February 10 was the last day when producers of motorcycles for the 12-year-old and younger kids were allowed to sell these products. Following a decision taken by the US Congress, the sale of both new and old motorbikes for kids like the famous Honda CRF50F has become illegal in America and those who attempt to break the law may face fines of up to $15 million, hellforleathermagazine.com reported.
The decision was taken after the scandal of the recent influx of lead-tainted toys which resulted in numerous recalls. Although anybody would agree that it's highly unlikely that kids put their CRF50F parts in their mouth, the Congress insisted with their decision and adopted the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008 (CPSIA) that bans children's motorbikes in America.
Quite obviously, Honda and other members of the Motorcycle Industry Council struggled to convince the Congress to exclude their products from the act. They tried to gather official test results of how much lead is in each of their components and to eventually be given permit to manufacture these models with lead-free components.
But it seems their struggle was in vain as nothing could stop the regulation to come into effect on February 10.
As if the financial downturn wasn't already affecting them enough, the regulation came as a shock for automakers and dealers who have already invested a lot in stock and advertising.
The only thing they can still do is to continue to lobby the Children's Product Safety Commission for an exemption, but this will take at least several months.
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