The U.S. Spring 2024 Regulatory Agenda Confirms THOR-50M Final Rule to be Issued in 2024

The U.S. Spring 2024 Regulatory Agenda Confirms THOR-50M Final Rule to be Issued in 2024

With NHTSA moving towards incorporating the THOR-50M into CFR 49 part 572 before the year is out, the U.S. Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs has released the Spring 2024 Unified Agenda of Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions, confirming the ATD is slated for final rule in November 2024. The THOR-50M ATD is used in Euro NCAP, ANCAP, and C-NCAP regulations. This update is a critical step toward aligning U.S. regulations with international standards to improve vehicle safety assessments.

NHTSA is also nearing completion of their extensive testing to validate the THOR-5F female ATD, and is preparing a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking for its inclusion in Part 572 regulations. This marks a significant advancement in vehicle safety assessment for female occupants in the United States.

The WorldSID-50M is also closer to inclusion into Part 572 with an NPRM expected before the close of 2024, marking a crucial step in advanced side impact evaluations.

As the automotive world gears up for a safer future, NHTSA's 2024 spring agenda continues its path forward to enhanced vehicle safety.  NHTSA is  committed to cutting-edge vehicle protection, with a lineup of high-tech advanced ATDs. These new target regulatory dates also pertain to the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) rulemaking and serve as precursors to the upcoming US NCAP inclusions of these advanced safety devices.

The new NPRM and Final Rule dates proposed for THOR & WorldSID ATDs include:

The FMVSS No. 208 THOR-50M Compliance Option will allow the THOR-50M to be used in place of the Hybrid III 50th and the FMVSS No. 214 WorldSlD-50M Compliance Option will allow the WorldSID-50M to be used in place of the EuroSID-2re.

Other notable passive safety targets announced in the Spring 2024 agenda include Final Rule stage amendments to the Hybrid III 5th Percentile Female Test Dummy and to FMVSS No. 210 to Incorporate the use of a new Force Application Device (FAD).

Read the complete list of rules: Department of Transportation Agency Rule List - Spring 2024

A Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) is published in the Federal Register, the official journal of the U.S. federal government, which allows for public notice and comment. The notice includes a period during which interested parties can provide feedback, suggestions, data, and arguments related to the proposed rule. Once NHTSA reviews and analyzes all the public comments received and conducts any necessary revisions, NHTSA finalizes the rule. The final rule is then published in the Federal Register, along with a detailed response to the public comments received, the effective date of the rule, and provides a timeline for compliance.