scope:

SUMMARY:

This document denies a petition for rulemaking submitted by Mr. Albert Donnay requesting NHTSA to require manufacturers to offer carbon monoxide detectors in all new gasoline powered vehicles and to make available retrofit devices for older vehicles. These detectors would automatically shut off the engine when carbon monoxide levels inside the vehicle exceed a concentration of 200 parts per million, when the vehicle is stationary. The data show that a mandate for in-vehicle carbon monoxide detectors would fail to address more than 70% of vehicle-related carbon monoxide deaths, because the victims are outside the vehicle. NHTSA will use its resources to consider safety areas where more effective solutions are available.