Archive
Jun 2008
The US Government Proposes Significant Increases to CAFE Requirements.
On May 2, 2008, NHTSA issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in response to a Congressional mandate which directed them to establish new regulations for regulating Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE). NHTSA says that under this NPRM, the fuel economy on a fleet-wide basis would increase by an average of four-and-a-half percent annually through 2015 - a 25 percent improvement over five years.
May 2008
ECE Mandates Safety Belt Reminders.
The United Nations ECE have recently published the 05 series of amendments to ECE 16 on safety belts and restraint systems, which requires the mandatory fitment of a safety belt reminder to the driver's seating position in all M1 category vehicles.
Apr 2008
Australia Updates Fuel Consumption Labelling Requirements.
In March 2008, the Australian Government published Australian Design Rule (ADR) 81/02 on fuel consumption labelling, which updates the label format and requires additional information on the label. As well as including the combined fuel consumption and combined CO2 emissions figures, the fuel consumption label must now also show figures for urban fuel consumption and extra-urban fuel consumption.
Mar 2008
NHTSA Proposes Supplement to Vehicle Roof Crush Regulation.
On January 30, 2008 NHTSA issued a supplemental notice of proposed rulemaking (SNPRM) for FMVSS 216. The SNPRM releases results on additional single-sided and two-sided tests through a link to the agency's internet vehicle crash test database as well as access to the recently completed agency's analysis of estimated benefits based on the relationship between roof intrusion and the probability of injury.
Feb 2008
EU Proposal on Mandatory Fuel Consumption Limits.
After much consultation, on 19th December 2007, the European Commission finally published its proposal for a Regulation on mandatory CO2 emissions limits for passenger cars, which specifies that, from 2012, each vehicle manufacturer must achieve an average CO2 emissions limit equivalent to 130 g/km for all of the passenger cars it registers in the European Union or face hefty fines.
Jan 2008
USA Proposes New Occupant Protection Requirements for School Buses.
On November 21, 2007, NHTSA issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that proposes to upgrade the school bus occupant protection requirements of the FMVSS No. 222, "School Bus Passenger Seating and Crash Protection" and by other amendments to FMVSS No's 207, 208, and 210.
Dec 2007
NHTSA allows advance credits for vehicles meeting higher speed 5th percentile female crash requirements one year early.
On August 31, 2006, NHTSA published a Final Rule (71 FR 57168) increasing the maximum test speed for the belted rigid barrier test using the 5th percentile adult female dummy from 48 km/h (30 mph) to 56 km/h (35 mph), the same speed that had previously been adopted for 50th percentile adult male dummies. After considering the public's comments, the agency continued to believe that the test data obtained indicated that FMVSS No. 208 should require the same level of high speed crash protection for small stature occupants as for larger occupants.
Nov 2007
Mandatory European Community Whole Vehicle Type Approval Extended to Trucks, Buses and Trailers.
Work on extending the ECWVTA scheme to non-M1 category vehicles finally reached fruition on 9th October 2007 when EC Directive 2007/46/EC was published. This new EC Directive repeals and replaces the previous EC Directive on ECWVTA, commonly known as the "Framework Directive", and introduces mandatory ECWVTA for all M, N, and O category vehicles (i.e. trucks, buses and trailers).
Oct 2007
NHTSA's Revised Side Impact Ruling will Require all Manufacturers to Equip Passenger Vehicles with Side Airbags and Side Curtains.
NHTSA has issued a revised regulatory Final Rule for FMVSS 214, Side Impact Protection. NHTSA says that this revision will require all vehicles under 10,000 pounds to meet added performance requirements that will force manufacturers to install technologies, i.e. mandatory side airbags and side curtain devices to better protect both front and rear seated occupants.
Sep 2007
EU Proposes New Legislation on Tyres and Advanced Safety Features.
The European Commission have recently published a consultation document outlining a number of proposed changes to the European legal requirements, including the introduction of a new Regulation on tyres.