... 78,389 

b. Baseline Costs Associated With 

Obtaining One Heavy-Duty Evaporative 

Certificate of Conformity 

Manufacturers and converters of Ottocycle engines are required to 

demonstrate compliance with 

evaporative emissions requirements and 

obtain an evaporative emissions as well 

as an exhaust emissions certificate of 

conformity. EPA is including the costs 

for both evaporative and exhaust 

certificates in the baseline estimate. As 

with exhaust certificates, the unit of 

certification for evaporative emissions is 

a group of engines with similar 

evaporative emission characteristics 

known as an evaporative engine family. 

Exhaust and evaporative families are not 

necessarily identical. Engines grouped 

into several exhaust engine families may 

belong to only one evaporative family, 

and vice versa. 

TABLE VIII.A–3—BASELINE COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH OBTAINING ONE HEAVY-DUTY EVAPORATIVE CERTIFICATE

Item Estimated cost 

Evaporative Testing ..................................................................................................................................................................... $7,030 

Labor ............................................................................................................................................................................................ 2,431 

Other Operating and Maintenance Costs .................................................................................................................................... 13 

Evaporative Certification Subtotal ........................................................................................................................................ 9,474 

Certification Fee for 2010 ............................................................................................................................................................ 511 

Total ...................................................................................................................................................................................... 9,985 

c. Costs Associated With OBDII 

Demonstration Testing (Engine Family 

Basis) 

To date, heavy-duty engine converters 

have either been exempt from OBD 

testing requirements, or have been able 

to satisfy requirements by providing 

EPA with light-duty carry-across data, 

or with a record of California Air 

Resources Board approval of the OBD 

system.105 Therefore EPA does not have 

any information about the cost of 

conducting heavy-duty engine OBD 

demonstration testing. 

Therefore, EPA is adopting the 

$26,317 estimate developed for lightduty OBD to also estimate heavy-duty 

OBD certification costs. See Section 

VII.A(1)(a)(c), Table VII.A–4. 

In summary, the baseline cost of fully 

certifying a HD engine family, including 

evaporative and OBD certification is 

$114,692, as indicated in Table VIII.A– 

4. 

TABLE VIII.A–4—BASELINE COST OF CERTIFICATION FOR ENGINE FUEL CONVERSION

Item Estimated cost 

Exhaust Certification .................................................................................................................................................................... $42,422 

Exhaust Certification Fee ............................................................................................................................................................ 35,967 

Evaporative Certification .............................................................................................................................................................. 9,474 

Evaporative Certification Fee ...................................................................................................................................................... 511 

OBD Compliance Demonstration ................................................................................................................................................ 26,317 

Total ...................................................................................................................................................................................... 114,692 


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3 Baseline Cost Analysis Based on Four 

Exhaust Engine Families and Four 

Evaporative Families 

Based on the cost of fully certifying 

one engine family for both exhaust and 

evaporative emissions, EPA has 

estimated the current baseline cost of 

certifying four heavy-duty conversion 

families, including all testing, 

associated labor, overhead, and general 

and administrative costs. For the 

purpose of this estimate, EPA assumed 

that these four exhaust engine families 

will belong to two evaporative families. 

This assumption reflects the fact that 

manufacturers tend to use the same 

evaporative system for multiple exhaust 

families. The estimated cost of four 

exhaust engine families and two 

evaporative families would be about 

$438,796 (Table VIII.A–5). Please see 

the next section for an explanation of 

why EPA has chosen to estimate the 

cost on four families. 

TABLE VIII.A–5—BASELINE COST OF CERTIFYING FOUR EXHAUST ENGINE FAMILIES AND TWO EVAPORATIVE FAMILIES

Item Estimated cost 

(one engine family) 

Number of 

engine 

families 

Total cost 

Exhaust Certification ........................................................................................................ $42,422 4 $169,689 

Exhaust Certification Fee ................................................................................................ 35,967 4 143,868 

Evaporative Certification .................................................................................................. 9,474 2 18,949 

Evaporative Certification Fee .......................................................................................... 511 2 1,022 

OBD Compliance Demonstration .................................................................................... 26,317 4 105,268 

Total .......................................................................................................................... 114,692 .................... 438,796 

B. Certified Conversion Costs Under the 

Revised Rule 

The number of engines in a typical 

heavy-duty engine family has 

historically been lower than the number 

of vehicles in a light-duty test group. 

Since the cost of certification is spread 

over a smaller pool of engines, it is more 

expensive to certify a heavy-duty family 

on a per engine basis. 

EPA determined that the current data 

are not sufficient to develop a scaling 

factor that could be applied to calculate 

the cost of certification under the new 

rule. Instead, EPA believes it is more 

appropriate to illustrate how the 

regulations would affect a converter 

seeking certification. This hypothetical 

scenario is partly based on the actual 

case of a converter who certified four 

families in 2008. The scenario is also 

used for intermediate age and outside 

useful life estimates. As mentioned 

previously, the costs converters might 

incur for technology research and 

development are not considered in the 

cost analysis because they are not 

expected to change as a result of this 

rulemaking. 

1. Baseline Scenario 

In MY 2008, Converter X obtained 

certificates of conformity with heavyduty exhaust emission regulations for 

four OEM engine families. Converter X 

used regulations found at 40 CFR 

86.000–24 to determine how many 

exhaust engine families, and therefore, 

how many conversion certificates it 

needed. For the purpose of this 

demonstration, EPA will assume that 

Converter X submitted one set of test 

data set and paid one full fee for each 

exhaust certificate. If Converter X also 

pursued evaporative certification for 

two families separately, it would have to 

pay for two evaporative tests and two 

evaporative fees. In addition, OBD 

approval was obtained. As shown in 

Table VIII.A–5 in the previous section, 

the estimated cost for this scenario is 

$438,796. 

2. Scenario under Revised Regulations 

After reviewing the characteristics of 

each engine family as reported in the 

applications for certification, EPA 

applied the criteria for combining 

multiple engine families contained in 

the final rule. For a list of criteria, see 

Section IV.A.2.b. Had the engine family 

combinations been available to 

Converter X, Converter X would have 

been able to combine two of its engine 

families into a single engine family A, 

and the remaining two engine families 

into engine family B. Figure VIII.B–1 

illustrates this combination. 


emcdonald on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with RULES2
19862 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 68 / Friday, April 8, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 

106Software updates are mainly used to add 

vehicle models to the list of vehicles the OBD scan 

tool is capable of scanning. Since EPA is including 

the cost of a new scan tool in its OBD 

demonstration estimate for intermediate age and 

outside useful life engine conversions, adding the 

cost of software updates does not appear necessary 

here. 

By submitting only two exhaust 

certificate applications, Converter X 

would only need to perform two tests 

and pay two fees (down from four each), 

thus cutting its costs of certifying its 

exhaust engine families in half (Table 

VIII.B–2). 

TABLE VIII.B–2—COST OF CERTIFYING TWO EXHAUST ENGINE FAMILIES AND TWO EVAPORATIVE FAMILIES UNDER

REVISED RULE

Item 

Estimated cost 

(one engine 

family) 

Number of 

engine 

families 

Total cost 

Exhaust Certification .................................................................................................................... $42,422 2 $84,845 

Exhaust Certification Fee ............................................................................................................ 35,967 2 71,934 

Evaporative Certification .............................................................................................................. 9,474 2 18,949 

Evaporative Certification Fee ...................................................................................................... 511 2 1,022 

OBD Compliance Demonstration ................................................................................................ 26,317 2 52,634 

Total ...................................................................................................................................... 114,692 2 229,383 

The total cost of certifying the same 

engines under the revised rule is 

$229,383, representing a 48% savings 

for Converter X. The cost of certification 

is also spread over a larger pool of 

engines, lowering the cost per unit, as 

Figure VIII.B–1 shows. The ability to cut 

costs in this way translates into a more 

cost effective scenario for heavy-duty 

converters able to use the new engine 

family combination criteria. 

C. Intermediate Age Engine Compliance 

Costs 

The previous fuel conversion process 

required certification regardless of the 

age of the engine being converted. 

Therefore the baseline costs presented 

in Section VIII.A also apply to 

intermediate age heavy-duty engines. 

Under the revised rule, converters of 

intermediate age engines must still 

submit test data to demonstrate 

compliance with applicable standards, 

but the test data may cover a broader 

group of engines, as described in 

Section VIII.B. In addition, converters of 

intermediate age engines are no longer 

required to pay fees. 

The revised rule further reduces cost 

because converters of intermediate age 

engines will no longer need to submit 

OBD certification data. Instead the 

revised rule requires converters to 

ensure that the OBD system remains 

fully functional in the converted engine. 

To demonstrate that the OBD system is 

functional, the converter must 

interrogate the OBD system with a scan 

tool device, submit a copy of the OBD 

results to EPA and attest that the OBD 

system works properly. Costs associated 

with this form of OBD demonstration 

are limited to the cost of a heavy-duty 

OBD scan tool, periodic software 

updates 106 and labor costs associated 

with obtaining and submitting the printout. 

EPA has found that the costs of OBD 

scan tools for heavy-duty trucks vary 

widely, depending on the size of the 

vehicle. For trucks weighing less than 

14,000 pounds, OBD scan tools range 


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Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 68 / Friday, April 8, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 19863 

between $90 and $1,000. The less 

expensive ones are usually specific to a 

particular vehicle make and model. For 

trucks weighing between 14,001 and 

33,000 pounds, OBD scan tools range 

between $1,300 and $2,500, but most 

cost around $1,500. For the largest 

trucks, over 33,000 pounds, scan tools 

cost as much as $8,000. Since the 

majority of applications for certification 

of converted engines are expected to be 

for engines used in applications 

weighing less than 33,000 pounds, EPA 

has chosen $1,500 as a cost 

representative of what the average 

converter is likely to pay for an OBD 

scan tool. 

In addition to the cost of an OBD scan 

tool, converters of intermediate age 

engines will incur costs for labor 

associated with conducting the scanning 

procedure, gathering data and 

submitting it to EPA. EPA estimates 

these cost to amount to approximately 

$157 per engine family. Table VIII.C–1 

summarizes the estimated cost of 

obtaining a heavy-duty OBD scan tool 

and generating a scan report for one 

engine family. 

TABLE VIII.C–1—COSTS ASSOCIATED

WITH OBTAINING A HD OBD SCAN

TOOL AND GENERATING REPORTS

FOR ONE ENGINE FAMILY

Item Estimated 

cost 

OBD Scan Tool ........................ $1,500 

Labor ......................................... 158 

Total ................................... 1,658 

If the engine families Converter X 

certified in our previous scenario were 

intermediate age engines, Converter X 

would realize savings due to (1) engine 

family groupings, (2) the lack of a 

certification fee, and (3) lower OBD 

demonstration costs. As shown in Table 

VIII.C–2, the cost to Converter X would 

be approximately $107,109. This 

represents savings of about $331,687or 

76% when compared to the baseline. 

TABLE VIII.C–2—COST OF TWO INTERMEDIATE AGE CONVERSIONS CERTIFICATION UNDER REVISED RULE

[Compared to baseline cost estimates and new and nearly new engine certification under the revised rule] 

Item 

Baseline cost for 

four exhaust and 

two evap 

families 

(certification) 

Cost for two 

exhaust and two 

evap families 

(certification of 

new and nearly 

new—revised rule) 

Cost for two 

exhaust and two 

evap families 

(intermediate 

age—revised rule) 

Exhaust Certification .................................................................................................. $169,689 $84,845 $84,845 

Exhaust Certification Fee .......................................................................................... 143,868 71,934 ..............................

Evaporative Certification ............................................................................................ 18,949 18,949 18,949 

Evaporative Certification Fee .................................................................................... 1,022 1,022 ..............................

OBD Compliance Demonstration .............................................................................. 105,268 52,634 N/A 

OBD scan tool report and statement of compliance ................................................. N/A N/A 3,316 

Total .................................................................................................................... 438,796 229,383 107,109 

D. Outside Useful Life Engine 

Compliance Costs 

As explained in Section VII–D, EPA 

presented three options for outside 

useful life engine conversions in the 

proposed rule. Today, EPA is finalizing 

‘‘Option 3’’, which adds the intermediate 

age OBD scan tool test procedure to the 

Option 1 good engineering judgment 

demonstration requirement. 

EPA used the approach described in 

previous sections to estimate the cost of 

converting outside useful life heavyduty engines and concluded that costs 

would be the same or less than those 

incurred by converters of intermediate 

age heavy-duty engines. Please see 

Table VIII.C.2 for further detail on 

intermediate age conversion costs. 

IX. Statutory and Executive Order 

Reviews 

A. Executive Order 12866: Regulatory 

Planning and Review 

This action is not a ‘‘significant 

regulatory action’’ under the terms of 

Executive Order (EO) 12866 (58 FR 

51735, October 4, 1993) and is therefore 

not subject to review under the EO. 

OMB confirmed this rulemaking was 

non-significant on December 7, 2010 

and waived review. 

EPA prepared an analysis of the 

potential costs and benefits associated 

with this action. Cost analyses are 

summarized in Sections VII and VIII of 

this preamble. 

B. Paperwork Reduction Act 

The information collection 

requirements in this final rule have been 

submitted for approval to the Office of 

Management and Budget (OMB) under 

the Paperwork Reduction Act, 44 U.S.C. 

3501 et seq. The Information Collection 

Request (ICR) documents prepared by 

EPA have been assigned EPA ICR 

numbers 0783.59 and 1684.17. Any 

information collection requirements in 

ICR numbers 0783.59 and 1684.17 

which are not covered by existing OMB 

control numbers 2060–0104 and 2060– 

0287, are not enforceable until OMB 

approves them. 

The Agency is finalizing requirements 

for manufacturers to submit information 

to ensure compliance with the 

provisions in this rule. This includes a 

variety of requirements for alternative 

fuel vehicle/engine converters who seek 

an exemption from the anti-tampering 

prohibition in section 203(a)(3) of the 

Clean Air Act. Under Title II of the 

Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7521 et seq.) 

EPA is required to establish motor 

vehicle emission standards that apply 

throughout useful life, and to verify 

through issuance of a certificate of 

conformity that any vehicle or engine 

entered into commerce complies with 

the established emission standards. 

Under Section 203 of the CAA, once 

certified, the vehicle or engine generally 

may not be altered from its certified 

configuration. EPA has established 

policies through which conversion 

manufacturers can demonstrate that the 

conversion does not compromise 

emissions compliance. This action 

amends those regulations, located in 40 

CFR part 85, subpart F. Section 208(a) 

of the Act requires that vehicle/engine 


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19864 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 68 / Friday, April 8, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 

manufacturers and others subject to the 

Act provide information the 

Administrator may reasonably require to 

determine compliance with the 

regulations; submission of the 

information is therefore mandatory for 

securing the regulatory exemption from 

the tampering prohibition set forth in 40 

CFR part 85, subpart F. We will 

consider confidential all information 

meeting the requirements of section 

208(c) of the Clean Air Act. 

As described in Sections VII and VIII 

of this preamble, compliance costs per 

test group or engine family are expected 

to decrease overall. 

Model years 2009, 2010, and 2011 

have exhibited an upward trend in the 

number of light-duty fuel conversion 

certificates issued and the number of 

clean alternative fuel conversion 

manufacturers. In 2010, 42 light-duty 

alternative fuel conversion certificates 

were issued for seven different 

conversion manufacturers. In 2011, EPA 

has thus far issued 100 light duty fuel 

conversion certificates; however about 

half of those certificates are renewals, 

which will no longer be necessary under 

this new rule. For this final rule, we are 

assuming an estimated 50 light duty 

certificates for eight different conversion 

manufacturers, since this is similar to 

the 2010 value and the 2011 number if 

renewals are no longer needed. As 

shown in Table IX–1, the total annual 

industry paperwork burden associated 

with the light-duty vehicle program is 

about 18,535 hours and $185,093 in 

annual capital and operations and 

maintenance costs based on a projection 

of 8 respondents. The estimated burden 

for converters is a total estimate for both 

new and existing reporting 

requirements. This represents an 

estimated reduction in burden from 

previous requirements of 11,203 hours 

and $89,103 in non-labor costs for lightduty converters. The total heavy-duty 

conversion industry is expected to grow 

as a result of this rule, therefore 

increasing industry-wide costs. 

However, costs per respondent are 

likely to decrease, by as much as 76 

percent. Burden means the total time, 

effort, or financial resources expended 

by persons to generate, maintain, retain, 

or disclose or provide information to or 

for a Federal agency. This includes the 

time needed to review instructions; 

develop, acquire, install, and utilize 

technology and systems for the purposes 

of collecting, validating, and verifying 

information, processing and 

maintaining information, and disclosing 

and providing information; adjust the 

existing ways to comply with any 

previously applicable instructions and 

requirements; train personnel to be able 

to respond to a collection of 

information; search data sources; 

complete and review the collection of 

information; and transmit or otherwise 

disclose the information. 

TABLE IX–1—ESTIMATED BURDEN FOR REPORTING AND RECORDKEEPING REQUIREMENTS

Industry sector Number of 

respondents 

Annual burden 

(hours) 

Estimated 

annual capital 

and O&M 

costs 

Estimated 

annual labor 

cost 

Estimated total 

costs 

Light-Duty Vehicles (ICR 0783.59) ...................................... 8 18,535 $185,093 $1,060,272 $1,245,365 

On-Highway Heavy-Duty Engines (ICR 1684.17) ............... 8 1,578 622,389 135,078 757,468 

Total .............................................................................. 16 20,113 807,482 1,195,350 2,002,833 

An agency may not conduct or 

sponsor, and a person is not required to 

respond to, a collection of information 

unless it displays a currently valid OMB 

control number. The OMB control 

numbers for EPA’s regulations in 40 

CFR are listed in 40 CFR part 9. When 

this ICR is approved by OMB, the 

Agency will publish a technical 

amendment to 40 CFR part 9 in the 

Federal Register to display the OMB 

control number for the approved 

information collection requirements 

contained in this final rule. 

C. Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA) 

The Regulatory Flexibility Act 

generally requires an agency to prepare 

a regulatory flexibility analysis of any 

rule subject to notice and comment 

rulemaking requirements under the 

Administrative Procedure Act or any 

other statute unless the agency certifies 

that the rule will not have a significant 

economic impact on a substantial 

number of small entities. Small entities 

include small businesses, small 

organizations, and small governmental 

jurisdictions. 

For purposes of assessing the impacts 

of this rule on small entities, small 

entity is defined as: (1) Small businesses 

that are primarily engaged in engine and 

motor vehicle parts manufacturing, 

specifically aftermarket fuel conversion 

systems for vehicles and engines as 

included in the definitions by NAICS 

codes 335312, 336312, 336322, and 

336399 with fewer than 750–1000 

employees and 811198 with annual 

revenue below $7 million (based on 

Small Business Administration size 

standards at 13 CFR 121.201); (2) a 

small governmental jurisdiction that is a 

government of a city, county, town, 

school district or special district with a 

population of less than 50,000; and (3) 

a small organization that is any not-forprofit enterprise which is independently 

owned and operated and is not 

dominant in its field. 

After considering the economic 

impacts of this action on small entities, 

I certify that this action will not have a 

significant economic impact on a 

substantial number of small entities. In 

determining whether a rule has a 

significant economic impact on a 

substantial number of small entities, the 

impact of concern is any significant 

adverse economic impact on small 

entities, since the primary purpose of 

the regulatory flexibility analyses is to 

identify and address regulatory 

alternatives ‘‘which minimize any 

significant economic impact of the rule 

on small entities.’’ 5 U.S.C. 603 and 604. 

Thus, an agency may certify that a rule 

will not have a significant economic 

impact on a substantial number of small 

entities if the rule relieves regulatory 

burden, or otherwise has a positive 

economic effect on all of the small 

entities subject to the rule. 

To qualify for an exemption from the 

prohibition on tampering, previous 

alternative fuel conversion regulations 

required converters to complete vehicle 

and engine certification testing, data 

submittal and compliance procedures 

using OEM new vehicle certification 

procedures. The previous certification 

process largely will be retained for 

conversion of vehicles and engines that 

are about two years old or newer, with 

a few amendments which may reduce 

the testing burden. The amendments 

include provisions such as (1) a 

statement of compliance using good 

engineering judgment in lieu of HCHO 

testing analysis for certain alternative 

fuels, (2) the use of conversion factors 

to calculate NMOG from NMHC in lieu 


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Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 68 / Friday, April 8, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 19865 

of speciation testing for some alternative 

fuels, and (3) allowing the combination 

of OEM test groups into larger testing 

combinations for aftermarket fuel 

conversion. 

In addition, this final rule creates an 

intermediate age and outside useful life 

compliance program as an alternative to 

vehicle and engine certification of fuel 

conversion of older vehicles and 

engines. The intermediate age and 

outside useful life programs will allow 

conversion manufacturers to conduct 

fewer tests and will provide a 

streamlined data-submittal process. 

These programs may also allow for one 

set of test data to apply to a broader set 

of OEM vehicles. 

We have therefore concluded that 

today’s final rule will generally relieve 

or not increase regulatory burden for 

each affected small entity. The number 

of potentially affected small entities 

subject to this rule is projected to be less 

than 20 per year. The degree of cost 

reduction for each entity will vary based 

on conversion technology, fuel type, 

vehicle or engine age, applicability, 

conversion manufacturer preference, 

and the manufacturer’s annual sales 

volume. See Sections VII and VIII of this 

preamble for further details. 

D. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act 

This rule contains no Federal 

mandates (under the regulatory 

provisions of Title II of the UMRA) for 

State, local, or Tribal governments. The 

rule imposes no enforceable duty on any 

State, local or Tribal governments. EPA 

has determined that this rule does not 

contain a Federal mandate that may 

result in expenditures of $100 million or 

more for the private sector in any one 

year. Thus, this rule is not subject to the 

requirements of sections 202 or 205 of 

UMRA. EPA has determined that this 

rule is also not subject to the 

requirements of section 203 of UMRA 

because it contains no regulatory 

requirements that might significantly or 

uniquely affect small governments. 

E. Executive Order 13132: Federalism 

Executive Order 13132, entitled 

‘‘Federalism’’ (64 FR 43255, August 10, 

1999), requires EPA to develop an 

accountable process to ensure 

‘‘meaningful and timely input by State 

and local officials in the development of 

regulatory policies that have federalism 

implications.’’ 

‘‘Policies that have federalism 

implications’’ is defined in the 

Executive Order to include regulations 

that have ‘‘substantial direct effects on 

the States, on the relationship between 

the national government and the States, 

or on the distribution of power and 

responsibilities among the various 

levels of government.’’ 

This action does not have federalism 

implications. It will not have substantial 

direct effects on the States, on the 

relationship between the national 

government and the States, or on the 

distribution of power and 

responsibilities among the various 

levels of government, as specified in 

Executive Order 13132. EPA and the 

States will maintain the current 

distribution of power and responsibility. 

Thus, Executive Order 13132 does not 

apply to this action. 

Although section 6 of Executive Order 

13132 does not apply to this action, EPA 

did consult with State and local officials 

and representatives of State and local 

governments in developing this action. 

EPA received comments from four 

separate State agencies/officials: The 

State of Utah, Office of the Governor 

Energy Advisor, Dianne Nielson; The 

Texas Railroad Commission, Michael 

Williams, Commissioner; The Texas 

Commission on Environmental Quality, 

Mark Vickery, Executive Director; and 

the Florida Department of 

Environmental Protection, Sandra 

Veazey, Chief Bureau of Air Monitoring 

and Mobile Sources. None of the State 

agency comments expressed federalism 

implications or concerns. EPA generally 

received positive comments from State 

agencies/officials about the goals of the 

proposed rule. State agency comments 

about program details are included in 

the Response to Comments document in 

the docket. 

In the spirit of Executive Order 13132, 

and consistent with EPA policy to 

promote communications between EPA 

and State and local governments, EPA 

specifically solicited comment on the 

proposed rule from State and local 

officials. 

F. Executive Order 13175: Consultation 

and Coordination With Indian Tribal 

Governments 

This action does not have Tribal 

implications, as specified in Executive 

Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, November 9, 

2000). Thus, Executive Order 13175 

does not apply to this action. EPA 

specifically solicited additional 

comment on the proposal from Tribal 

officials, and received no comments 

from Tribal officials. 

G. Executive Order 13045: Protection of 

Children from Environmental Health 

and Safety Risks 

EPA interprets EO 13045 (62 FR 

19885, April 23, 1997) as applying only 

to those regulatory actions that concern 

health or safety risks, such that the 

analysis required under section 5–501 of 

the EO has the potential to influence the 

regulation. This action is not subject to 

EO 13045 because it is not economically 

significant as defined in EO 12866 and 

does not establish an environmental 

standard intended to mitigate health or 

safety risks. 

H. Executive Order 13211: Actions That 

Significantly Affect Energy Supply, 

Distribution, or Use 

This action is not subject to Executive 

Order 13211 (66 FR 28355 (May 22, 

2001)), because it is not a significant 

regulatory action under Executive Order 

12866. 

I. National Technology Transfer 

Advancement Act 

Section 12(d) of the National 

Technology Transfer and Advancement 

Act of 1995 (‘‘NTTAA’’), Public Law 

104–113, 12(d) (15 U.S.C. 272 note) 

directs EPA to use voluntary consensus 

standards in its regulatory activities 

unless to do so would be inconsistent 

with applicable law or otherwise 

impractical. Voluntary consensus 

standards are technical standards (e.g., 

materials specifications, test methods, 

sampling procedures, and business 

practices) that are developed or adopted 

by voluntary consensus standards 

bodies. NTTAA directs EPA to provide 

Congress, through OMB, explanations 

when the Agency decides not to use 

available and applicable voluntary 

consensus standards. 

This rulemaking does not involve new 

technical standards and EPA received 

no comments concerning any voluntary 

consensus standards. Therefore, EPA is 

not considering the use of any voluntary 

consensus standards. 

J. Executive Order 12898: Federal 

Actions To Address Environmental 

Justice in Minority Populations and 

Low-Income Populations 

Executive Order (EO) 12898 (59 FR 

7629 (Feb. 16, 1994)) establishes Federal 

executive policy on environmental 

justice. Its main provision directs 

Federal agencies, to the greatest extent 

practicable and permitted by law, to 

make environmental justice part of their 

mission by identifying and addressing, 

as appropriate, disproportionately high 

and adverse human health or 

environmental effects of their programs, 

policies, and activities on minority 

populations and low-income 

populations in the United States. 

EPA has determined that this final 

rule will not have disproportionately 

high and adverse human health or 

environmental effects on minority or 

low-income populations because it does 

not affect the level of protection 


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19866 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 68 / Friday, April 8, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 

107See CAA section 307(d)(1)(V). 

provided to human health or the 

environment. This action changes some 

required procedures but does not relax 

the control measures on sources 

regulated by the rule and therefore will 

not cause emissions increases from 

these sources. 

K. Congressional Review Act 

The Congressional Review Act, 5 

U.S.C. 801 et seq., as added by the Small 

Business Regulatory Enforcement 

Fairness Act of 1996, generally provides 

that before a rule may take effect, the 

agency promulgating the rule must 

submit a rule report, which includes a 

copy of the rule, to each House of the 

Congress and to the Comptroller General 

of the United States. EPA will submit a 

report containing this rule and other 

required information to the U.S. Senate, 

the U.S. House of Representatives, and 

the Comptroller General of the United 

States prior to publication of the rule in 

the Federal Register. A major rule 

cannot take effect until 60 days after it 

is published in the Federal Register. 

This action is not a ‘‘major rule’’ as 

defined by 5 U.S.C. 804(2). 

L. Administrative Procedure Act 

Section 553(d) of the Administrative 

Procedure Act, 5 U.S.C. 553(d) generally 

requires agencies to publish substantive 

rules at least 30 days prior to the 

effective dates of such rules. One 

exception to that general requirement is 

that an agency may establish an 

immediate effective date for a rule 

‘‘which grants or recognizes an 

exemption or relieves a restriction.’’ EPA 

has decided that this action will be 

effective immediately upon publication 

in the Federal Register because this 

action recognizes an exemption to the 

Clean Air Act’s section 203 tampering 

prohibition. 

X. Statutory Provisions and Legal 

Authority 

Statutory authority for the regulation 

of clean alternative fuel conversion can 

be found in 42 U.S.C. 7401–7617q. The 

Administrator has determined that this 

action is subject to the provisions of 

Clean Air Act (CAA) section 307(d).107

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Parts 85 and 

86 

Environmental protection, 

Administrative practice and procedure, 

Alternative fuel conversion, 

Confidential business information, 

Motor vehicle pollution, Reporting and 

recordkeeping requirements. 

Dated: March 29, 2011. 

Lisa P. Jackson, 

Administrator. 

For the reasons set forth in the 

preamble title 40, Chapter 1 of the Code 

of Federal Regulations is amended as 

follows: 

PART 85—CONTROL OF AIR 

POLLUTION FROM MOBILE SOURCES 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 85 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401–7671q. 

■ 2. Subpart F of part 85 is revised to 

read as follows: 

Subpart F—Exemption of Clean Alternative 

Fuel Conversions From Tampering 

Prohibition 

Sec. 

85.501 General applicability. 

85.502 Definitions. 

85.505 Overview. 

85.510 Exemption provisions for new and 

relatively new vehicles/engines. 

85.515 Exemption provisions for 

intermediate age vehicles/engines. 

85.520 Exemption provisions for outside 

useful life vehicles/engines. 

85.524 Legacy standards. 

85.525 Applicable standards. 

85.530 Vehicle/engine labels and 

packaging labels. 

85.535 Liability, recordkeeping and end of 

year reporting. 

Subpart F—Exemption of Clean 

Alternative Fuel Conversions From 

Tampering Prohibition 

§ 85.501 General applicability. 

(a) This subpart describes the 

provisions related to an exemption from 

the tampering prohibition in Clean Air 

Act section 203(a) (42 U.S.C. 7522(a)) 

for light-duty vehicles, light-duty trucks, 

medium-duty passenger vehicles, 

heavy-duty vehicles, and heavy-duty 

engines. This subpart F does not apply 

for highway motorcycles or for nonroad 

or stationary engines or equipment. 

(b) For purposes of this subpart, the 

term ‘‘you’’ generally means a clean 

alternative fuel conversion 

manufacturer, which may also be called 

‘‘conversion manufacturer’’ or 

‘‘converter’’. 

§ 85.502 Definitions. 

The definitions in this section apply 

to this subpart. All terms that are not 

defined in this subpart have the 

meaning given in 40 CFR part 86. All 

terms that are not defined in this 

subpart or in 40 CFR part 86 have the 

meaning given in the Clean Air Act. The 

definitions follow: 

Clean alternative fuel conversion (or 

‘‘fuel conversion’’ or ‘‘conversion 

system’’) means any alteration of a motor 

vehicle/engine, its fueling system, or the 

integration of these systems, that allows 

the vehicle/engine to operate on a fuel 

or power source different from the fuel 

or power source for which the vehicle/ 

engine was originally certified; and that 

is designed, constructed, and applied 

consistent with good engineering 

judgment and in accordance with all 

applicable regulations. A clean 

alternative fuel conversion also means 

the components, design, and 

instructions to perform this alteration. 

Clean alternative fuel conversion 

manufacturer (or ‘‘conversion 

manufacturer’’ or ‘‘converter’’) means 

any person that manufactures, 

assembles, sells, imports, or installs a 

motor vehicle/engine fuel conversion 

for the purpose of use of a clean 

alternative fuel. 

Conversion model year means the 

clean alternative fuel conversion 

manufacturer’s annual production 

period which includes January 1 of such 

calendar year. A specific model year 

may not include January 1 from the 

previous year or the following year. This 

is based on the expectation that 

production periods generally run on 

consistent schedules from year to year. 

Conversion model years may not 

circumvent or skip an annual 

production period. The term conversion 

model year means the calendar year if 

the converter does not have a different 

annual production period. 

Date of conversion means the date on 

which the clean alternative fuel 

conversion system is fully installed and 

operable. 

Dedicated vehicle/engine means any 

vehicle/engine engineered and designed 

to be operated using a single fuel. 

Dual-fuel vehicle/engine means any 

vehicle/engine engineered and designed 

to be operated on two or more different 

fuels, but not on a mixture of the fuels. 

Heavy-duty engines describes all 

engines intended for use in heavy-duty 

vehicles, covered under the 

applicability of 40 CFR part 86, subpart 

A. 

Light-duty and heavy-duty chassis 

certified vehicles describes all light-duty 

vehicles, light-duty trucks, medium 

duty passenger vehicles, and heavy-duty 

complete and incomplete vehicles 

covered under the applicability of 40 

CFR part 86, subpart S. 

Mixed-fuel vehicle/engine means any 

vehicle/engine engineered and designed 

to be operated on the original fuel(s), 

alternative fuel(s), or a mixture of two 

or more fuels that are combusted 

together. Mixed-fuel vehicles/engines 

include flexible-fuel vehicles/engines as 

defined in 40 CFR part 86 subpart S. 


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Original equipment manufacturer 

(OEM) means the original manufacturer 

of the new vehicle/engine or relating to 

the vehicle/engine in its original 

certified configuration. 

Original model year means the model 

year in which a vehicle/engine was 

originally certified by the original 

equipment manufacturer, as noted on 

the certificate and on the emission 

control information label. 

We (us, our) means the Administrator 

of the Environmental Protection Agency 

or any authorized representative. 

§ 85.505 Overview. 

(a) You are exempted from the 

tampering prohibition in Clean Air Act 

section 203(a)(3) (42 U.S.C. 7522)(a)(3) 

(‘‘tampering’’) if you satisfy all the 

provisions of this subpart. 

(b) The tampering exemption 

provisions described in this subpart are 

differentiated based on the age of the 

vehicle/engine at the point of 

conversion as follows: 

(1) ‘‘New and relatively new’’ refers to 

a vehicle/engine where the date of 

conversion is in a calendar year that is 

not more than one year after the original 

model year. See § 85.510 for provisions 

that apply specifically to new and 

relatively new vehicles/engines. 

(2) ‘‘Intermediate age’’ refers to a 

vehicle/engine that has not exceeded 

the useful life (in years, miles, or hours 

of operation) applicable to the vehicle/ 

engine as originally certified, excluding 

new and relatively new vehicles/ 

engines. See § 85.515 for provisions that 

apply specifically to intermediate-age 

vehicles/engines. 

(3) ‘‘Outside useful life’’ refers to any 

vehicle/engine that has exceeded the 

useful life (in years, miles, or hours of 

operation) applicable to the vehicle/ 

engine as originally certified. See 

§ 85.520 for provisions that apply 

specifically to outside useful life 

vehicles/engines. 

(c) If the converted vehicle/engine is 

a dual-fuel or mixed-fuel vehicle/ 

engine, you must submit test data using 

each type of fuel, except that if you wish 

to certify to the same standards as the 

OEM vehicle/engine, you may omit 

testing for the fuel originally used to 

certify the vehicle/engine if you comply 

with § 85.510(b)(10)(ii), (iii), and (iv), 

§ 85.515(b)(10)(iii)(B), (C), and (D), or 

§ 85.520(b)(6)(iii)(B), (C), and (D), as 

applicable. 

(d) This subpart specifies certain 

reporting requirements. We may ask you 

to give us more information than we 

specify in this subpart to determine 

whether your vehicles/engines conform 

to the requirements of this subpart. We 

may ask you to give us less information 

or do less testing than we specify in this 

subpart. 

(e) EPA may require converters to 

submit vehicles/engines for EPA testing 

under any of the three age based 

programs. Under § 85.510 or § 85.515, if 

a vehicle/engine is selected for 

confirmatory testing as part of the 

demonstration and notification process, 

the vehicle/engines must satisfy the 

applicable intermediate and full useful 

life standards using the appropriate 

deterioration factors to qualify for an 

exemption from the tampering 

prohibition. If an outside useful life 

vehicle/engine is selected for testing, 

the vehicle/engine must demonstrate 

that emissions are maintained or 

improved upon after conversion to 

qualify for an exemption from the 

tampering prohibition. 

(f) If you have previously used small 

volume conversion manufacturer or 

qualified small volume test group/ 

engine family procedures and you may 

exceed the volume thresholds using the 

sum described in § 85.535(f) to 

determine small volume status in 40 

CFR 86.1838–01, 40 CFR 86.098–14, and 

40 CFR 86.096–24(e)(2) as appropriate, 

you must satisfy the requirements for 

conversion manufacturers who do not 

qualify for small volume exemptions or 

your exemption from tampering is no 

longer valid. 

(g) An exemption from the prohibition 

on tampering applies to previously 

issued alternative fuel conversion 

certificates of conformity for the 

applicable conversion test group/engine 

family and/or evaporative/refueling 

family, as long as the conditions under 

which the certificate was issued remain 

unchanged, such as small volume 

manufacturer or qualified small volume 

test group/engine family status. Your 

exemption from tampering is valid only 

if the conversion is installed on the 

OEM test groups/engine families and/or 

evaporative emissions/refueling families 

listed on the certificate. 

(h) The applicable useful life of a 

clean alternative fuel converted vehicle/ 

engine shall end at the same time the 

OEM vehicle’s/engine’s original useful 

life ends. 

§ 85.510 Exemption provisions for new 

and relatively new vehicles/engines. 

(a) You are exempted from the 

tampering prohibition with respect to 

new and relatively new vehicles/ 

engines if you certify the conversion 

system to the emission standards 

specified in § 85.525 as described in 

paragraph (b) in this section; you meet 

the labeling and packaging requirements 

in § 85.530 before you sell, import or 

otherwise facilitate the use of a clean 

alternative fuel conversion system; and 

you meet the liability, recordkeeping, 

and end of year reporting requirements 

in § 85.535. 

(b) Certification under this section 

must be based on the certification 

procedures such as those specified in 40 

CFR part 86, subparts A, B, and S and 

40 CFR part 1065, as applicable, subject 

to the following exceptions and special 

provisions: 

(1) Test groups and evaporative/ 

refueling families for light-duty and 

heavy-duty chassis certified vehicles. 

(i) Small volume conversion 

manufacturers and qualified small 

volume test groups. 

(A) If criteria for small volume 

manufacturer or qualified small volume 

test groups are met as defined in 40 CFR 

86.1838–01, you may combine lightduty vehicles or heavy-duty vehicles 

which can be chassis certified under 40 

CFR part 86, subpart S using good 

engineering judgment into conversion 

test groups if the following criteria are 

satisfied instead of those specified in 40 

CFR 86.1827–01. 

(1) Same OEM and OEM model year. 

(2) Same OBD group. 

(3) Same vehicle classification (e.g. 

light-duty vehicle, heavy-duty vehicle). 

(4) Engine displacement is within 

15% of largest displacement or 50 CID, 

whichever is larger. 

(5) Same number of cylinders or 

combustion chambers. 

(6) Same arrangement of cylinders or 

combustion chambers (e.g. in-line, vshaped). 

(7) Same combustion cycle (e.g., two 

stroke, four stroke, Otto-cycle, dieselcycle). 

(8) Same engine type (e.g. piston, 

rotary, turbine, air cooled vs. water 

cooled). 

(9) Same OEM fuel type (except 

otherwise similar gasoline and E85 

flexible-fuel vehicles may be combined 

into dedicated alternative fuel vehicles). 

(10) Same fuel metering system (e.g. 

throttle body injection vs. port 

injection). 

(11) Same catalyst construction (e.g. 

metal vs. ceramic substrate). 

(12) All converted vehicles are subject 

to the most stringent emission standards 

used in certifying the OEM test groups 

within the conversion test group. 

(B) EPA-established scaled assigned 

deterioration factors for both exhaust 

and evaporative emissions may be used 

for vehicles with over 10,000 miles if 

the criteria for small volume 

manufacturer or qualified small volume 

test groups are met as defined in 40 CFR 

86.1838–01. This deterioration factor 

will be adjusted according to vehicle or 

engine miles of operation. The 


emcdonald on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with RULES2
19868 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 68 / Friday, April 8, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 

deterioration factor is intended to 

predict the vehicle’s emission levels at 

the end of the useful life. EPA may 

adjust these scaled assigned 

deterioration factors if we find the rate 

of deterioration non-constant or if the 

rate differs by fuel type. 

(C) As part of the conversion system 

description provided in the application 

for certification, conversion 

manufacturers using EPA assigned 

deterioration factors must present 

detailed information to confirm the 

durability of all relevant new and 

existing components and to explain why 

the conversion system will not harm the 

emission control system or degrade the 

emissions. 

(ii) Conversion evaporative/refueling 

families are identical to the OEM 

evaporative/refueling families unless 

the OEM evaporative emission system is 

no longer functionally necessary. You 

must create any new evaporative 

families according to 40 CFR 86.1821– 

01. 

(2) Engine families and evaporative/ 

refueling families for heavy-duty 

engines. 

(i) Small volume conversion 

manufacturers and qualified small 

volume heavy-duty engine families. 

(A) If criteria for small volume 

manufacturer or qualified small volume 

engine families are met as defined in 40 

CFR 86.098–14 and 40 CFR 86.096– 

24(e)(2) you may combine heavy-duty 

engines using good engineering 

judgment into conversion engine 

families if the following criteria are 

satisfied instead of those specified in 40 

CFR part 86, subpart A. 

(1) Same OEM. 

(2) Same OBD group after MY 2013. 

(3) Same service class (e.g. light 

heavy-duty diesel engines, medium 

heavy-duty diesel engines, heavy heavyduty diesel engines). 

(4) Engine displacement is within 

15% of largest displacement or 50 CID, 

whichever is larger. 

(5) Same number of cylinders. 

(6) Same arrangement of cylinders. 

(7) Same combustion cycle. 

(8) Same method of air aspiration. 

(9) Same fuel type (e.g. diesel/ 

gasoline). 

(10) Same fuel metering system (e.g. 

mechanical direct or electronic direct 

injection). 

(11) Same catalyst/filter construction 

(e.g. metal vs. ceramic substrate). 

(12) All converted engines are subject 

to the most stringent emission 

standards. For example, 2005 and 2007 

heavy-duty diesel engines may be in the 

same family if they meet the most 

stringent (2007) standards. 

(13) Same emission control 

technology (e.g., internal or external 

EGR). 

(B) EPA-established scaled assigned 

deterioration factors for both exhaust 

and evaporative emissions may be used 

for engines with over 10,000 miles if the 

criteria for small volume manufacturer 

or qualified small volume engine 

families are met as defined in 40 CFR 

86.098–14 and 40 CFR 86.096–24(e)(2). 

This deterioration factor will be 

adjusted according to vehicle or engine 

miles of operation. The deterioration 

factor is intended to predict the engine’s 

emission levels at the end of the useful 

life. EPA may adjust these scaled 

assigned deterioration factors if we find 

the rate of deterioration non-constant or 

if the rate differs by fuel type. 

(C) As part of the conversion system 

description provided in the application 

for certification, conversion 

manufacturers using EPA assigned 

deterioration factors must present 

detailed information to confirm the 

durability of all relevant new and 

existing components and to explain why 

the conversion system will not harm the 

emission control system or degrade the 

emissions. 

(ii) Conversion evaporative/refueling 

families are identical to the OEM 

evaporative/refueling families unless 

the OEM evaporative emission system is 

no longer functionally necessary. You 

must create any new evaporative 

families according to 40 CFR 86.096– 

24(a). 

(3) Conversion test groups/engine 

families for small volume conversion 

manufacturers and qualified small 

volume test groups/engine families may 

include vehicles/engines that are subject 

to different OEM emission standards; 

however, all the vehicles/engines 

certified under this subpart in a single 

conversion test group/engine family are 

subject to the most stringent standards 

that apply for vehicles/engines included 

in the conversion test group/engine 

family. For example, if OEM vehicle test 

groups originally certified to Tier 2, Bin 

4 and Bin 5 standards are in the same 

conversion test group for purposes of 

fuel conversion, all the vehicles 

certified in the conversion test group 

under this subpart are subject to the Tier 

2, Bin 4 standards. Conversion 

manufacturers may choose to certify a 

conversion test group/engine family to a 

more stringent standard than the OEM 

did. The optional, more stringent 

standard would then apply to all OEM 

test groups/engine families within the 

conversion test group/engine family. 

This paragraph (b)(3) does not apply to 

conversions to dual-fuel/mixed-fuel 

vehicles/engines, as provided in 

paragraph (b)(7) of this section. 

(4)–(5) [Reserved] 

(6) Durability testing is required 

unless the criteria for small volume 

manufacturer or qualified small volume 

test groups/engine families are met as 

defined in 40 CFR 86.1838–01, 40 CFR 

86.098–14, and 40 CFR 86.096–24(e)(2), 

as applicable. 

(7) Conversion test groups/engine 

families for conversions to dual-fuel or 

mixed-fuel vehicles/engines cannot 

include vehicles/engines subject to 

different emission standards unless 

applicable exhaust and OBD 

demonstrations are also conducted for 

the original fuel(s) demonstrating 

compliance with the most stringent 

standard represented in the test group. 

However for small volume conversion 

manufacturers and qualified small 

volume test groups/engine families the 

data generated from exhaust emission 

testing on the new fuel for dual-fuel or 

mixed-fuel test vehicles/engines may be 

carried over to vehicles/engines which 

otherwise meet the test group/engine 

family criteria and for which the test 

vehicle/engine data demonstrate 

compliance with the application 

vehicle/engine standard. Clean 

alternative fuel conversion evaporative 

families for dual-fuel or mixed-fuel 

vehicles may not include vehicles/ 

engines which were originally certified 

to different evaporative emissions 

standards unless evaporative/refueling 

demonstrations are also conducted for 

the original fuel(s) demonstrating 

compliance with the most stringent 

standard represented in the evaporative/ 

refueling family. 

(8) The vehicle/engine selected for 

testing must qualify as a worst-case 

vehicle/engine under 40 CFR 86.1828– 

10 or 40 CFR 86.096–24(b)(2) through 

(b)(3), as applicable. 

(9) OBD requirements. 

(i) The OBD system must properly 

detect and identify malfunctions in all 

monitored emission-related powertrain 

systems or components including any 

new monitoring capability necessary to 

identify potential emission problems 

associated with the new fuel. 

(ii) Conduct all OBD testing as 

required for OEM certification. 

(iii) In addition to conducting OBD 

testing as required for certification, 

submit the following statement of 

compliance, if the OEM vehicles/ 

engines were required to be OBD 

equipped. The test group/engine family 

converted to an alternative fuel has fully 

functional OBD systems and therefore 

meets the OBD requirements such as 

those specified in 40 CFR 86, subparts 


emcdonald on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with RULES2
Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 68 / Friday, April 8, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 19869 

A and S when operating on the 

alternative fuel. 

(10) In lieu of specific certification 

test data, you may submit the following 

attestations for the appropriate 

statements of compliance, if you have 

sufficient basis to prove the statement is 

valid. 

(i) The test group/engine family 

converted to an alternative fuel has 

properly exercised the optional and 

applicable statements of compliance or 

waivers in the certification regulations 

such as those specified in 40 CFR part 

86, subparts A, B, and S and 40 CFR 

part 1065. Attest to each statement or 

waiver in your application for 

certification. 

(ii) The test group/engine family 

converted to dual-fuel or mixed-fuel 

operation retains all the OEM fuel 

system, engine calibration, and emission 

control system functionality when 

operating on the fuel with which the 

vehicle/engine was originally certified. 

(iii) The test group/engine family 

converted to dual fuel or mixed-fuel 

operation retains all the functionality of 

the OEM OBD system (if so equipped) 

when operating on the fuel with which 

the vehicle/engine was originally 

certified. 

(iv) The test group/engine family 

converted to dual-fuel or mixed-fuel 

operation properly purges hydrocarbon 

vapor from the evaporative emission 

canister when the vehicle/engine is 

operating on the alternative fuel. 

(11) Certification fees apply per 40 

CFR 1027. 

(12) A certificate issued under this 

section is valid starting with the 

indicated effective date and expires on 

December 31 of the conversion model 

year for which it is issued. You may 

apply for a certificate of conformity for 

the next conversion model year using 

the applicable provisions for carryover 

certification. Even after the certificate 

expires, your exemption from the 

prohibition on tampering remains valid 

for the applicable conversion test group/ 

engine family and/or evaporative/ 

refueling family, as long as the 

conditions under which the certificate 

was issued remain unchanged, such as 

small volume manufacturer or qualified 

small volume test group/engine family 

status. Your exemption from tampering 

is valid only if the conversion is 

installed on the OEM test groups/engine 

families and/or evaporative emissions/ 

refueling families listed on the 

certificate. For example, if you have 

received a clean alternative fuel 

conversion certificate of conformity in 

conversion model year 2011 for 

converting a 2010 model year OEM test 

group/evaporative/refueling family, 

your exemption from tampering 

continues to apply for the conversion of 

the same 2010 model year OEM test 

group/evaporative/refueling family as 

long as the conditions under which the 

certificate was issued remain 

unchanged, such as small volume 

manufacturer status. 

(13) Conversion systems must be 

properly installed and adjusted such 

that the vehicle/engine operates 

consistent with the principles of good 

engineering judgment and in accordance 

with all applicable regulations. 

§ 85.515 Exemption provisions for 

intermediate age vehicles/engines. 

(a) You are exempted from the 

tampering prohibition with respect to 

intermediate age vehicles/engines if you 

properly test, document and notify EPA 

that the conversion system complies 

with the emission standards specified in 

§ 85.525 as described in paragraph (b) of 

this section; you meet the labeling 

requirements in § 85.530 before you sell, 

import or otherwise facilitate the use of 

a clean alternative fuel conversion 

system; and you meet the liability, 

recordkeeping, and end of year 

reporting requirements in § 85.535. You 

may also meet the requirements under 

this section by complying with the 

requirements in § 85.510. 

(b) Documenting and notifying EPA 

under this section includes 

demonstrating compliance with all the 

provisions in this section and providing 

all notification information to EPA. You 

may notify us as described in this 

section instead of certifying the clean 

alternative fuel conversion system. You 

must demonstrate compliance with all 

exhaust and evaporative emissions 

standards by conducting all exhaust and 

evaporative emissions and durability 

testing as required for OEM certification 

subject to the exceptions and special 

provisions permitted in § 85.510. This 

paragraph (b) provides additional 

special provisions applicable to 

intermediate age vehicles/engines. 

Paragraph (b) is applicable to all 

conversion manufacturers unless 

otherwise specified. 

(1) Conversion test groups for lightduty and heavy-duty chassis certified 

vehicles may be grouped together into 

an exhaust conversion test group using 

the criteria described in 

§ 85.510(b)(1)(i)(A), except that the same 

OBD group is not a criterion. 

Evaporative/refueling families may be 

grouped together using the criteria 

described in § 85.510(b)(1)(ii). 

(2) Conversion engine families for 

heavy-duty engines may be grouped 

together into an exhaust conversion 

engine family using the criteria 

described in § 85.510(b)(2)(i)(A), except 

that the same OBD group is not a 

criterion. Evaporative/refueling families 

may be grouped together using the 

criteria described in § 85.510(b)(2)(ii). 

(3) Conversion test groups/engine 

families may include vehicles/engines 

that are subject to different OEM 

emission standards; however, all 

vehicles/engines in a single conversion 

test group/engine family are subject to 

the most stringent standards that apply 

for vehicles/engines included in the 

conversion test group/engine family. For 

example, if OEM vehicle test groups 

originally certified to Tier 2, Bin 4 and 

Bin 5 standards are in the same 

conversion test group for purposes of 

fuel conversion, all the vehicles in the 

conversion test group under this subpart 

are subject to the Tier 2, Bin 4 

standards. This paragraph (b)(3) does 

not apply to conversions to dual-fuel/ 

mixed-fuel vehicles/engines, as 

provided in paragraph (b)(7). 

(4) EPA-established scaled assigned 

deterioration factors for both exhaust 

and evaporative emissions may be used 

for vehicles/engines with over 10,000 

miles if the criteria for small volume 

manufacturer or qualified small volume 

test groups/engine families are met as 

defined in 40 CFR 86.1838–01, 40 CFR 

86.098–14, or 40 CFR 86.096–24(e)(2), 

as appropriate. This deterioration factor 

will be adjusted according to vehicle/ 

engine miles or hours of operation. The 

deterioration factor is intended to 

predict the vehicle/engine’s emission 

level at the end of the useful life. EPA 

may adjust these scaled assigned 

deterioration factors if we find the rate 

of deterioration non-constant or if the 

rate differs by fuel type. 

(5) As part of the conversion system 

description required by paragraph 

(b)(10)(i) of this section, small volume 

conversion manufacturers and qualified 

small volume test groups/engine 

families using EPA assigned 

deterioration factors must present 

detailed information to confirm the 

durability of all relevant new and 

existing components and explain why 

the conversion system will not harm the 

emission control system or degrade the 

emissions. 

(6) Durability testing is required 

unless the criteria for small volume 

manufacturer or qualified small volume 

test groups/engine families are met as 

defined in 40 CFR 86.1838–01, 40 CFR 

86.098–14, or 40 CFR 86.096–24(e)(2), 

as applicable. Durability procedures for 

large volume conversion manufacturers 

of intermediate age light-duty and 

heavy-duty chassis certified vehicles 

that follow provisions in 40 CFR 

86.1820–01 may eliminate precious 


emcdonald on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with RULES2
19870 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 68 / Friday, April 8, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 

metal composition and catalyst 

grouping statistic when creating clean 

alternative fuel conversion durability 

groupings. 

(7) Conversion test groups/engine 

families for conversions to dual-fuel or 

mixed-fuel vehicles/engines may not 

include vehicles/engines subject to 

different emissions standards unless 

applicable exhaust and OBD 

demonstrations are also conducted for 

the original fuel(s) demonstrating 

compliance with the most stringent 

standard represented in the test group/ 

engine family. However the data 

generated from testing on the new fuel 

for dual-fuel or mixed/fuel test vehicles/ 

engines may be carried over to vehicles/ 

engines that otherwise meet the 

conversion test group/engine family 

criteria and for which the test vehicle/ 

engine data demonstrate compliance 

with the applicable vehicle/engine 

standards. Clean alternative fuel 

conversion evaporative families for 

dual-fuel or mixed-fuel vehicles/engines 

cannot include vehicles/engines that 

were originally certified to different 

evaporative emissions standards unless 

evaporative/refueling demonstrations 

are also conducted for the original 

fuel(s) demonstrating compliance with 

the most stringent standard represented 

in the evaporative/refueling family. 

(8) You must conduct all exhaust and 

all evaporative and refueling emissions 

testing with a worst-case vehicle/engine 

to show that the conversion test group/ 

engine family complies with exhaust 

and evaporative/refueling emission 

standards, based on the certification 

procedures such as those specified in 40 

CFR part 86, subparts A, B, and S and 

40 CFR part 1065. 

(9) OBD requirements. (i) The OBD 

system must properly detect and 

identify malfunctions in all monitored 

emission-related powertrain systems or 

components including any new 

monitoring capability necessary to 

identify potential emission problems 

associated with the new fuel. These 

include but are not limited to: Fuel trim 

lean and rich monitors, catalyst 

deterioration monitors, engine misfire 

monitors, oxygen sensor deterioration 

monitors, EGR system monitors, if 

applicable, and vapor leak monitors, if 

applicable. No original OBD system 

monitor that is still applicable to the 

vehicle/engine may be aliased, removed, 

bypassed, or turned-off. No MILs shall 

be illuminated after the conversion. 

Readiness flags must be properly set for 

all monitors that identify any 

malfunction for all monitored 

components. 

(ii) Subsequent to the vehicle/engine 

fuel conversion, you must clear all OBD 

codes and reset all OBD monitors to notready status using an OBD scan tool 

appropriate for the OBD system in the 

vehicle/engine in question. You must 

operate the vehicle/engine with the new 

fuel on representative road operation or 

chassis dynamometer/engine 

dynamometer testing cycles to satisfy 

the monitors’ enabling criteria. When all 

monitors have reset to a ready status, 

you must submit an OBD scan tool 

report showing that with the vehicle/ 

engine operating in the key-on/engineon mode, all supported monitors have 

reset to a ready status and no emission 

related ‘‘pending’’ (or potential) or 

‘‘confirmed’’ (or MIL-on) diagnostic 

trouble codes (DTCs) have been set. The 

MIL must not be commanded ‘‘On’’ or be 

illuminated. A MIL check must also be 

conducted in a key-on/engine-off mode 

to verify that the MIL is functioning 

properly. You must include the VIN/EIN 

number of the test vehicle/engine. If 

necessary, the OEM evaporative 

emission readiness monitor may remain 

unset for dedicated gaseous fuel 

conversion systems. 

(iii) In addition to conducting OBD 

testing described in this paragraph 

(b)(9), you must submit to EPA the 

following statement of compliance, if 

the OEM vehicles/engines were required 

to be OBD equipped. The test group/ 

engine family converted to an 

alternative fuel has fully functional OBD 

systems and therefore meets the OBD 

requirements such as those specified in 

40 CFR 86, subparts A and S when 

operating on the alternative fuel. 

(10) You must notify us by electronic 

submission in a format specified by the 

Administrator with all required 

documentation. The following must be 

submitted: 

(i) You must describe how your 

conversion system qualifies as a clean 

alternative fuel conversion. You must 

include emission test results from the 

required exhaust, evaporative 

emissions, and OBD testing, applicable 

exhaust and evaporative emissions 

standards and deterioration factors. You 

must also include a description of how 

the test vehicle/engine selected qualifies 

as a worst-case vehicle/engine under 40 

CFR 86.1828–10 or 40 CFR 86.096– 

24(b)(2) through (b)(3) as applicable. 

(ii) You must describe the group of 

vehicles/engines (conversion test group/ 

conversion engine family) that are 

covered by your notification based on 

the criteria specified in paragraph (b)(1) 

or (b)(2) of this section. 

(iii) In lieu of specific test data, you 

may submit the following attestations 

for the appropriate statements of 

compliance, if you have sufficient basis 

to prove the statement is valid. 

(A) The test group/engine family 

converted to an alternative fuel has 

properly exercised the optional and 

applicable statements of compliance or 

waivers in the certification regulations 

such as those specified in 40 CFR part 

86, subparts A, B, and S and 40 CFR 

part 1065. Attest to each statement or 

waiver in your notification. 

(B) The test group/engine family 

converted to dual-fuel or mixed-fuel 

operation retains all the OEM fuel 

system, engine calibration, and emission 

control system functionality when 

operating on the fuel with which the 

vehicle/engine was originally certified. 

(C) The test group/engine family 

converted to dual-fuel or mixed-fuel 

operation retains all the functionality of 

the OEM OBD system (if the OEM 

vehicles/engines were required to be 

OBD equipped) when operating on the 

fuel for which the vehicle/engine was 

originally certified. 

(D) The test group/engine family 

converted to dual-fuel or mixed-fuel 

operation properly purges hydrocarbon 

vapor from the evaporative emission 

canister when the vehicle/engine is 

operating on the alternative fuel. 

(iv) Include any other information as 

the Administrator may deem 

appropriate to establish that the 

conversion system is for the purpose of 

conversion to a clean alternative fuel 

and meets applicable emission 

standards. 

(11) [Reserved] 

(12) Your exemption from the 

prohibition on tampering remains valid 

for the applicable conversion test group/ 

engine family and/or evaporative/ 

refueling family, as long as the 

conditions under which you previously 

complied remain unchanged, such as 

small volume manufacturer or qualified 

small volume test group/engine family 

status. Your exemption from tampering 

is valid only if the conversion is 

installed on the OEM test groups/engine 

families and/or evaporative emissions/ 

refueling families listed on the 

notification. For example, if you have 

complied properly with the provisions 

in this section in calendar year 2011 for 

converting a model year 2006 OEM test 

group/evaporative/refueling family, 

your exemption from tampering 

continues to apply for the conversion of 

the same model year 2006 OEM test 

group/evaporative/refueling family as 

long as the conditions under which the 

notification was submitted remain 

unchanged. 

(13) Conversion systems must be 

properly installed and adjusted such 

that the vehicle/engine operates 

consistent with the principles of good 


emcdonald on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with RULES2
Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 68 / Friday, April 8, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 19871 

engineering judgment and in accordance 

with all applicable regulations. 

§ 85.520 Exemption provisions for outside 

useful life vehicles/engines. 

(a) You are exempted from the 

tampering prohibition with respect to 

outside useful life vehicles/engines if 

you properly document and notify EPA 

that the conversion system satisfies all 

the provisions in this section; you meet 

the labeling requirements in § 85.530 

before you sell, import or otherwise 

facilitate the use of a clean alternative 

fuel conversion system; and you meet 

the applicable requirements in § 85.535. 

You may also meet the requirements 

under this section by complying with 

the provisions in § 85.515. 

(b) Documenting and notifying EPA 

under this section includes the 

following provisions: 

(1) You must notify us as described in 

this section. 

(2) Conversion test groups, 

evaporative/refueling families, and 

conversion engine families may be the 

same as those allowed for the 

intermediate age vehicle/engine 

program in § 85.515(b)(1) and (2). 

(3) You must use good engineering 

judgment to specify, use, and assemble 

fuel system components and other 

hardware and software that are properly 

designed and matched for the vehicles/ 

engines in which they will be installed. 

Good engineering judgment also dictates 

that any testing or data used to satisfy 

demonstration requirements be 

generated at a quality laboratory that 

follows good laboratory practices and 

that is capable of performing official 

EPA emission tests. 

(4) OBD requirements. (i) The OBD 

system must properly detect and 

identify malfunctions in all monitored 

emission-related powertrain systems or 

components including any new 

monitoring capability necessary to 

identify potential emission problems 

associated with the new fuel. These 

include but are not limited to: Fuel trim 

lean and rich monitors, catalyst 

deterioration monitors, engine misfire 

monitors, oxygen sensor deterioration 

monitors, EGR system monitors, if 

applicable, and vapor leak monitors, if 

applicable. No original OBD system 

monitor that is still applicable to the 

vehicle/engine may be aliased, removed, 

bypassed, or turned-off. No MILs shall 

be illuminated after the conversion. 

Readiness flags must be properly set for 

all monitors that identify any 

malfunction for all monitored 

components. 

(ii) Subsequent to the vehicle/engine 

fuel conversion, you must clear all OBD 

codes and reset all OBD monitors to notready status using an OBD scan tool 

appropriate for the OBD system in the 

vehicle/engine in question. You must 

operate the vehicle/engine with the new 

fuel on representative road operation or 

chassis dynamometer/engine 

dynamometer testing cycles to satisfy 

the monitors’ enabling criteria. When all 

monitors have reset to a ready status, 

you must submit an OBD scan tool 

report showing that with the vehicle/ 

engine operating in the key-on/engineon mode, all supported monitors have 

reset to a ready status and no emission 

related ‘‘pending’’ (or potential) or 

‘‘confirmed’’ (or MIL-on) diagnostic 

trouble codes (DTCs) have been stored. 

The MIL must not be commanded ‘‘On’’ 

or be illuminated. A MIL check must 

also be conducted in a key-on/engine-off 

mode to verify that the MIL is 

functioning properly. You must include 

the VIN/EIN number of the test vehicle/ 

engine. If necessary, the OEM 

evaporative emission readiness monitor 

may remain unset for dedicated gaseous 

fuel conversion systems. 

(iii) In addition to conducting OBD 

testing described in this paragraph 

(b)(4), you must submit to EPA the 

following statement of compliance, if 

the OEM vehicles/engines were required 

to be OBD equipped. The test group/ 

engine family converted to an 

alternative fuel has fully functional OBD 

systems and therefore meets the OBD 

requirements such as those specified in 

40 CFR 86, subparts A and S when 

operating on the alternative fuel. 

(5) Conversion test groups/engine 

families for conversions to dual-fuel or 

mixed-fuel vehicles/engines may not 

include vehicles/engines subject to 

different emissions standards unless 

applicable exhaust and OBD 

demonstrations are also conducted for 

the original fuel(s) demonstrating 

compliance with the most stringent 

standard represented in the test group. 

However the data generated from testing 

on the new fuel for dual-fuel or mixedfuel test vehicles/engines may be carried 

over to vehicles/engines that otherwise 

meet the conversion test group/engine 

family criteria and for which the test 

vehicle/engine data demonstrate 

compliance with the applicable vehicle/ 

engine standards. Clean alternative fuel 

conversion evaporative families for 

dual-fuel or mixed-fuel vehicles/engines 

cannot include vehicles/engines that 

were originally certified to different 

evaporative emissions standards. 

(6) You must notify us by electronic 

submission in a format specified by the 

Administrator with all required 

documentation. The following must be 

submitted. 

(i) You must describe how your 

conversion system complies with the 

good engineering judgment criteria in 

§ 85.520(b)(3) and/or other requirements 

under this subpart or other applicable 

subparts such that the conversion 

system qualifies as a clean alternative 

fuel conversion. The submission must 

provide a level of technical detail 

sufficient for EPA to confirm the 

conversion system’s ability to maintain 

or improve on emission levels in a worst 

case vehicle/engine. The submission of 

technical information must include a 

complete characterization of exhaust 

and evaporative emissions control 

strategies, the fuel delivery system, 

durability, and specifications related to 

OBD system functionality. You must 

present detailed information to confirm 

the durability of all relevant new and 

existing components and to explain why 

the conversion system will not harm the 

emission control system or degrade the 

emissions. EPA may ask you to supply 

additional information, including test 

data, to support the claim that the 

conversion system does not increase 

emissions and involves good 

engineering judgment that is being 

applied for purposes of conversion to a 

clean alternative fuel. 

(ii) You must describe the group of 

vehicles/engines (conversion test group/ 

conversion engine family) that is 

covered by your notification based on 

the criteria specified in paragraph (b)(2) 

of this section. 

(iii) In lieu of specific test data, you 

may submit the following attestations 

for the appropriate statements of 

compliance, if you have sufficient basis 

to prove the statement is valid. 

(A) The test group/engine family 

converted to an alternative fuel has 

properly exercised the optional and 

applicable statements of compliance or 

waivers in the certification regulations 

such as those specified in 40 CFR part 

86, subparts A, B, and S and 40 CFR 

part 1065. Attest to each statement or 

waiver in your notification. 

(B) The test group/engine family 

converted to dual-fuel or mixed-fuel 

operation retains all the OEM fuel 

system, engine calibration, and emission 

control system functionality when 

operating on the fuel with which the 

vehicle/engine was originally certified. 

(C) The test group/engine family 

converted to dual-fuel or mixed-fuel 

operation retains all the functionality of 

the OEM OBD system (if the OEM 

vehicles/engines were required to be 

OBD equipped) when operating on the 

fuel with which the vehicle/engine was 

originally certified. 

(D) The test group/engine family 

converted to dual-fuel or mixed-fuel 


emcdonald on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with RULES2
19872 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 68 / Friday, April 8, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 

operation properly purges hydrocarbon 

vapor from the evaporative emission 

canister when the vehicle/engine is 

operating on the alternative fuel. 

(E) The test group/engine family 

converted to an alternative fuel uses 

fueling systems, evaporative emission 

control systems, and engine powertrain 

components that are compatible with 

the alternative fuel and designed with 

the principles of good engineering 

judgment. 

(iv) You must include any other 

information as the Administrator may 

deem appropriate, which may include 

test data, to establish the conversion 

system is for the purpose of conversion 

to a clean alternative fuel. 

(7) Conversion systems must be 

properly installed and adjusted such 

that the vehicle/engine operates 

consistent with the principles of good 

engineering judgment and in accordance 

with all applicable regulations. 

(8) EPA may ask for any 

documentation and/or ask you to 

conduct emission testing to demonstrate 

the conversion is for the purpose of a 

clean alternative fuel. 

§ 85.524 Legacy standards. 

Prior to April 8, 2011, the following 

emission standards applied for 

conversions of vehicles/engines with an 

original model year of 1992 or earlier: 

(a) Exhaust hydrocarbons. Light-duty 

vehicles must meet the Tier 0 

hydrocarbon standard specified in 40 

CFR 86.094–8. Light-duty trucks must 

meet the Tier 0 hydrocarbon standard 

specified in 40 CFR 86.094–9. Ottocycle heavy-duty engines must meet the 

hydrocarbon standard specified in 40 

CFR 86.096–10. Diesel heavy-duty 

engines must meet the hydrocarbon 

standard in 40 CFR 86.096–11. 

(b) CO, NOX and particulate matter. 

Vehicles/engines must meet the CO, 

NOX, and particulate matter emission 

standards that applied for the vehicle’s/ 

engine’s original model year. If the 

engine was certified with a Family 

Emission Limit, as noted on the 

emission control information label, the 

modified engine may not exceed this 

Family Emission Limit. 

(c) Evaporative hydrocarbons. 

Vehicles/engines must meet the 

evaporative hydrocarbon emission 

standards that applied for the vehicle’s/ 

engine’s original model year. 

§ 85.525 Applicable standards. 

To qualify for an exemption from the 

tampering prohibition, vehicles/engines 

that have been converted to operate on 

a different fuel must meet emission 

standards and related requirements as 

follows: 

(a) The modified vehicle/engine must 

meet the requirements that applied for 

the OEM vehicle/engine, or the most 

stringent OEM vehicle/engine standards 

in any allowable grouping. Fleet average 

standards do not apply unless clean 

alternative fuel conversions are 

specifically listed as subject to the 

standards. 

(1) If the vehicle/engine was certified 

with a Family Emission Limit for NOX, 

NOX+HC, or particulate matter, as noted 

on the vehicle/engine emission control 

information label, the modified vehicle/ 

engine may not exceed this Family 

Emission Limit. 

(2) Compliance with light-duty 

vehicle greenhouse gas emission 

standards is demonstrated by complying 

with the N2O and CH4 standards and 

provisions set forth in 40 CFR 86.1818– 

12(f)(1) and the in-use CO2 exhaust 

emission standard set forth in 40 CFR 

86.1818–12(d) as determined by the 

OEM for the subconfiguration that is 

identical to the fuel conversion 

emission data vehicle (EDV). If the OEM 

complied with the light-duty 

greenhouse gas standards using the fleet 

averaging option for nitrous oxide (N2O) 

and methane (CH4), as allowed under 40 

CFR 86.1818–12(f)(2), the calculations 

of the carbon-related exhaust emissions 

require the input of grams/mile values 

for N2O and CH4. Compliance with N2O 

and CH4 exhaust emission standards 

may be optionally demonstrated by 

following the same procedures set forth 

in 40 CFR 86.1818–12(f)(2), except that 

the carbon-related exhaust emission 

value determined for the fuel 

conversion EDV must comply with the 

in-use CO2 exhaust emission standard 

set forth in 40 CFR 86.1818–12(d) and 

determined by the OEM for the 

subconfiguration that is identical to the 

fuel conversion EDV. 

(3) Conversion systems for engines 

that would have qualified for chassis 

certification at the time of OEM 

certification may use those procedures, 

even if the OEM did not. Conversion 

manufacturers choosing this option 

must designate test groups using the 

appropriate criteria as described in this 

subpart and meet all vehicle chassis 

certification requirements set forth in 40 

CFR part 86, subpart S. 

(b) [Reserved] 

§ 85.530 Vehicle/engine labels and 

packaging labels. 

(a) The following labeling 

requirements apply for clean alternative 

fuel conversion manufacturers to qualify 

for an exemption from the tampering 

prohibition: 

(1) You must make a supplemental 

emission control information label for 

each clean alternative fuel conversion 

system. 

(2) On the supplemental label you 

must identify the OEM vehicles/engines 

for which you authorize the use of your 

clean alternative fuel conversion 

system, consistent with the 

requirements of this subpart. You may 

do this by identifying the OEM test 

group/engine family names and original 

model year to which your conversion is 

applicable as described in § 85.510(b)(1) 

or § 85.510(b)(2), § 85.515(b)(10)(ii), or 

§ 85.520(b)(6)(ii). Your commercial 

packaging materials must also clearly 

describe this information. 

(3) You must include the following on 

the supplemental label: 

(i) You must state that the vehicle/ 

engine has been equipped with a clean 

alternative fuel conversion system 

designed to allow it to operate on a fuel 

other than the fuel it was originally 

certified to operate on. Identify the fuel 

or fuels the vehicle/engine is designed 

to use and provide a unique conversion 

test group/conversion engine family 

name and conversion evaporative/ 

refueling emissions family name. 

(ii) You must identify your corporate 

name, address, and telephone number. 

(iii) You must include one of the 

following statements that describes how 

you comply under this subpart and any 

applicable mileage or age restrictions 

due to how compliance was 

demonstrated: 

(A) ‘‘This clean alternative fuel 

conversion system has been certified to 

meet EPA emission standards.’’ 

(B) ‘‘Testing has shown that this clean 

alternative fuel conversion system meets 

EPA emission standards under the 

intermediate age vehicle/engine 

program.’’ 

(C) ‘‘This conversion system is for the 

purpose of use of a clean alternative fuel 

in accordance with EPA regulations and 

is applicable only to vehicles/engines 

that are older than 11 years or 120,000 

miles.’’ (Values must be adjusted to 

reflect OEM useful life; useful life in 

hours should be added, if applicable). 

(iv) State the following: ‘‘This 

conversion was manufactured and 

installed consistent with the principles 

of good engineering judgment and all 

U.S. EPA regulations.’’ 

(4) On the supplemental label, you 

must identify any original parts that will 

be removed for the conversion and any 

associated changes in maintenance 

specifications. 

(5) On the supplemental label, you 

must include the date of conversion and 

the mileage of the vehicle/engine at the 

time of conversion. Include the hours of 

operation instead of mileage, if 

applicable. 


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Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 68 / Friday, April 8, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 19873 

(b) The supplemental emission 

control information label shall be placed 

in a permanent manner adjacent to the 

vehicle’s/engine’s original emission 

control information label if possible. If 

it is impractical to place the 

supplemental label adjacent to the 

original label, it must be placed where 

it will be seen by a person viewing the 

original label on a part that is needed for 

normal operation and does not normally 

need replacement. If the supplemental 

label information cannot fit on one 

label, the information can be logically 

split among two labels that are both near 

the original VECI or engine label. 

(c) All information provided on clean 

alternative fuel conversion system 

packaging must be consistent with the 

required vehicle/engine labeling 

information. 

(d) Examples of all labeling and 

warranty information must be provided 

as part of the application for 

certification or notification process. 

(e) The marketing material and label 

information for a given conversion 

system must be consistent with the 

conversion manufacturer’s 

demonstration/notification to EPA for 

that system. 

§ 85.535 Liability, recordkeeping, and end 

of year reporting. 

(a) Clean alternative fuel conversion 

manufacturers are liable for in-use 

performance of their conversion systems 

as outlined in this part. 

(b) We may conduct or require testing 

on any vehicles/engines as allowed 

under the Clean Air Act. This may 

involve confirmatory testing, in-use 

testing, and/or selective enforcement 

audits for clean alternative fuel 

conversion systems. Dual-fuel vehicles/ 

engines may be tested when operating 

on any of the fuels. Mixed-fuel vehicles/ 

engines may be tested on any fuel blend 

ratio that is expected to occur during 

normal operation. 

(c) Except for an application for 

certification, your actions to document 

compliance and notify us under this 

subpart are not a request for our 

approval. We generally do not give any 

formal approval short of issuing a 

certificate of conformity. However, if we 

learn that your actions fall short of full 

compliance with applicable 

requirements we may notify you that 

you have not met applicable 

requirements or that we need more 

information to make that determination. 

The exemption from the tampering 

prohibition may be void ab initio if the 

conversion manufacturer has not 

satisfied all of the applicable provisions 

of this subpart even if a submission to 

EPA has been made and the conversion 

system appears on EPA’s publicly 

available list of compliant systems. 

(d) Clean alternative fuel conversion 

manufacturers must accept in-use 

liability for warranty, are subject to 

defect reporting requirements, and may 

be required to recall any parts or 

systems for which the failure can be 

traced to the conversion, regardless of 

whether installation was proper or 

improper. The OEM shall remain liable 

for the performance of any parts or 

systems which retain their original 

function following conversion and are 

unaffected by the conversion. 

(e) Clean alternative fuel conversion 

manufacturers must keep sufficient 

records for five years from the date of 

notification or certification, or the date 

of the last conversion installation, 

whichever is later, to show that they 

meet applicable requirements. 

(f) Clean alternative fuel conversion 

manufacturers must submit an end of 

the year sales report to EPA describing 

the number of clean alternative fuel 

conversions by fuel type(s) and vehicle 

test group/engine family by January 31 

of the following year. The number of 

conversions is the sum of the calendar 

year intermediate age conversions, 

outside useful life conversions, and the 

same conversion model year certified 

clean alternative fuel conversions. The 

number of conversions will be added to 

any other vehicle and engine sales 

accounted for using 40 CFR 86.1838–01 

or 40 CFR 86.098–14 as appropriate to 

determine small volume manufacturer 

or qualified small volume test group/ 

engine family status. 

(g) Conversion manufacturers who 

market conversion systems for use on 

vehicles/engines other than the test 

group/engine families and evaporative/ 

refueling families covered by the 

compliance demonstration and 

notification may be liable for a 

tampering violation for each vehicle/ 

engine to which conversion system is 

misapplied. 

PART 86—CONTROL OF EMISSIONS 

FROM NEW AND IN-USE HIGHWAY 

VEHICLES AND ENGINES 

■ 3. The authority citation for 40 CFR 

part 86 continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 42 U.S.C. 7401–7671q. 

Subpart S—[Amended] 

■ 4. Section 86.1801–01 is amended by 

revising paragraph (b) and paragraphs 

(c)(4) and (c)(5) to read as follows: 

§ 86.1801–01 Applicability. 

* * * * * 

(b) Clean alternative fuel conversions. 

The provisions of the subpart apply to 

clean alternative fuel conversions as 

defined in 40 CFR 85.502, of all model 

year light-duty vehicles, light-duty 

trucks, medium duty passenger 

vehicles, and complete Otto-cycle 

heavy-duty vehicles. 

(c) * * * 

(4) Upon preapproval by the 

Administrator, a manufacturer may 

optionally certify a clean alternative fuel 

conversion of a complete heavy-duty 

vehicle greater than 10,000 pounds 

Gross Vehicle Weight Rating and of 

14,000 pounds Gross Vehicle Weight 

Rating or less under the heavy-duty 

engine or heavy-duty vehicle provisions 

of subpart A of this part. Such 

preapproval will be granted only upon 

demonstration that chassis-based 

certification would be infeasible or 

unreasonable for the manufacturer to 

perform. 

(5) A manufacturer may optionally 

certify a clean alternative fuel 

conversion of a complete heavy-duty 

vehicle greater than 10,000 pounds 

Gross Vehicle Weight Rating and of 

14,000 pounds Gross Vehicle Weight 

Rating or less under the heavy-duty 

engine or heavy-duty vehicle provisions 

of subpart A of this part without 

advance approval from the 

Administrator if the vehicle was 

originally certified to the heavy-duty 

engine or heavy-duty vehicle provisions 

of subpart A of this part. 

* * * * * 

■ 5. Section 86.1801–12 is amended by 

revising paragraph (b) and paragraphs 

(c)(4) and (c)(5) to read as follows: 

§ 86.1801–12 Applicability. 

* * * * * 

(b) Clean alternative fuel conversions. 

The provisions of the subpart apply to 

clean alternative fuel conversions as 

defined in 40 CFR 85.502, of all model 

year light-duty vehicles, light-duty 

trucks, medium duty passenger 

vehicles, and complete Otto-cycle 

heavy-duty vehicles. 

(c) * * * 

(4) Upon preapproval by the 

Administrator, a manufacturer may 

optionally certify a clean alternative fuel 

conversion of a complete heavy-duty 

vehicle greater than 10,000 pounds 

Gross Vehicle Weight Rating and of 

14,000 pounds Gross Vehicle Weight 

Rating or less under the heavy-duty 

engine or heavy-duty vehicle provisions 

of subpart A of this part. Such 

preapproval will be granted only upon 

demonstration that chassis-based 

certification would be infeasible or 

unreasonable for the manufacturer to 

perform. 

(5) A manufacturer may optionally 

certify a clean alternative fuel 


emcdonald on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with RULES2
19874 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 68 / Friday, April 8, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 

conversion of a complete heavy-duty 

vehicle greater than 10,000 pounds 

Gross Vehicle Weight Rating and of 

14,000 pounds Gross Vehicle Weight 

Rating or less under the heavy-duty 

engine or heavy-duty vehicle provisions 

of subpart A of this part without 

advance approval from the 

Administrator if the vehicle was 

originally certified to the heavy-duty 

engine or heavy-duty vehicle provisions 

of subpart A of this part. 

* * * * * 

■ 6. Section 86.1810–01 is amended by 

revising paragraph (p) to read as 

follows: 

§ 86.1810–01 General standards; increase 

in emissions; unsafe conditions; waivers. 

* * * * * 

(p) For Tier 2 and interim non-Tier 2 

vehicles fueled by gasoline, diesel, 

natural gas, liquefied petroleum gas, or 

hydrogen, manufacturers may measure 

non-methane hydrocarbons (NMHC) in 

lieu of NMOG. Manufacturers must 

multiply NMHC measurements from 

gasoline vehicles by an adjustment 

factor of 1.04 before comparing with the 

NMOG standard to determine 

compliance with that standard. For 

vehicles fuel by natural gas, liquefied 

petroleum gas, hydrogen manufacturers 

must propose an adjustment factor to 

adjust NMHC results to properly 

represent NMOG results. Such factors 

must be based upon comparative testing 

of NMOG and NMHC emissions and be 

approved in advance by the 

Administrator. 

■ 7. Section 86.1818–12 is amended by 

revising paragraph (a) to read as follows: 

§ 86.1818–12 Greenhouse gas emission 

standards for light-duty vehicles, light-duty 

trucks, and medium-duty passenger 

vehicles. 

(a) Applicability. This section 

contains standards and other regulations 

applicable to the emission of the air 

pollutant defined as the aggregate group 

of six greenhouse gases: Carbon dioxide, 

nitrous oxide, methane, 

hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons, 

and sulfur hexafluoride. This section 

applies to 2012 and later model year 

LDVs, LDTs and MDPVs, including 

multi-fuel vehicles, vehicles fueled with 

alternative fuels, hybrid electric 

vehicles, plug-in hybrid electric 

vehicles, electric vehicles, and fuel cell 

vehicles. Unless otherwise specified, 

multi-fuel vehicles must comply with 

all requirements established for each 

consumed fuel. The provisions of this 

section, except paragraph (c), also apply 

to clean alternative fuel conversions as 

defined in 40 CFR 85.502, of all model 

year light-duty vehicles, light-duty 

trucks, and medium-duty passenger 

vehicles. Manufacturers that qualify as a 

small business according to the 

requirements of § 86.1801–12(j) are 

exempt from the emission standards in 

this section. Manufacturers that have 

submitted a declaration for a model year 

according to the requirements of 

§ 86.1801–12(k) for which approval has 

been granted by the Administrator are 

conditionally exempt from the emission 

standards in paragraphs (c) through (e) 

of this section for the approved model 

year. 

* * * * * 

■ 8. Section 86.1829–01 is amended by 

revising paragraphs (b)(1)(iii)(E) and (F), 

and (b)(2)(i) to read as follows: 

§ 86.1829–01 Durability and emission 

testing requirements; waivers. 

* * * * * 

(b) * * * 

(1) * * * 

(iii) * * * 

(E) In lieu of testing a gasoline, diesel, 

natural gas, liquefied petroleum gas, or 

hydrogen fueled Tier 2 or interim nonTier 2 vehicle for formaldehyde 

emissions when such vehicles are 

certified based upon NMHC emissions, 

a manufacturer may provide a statement 

in its application for certification that 

such vehicles comply with the 

applicable standards. Such a statement 

must be based on previous emission 

tests, development tests, or other 

appropriate information. 

(F) In lieu of testing a petroleum-, 

natural gas-, liquefied petroleum gas-, or 

hydrogen-fueled heavy-duty vehicle for 

formaldehyde emissions for 

certification, a manufacturer may 

provide a statement in its application 

for certification that such vehicles 

comply with the applicable standards. 

Such a statement must be based on 

previous emission tests, development 

tests, or other appropriate information. 

(2) * * * 

(i) Testing at low altitude. One EDV in 

each evaporative/refueling family and 

evaporative/refueling emission control 

system combination must be tested in 

accordance with the evaporative/ 

refueling test procedure requirement of 

subpart B of this part. The configuration 

of the EDV will be determined under the 

provisions of § 86.1828–01. The EDV 

must also be tested for exhaust emission 

compliance using the FTP and SFTP 

procedures of subpart B of this part. In 

lieu of testing natural gas, liquefied 

petroleum gas, or hydrogen fueled 

vehicles to demonstrate compliance 

with the evaporative emission standards 

specified in § 86.1811–04(e), a 

manufacturer may provide a statement 

in its application for certification that, 

based on the manufacturer’s engineering 

evaluation of appropriate testing and/or 

design parameters, all light-duty 

vehicles, light-duty trucks, and 

complete heavy-duty vehicles comply 

with applicable emission standards. 

* * * * * 

■ 9. Section 86.1864–10 is amended by 

removing and reserving paragraph (a)(3) 

to read as follows. 

§ 86.1864–10 How to comply with the fleet 

average cold temperature NMHC standards. 

(a) * * * 

(3) [Reserved] 

* * * * * 

■ 10. Section 86.1865–12 is amended by 

removing and reserving paragraph 

(a)(1)(ii) to read as follows. 

§ 86.1865–12 How to comply with the fleet 

average CO2 standards. 

(a) * * * 

(1) * * * 

(ii) [Reserved] 

* * * * * 

[FR Doc. 2011–7910 Filed 4–7–11; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 


emcdonald on DSK2BSOYB1PROD with RULES2