Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards – Background, Brief Overview of Important Standards and Applicability

• By: Staff Editor
• Date: August 08, 2010

Background

The National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act came into force on September 9, 1966. The purpose of the Act was to reduce traffic accidents, and deaths and injuries resulting from traffic accidents. The law directed the U.S. Secretary of Transportation to formulate and enforce the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSSs). These were to act as the standards to which manufacturers of motor vehicles and items of motor vehicle equipment must conform and certify compliance.

The FMVSS are defined as the:

 “…minimum standard for motor vehicle performance, or motor vehicle equipment performance, which is practicable, which meets the need for motor vehicle safety, and which provides objective criteria.”

The law further defines motor vehicle safety to mean the performance of motor vehicles or items of motor vehicle equipment in such a manner that:

“…the public is protected against unreasonable risk of accidents occurring as a result of the design, construction, or performance of motor vehicles and is also protected against unreasonable risk of death or injury in the event accidents do occur.”

The Secretary of Transportation delegated the authority to promulgate FMVSS to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), which created the first FMVSS in 1967 and made them effective for vehicles manufactured on or after January 1, 1968, for sale or use in the United States. The NHTSA has since created many additional FMVSS and updated or amended nearly all of them. A few have even been rescinded. The FMVSSs, along with other NHTSA regulations, are incorporated into Chapter 5 of title 49, Code of Federal Regulations.


Brief Overview of Important Standards

Additional Resources:

• Read the following FMVSS in full:
  • STANDARD NO. 101 “Controls and Displays”
  • STANDARD NO. 104 “Windshield Wiping and Washing Systems”
  • STANDARD NO. 105 “Hydraulic Brake Systems”
  • STANDARD NO. 108 “Lamps, Reflective Devices, and Associated Equipment”
  • STANDARD NO. 109 “New Pneumatic Tires”
  • STANDARD NO. 111 “Rearview Mirrors”
  • STANDARD NO. 121 “Air Brake Systems”
  • STANDARD NO. 122 “Motorcycle Brake Systems”
  • STANDARD NO. 135 “Passenger Car Brake Systems”
  • STANDARD NO. 208 “Occupant Crash Protection”
  • STANDARD NO. 213 “Child Restraint Systems”
  • STANDARD NO. 218 “Motorcycle Helmets”

• Check out the various safety related checklists, standards and best practices available from the ComplianceOnline store here.