2009 California Vehicle Code - Section 9950-9955 :: Chapter 1. Advertising, Brochures, And Manuals

9950.  Any advertisement, brochure, owner's manual, or sales manual
relating to any gasoline-powered motor vehicle of a type subject to
registration with a manufacturer's gross vehicle weight rating of
under 6,000 pounds of 1972 or later year model which contains any
reference to the horsepower of the engine of the vehicle shall state
only the Society of Automotive Engineers horsepower rating of such
engine, as installed (net), as determined by S.A.E. Standard J1349.

9951.  (a) A manufacturer of a new motor vehicle sold or leased in
this state that is equipped with one or more recording devices
commonly referred to as "event data recorders (EDR)" or "sensing and
diagnostic modules (SDM)," shall disclose that fact in the owner's
manual for the vehicle.
   (b) As used in this section, "recording device" means a device
that is installed by the manufacturer of the vehicle and does one or
more of the following, for the purpose of retrieving data after an
accident:
   (1) Records how fast and in which direction the motor vehicle is
traveling.
   (2) Records a history of where the motor vehicle travels.
   (3) Records steering performance.
   (4) Records brake performance, including, but not limited to,
whether brakes were applied before an accident.
   (5) Records the driver's seatbelt status.
   (6) Has the ability to transmit information concerning an accident
in which the motor vehicle has been involved to a central
communications system when an accident occurs.
   (c) Data described in subdivision (b) that is recorded on a
recording device may not be downloaded or otherwise retrieved by a
person other than the registered owner of the motor vehicle, except
under one of the following circumstances:
   (1) The registered owner of the motor vehicle consents to the
retrieval of the information.
   (2) In response to an order of a court having jurisdiction to
issue the order.
   (3) For the purpose of improving motor vehicle safety, including
for medical research of the human body's reaction to motor vehicle
accidents, and the identity of the registered owner or driver is not
disclosed in connection with that retrieved data. The disclosure of
the vehicle identification number (VIN) for the purpose of improving
vehicle safety, including for medical research of the human body's
reaction to motor vehicle accidents, does not constitute the
disclosure of the identity of the registered owner or driver.
   (4) The data is retrieved by a licensed new motor vehicle dealer,
or by an automotive technician as defined in Section 9880.1 of the
Business and Professions Code, for the purpose of diagnosing,
servicing, or repairing the motor vehicle.
   (d) A person authorized to download or otherwise retrieve data
from a recording device pursuant to paragraph (3) of subdivision (c),
may not release that data, except to share the data among the motor
vehicle safety and medical research communities to advance motor
vehicle safety, and only if the identity of the registered owner or
driver is not disclosed.
   (e) (1) If a motor vehicle is equipped with a recording device
that is capable of recording or transmitting information as described
in paragraph (2) or (6) of subdivision (b) and that capability is
part of a subscription service, the fact that the information may be
recorded or transmitted shall be disclosed in the subscription
service agreement.
   (2) Subdivision (c) does not apply to subscription services
meeting the requirements of paragraph (1).
   (f) This section applies to all motor vehicles manufactured on or
after July 1, 2004.

9952.  Any person who publishes, or causes to be published, or
offers for sale or sells, or gives to another person, any
advertisement, brochure, owner's manual, or sales manual which
violates Section 9950 is guilty of an infraction.

9953.  Every manufacturer of a new motor vehicle sold in this state
which, as equipped, may not be operated with tire chains shall do
both of the following:
   (a) Indicate that fact in the owner's manual for the vehicle or
other written material provided by the manufacturer regarding the
vehicle.
   (b) Provide each of its franchised new motor vehicle dealers in
this state with a list of the affected vehicle models on an annual
basis and prior to the manufacturer's introduction of its new model
year vehicles. The list shall include sufficient information,
including information regarding tire sizes where necessary, to allow
the selling dealer to determine when disclosure is required pursuant
to Section 11713.6.

9954.  (a) This section applies only to new vehicles sold or leased
in this state on or after January 1, 2008, except as provided in
subdivision (d) or (e).
   (b) A motor vehicle manufacturer of a motor vehicle sold or leased
in this state shall provide the means whereby the registered owner
of that motor vehicle, through a registered locksmith, can access the
information, and only that information, that is necessary to permit
the production of a replacement key or other functionally similar
device by the registered locksmith that will allow the registered
vehicle's owner to enter, start, and operate his or her vehicle. The
means to access this information shall be available by telephone or
electronically 24 hours a day and seven days a week, as follows:
   (1) When a registered locksmith is requested by the motor vehicle'
s registered owner or the registered owner's family member, to
produce a replacement key or other functionally similar device that
will allow the vehicle to be entered, started, and operated, and the
information is needed from the vehicle manufacturer in order to
produce the requested key or other functionally similar device, in
addition to the requirement in Section 466.6 of the Penal Code, the
registered locksmith shall visually verify the identity of the
requesting party through that party's driver's license; shall
visually verify that the registration of the vehicle matches the
requesting party's identity and address (or last name and address if
the requesting party is a family member of the registered owner); and
shall visually verify that the vehicle identification number of the
vehicle matches with the vehicle identification number on the
registration. Upon satisfactory verification of all three
requirements, the registered locksmith shall sign an affidavit that
he or she has visually verified the information and file the
affidavit along with, and for the same time period as, the work order
required by Section 466.6 of the Penal Code, and proceed to access
the needed information from the vehicle manufacturer.
   (2) Upon completing the services, the registered locksmith shall
give any key code information obtained from the vehicle manufacturer
to the registered owner, or if applicable, the owner's family member,
and shall destroy all information accessed from the vehicle
manufacturer in his or her possession.
   (3) Except in cases of fraud or misappropriation, a registered
locksmith who follows these procedures shall incur no liability for
theft of the vehicle related to the locksmith's production of a
replacement key or functionally similar device that will allow the
vehicle to be entered, started, and operated.
   (4) When a vehicle manufacturer receives a request from a
registered locksmith for information to enable the locksmith to
produce a replacement key or other functionally similar device that
will allow the vehicle to be entered, started, and operated, and that
request is made at the behest of the vehicle's registered owner or
the registered owner's family member, the vehicle manufacturer shall
require the registered locksmith to confirm the locksmith's
registration with the manufacturer's registry; provide the security
password issued by the manufacturer; and comply with any other
reasonable authentication procedure. The manufacturer shall also
require the registered locksmith to confirm the locksmith's visual
identity and vehicle verifications, pursuant to paragraph (1). Upon
satisfactory verification of these requirements, and upon
presentation of the vehicle identification number and model number,
the vehicle manufacturer shall provide to the registered locksmith,
for the vehicle identified by the vehicle identification number and
model number, the information necessary to enable production of a
replacement key or other functionally similar device that allows the
vehicle to be entered, started, and operated.
   (5) A motor vehicle manufacturer subject to this section shall
retain and make the information available in accordance with this
section for at least 25 years from the date of manufacture.
   (6) A vehicle manufacturer that follows these procedures shall
incur no liability for theft of the vehicle related to furnishing the
information to a registered locksmith for the production of a
replacement key or functionally similar device that will allow the
vehicle to be entered, started, and operated.
   (c) For purposes of this section the following definitions apply:
   (1) "Information" includes, but is not limited to, the vehicle's
key code and, if applicable, immobilizer or access code, and its
successor technology and terminology.
   (2) "Motor vehicle" is a passenger vehicle as defined in Section
465 and pickup truck as defined in Section 471, and does not include
a housecar, a motorcycle, or other two-wheeled motor vehicle.
   (3) A "registered locksmith" means a locksmith licensed and bonded
in California that has registered with a motor vehicle manufacturer,
and has been issued a registry number and security password by the
manufacturer.
   (4) A registered owner, as defined in Section 505, also includes a
lessee of the vehicle when the lessee's name appears on the vehicle
registration.
   (d) (1) This section does not apply to a vehicle line of a motor
vehicle manufacturer that on January 1, 2006, does not provide for
the production of a replacement key or other functionally similar
device that allows the vehicle to be entered, started, and operated,
by anyone other than the vehicle manufacturer itself and only itself,
provided that the vehicle manufacturer operates a telephone or
electronic request line 24 hours a day and seven days a week, and
upon a request of the registered owner or family member of the
registered owner of the vehicle, a replacement key or other
functionally similar device that will allow the vehicle to be
entered, started, and operated, is furnished to the registered owner
at a reasonable cost within one day of the request or via the next
overnight delivery.
   (2) If subsequent to January 1, 2008, a vehicle line of the
manufacturer exempted by this subdivision provides for the production
of a replacement by anyone, other than the vehicle manufacturer
itself, of a key or other functionally similar device that will allow
the vehicle to be entered, started, and operated, this section shall
apply to that vehicle line.
   (3) This subdivision shall remain operative until January 1, 2013,
and as of that date shall become inoperative, unless a later enacted
statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2013, deletes or extends
that date.
   (e) (1) This section does not apply to a vehicle line of a motor
vehicle manufacturer that sold between 2,500 and 5,000 vehicles of
that line in the prior calendar year in the state.
   (2) This subdivision shall remain operative until January 1, 2013,
and as of that date shall become inoperative, unless a later enacted
statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2013, deletes or extends
that date.
   (f) This section shall not apply to a make that sold fewer than
2,500 vehicles in the prior calendar year in the state.
   (g) The duties imposed on a manufacturer pursuant to this section
may be performed either by the manufacturer or by an agent through a
contract.(h) The provisions of this section are severable. If any
provision of this section or its application is held invalid, that
invalidity shall not affect other provisions or applications that can
be given effect without the invalid provision or application.

9955.  (a) A manufacturer of a pocket bike shall affix on the pocket
bike a sticker with a disclosure stating that the device is
prohibited from being operated on a sidewalk, roadway, or any part of
a highway, or on a bikeway, bicycle path or trail, equestrian trail,
hiking or recreational trail, or on public lands open to off-highway
motor vehicle use.
   (b) The disclosure required under subdivision (a) shall meet both
of the following requirements:
   (1) Be printed in not less than 14-point boldface type on a
sticker that contains only the disclosure.
   (2) Include the following statement: