This Morning, the NHTSA denied Mack Trucks their petition for an exemption to Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 108 Lamps, Reflective Devices, and Associated Equipment. Mack Trucks had filed a noncompliance report dated November 1st, 2022. They amended the report on November 3rd, 2022. On November 23rd, 2022, Mack Trucks petitioned the NHTSA from the notification and remedy requirements. Notice of the receipt of the petition was published with a 30 day comment period on January 17th, 2023 (88 FR 2759).
The vehicles involved in this are Mack Trucks GU and GR Models built from 2014 to 2022 for the model years of 2015 to 2023. Mack Trucks explained that the trucks involved do not match the visibility requirements of the NHTSA 49 CFR 571.108, which state that the turn signal should be visible from 15 degrees up and 45 degrees inward and outward.
NHTSA, which oversees compliance of safety requirements by manufacturers, is following a recent trend set by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, which deals with driver and carrier safety. The FMCSA has been rejecting petitions from drivers and carriers for the past 2 years, these petitions have been trying to get past the current work-rules, that would allow drivers to drive for longer than the allowed 13 hours.
This means Mack Trucks, a Volvo group subsidiary, will have to recall Models GU and GR from model year 2015 to 2023 to get the turn signals changed to compliant ones. This will involve 27,544 Class 8 Trucks.
