Document ID: NHTSA-2021-0052-0002
Agency: nhtsa
Document Type: Notice
Title: Petition for Decision of Inconsequential Noncompliance: Maserati North America, Inc.
Posted Date: 2022-06-17T04:00Z

[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 117 (Friday, June 17, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 36576-36577]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-13081]

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

[Docket No. NHTSA-2021-0052; Notice 1]

Maserati North America, Inc., Receipt of Petition for Decision of 
Inconsequential Noncompliance

AGENCY: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), 
Department of Transportation (DOT).

ACTION: Receipt of petition.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: Maserati North America, Inc. (``MNA''), has determined that 
certain Model Year (MY) 2017 2021 Maserati Levante motor vehicles do 
not fully comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 
110, Tire selection and rims and motor home/recreation vehicle trailer 
load carrying capacity information for motor vehicles with a GVWR of 
4,536 kilograms (10,000 pounds) or less. MNA filed an original 
noncompliance report dated June 7, 2021, and subsequently petitioned 
NHTSA on June 24, 2021, for a decision that the subject noncompliance 
is inconsequential as it relates to motor vehicle safety. This notice 
announces receipt of MNA's petition.

DATES: Send comments on or before July 18, 2022.

ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit written data, 
views, and arguments on this petition. Comments must refer to the 
docket and notice number cited in the title of this notice and 
submitted by any of the following methods:
     Mail: Send comments by mail addressed to the U.S. 
Department of Transportation, Docket Operations, M-30, West Building 
Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 
20590.
     Hand Delivery: Deliver comments by hand to the U.S. 
Department of Transportation, Docket Operations, M-30, West Building 
Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 
20590. The Docket Section is open on weekdays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. 
except for Federal holidays.
     Electronically: Submit comments electronically by logging 
onto the Federal Docket Management System (FDMS) website at https://www.regulations.gov/. Follow the online instructions for submitting 
comments.
     Comments may also be faxed to (202) 493-2251.
    Comments must be written in the English language and be no greater 
than 15 pages in length, although there is no limit to the length of 
necessary attachments to the comments. If comments are submitted in 
hard copy form, please ensure that two copies are provided. If you wish 
to receive confirmation that comments you have submitted by mail were 
received, please enclose a stamped, self-addressed postcard with the 
comments. Note that all comments received will be posted without change 
to https://www.regulations.gov, including any personal information 
provided.
    All comments and supporting materials received before the close of 
business on the closing date indicated above will be filed in the 
docket and will be considered. All comments and supporting materials 
received after the closing date will also be filed and will be 
considered to the fullest extent possible.
    When the petition is granted or denied, notice of the decision will 
also be published in the Federal Register pursuant to the authority 
indicated at the end of this notice.
    All comments, background documentation, and supporting materials 
submitted to the docket may be viewed by anyone at the address and 
times given above. The documents may also be viewed on the internet at 
https://www.regulations.gov by following the online instructions for 
accessing the docket. The docket ID number for this petition is shown 
in the heading of this notice.
    DOT's complete Privacy Act Statement is available for review in a 
Federal Register notice published on April 11, 2000 (65 FR 19477--78).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ahmad Barnes, Office of Vehicle Safety 
Compliance, NHTSA, (202) 366-7236.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Overview

    MNA has determined that certain MY 2017 2021 Maserati Levante motor 
vehicles do not fully comply with the requirements of paragraph S4.3(c) 
of FMVSS No. 110, Tire selection and rims and motor home/recreation 
vehicle trailer load carrying capacity information for motor vehicles 
with a GVWR of 4,536 kilograms (10,000 pounds) or less (49 CFR 
571.110). MNA filed a noncompliance report dated June 7, 2021, pursuant 
to 49 CFR part 573, Defect and Noncompliance Responsibility and 
Reports. MNA subsequently petitioned NHTSA on June 24, 2021, for an 
exemption from the notification and remedy requirements of 49 U.S.C. 
Chapter 301 on the basis that this noncompliance is inconsequential as 
it relates to motor vehicle safety, pursuant to 49 U.S.C. 30118(d) and 
30120(h) and 49 CFR part 556, Exemption for Inconsequential Defect or 
Noncompliance.
    This notice of receipt of MNA's petition is published under 49 
U.S.C. 30118 and 30120 and does not represent any Agency decision or 
other exercise of judgment concerning the merits of the petition.

II. Vehicles Involved

    Approximately 2,917 MY 2017 2021 Maserati Levante motor vehicles 
equipped with 21-inch and 22-inch tires and manufactured between July 
14, 2016, and May 3, 2021, are potentially involved.

III. Noncompliance

    MNA explains that the noncompliance is that the subject vehicles 
are equipped with a vehicle placard affixed to the driver's side B-
pillar erroneously understating the maximum permissible cold tire 
pressure and therefore, do not fully meet the requirements specified in 
paragraph S4.3(c) of FMVSS No. 110. Specifically, the vehicle placards 
for the subject vehicles state that the rear 265/40 R21 (105Y) XL and 
105W XL tires have a maximum cold tire pressure of 36 psi, when it 
should state a maximum cold tire pressure of 38 psi, the front 265/35 
ZR22 (102Y) XL tires state a maximum cold tire pressure of 33 psi, when 
it should state a maximum cold tire pressure of 36 psi, and the rear 
295/30 ZR22 (103Y) XL tires state a maximum cold tire pressure of 36 
psi, when it should state a maximum cold tire pressure of 40 psi.

IV. Rule Requirements

    Paragraph S4.3(c) of FMVSS No. 110 includes the requirements 
relevant to this petition. Each vehicle, except for a trailer or 
incomplete vehicle, shall show the information specified in S4.3(a) 
through (g), and may show, at the manufacturer's option, the 
information specified in S4.3(h) and (i), on a placard permanently 
affixed to the driver's side B-pillar. This information shall be in the 
English language and conform in color and format, not including the 
border surrounding the entire placard, as shown in the example set 
forth in Figure 1 in this standard. At the manufacturer's

[[Page 36577]]

option, the information specified in S4.3 (c), (d), and, as 
appropriate, (h) and (i) may be shown, alternatively to being shown on 
the placard, on a tire inflation pressure label which must conform in 
color and format, not including the border surrounding the entire 
label, as shown in the example set forth in Figure 2 in this standard.

V. Summary of MNA's Petition

    The following views and arguments presented in this section, ``V. 
Summary of MNA's Petition,'' are the views and arguments provided by 
MNA. They have not been evaluated by the Agency and do not reflect the 
views of the Agency. MNA describes the subject noncompliance and 
contends that the noncompliance is inconsequential as it relates to 
motor vehicle safety.
    In support of its petition, MNA submitted the following reasoning:
    1. The incorrect pressure values are all within the range of 
acceptable tire inflation and would not cause a Tire Pressure 
Monitoring System (``TPMS'') alert.
    a. The affected Maserati Levante vehicles are compliant with FMVSS 
No. 138.
    b. Consistent with FMVSS No. 138, the TPMS illuminates at equal to 
or less than the pressure 25 percent below the correct vehicle 
manufacturer's recommended cold inflation pressure. The TPMS warning 
telltale will illuminate prior to the tire pressure dropping to the 
range of 24.7-27 PSI on the affected Maserati Levante vehicles, which 
is significantly above the 23.2 PSI requirement called out, and tested 
to, in FMVSS No. 139 (discussed below).
    c. Maserati believes the warning provided by the TPMS will give 
drivers ample time to check and inflate tires well before low tire 
inflation becomes a safety concern.
    2. The subject tires passed a low-inflation-pressure performance 
test.
    a. The affected Maserati Levante vehicles are equipped with tires 
that are compliant with FMVSS No. 139.
    b. Tire manufacturers are required to certify the tires meet all 
applicable requirements of FMVSS No. 139.
    c. FMVSS No. 139 specifies a low-inflation-pressure performance 
test in which the tire is loaded to its maximum tire load capacity and 
inflated to only 160 kPa (23.2 PSI), significantly less than the TPMS 
telltale activation pressure for the subject Maserati Levante vehicles. 
In order to pass this test, the tires are loaded to 100 percent of the 
tire's maximum load-carrying capacity and then run on a test axle for 
1.5 hours at 23.2 PSI.
    3. MNA is not aware of any crashes, injuries, or customer 
complaints associated with this condition.
    4. NHTSA has previously granted inconsequential treatment for FMVSS 
No. 110 noncompliance for incorrect vehicle placard values; see 
examples below:
    a. General Motors, LLC, 83 FR 24162 (May 24, 2018);
    b. Volkswagen Group of America, Inc., 81 FR 38772 (June 14, 2016); 
and
    c. Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC, 82 FR 17515 (April 11, 2017).
    MNA concludes that the subject noncompliance is inconsequential as 
it relates to motor vehicle safety and that its petition to be exempted 
from providing notification of the noncompliance, as required by 49 
U.S.C. 30118, and a remedy for the noncompliance, as required by 49 
U.S.C. 30120, should be granted.
    NHTSA notes that the statutory provisions (49 U.S.C. 30118(d) and 
30120(h)) that permit manufacturers to file petitions for a 
determination of inconsequentiality allow NHTSA to exempt manufacturers 
only from the duties found in sections 30118 and 30120, respectively, 
to notify owners, purchasers, and dealers of a defect or noncompliance 
and to remedy the defect or noncompliance. Therefore, any decision on 
this petition only applies to the subject vehicles that MNA no longer 
controlled at the time it determined that the noncompliance existed. 
However, any decision on this petition does not relieve vehicle 
distributors and dealers of the prohibitions on the sale, offer for 
sale, or introduction or delivery for introduction into interstate 
commerce of the noncompliant vehicles under their control after MNA 
notified them that the subject noncompliance existed.

(Authority: 49 U.S.C. 30118, 30120: delegations of authority at 49 
CFR 1.95 and 501.8)

Otto G. Matheke III,
Director, Office of Vehicle Safety Compliance.
[FR Doc. 2022-13081 Filed 6-16-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-59-P