National Highway Traffic Safety Administration December 17, 2009 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

This document denies two petitions for reconsideration of an April 30, 2008, final rule that made certain modifications to 49 CFR part 565, Vehicle Identification Number Requirements, to enable the 17 character vehicle identification number (VIN) system that has been in place for nearly 30 years to continue to function for at least another 30 years. One of the petitions for reconsideration involved the effective date, which NHTSA believes was resolved by the publication of a correction notice on May 16, 2008. The second petition asked for changes to the VIN system so that, among other things, a person looking at the VIN of a motorcycle will be able to tell whether the vehicle was manufactured in the 30 year period beginning with the 1980 model year or in the 30 year period beginning with the 2010 model year. The agency is denying the petition because the issues it raises were outside of the scope of the rulemaking.