ANNEX IGENERAL DEFINITIONS, CRITERIA FOR VEHICLE CATEGORISATION, TYPES OF VEHICLE AND TYPES OF BODYWORK

PART BCriteria for types of vehicle, variants and versions

7.Common requirements for all vehicle categories

7.1.

When a vehicle falls into several categories because of its maximum mass or the number of seating positions or both, the manufacturer may select to use the criteria of one or the other vehicle category for the definition of the variants and the versions.

7.1.1.

Examples:

  1. (a)

    a vehicle ‘A’ may be type-approved as N1 (3,5 tonnes) and N2 (4,2 tonnes) in relation to its maximum mass. In such a case, the parameters mentioned in category N1 may be used also for the vehicle that falls into category N2 (or vice-versa);

  2. (b)

    a vehicle ‘B’ may be type-approved as M1 and M2 in relation to the number of seating positions (7 + 1 or 10 + 1), the parameters mentioned in category M1 may be used also for the vehicle that falls into category M2 (or vice-versa).

7.2.

A vehicle of category N may be type-approved against the provisions required for category M1 or M2, as the case may be, when it is intended to be converted into a vehicle of that category during the next step of a multi-stage type-approval procedure.

7.2.1.

This option shall only be permitted for incomplete vehicles.

Such vehicles shall be identified by a specific variant code given by the manufacturer of the base vehicle.

7.3.Type-, variant- and version designations

7.3.1.

The manufacturer shall allocate an alphanumeric code to each type of vehicle, variant and version, made up of Roman letters and/or Arabic numerals.

The use of brackets and hyphens is permitted provided they do not replace a letter or a numeral.

7.3.2.

The whole code shall be designated: Type-Variant-Version or ‘TVV’.

7.3.3.

The TVV shall clearly and unequivocally identify a unique combination of technical features in relation to the criteria defined in this Part.

7.3.4.

The same manufacturer may use the same code in order to define a type of vehicle when the latter falls in two or more categories.

7.3.5.

The same manufacturer shall not use the same code in order to define a type of vehicle for more than one type-approval within the same vehicle category.

7.4.Number of characters for the TVV

7.4.1.

The number of characters shall not exceed:

  1. (a)

    15 for the code of the type of vehicle;

  2. (b)

    25 for the code of one variant;

  3. (c)

    35 for the code of one version.

7.4.2.

The complete alphanumeric ‘TVV’ shall not contain more than 75 characters.

7.4.3.

When the TVV is used as a whole, a space shall be left between the type, the variant and the version.

Example of such TVV: 159AF[…space]0054[…space]977K(BE).