THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,
Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,
Having regard to Directive 2007/46/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 September 2007 establishing a framework for the approval of motor vehicles and their trailers, and of systems, components and separate technical units intended for such vehicles (Framework Directive)(1), and in particular Article 39(3) thereof,
Whereas:
(1) Directive 2007/46/EC establishes a harmonised framework containing the administrative provisions and general technical requirements for all new vehicles, systems, components and separate technical units. In particular it includes a list of all regulatory acts which lay down the technical requirements with which vehicles have to comply in order to be granted EC vehicle type-approval. It also includes the various models of the type-approval certificates.
(2) As a result of the effects of the globalisation on the automotive sector, the demand for vehicles built outside the Union is growing significantly. The Member States have put in place administrative procedures and technical requirements under national law for the approval of vehicles imported from third countries. As the procedures and requirements differ from one Member State to the other, this situation creates distortion in the functioning of the internal market. It is therefore necessary to lay down appropriate harmonised measures.
(3) Harmonised administrative and technical provisions regarding individual approvals should be laid down in a first step with respect to vehicles produced in large series in or for third countries.
(4) Article 24 of Directive 2007/46/EC allows Member States to waive certain provisions of that Directive as well as of the regulatory acts listed in Annex IV to that Directive for the purposes of approval of individual vehicles. The proper functioning of the internal market requires however that similar technical and administrative requirements apply throughout the Union. It is therefore necessary to lay down which provisions of Union law may be waived.
(5) Article 24 allows Member States to impose alternative requirements to European law which aim to ensure a level of road safety and environmental protection which is equivalent to the greatest extent practicable to the level set out in Annexes IV and VI to Directive 2007/46/EC. Assuming that vehicles produced in series for third countries with a view to being put into service into domestic markets are built in accordance with the technical legislation in force in the respective countries of origin or destination, it is appropriate to take into account such requirements as well as the work in progress in the ‘World Forum for Harmonization of Vehicle Regulations (WP.29)’ under the auspices of the Economic Commission for Europe of the United Nations in Geneva. The appropriate information and the necessary expertise is available in order to demonstrate that those requirements could ensure a level of road safety and environmental protection which is at least equivalent to the level of road safety and environmental protection required in the Union. It is therefore appropriate to consider as equivalent a number of requirements in force in third countries for the purpose of individual approval.
(6) The templates of the certificates issued by the approval authorities are described in Annex VI to Directive 2007/46/EC. However they concern approvals granted for a type of vehicle and not approvals granted for individual vehicles. In order to facilitate the mutual recognition of those individual approvals granted under Article 24 of that Directive, it is appropriate to provide the model to be used for the individual approval certificate.
(7) Member States have national individual approval schemes in place at the time of the adoption of this Regulation for vehicles produced in large series and originally intended for registration in third countries. Those approval schemes may continue to apply. According to Article 24(6) of Directive 2007/46/EC, their validity is restricted to the territory of the Member State that granted the approval and other Member States may refuse such approvals.
(8) It is appropriate with a view to ensuring the proper operation of the approval system to update the annexes to Directive 2007/46/EC in order to lay down technical requirements for vehicles to be approved under the individual approval procedure.
(9) Annexes IV and VI to Directive 2007/46/EC should therefore be amended accordingly.
(10) The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Technical Committee — Motor Vehicles,
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION: