Cooper Tire & Rubber Company, Receipt of Petition for Decision of Inconsequential Noncompliance

Cooper Tire & Rubber Company (Cooper) has determined that certain tires that it produced in 2005 do not comply with S4.3(a) of 49 CFR 571.109, Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 109, “New pneumatic tires” and with 49 CFR 574.5, Tire “Identification Requirements”. Cooper has filed an appropriate report pursuant to 49 CFR part 573, “Defect and Noncompliance Reports.”

Pursuant to 49 U.S.C. 30118(d) and 30120(h), Cooper has petitioned for an exemption from the notification and remedy requirements of 49 U.S.C. Chapter 301 on the basis that this noncompliance is inconsequential to motor vehicle safety.

This notice of receipt of Cooper'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.

Affected are a total of approximately 488 size 225/70R15 tires produced during the period January 30, 2005 through April 16, 2005. S4.3(a) and § 574.5(b) require a tire identification number (TIN) on the tire which includes a size designation. The noncompliant tires were molded with the letters “X5” as the size designation. The correct stamping should have been “35.”

Cooper believes that the noncompliance is inconsequential to motor vehicle safety and that no corrective action is warranted. Cooper states that the purpose of the TIN is to facilitate notifying consumers in the event of a recall. Cooper says that if it was required to notify purchasers, “the subject tires could be easily identified”. Cooper points out that the correct tire size appears elsewhere on the tire, including twice on each sidewall, and the tires meet all other requirements of FMVSS No. 109 and 49 CFR 574.5.

Interested persons are invited to submit written data, views, and arguments on this petition. Comments must refer to the docket and notice number cited at the beginning of this notice and be submitted by any of the following methods. Mail: Docket Management Facility, U.S. Department of Transportation, Nassif Building, Room PL-401, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC 20590-0001. Hand Delivery: Room PL-401 on the plaza level of the Nassif Building, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC. It is requested, but not required, that two copies of the comments be provided. The Docket Section is open on weekdays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. except Federal holidays. Comments may be submitted electronically by logging onto the Docket Management System Web site at http://dms.dot.gov . Click on “Help” to obtain instructions for filing the document electronically. Comments may be faxed to 1-202-493-2251, or may be submitted to the Federal eRulemaking Portal: go to http://www.regulations.gov . Follow the online instructions for submitting comments.

The petition, supporting materials, and all comments received before the close of business on the closing date indicated below will be filed and will be considered. All comments and supporting materials received after the closing date will also be filed and will be considered to the extent possible. When the petition is granted or denied, notice of the decision will be published in the Federal Register pursuant to the authority indicated below.

Comment closing date: January 9, 2006.

(Authority: 49 U.S.C. 30118, 30120, delegations of authority at CFR 1.50 and 501.8)