Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 98 / Monday, May 21, 2001 / Notices 28021

and be submitted to: Docket

Management, Room PL–401, 400

Seventh St., SW., Washington, DC

20590. [Docket hours are from 9 am to

5 pm].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

George Entwistle, Office of Vehicle

Safety Compliance, NHTSA (202–366–

5306).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

Under 49 U.S.C. 30141(a)(1)(A), a

motor vehicle that was not originally

manufactured to conform to all

applicable Federal motor vehicle safety

standards shall be refused admission

into the United States unless NHTSA

has decided that the motor vehicle is

substantially similar to a motor vehicle

originally manufactured for importation

into and sale in the United States,

certified under 49 U.S.C. 30115, and of

the same model year as the model of the

motor vehicle to be compared, and is

capable of being readily altered to

conform to all applicable Federal motor

vehicle safety standards.

Petitions for eligibility decisions may

be submitted by either manufacturers or

importers who have registered with

NHTSA pursuant to 49 CFR part 592. As

specified in 49 CFR 593.7, NHTSA

publishes notice in the Federal Register

of each petition that it receives, and

affords interested persons an

opportunity to comment on the petition.

At the close of the comment period,

NHTSA decides, on the basis of the

petition and any comments that it has

received, whether the vehicle is eligible

for importation. The agency then

publishes this decision in the Federal

Register.

J.K. Technologies of Baltimore,

Maryland (‘‘J.K.’’) (Registered Importer

90–006) has petitioned NHTSA to

decide whether 2001 Ferrari 360

Passenger Cars are eligible for

importation into the United States. The

vehicles which J.K. believes are

substantially similar are 2001 Ferrari

360 Passenger Cars that were

manufactured for importation into, and

sale in, the United States and certified

by their manufacturer as conforming to

all applicable Federal motor vehicle

safety standards.

The petitioner claims that it carefully

compared non-U.S. certified 2001

Ferrari 360 passenger cars to their U.S.-

certified counterparts, and found the

vehicles to be substantially similar with

respect to compliance with most Federal

motor vehicle safety standards.

J.K. submitted information with its

petition intended to demonstrate that

non-U.S. certified 2001 Ferrari 360

passenger cars, as originally

manufactured, conform to many Federal

motor vehicle safety standards in the

same manner as their U.S. certified

counterparts, or are capable of being

readily altered to conform to those

standards.

Specifically, the petitioner claims that

non-U.S. certified 2001 Ferrari 360

passenger cars are identical to their U.S.

certified counterparts with respect to

compliance with Standard Nos. 102

Transmission Shift Lever Sequence

***, 103 Defrosting and Defogging

Systems, 104 Windshield Wiping and

Washing Systems, 105 Hydraulic Brake

Systems, 106 Brake Hoses, 109 New

Pneumatic Tires, 113 Hood Latch

Systems, 116 Brake Fluid, 124

Accelerator Control Systems, 201

Occupant Protection in Interior Impact,

202 Head Restraints, 204 Steering

Control Rearward Displacement, 205

Glazing Materials, 206 Door Locks and

Door Retention Components, 207

Seating Systems, 209 Seat Belt

Assemblies, 210 Seat Belt Assembly

Anchorages, 212 Windshield Retention,

214 Side Impact Protection, 216 Roof

Crush Resistance, 219 Windshield Zone

Intrusion, 301 Fuel System Integrity, and

302 Flammability of Interior Materials,

as well as 49 CFR part 581.

Petitioner also contends that the

vehicles are capable of being readily

altered to meet the following standards,

in the manner indicated:

Standard No. 101 Controls and

Displays: (a) Substitution of the word

ABrake’’ for the international ECE

warning symbol on the markings for the

brake failure indicator lamp; (b)

replacement of the speedometer with

one calibrated in miles per hour. The

petitioner states that the entire

instrument cluster will be replaced with

a U.S.-model component.

Standard No. 108 Lamps, Reflective

Devices and Associated Equipment: (a)

Installation of U.S.-model headlamps

and front sidemarker lamps and (b)

installation of U.S.-model taillamp

assemblies which incorporate rear

sidemarker lamps.

Standard No. 110 Tire Selection and

Rims: Installation of a tire information

placard.

Standard No. 111 Rearview Mirror:

Replacement of the passenger side

rearview mirror with a U.S.-model

component.

Standard No. 114 Theft Protection:

Installation of a warning buzzer and a

warning buzzer microswitch in the

steering lock assembly.

Standard No. 118 Power Window

Systems: Installation of a relay in the

power window system so that the

window transport is inoperative when

the ignition is switched off on vehicles

that are not already so equipped.

Standard No. 208 Occupant Crash

Protection: (a) Installation of a seat belt

warning buzzer, wired to the driver’s

seat belt latch; (b) inspection of all

vehicles and replacement of the driver’s

and passenger’s side air bags, knee

bolsters, control units, sensors, and seat

belts with U.S.-model components on

vehicles that are not already so

equipped. The front and rear outboard

designated seating positions have

combination lap and shoulder belts that

are self-tensioning and that release by

means of a single red pushbutton.

The petitioner also states that a

vehicle identification plate must be

affixed to the vehicles near the left

windshield post and a reference and

certification label must be affixed in the

area of the left front door post to meet

the requirements of 49 CFR part 565.

Interested persons are invited to

submit comments on the petition

described above. Comments should refer

to the docket number and be submitted

to: Docket Management, Room PL–401,

400 Seventh St., SW., Washington, DC

20590. (Docket hours are from 9 am to

5 pm). It is requested but not required

that 10 copies be submitted.

All comments received before the

close of business on the closing date

indicated above will be considered, and

will be available for examination in the

docket at the above address both before

and after that date. To the extent

possible, comments filed after the

closing date will also be considered.

Notice of final action on the petition

will be published in the Federal

Register pursuant to the authority

indicated below.

Authority: 49 U.S.C. 30141(a)(1)(A) and

(b)(1); 49 CFR 593.8; delegations of authority

at 49 CFR 1.50 and 501.8.

Issued on: May 15, 2001.

Marilynne Jacobs,

Director, Office of Vehicle Safety Compliance.

[FR Doc. 01–12728 Filed 5–18–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4910–59–P

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

National Highway Traffic Safety

Administration

[Docket No. NHTSA–2000–7523; Notice 2]

Decision That Nonconforming 1997

Chevrolet Blazer Multi-Purpose

Passenger Vehicles Are Eligible for

Importation

AGENCY: National Highway Traffic

Safety Administration (NHTSA), DOT.

28022 Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 98 / Monday, May 21, 2001 / Notices

ACTION: Notice of decision by NHTSA

that nonconforming 1997 Chevrolet

Blazer multi-purpose passenger vehicles

(MPVs) are eligible for importation.

SUMMARY: This notice announces the

decision by NHTSA that 1997 Chevrolet

Blazer MPVs not originally

manufactured to comply with all

applicable Federal motor vehicle safety

standards are eligible for importation

into the United States because they are

substantially similar to vehicles

originally manufactured for sale in the

United States and certified by their

manufacturer as complying with the

safety standards (the U.S. certified

version of the 1997 Chevrolet Blazer),

and they are capable of being readily

altered to conform to the standards.

DATES: This decision is effective May

21, 2001.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

George Entwistle, Office of Vehicle

Safety Compliance, NHTSA (202–366–

5306).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

Under 49 U.S.C. § 30141(a)(1)(A), a

motor vehicle that was not originally

manufactured to conform to all

applicable Federal motor vehicle safety

standards shall be refused admission

into the United States unless NHTSA

has decided that the motor vehicle is

substantially similar to a motor vehicle

originally manufactured for importation

into and sale in the United States,

certified under 49 U.S.C. 30115, and of

the same model year as the model of the

motor vehicle to be compared, and is

capable of being readily altered to

conform to all applicable Federal motor

vehicle safety standards.

Petitions for eligibility decisions may

be submitted by either manufacturers or

importers who have registered with

NHTSA pursuant to 49 CFR part 592. As

specified in 49 CFR 593.7, NHTSA

publishes notice in the Federal Register

of each petition that it receives, and

affords interested persons an

opportunity to comment on the petition.

At the close of the comment period,

NHTSA decides, on the basis of the

petition and any comments that it has

received, whether the vehicle is eligible

for importation. The agency then

publishes this decision in the Federal

Register.

Wallace Environmental Testing

Laboratories, Inc. of Houston, Texas

(’’WETL’’) (Registered Importer 90–005)

petitioned NHTSA to decide whether

1997 Chevrolet Blazer MPVs are eligible

for importation into the United States.

NHTSA published notice of the petition

on July 13, 2000 (65 FR 44851) to afford

an opportunity for public comment. The

reader is referred to that notice for a

thorough description of the petition.

One comment was received in

response to the notice of the petition,

from General Motors Corporation

(‘‘GM’’), the manufacturer of the 1997

Chevrolet Blazer. In this comment, GM

stated that during the 1997 model year,

GM and its subsidiaries and affiliates

assembled Chevrolet Blazers at several

locations around the world. Those

intended for sale in the United States,

Canada, and some other world markets,

were produced at two assembly plants

located within the United States, at

Linden, New Jersey (identified by plant

code ‘‘K’’ in the 11th position of the

vehicle identification number or ‘‘VIN’’

assigned to the vehicle) and at Moraine,

Ohio, (identified by plant code ‘‘2’’ in

the 11th position of the VIN).

GM stated that production of 1997

Chevrolet Blazers also occurred at a

number of plants outside of the United

States. GM stated that in order to satisfy

unique market conditions and local

regulations, vehicles produced at these

foreign plants differed from those

produced domestically in a number of

respects, including the interior trim,

chassis, and powertrain components

with which they were built. Owing to

the design and part differences between

the 1997 Chevrolet Blazers produced

domestically, and those produced

overseas for foreign markets, GM stated

that there is no assurance that the

vehicles produced overseas would

comply with all applicable Federal

motor vehicle safety standards. GM

noted that it does not typically perform

tests or evaluations to determine the

compliance of foreign market vehicles

with the Federal standards because the

vehicles were never intended for sale or

use in the U.S. market. GM further

observed that Blazers built overseas for

foreign markets may contain locally

sourced parts that are not subject to the

same manufacturing, warranty, and

approval process used within GM’s

North American operations and that

these foreign sourced parts may have an

impact on the vehicles’ conformity with

the Federal motor vehicle safety

standards.

In light of these considerations, GM

expressed the opinion that only the U.S.

manufactured versions of the subject

vehicles (those with plant codes ‘‘K’’ or

‘‘2’’ in the 11th position of their VINs)

should be considered substantially

similar to vehicles originally

manufactured for sale in the U.S. and

capable of being modified to comply

with the Federal motor vehicle safety

standards. GM contended that ‘‘subject

vehicles manufactured at all other

locations should not be considered

substantially similar to vehicles

originally manufactured for sale in the

U.S. and, thus, not eligible for

importation.’’

NHTSA accorded WETL an

opportunity to respond to GM’s

comments. WETL stated that the 1997

Chevrolet Blazers that are the subject of

its petition are U.S. manufactured

vehicles with plant codes ‘‘K’’ or ‘‘2’’ in

the 11th position of their VINs. WETL

therefore did not challenge GM’s

contention that vehicles with plant

codes other than these should not be

considered substantially similar to U.S.-

certified models and therefore eligible

for importation. In view of GM’s

comments and WETL’s response,

NHTSA has decided to grant import

eligibility only to 1997 Chevrolet

Blazers with the plant code ‘‘K’’ or ‘‘2’’

in the eleventh character of their VINs.

Vehicle Eligibility Number for Subject

Vehicles

The importer of a vehicle admissible

under any final decision must indicate

on the form HS–7 accompanying entry

the appropriate vehicle eligibility

number indicating that the vehicle is

eligible for entry. VSP–349 is the

vehicle eligibility number assigned to

vehicles admissible under this notice of

final decision.

Final Decision

Accordingly, on the basis of the

foregoing, NHTSA hereby decides that

1997 Chevrolet Blazer MPVs that were

not originally manufactured to comply

with all applicable Federal motor

vehicle safety standards, but that have

been assigned vehicle identification

numbers in which the letter ‘‘K’’ or the

number ‘‘2’’ is the eleventh character,

are substantially similar to 1997

Chevrolet Blazer MPVs originally

manufactured for importation into and

sale in the United States and certified

under 49 U.S.C. 30115, and are capable

of being readily altered to conform to all

applicable Federal motor vehicle safety

standards.

Authority: 49 U.S.C. 30141(a)(1)(A) and

(b)(1); 49 CFR 593.8; delegations of authority

at 49 CFR 1.50 and 501.8.

Marilynne Jacobs,

Director, Office of Vehicle Safety,

Compliance.

[FR Doc. 01–12729 Filed 5–18–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4910–59–P