S1. Scope. This standard establishes strength requirements for the passenger compartment roof.

S2. Purpose. The purpose of this standard is to reduce deaths and injuries due to the crushing of the roof into the occupant compartment in rollover crashes.

S3. Application, incorporation by reference, and selection of compliance options.

S3.1Application.

(a) This standard applies to passenger cars, and to multipurpose passenger vehicles, trucks and buses with a GVWR of 4,536 kilograms (10,000 pounds) or less, according to the implementation schedule specified in S8 and S9 of this section. However, it does not apply to—

(2) Vehicles that conform to the rollover test requirements (S5.3) of Standard No. 208 ( § 571.208) by means that require no action by vehicle occupants;

(3) Convertibles, except for optional compliance with the standard as an alternative to the rollover test requirement (S5.3) of Standard No. 208; or

(b) At the option of the manufacturer, vehicles within either of the following categories may comply with the roof crush requirements (S4) of Standard No. 220 ( § 571.220) instead of the requirements of this standard:

(1) Vehicles built in two or more stages, other than vehicles built using a chassis cab;

(c) Manufacturers may comply with the standard in this § 571.216a as an alternative to § 571.216.

S3.2Incorporation by reference. Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) Standard J826 “Devices for Use in Defining and Measuring Vehicle Seating Accommodation,” SAE J826 (rev. July 1995) is incorporated by reference in S7.2 of this section. The Director of the Federal Register has approved the incorporation by reference of this material in accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 CFR part 51. A copy of SAE J826 (rev. Jul 95) may be obtained from SAE at the Society of Automotive Engineers, Inc., 400 Commonwealth Drive, Warrendale, PA 15096. Phone: 1-724-776-4841; Web: http://www.sae.org. A copy of SAE J826 (July 1995) may be inspected at NHTSA's Technical Information Services, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, Washington, DC 20590, or at the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). For information on the availability of this material at NARA, call 202-741-6030, or go to: http://www.archives.gov/federal_register/code_of_federal_regulations/ibr_locations.html.

S3.3Selection of compliance option. Where manufacturer options are specified, the manufacturer shall select the option by the time it certifies the vehicle and may not thereafter select a different option for the vehicle. Each manufacturer shall, upon the request from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, provide information regarding which of the compliance options it selected for a particular vehicle or make/model.

S4. Definitions.

Altered roof means the replacement roof on a motor vehicle whose original roof has been removed, in part or in total, and replaced by a roof that is higher than the original roof. The replacement roof on a motor vehicle whose original roof has been replaced, in whole or in part, by a roof that consists of glazing materials, such as those in T-tops and sunroofs, and is located at the level of the original roof, is not considered to be an altered roof.

Convertible means a vehicle whose A-pillars are not joined with the B-pillars (or rearmost pillars) by a fixed, rigid structural member.

S5. Requirements.

S5.1When the test device described in S6 is used to apply a force to a vehicle's roof in accordance with S7, first to one side of the roof and then to the other side of the roof:

(a) The lower surface of the test device must not move more than 127 millimeters, and

(b) No load greater than 222 Newtons (50 pounds) may be applied to the head form specified in S5.2 of 49 CFR 571.201 located at the head position of a 50th percentile adult male in accordance with S7.2 of this section.

S5.2The maximum applied force to the vehicle's roof in Newtons is:

(a) For vehicles with a GVWR of 2,722 kilograms (6,000 pounds) or less, any value up to and including 3.0 times the unloaded vehicle weight of the vehicle, measured in kilograms and multiplied by 9.8, and

S7.2 Adjust the seats in accordance with S8.3.1 of 49 CFR 571.214. Position the top center of the head form specified in S5.2 of 49 CFR 571.201 at the location of the top center of the Head Restraint Measurement Device (HRMD) specified in 49 CFR 571.202a, in the front outboard designated seating position on the side of the vehicle being tested as follows:

(a) Position the three dimensional manikin specified in Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) Surface Vehicle Standard J826, revised July 1995, “Devices for Use in Defining and Measuring Vehicle Seating Accommodation,” (incorporated by reference, see paragraph S3.2), in accordance to the seating procedure specified in that document, except that the length of the lower leg and thigh segments of the H-point machine are adjusted to 414 and 401 millimeters, respectively, instead of the 50th percentile values specified in Table 1 of SAE J826 (July 1995).

(c) Mark the location of the top center of the HRMD in three dimensional space to locate the top center of the head form specified in S5.2 of 49 CFR 571.201.

S7.3Orient the test device as shown in Figure 1 of this section, so that—

(a) Its longitudinal axis is at a forward angle (in side view) of 5 degrees (± 0.5 degrees) below the horizontal, and is parallel to the vertical plane through the vehicle's longitudinal centerline;

S8.6.2 A vehicle produced by more than one manufacturer must be attributed to any one of the vehicle's manufacturers specified by an express written contract, reported to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration under 49 CFR Part 585, between the manufacturer so specified and the manufacturer to which the vehicle would otherwise be attributed under S8.6.1.

S8.7 Small volume manufacturers. Vehicles manufactured during any of the three years of the September 1, 2012 through August 31, 2015 phase-in by a manufacturer that produces fewer than 5,000 vehicles for sale in the United States during that year are not subject to the requirements of S8.1, S8.2, and S8.3.

S8.8 Final-stage manufacturers and alterers.

Vehicles that are manufactured in two or more stages or that are altered (within the meaning of 49 CFR 567.7) after having previously been certified in accordance with Part 567 of this chapter are not subject to the requirements of S8.1 through S8.3. Instead, all vehicles produced by these manufacturers on or after September 1, 2016 must comply with this standard.

S9 Vehicles with a GVWR above 2,722 kilograms (6,000 pounds).

(a) Except as provided in S9(b), each vehicle manufactured on or after September 1, 2016 must comply with this standard.

(b) Vehicles that are manufactured in two or more stages or that are altered (within the meaning of 49 CFR 567.7) after having previously been certified in accordance with Part 567 of this chapter are not subject to the requirements of S8.1 through S8.3. Instead, all vehicles produced by these manufacturers on or after September 1, 2017 must comply with this standard.