The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has delayed the effective date for the revised lighting standard, Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 108, from September 1, 2008 to December 1, 2009. The extra time is necessary to confirm that there were no changes of substance as the agency completed its two-year mission to reorganize and simplify FMVSS No. 108.
The regulation has been amended many times since it was first adopted in 1967 in order to address technological advances and enhance safety. As a consequence, the old regulation was unnecessarily complex and difficult to understand. The NHTSA benefited from industry comments during the revision process, including comprehensive recommendations from SEMA.
Many industry groups have recommended additional clarifications or revisions to confirm that the reorganized FMVSS No. 108 imposes no new requirements.
Questions or comments may be directed to Steve McDonald at stevem@sema.org.