Posted by Damn on May 29, 2002 at 23:47:12:
In Reply to: Re: Smart by Mercedes and Swatch in the USA posted by Khyber on March 13, 2002 at 00:54:58:
Under 49 U.S.C. § 30141(a)(1)(A) (formerly section 108(c)(3)(A)(i)(I) of the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act (the Act)), a motor vehicle that was not originally manufactured to conform to all applicable Federal motor vehicle safety standards shall be refused admission into the United States unless NHTSA has decided that the motor vehicle is substantially similar to a motor vehicle originally manufactured for importation into and sale in the United States, certified under 49 U.S.C. § 30115 (formerly section 114 of the Act), and of the same model year as the model of the motor vehicle to be compared, and is capable of being readily altered to conform to all applicable Federal motor vehicle safety standards. Where there is no substantially similar U.S.- certified motor vehicle, 49 U.S.C. § 30141(a)(1)(B) (formerly section 108(c)(3)(A)(i)(II) of the Act) permits a nonconforming motor vehicle to be admitted into the United States if its safety features comply with, or are capable of being altered to comply with, all applicable Federal motor vehicle safety standards based on destructive test data or such other evidence as the Secretary of Transportation decides to be adequate. Under 49 U.S.C. § 30141(a)(1) (formerly section 108(c)(3)(C)(i) of the Act), import eligibility decisions may be made "on the initiative of the Secretary of Transportation or on petition of a manufacturer or importer registered under [49 U.S.C. § 30141(c)]."