Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards; Occupant Crash Protection

In May 2000, we published a rule to require advanced air bags in light vehicles. The requirements of that rule are being phased in during two stages, the first of which extends from September 1, 2003, to August 31, 2006. In September 2002, in response to petitions for rulemaking, we published a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) to reduce the percentage of vehicles that must comply with the advanced air bag requirements during the first year of the first stage, i.e., from September 1, 2003, through August 31, 2004, from 35 percent to 20 percent. This final rule adopts that proposed change, which reflects the technical challenges being faced by the vehicle manufacturers in meeting the new requirements and the fact that two of the automotive suppliers dropped plans to offer devices that suppress the passenger air bag when a child is present. In the NPRM, we also requested comments on possible adjustments in the alternative phase-in requirement available to limited line manufacturers. We plan to address that issue in a separate document, in the near future.