NJ CAR has received several calls from dealers, concerned that a new rule regarding backup cameras on new cars and trucks impacts vehicles already in their inventory that do not contain backup cameras or video displays. The new rule applies only to vehicles MANUFACTURED as of May 1, 2018 and does NOT affect vehicles already on dealer lots and in dealer showrooms that were manufactured prior to that date.
The rule (FMVSS 111) requires rearview cameras and video displays on all new vehicles with a gross vehicle weight of 10,000 pounds or less. FMVSS 111 was originally announced by the National Highway Traffic & Safety Administration (NHTSA) in 2014 and was born from the Cameron Gulbransen Kids Transportation Safety Act of 2007, in which NHTSA was directed to develop a rule requiring technology to expand the required driver field of view. NHTSA’s 2014 announcement gave manufacturers four years to prepare to meet the May 1, 2018 effective date.
Many luxury models and other vehicles with enhanced safety packages already have rearview cameras and video displays, but NHTSA’s rule requires the technology be included on ALL new vehicles manufactured on and after May 1, 2018.