Slater Announces NHTSA Proposal To Upgrade Crash Fire Safety Standard

15 November 2000

    WASHINGTON, Nov. 14 U.S. Secretary of Transportation
Rodney E. Slater today proposed a tougher standard to reduce the chance of
post-crash vehicle fires, including a more realistic rear-impact crash test at
50 mph.
    "A lengthy research program into the causes of post-crash fires has paid
off with the facts we needed to set a new, tougher protective standard,"
Secretary Slater said.  "This rulemaking advances safety, which is President
Clinton and Vice President Gore's highest transportation priority."
    Instead of the current rear crash using a flat, rigid barrier at 30 mph,
the proposed test would use a deformable barrier more representative of a
typical vehicle's front end.  It would strike the test vehicle at a speed of
50 mph, and would concentrate the crash on 70 percent of the rear end.
    The current side impact fuel system integrity test would also be upgraded.
Instead of using a flat, rigid barrier striking the test vehicle straight from
the side at 20 mph, the test would be conducted at 33.5 mph with the
deformable barrier.
    "Vehicle fires only occur in about one percent of crashes, but their
consequences are severe.  In 1998, four percent of vehicle occupant fatalities
occurred in crashes involving fire.  These new tests can save lives and
prevent terrible injuries," said Dr. Sue Bailey, Administrator of the U.S.
Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
(NHTSA).
    The safety agency estimates that up to 7 million new vehicles would be
affected by this proposal at a cost of $5 or less per vehicle.  There are
about 57 fatalities and 119 serious injuries per year in this vehicle
population. The estimate of benefits from this rule ranges from 8 to 21 lives
saved annually, once all vehicles on the road meet the new tests.
    The proposal would give manufacturers three years lead time to meet the
new rear impact requirements and one year to comply with the side impact
requirements.  It would apply to all passenger cars, light trucks, sport
utility vehicles and buses weighing less than 10,000 pounds.
    The full text of the proposed rule was in the Monday, Nov. 13, 2000
Federal Register and will be available on the Internet at http://dms.dot.gov ,
Docket No. NHTSA-00-8248.  Comments on the proposal will be accepted for the
next 60 days and may be submitted electronically at this web address, or by
writing to Docket Management, Room PL-401, 400 Seventh Street, S.W.,
Washington, D.C. 20590.