US notice of proposed rulemaking to set minimum sound levels for electric and hybrid vehicles. Supplemental document provided for convenience by GAR.

Proposed changes to the draft global technical regulation on pole side-impact protection.

Status Report on the United States of America’s Consideration of Global Technical Regulations for Incorporation into Its Domestic Standards

Proposal of two amendments needed to enable the United States to vote in favor of the draft GTR. First, the document allows contracting parties the option of an alternate procedure for adjusting the seat and positioning the dummy based on that used by the United States during its WorldSID research. Second, the document allows contracting parties to modify the injury criteria in the GTR based on cost/benefit analysis for their own country, but using the same injury risk curves used to develop the injury criteria in the GTR.

The United States will not support the proposed amendment in its current form. The amendment would increase headrest heights for front outboard seating positions from 800 mm to at least 830 mm while allowing a decrease in minimum heights to 720 mm from 750mm. In addition, the amendment would allow decreased rear heights. The US believes the amendment lacks adequate evidence-based justifications for the proposed changes.

Presentation of US concerns regarding proposed definitions for locating the point of measurement (i.e. measuring point, target point, and first contact point definitions) within the test zone, changes to the test zone boundaries to clarify the adult and child Head Injury Criterion (HIC) zones, and to amend the leg form test procedure to align the leg form center plane with its measuring point.

[Note: the reference to document GRSP/2011/12 does not appear to correspond with the content of the US statement. Rather, the remarks align more closely with document GRSP-54-07/Rev.1 proposing changes to the draft amendment as presented in document GRSP/2013/25).]

Statement of US concerns with the draft amendment to introduce the Flex PLI test tool into GTR No. 9 (document GRSP/2013/25) in particular with regard to the use of the injury assessment reference values (IARVs). US definition of the IARV will be dependent upon the outcome of a US cost-benefit analysis based upon the characteristics of the American vehicle population. The US cannot accept injury curves that do not fall within what is justifiable according to US traffic conditions.