how about we call DOT and see what they think of your safety device... if its truly as safe as you claim it to be then a DOT inspection should be no issue... they should affirm yout thoights that you are just as safe as an automatic buzzer on low PSI....
if it passes a DOT inspection then it should be no issue to the insurance company either....
That's an idea, I've just finished calling them. I explained my situation to them and they said it was fine and that I've met the safety requirements.
"An Audible warning is not required if there is a visual one on the dash and can be seen from the drivers perspective easily enough. It requires 571.101 Standard No. 101 to be in compliance to have the light indicator indicate what it's for. "
So I'll have to add a label to the light to instruct the driver to "Low Air Pressure Warning" at a minimum by the light.
The interesting part is Section 5 of that standard says it's not required on vehicles with GVWR's of 4536 kg (10,000 lbs) or greater if vehicles are older than September 1, 2013. So the FMCSA guy wasn't even aware of that part of the label, however while not required I'll still label it because I don't think that's safe to not add even on older vehicles.
From the regulations:
S5. Requirements. Each passenger car, multipurpose passenger vehicle, truck and bus that is fitted with a control, a telltale or an indicator listed in Table 1 or Table 2 must meet the requirements of this standard for the location, identification, color, and illumination of that control, telltale or indicator. However, the requirements for telltales and indicators do not apply to vehicles with GVWRs of 4,536 kg or greater if these specified vehicles are manufactured before September 1, 2013.
They only require a "Warning signal" It doesn't specify that it has to be Audible, it can be visual.
From the regulations:
(c) Air brakes. A commercial motor vehicle (regardless of the date of manufacture) equipped with service brakes activated by compressed air (air brakes) or a commercial motor vehicle towing a vehicle with service brakes activated by compressed air (air brakes) must be equipped with a pressure gauge and a
warning signal. Trucks, truck tractors, and buses manufactured on or after March 1, 1975, must, at a minimum, have a pressure gauge and a warning signal which meets the requirements of FMVSS No. 121 (S5.1.4 for the pressure gauge and S5.1.5 for the warning signal) applicable to the vehicle on the date of manufacture of the vehicle. Power units to which FMVSS No. 571.121 was not applicable on the date of manufacture of the vehicle must be equipped with—
(1) A pressure gauge, visible to a person seated in the normal driving position, which indicates the air pressure (in kilopascals (kPa) or pounds per square inch (psi)) available for braking; and
(2) A warning signal that is
audible or visible to a person in the normal driving position and provides a continuous warning to the driver whenever the air pressure in the service reservoir system is at 379 kPa (55 psi) and below, or one-half of the compressor governor cutout pressure, whichever is less.
So to sum it up. I've not violated any regulations by doing what I'm doing, It is considered safe, I will not lose insurance over it.
If I wanted to I can install a Wigwag as my warning signal and not have an audible beeper at all.
The beeper is not even required if there's a visual indicator. I could leave it and just have the light according to the regulation and since it's so old technically doesn't even have to be labeled because the vehicle is so old, (however I don't agree with that, I will label it, and I will require when we do the safety certification to have them labeled even though DOT doesn't require it I think we should require it in our skoolie cert.)
So to be clear, a Wig wag only device could be all I require for a visual indicator to meet DOT requirements. Or I could have just a light properly labeled. Or, I could just have the beeper.
All of which are considered legal and safe. End of story. Let's move on now.
