WSR 97-04-055
PERMANENT RULES
WASHINGTON STATE PATROL
[Filed February 3, 1997, 1:49 p.m.]
Date of Adoption: February 3, 1997.
Purpose: Amend rule regarding body requirements for special motor vehicles to reflect chapter 225, Laws of 1996 (SSB 5250) which made hoods and bumpers optional equipment of street rods and kit vehicles.
Citation of Existing Rules Affected by this Order: Amending WAC 204-90-040.
Statutory Authority for Adoption: RCW 46.37.005, 46.37.513, 46.37.517.
Adopted under notice filed as WSR 97-01-058 on December 12, 1996.
Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Comply with Federal Statute: New 0, amended 0, repealed 0; Federal Rules or Standards: New 0, amended 0, repealed 0; or Recently Enacted State Statutes: New 0, amended 1, repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted at Request of a Nongovernmental Entity: New 0, amended 0, repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted on the Agency's own Initiative: New 0, amended 0, repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Clarify, Streamline, or Reform Agency Procedures: New 0, amended 1, repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted using Negotiated Rule Making: New 0, amended 0, repealed 0; Pilot Rule Making: New 0, amended 0, repealed 0; or Other Alternative Rule Making: New 0, amended 0, repealed 0.
Effective Date of Rule: Thirty-one days after filing.
February 3, 1997
Annette M. Sandberg
Chief
AMENDATORY SECTION (Amending Order 83-05-01, filed 5/13/83)
WAC 204-90-040 Body requirements. (1) Defroster and defogging devices: Every enclosed special motor vehicle shall be equipped with a device capable of defogging and defrosting the windshield area. Vehicles or exact replicas of vehicles manufactured prior to January, 1938, are exempt from this requirement.
(2) Door latches: Every enclosed special motor vehicle equipped with side doors leading directly into a compartment that contains one or more seating accommodations shall be equipped with door latches which firmly and automatically secure the door when pushed closed and which allow each door to be opened both from the inside and outside.
(3) Hoodlatches: A front opening hood shall be equipped with a primary and a secondary latching system to hold the hood in a closed position.
Hoods are optional equipment on vehicles defined as street rods and kit vehicles by the Washington state patrol vehicle inspectors.
(4) Enclosed passenger compartment: A special motor vehicle with an enclosed passenger compartment and powered by an internal combustion engine shall be constructed to prevent the entry of exhaust fumes into the passenger compartment.
(5) Floor pan: A special motor vehicle shall be equipped with a floor pan under the entire passenger compartment capable of supporting the weight of the number of occupants that the vehicle is designed to carry.
(6) Bumpers: A special motor vehicle shall be equipped with a bumper on both the front and rear of the vehicle with the exception of motor vehicles where the original or predominant body configuration, provided by a recognized manufacturer, did not include such bumper or bumpers in the design of the vehicle. Bumpers or exact replicas of bumpers for Type I vehicles meeting the original specifications of a recognized manufacturer shall satisfy the requirements of this section.
Bumpers are optional equipment on vehicles defined as street rods and kit vehicles by the Washington state patrol vehicle inspectors.
Bumpers, unless specifically exempted above, shall be at least 4.5 inches in vertical height, centered on the vehicle's centerline, and extend no less than the width of the respective wheel track distances. Bumpers shall be horizontal load bearing and attach to the vehicle frame to effectively transfer energy when impacted.
The maximum bumper heights will be determined by weight category of
gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) measured from a level surface to the
highest point on the bottom of the bumper. For vehicles exempted from
the bumper requirement for the reasons stated above, a maximum frame
elevation measurement shall be made to the bottom of the frame rail.
Maximum heights are as follows:
Front Back
Passenger Vehicles 22 Inches 22 Inches
4,500 lbs. and under GVWR 24 Inches 26 Inches
4,501 lbs. to 7,500 lbs. GVWR 27 Inches 29 Inches
7,501 lbs. to 10,000 lbs. GVWR 28 Inches 30 Inches
(7) Fenders: All wheels of a special motor vehicle shall be equipped with fenders designed to cover the entire tire tread width that comes in contact with the road surface. Coverage of the tire tread circumference shall be from at least 15 in front and to at least 75 to the rear of the vertical centerline at each wheel measured from the center of the wheel rotation. At no time shall the tire come in contact with the body, fender, chassis, or suspension of the vehicle.
(8) Frame: A special motor vehicle shall be equipped with a frame.
If an existing frame from a recognized manufacturer is not used and a
special frame is fabricated, it shall be constructed of wall box or
continuous section tubing, wall channel, or unitized construction capable
of supporting the vehicle, its load, and the torque produced by the power
source under all conditions of operation. ((Specially fabricated frames
shall meet the Specialty Equipment Manufacturing Association "Recommended
practice for chassis contraction of special motor vehicles."))
[Statutory Authority: RCW 46.37.005. 83-11-028 (Order 83-05-01), 204-90-040, filed 5/13/83.]