NCAP Dynamic Rollover Testing

INTRODUCTION This Soliciation will lead to a contract to be awarded to conduct dynamic rollover testing under the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's New Car Assessment Program (NCAP). HISTORY NHTSA's NCAP program has been publishing comparative consumer information on frontal crashworthiness of new vehicles since 1979, on side crashworthiness since 1997, and on rollover resistance since January 2001. The testing and associated data collection requirements described in this contract will allow NHTSA to continue the agency's existing rollover resistance rating program in accordance with the requirements of the Transportation Recall Enhancement, Accountability, and Documentation (TREAD) Act of 2000 and recommendations of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS). Initially, a rollover resistance rating was assigned to a vehicle based solely on a vehicle's Static Stability Factor (SSF), which is the ratio of one half its track width to its center of gravity (c.g.) height. Beginning with the 2004 model year, information derived from dynamic rollover testing has been factored in with the SSF in calculations that determine a vehicle's rollover resistance rating. After soliciting public comments on proposed approaches to dynamic rollover testing and evaluating those approaches, NHTSA, on October 14, 2003, published a Final Policy Statement in the Federal Register (68 FR 59250) indicating that a fishhook maneuver test will be used in the agency's dynamic rollover testing and conducted according to a procedure contained in that policy statement. (For reference, the agency's procedure for conducting a fishhook maneuver test appears in the attachment section of this contract.) The Final Policy Statement incorporates recommendations of the NAS, which found that dynamic tests should complement static measures, such as SSF, rather than replace them in developing information for consumers on rollover resistance. The NAS also recommended that NHTSA use logistic regression rather than linear regression for the statistical analysis of the relationship between rollover risk and SSF. Section 12 of the "Transportation Recall, Enhancement, Accountability and Documentation (TREAD) Act of November 2000" reflects the desire of Congress to supplement SSF with a dynamic stability test using vehicle maneuvers. Congress directed the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to "develop a dynamic test on rollovers by motor vehicles for a consumer information program; and carry out a program conducting such tests." NHTSA's New Car Assessment Program (NCAP) Light Vehicle Dynamic Rollover Propensity Test Procedure described in Appendix I was developed as part of NHTSA's effort to fulfill the requirements of the TREAD Act. Section 10307 of the "Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU)" requires that each new passenger automobile that has been rated under the NHTSA's NCAP must have those ratings displayed on a label on its new vehicle price sticker, known as the Monroney label. NHTSA issued this final rule known as the "Stars on Cars" on September 7, 2006. The rule took effect on November 13, 2006. SCOPE AND PURPOSE The overall objective of this contract is to collect information through testing that determines the rollover resistance of new vehicles so that vehicles can be rated in ways that are helpful to consumers. DETAILS Details of this Solicitation are in the Attached Soliciation Document and the Attachements provided. All responses are required by August 26th. Questions concerning this Solicitation shall be in writing to Brian Ellis, Contract Specialist, by no later than 2:00pm, August 15, 2008. Any and all such questions must be in writing and submitted electronically, via e-mail, to Brian Ellis at the following address: brian.ellis@dot.gov. No telephone requests, please.