Legal requirements for a road car

[camshafted]

What legal requirements must a car have to make it road legal? Just been thinking about the Zonda R and wondered what they skipped from production to make it into such a track beast!

[dowahdiddyman]

Indicators,fog lights,reversing lights,air bags,catalytic convertor, plus the millions it would cost ofr getting one crash tested I assume, but i`m probably wrong.

[The Black Flash]

dowahdiddyman said:

Indicators,fog lights,reversing lights,air bags,catalytic convertor, plus the millions it would cost ofr getting one crash tested I assume, but i`m probably wrong.

Yeah, you are
It depends how many you make, broadly speaking. If it's over a certain number you need full type approval, which does involve crash testing etc. I don't think there's any requirements for airbags though.

Smaller numbers and you can avoid the crash test, (factory-built Caterhams and Westfields for example) but there are lots of requirements regarding projections for pedestrian and passenger safety etc. Also emmissions, visibility, lighting, brake performance and balance, general construction, cockpit controls, basic handling tests, etc etc. Google "IVA Test" which is what you need to go through to get a single vehicle on the road.

I recently asked a friend who works at JLR what large manufacturers do about prototype vehicles, and whether they have to be tested, but he wasn't sure. Because I'm pretty sure that some of those wouldn't pass an IVA with all the wires hanging out and half the trim missing. Anyone know?

[300bhp/ton]

camshafted said:

What legal requirements must a car have to make it road legal? Just been thinking about the Zonda R and wondered what they skipped from production to make it into such a track beast!

Emissions mostly, it has a race engine. Also huge fat sick tyres. Noise would be another issue too.

Lights and things could be easy and don't really weigh much.

[Ozzie Osmond]

camshafted said:

What legal requirements must a car have to make it road legal? Just been thinking about the Zonda R and wondered what they skipped from production to make it into such a track beast!

Broadly speaking if a car couldn't pass an MoT test then it's not going to be road legal. But that's not the real answer. to be road legal a car must have either,

1. Full European type approval including crash tests etc. Very detailed requirements and very expensive to achieve. Once sample cars of the "type" have been approved the manufacturer can crack on with mass production.

or

2. Individual Vehicle Approval. Inspection of every single vehicle such as a kit or specialist sports car built in or imported into the UK from e.g. Japan or USA. This test is more demanding than the old SVA test. The requirements are detailed but not as tough as full type approval and no crash test is required.

[Ozzie Osmond]

The Black Flash said:

I recently asked a friend who works at JLR what large manufacturers do about prototype vehicles, and whether they have to be tested, but he wasn't sure. Because I'm pretty sure that some of those wouldn't pass an IVA with all the wires hanging out and half the trim missing. Anyone know?

AFAIK the "prototype" will either be an old model running with modifications (a mule) or the vehicle will have undergone an SVA test. I guess so once the car is registered they can do what they like sso long as it remains roadworthy.

[deveng]

dowahdiddyman said:

Indicators,fog lights,reversing lights,air bags,catalytic convertor, plus the millions it would cost ofr getting one crash tested I assume, but i`m probably wrong.

Don't need reverse light on a road car.

[300bhp/ton]

deveng said:

dowahdiddyman said:

Indicators,fog lights,reversing lights,air bags,catalytic convertor, plus the millions it would cost ofr getting one crash tested I assume, but i`m probably wrong.

Don't need reverse light on a road car.

Don't think you need headlights either. You can certainly get daylight only MoT's.