Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards; Motorcycle Brake Systems
fmvss · National Highway Traffic Safety Administration · Published 2001-08-14 · Effective 2002-08-14 · 66 FR 42613
Document
Document number
01-20428
Federal Register citation
66 FR 42613
CFR reference
49 CFR 571
Type
Rule
Action
Final rule.
Category
fmvss
Sub-agency
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
Publication date
2001-08-14
Effective date
2002-08-14
DOT docket
DOT Docket No. NHTSA-01-10367
Abstract
In this document, we (NHTSA) amend the Federal motor vehicle safety standard on motorcycle brakes by reducing the minimum hand lever force from 5 pounds (presently specified) to 2.3 pounds and the minimum foot pedal force from 10 pounds (presently specified) to 5.6 pounds in the fade recovery and water recovery tests. The new force levels are low enough to accommodate new braking systems that are combined or "linked" (i.e., the hand and foot brakes working in tandem). Compared with older motorcycle braking systems, combined or "linked" braking systems do not need as much force exerted on them to be effective. Yet the force levels are still high enough to ensure that motorcycles utilizing more mature technologies will not have problems with overly sensitive brakes. This rulemaking was initiated in response to a petition from American Honda Motor Co., Inc.