"...the decision from NHTSA came just as Pagani was preparing official unveiling ceremonies in the U.S., the first of which took place in Los Angeles last Thursday." This must have been one of the cars used for the unveiling: http://ferrarichat.com/forum/showthread.php?t=333291
Honestly this just shows you how screwed up some agencies are. I'm not trying to set off a political debate here but what's so wrong with an owner signing off a waiver that doesn't mind if car doesn't have "advanced airbags". Maybe the non advanced airbags are just fine for a limited addition super car. Why can't the owner decide? I'm not saying you're Toyota Camry should get a wiaver but come on--- it's at best 40 cars a year that we'll see here. What's the big deal?
+1 Bob, the whole system regarding the Airbags is screwed up, Ferrari I recall had to get them on the 430 as well a few years ago.
http://www.autoblog.com/2011/08/09/nhtsa-denies-pagani-huayra-airbag-exemption-for-sale-in-u-s/ Why not using same rules as we have in Europe. More supercar manuf. have problems with US rules. What a pity for (potential)customers.
"Pagani says it made the request for an exemption three years ago but the decision from NHTSA came just as Pagani was preparing official unveiling ceremonies in the U.S., the first of which took place in Los Angeles last Thursday." Seems like an excessively long time to come to a decision. On the other hand, NHTSA apparently did announce earlier in the year that they were eliminating exemptions, and Ferrari's experience should have prepared Pagani. From Bloomberg: "No Air-Bag Waiver for $1.1 Million Pagani Car Angela Greiling Keane - Aug 4, 2011 11:12 AM PT Pagani Automobili SpA, the Italian supercar maker, will have to install advanced air bags in its $1.1 million Huayra gull-wing coupe after being denied a hardship exemption from the U.S. auto-safety regulator. The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which said earlier this year it would stop giving waivers to an 11-year-old air bag safety regulation, denied Paganis exemption request in a Federal Register notice posted today. U.S. regulation requires cars sold in the U.S. have so- called advanced air bags that have sensors to adjust deployment force based on occupants heights and weights. Tesla Motors Inc. (TSLA) and Lamborghini Holding SpA are among the limited-production companies that have won exemptions over the past five years on financial-hardship grounds. Pagani, which said in February it hopes to sell five cars in the U.S. next year, said in a U.S. regulatory filing a denial of the air bag petition would cost it 3.2 million euros ($4.5 million) in net income from 2011 to 2014 because it wouldnt sell vehicles in the U.S. until 2015 without a waiver. 'Although Pagani has realized profits in recent years, the company asserted that immediate compliance with the advanced air-bag requirements will cause substantial economic hardship,' NHTSA said in todays notice. 'Pagani stated that the company only operates on the cash on hand without lines of credit or debt financing, and its small profit margin is necessary to guard it from market fluctuations.' A spokesman for Pagani didnt immediately respond to an e- mail seeking comment sent after regular business hours. The company estimated in the filing that developing an advanced air-bag program would cost it 4 million euros. Teslas exemption is for its Roadster, for which production will end this year. The luxury electric-vehicle maker, based in Palo Alto, California, has said its Model S sedans, which it plans to sell next year, will comply with U.S. air-bag rules. Lamborghinis last exemption expired in February." http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-08-04/no-air-bag-waiver-for-1-1-million-pagani-car.html Not sure how to read that exactly, but it seems like Pagani are planning to meet the requirement by 2015. Guess NHTSA had to put its foot down finally and unfortunately Pagani is one to lose out, for now. Instead of citing the reason as "Pagani failed to show that installing the airbags would cause the company undue financial strain," they should just have responded by saying "we've eliminated the exemption across the board already; that's it." Because a cost of 4m euros (5.7m USD) in airbag development would be, IMO, considerable financial strain considering the very low volume; that pretty much wipes out an entire year's worth of US revenue right there.
