NHTSA & wheelchair conversions

[skylarjoehill.h]

Why don't lowered floor wheelchair van converters like BraunAbility and VMI have to report equipment safety issues and recalls to the NHTSA's [url]safecar.gov[/url]?

[Burgerman]

I appears to apply to mainstream vehicle manufacturers. Not to a workshop like braun, or VMI, Rollx etc. Those are just like any modifier. The responsibility of any modification is theirs. As it is for things like custom cars, brake or engine modification, stretch limos, lowering, etc. Anything goes wrong, you sue the workshop that did the work via courts.

The nhtsa applies to large production line type manufacturers where everything is in bulk and identical. All tracable, trackable, tested, certified to death, and mass market. A company like braun may make 5 vans and every one may be a little bit different, built by different men, and using alternative parts or metalwork. Each is really a one off compared to a controlled production line enviroment. As such if they have an issue with anything, they may not even know which vans had for eg, that specific exhaust part or suspension mod since they are dependent on supplier, stock etc..

Quick example. Trying to trace a battery drain. When I contacted rollx, they had no idea which computer/firmware was next to the spare wheel. I had to tell them.