New federal regulations make it easier to build and buy classic car replicas

[eschaider]

Sometimes internet searches can produce information from secondary, tertiary or more remote sources that can sound authoritative but in actual fact are not. It is possible that Sunman has sourced his information from other than the original source.

The authoritative source for information about this particular bill is the NHTSA. NHTSA has published the final version of the bill as it will be entered into the Federal Register and it is available for review in its final configuration at the NHTSA website, https://www.nhtsa.gov/sites/nhtsa.go...Disclaimer.pdf, by any interested person

There are several significant tags in the document some of those include;

NHTSA indicates that while this is the final form;

• Typos that might find their way into the document would be corrected for the Federal Register,
  .
• The document ACTION was Final Rule,
  .
• Document PDF page 3 defines the, “Requirement to manufacture under license agreement for intellectual property rights”
  .
• Section 30114(b)(7)(B)(ii) defines “replica motor vehicle” as — is manufactured under a license for the product configuration, trade dress, trademark, or patent, for the motor vehicle that is intended to be replicated from the original manufacturer, its successors or assignees, or current owner of such product configuration, trade dress, trademark, or patent rights.
  .
• Because NHTSA’s domain of expertise is automotive safety, not intellectual property they decided not to require the submission of documentation showing ownership of IP or a license to use that IP. Instead the Final Rule requires the low-volume manufacturer registering as a replica manufacturer to certify that the vehicle will be manufactured under a license for the product configuration, trade dress, trademark, or patent.

There is a great deal more in the 102 pages that the Final Rule speaks to. While I am sure Sunman’s efforts were well intended and hopefully attempting to further everyone’s knowledge, according to official NHTSA documents and the Final Rule his representations are neither accurate nor factual. They are, as we can so easily be mislead, simply internet banter that at best is only remotely related to the real world entry that will actually go into the Federal Register controlling this process.

Bottom line a license is required and as of today only one replica manufacturer has one.