Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on rear-view mirrors for wheeled agricultural or forestry tractors (Codified version)
Date: 2007-05-07
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: approximation of laws, marketing, safety device, technical regulations, tractor

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 

Brussels, 7.5.2007 
COM(2007) 236 final 

2007/0081 (COD) 

Proposal for a 

DIRECTIVE OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL 

on rear-view mirrors for wheeled agricultural or forestry tractors 

(Codified version) 

(presented by the Commission) 

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1. 

2. 

3. 

4. 

EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM 

In  the  context  of  a  people’s  Europe,  the  Commission  attaches  great  importance  to 
simplifying  and  clarifying  Community  law  so  as  to  make  it  clearer  and  more 
accessible to the ordinary citizen, thus giving him new opportunities and the chance 
to make use of the specific rights it gives him. 

This aim cannot be achieved so long as numerous provisions that have been amended 
several times, often quite substantially, remain scattered, so that they must be sought 
partly  in  the  original  instrument  and  partly  in  later  amending  ones.  Considerable 
research work, comparing many different instruments, is thus needed to identify the 
current rules. 

For  this  reason  a  codification  of  rules  that  have  frequently  been  amended  is  also 
essential if Community law is to be clear and transparent. 

On  1  April  1987  the  Commission  therefore  decided1  to  instruct  its  staff  that  all 
legislative acts should be codified after no more than ten amendments, stressing that 
this was a minimum requirement and that departments should endeavour to codify at 
even  shorter  intervals  the  texts  for  which  they  are  responsible,  to  ensure  that  the 
Community rules are clear and readily understandable. 

The  Conclusions  of 
the  Edinburgh  European  Council 
(December 1992) confirmed this2, stressing the importance of codification as it offers 
certainty as to the law applicable to a given matter at a given time. 

the  Presidency  of 

Codification  must  be  undertaken  in  full  compliance  with  the  normal  Community 
legislative procedure. 

Given  that  no  changes  of  substance  may  be  made  to  the  instruments  affected  by 
codification, the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission have agreed, 
by  an  interinstitutional  agreement  dated  20  December  1994,  that  an  accelerated 
procedure may be used for the fast-track adoption of codification instruments. 

The  purpose  of  this  proposal  is  to  undertake  the  codification  of  Council 
Directive 74/346/EEC  of  25  June  1974  on  the  approximation  of  the  laws  of  the 
Member  States  relating  to  rear-view  mirrors  for  wheeled  agricultural  or  forestry 
tractors3. The new Directive will supersede the various acts incorporated in it4; this 
proposal  fully  preserves  the  content  of  the  acts  being  codified  and  hence  does  no 
more than bring them together with only such formal amendments as are required by 
the codification exercise itself. 

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2 
3 

4 

COM(87) 868 PV. 
See Annex 3 to Part A of these Conclusions. 
Carried out pursuant to the Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament and the 
Council – Codification of the Acquis communautaire, COM(2001) 645 final. 
Annex II, Part A of this proposal. 

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5. 

The codification proposal was drawn up on the basis of a preliminary consolidation, 
in all official languages, of Directive 74/346/EEC and the instruments amending it, 
carried out by the Office of Official Publications of the European Communities, by 
means  of  a  data-processing  system.  Where  the  Articles  have  been  given  new 
numbers,  the  correlation  between  the  old and  the  new  numbers  is  shown  in  a  table 
contained in Annex III to the codified Directive. 

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(cid:208) 74/346/EEC (adapted) 

2007/0081 (COD) 

Proposal for a 

DIRECTIVE OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL 

on rear-view mirrors for wheeled agricultural or forestry tractors 

(Text with EEA relevance) 

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 

Having  regard  to  the  Treaty  establishing  the  European  Community,  and  in  particular 
Article ⌦ 95 ⌫ thereof, 

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission, 

Having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee1, 

Acting in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 251 of the Treaty2, 

Whereas: 

(1) 

(2) 

1 
2 
3 

4 
5 

(cid:208)  

Council Directive 74/346/EEC of  25 June 1974  on the  approximation of  the laws of 
the  Member  States  relating  to  rear  view  mirrors  for  wheeled  agricultural  or  forestry 
tractors3 has been substantially amended several times4. In the interests of clarity and 
rationality the said Directive should be codified. 

for 

in  Council  Directive  74/150/EEC,  as 

Directive  74/346/EEC  is  one  of  the  separate  Directives  of  the  EC  type-approval 
replaced  by 
system  provided 
Directive 2003/37/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 May 2003 
on type-approval of agricultural or forestry tractors, their trailers and interchangeable 
towed machinery, together with their systems, components and separate technical units 
and  repealing  Directive  74/150/EEC5  and 
technical  prescriptions 
concerning the design and construction of wheeled agricultural or forestry tractors as 

lays  down 

OJ C , , p. . 
OJ C , , p. . 
OJ L 191, 15.7.1974, p. 1. Directive as last amended by Commission Directive 98/40/EC (OJ L 171, 
17.6.1998, p. 28). 
See Annex II, Part A. 
OJ L 171, 9.7.2003, p. 1. Directive as last amended by Commission Directive 2006/96/EC (OJ L 363, 
20.12.2006, p. 81). 

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regards rear-view mirrors. Those technical prescriptions concern the approximation of 
the laws of the Member States to enable the EC type-approval procedure provided for 
in Directive 2003/37/EC to be applied in respect of each type of tractor. Consequently, 
the  provisions  laid  down  in  Directive  2003/37/EC  relating  to  agricultural  or  forestry 
tractors,  their  trailers  and  interchangeable  towed  machinery,  together  with  their 
systems, components and separate technical units apply to this Directive. 

(3) 

This  Directive  should  be  without  prejudice  to  the  obligations  of  the  Member  States 
concerning  the  time-limits  for  transposition  into  national  law  and  application  of  the 
Directives set out in Annex II, Part B, 

HAVE ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE:  

(cid:208) 74/346/EEC 

(cid:208) 74/346/EEC 
(cid:206)1 Corrigendum 74/346/EEC 
(OJ L 226, 18.8.1976, p. 16) 

Article 1 

1. ‘Agricultural or forestry tractor’ means any motor vehicle, fitted with wheels or (cid:206)1 endless 
tracks  and having at least two axles, the main function of which lies in its tractive power 
and  which  is  specially  designed  to  tow,  push,  carry  or  power  certain  tools,  machinery  or 
trailers  intended  for  agricultural  or  forestry  use.  It  may  be  equipped  to  carry  a  load  and 
passengers. 

2. This Directive shall apply only to tractors defined in paragraph 1 which are equipped with 
pneumatic tyres and have a maximum design speed of between 6 and (cid:206)1 40 km/h . 

(cid:208) 82/890/EEC Art. 1(1) 
(cid:206)1 97/54/EC Art. 1 

(cid:208) 74/346/EEC (adapted) 

Article 2 

No Member State may refuse to grant EC type-approval or national type-approval of a tractor 
on grounds relating to rear-view mirrors if these satisfy the requirements set out in Annex I. 

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Article 3 

No Member State may refuse or prohibit the sale, ⌦ registration, ⌫ entry into service or use 
of tractors on grounds relating to rear-view mirrors if these satisfy the requirements set out in 
Annex I. 

Article 4 

The  amendments  necessary  for  adapting  to  technical  progress  the  requirements  of  Annex I 
shall be adopted in accordance with the procedure ⌦ referred to ⌫ in Article ⌦ 20(2) ⌫ 
of Directive ⌦ 2003/37/EC ⌫. 

Member  States  shall  ⌦ communicate ⌫  the  texts  of  the  main  provisions  of  national  law 
which they adopt in the field covered by this Directive to the Commission. 

Article 5 

(cid:208)  

Article 6 

Directive 74/346/EEC, as amended by the Directives listed in Annex II, is repealed, without 
prejudice to the obligations of the Member States relating to the time-limits for transposition 
into national law and application of the Directives set out in Annex II, Part B. 

References  to  the  repealed  Directive  shall  be  construed  as  references  to  this  Directive  and 
shall be read in accordance with the correlation table in Annex III. 

Article 7 

This Directive shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in 
the Official Journal of the European Union. 

It shall apply from […]. 

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(cid:208) 74/346/EEC Art. 6 

Article 8 

This Directive is addressed to the Member States. 

Done at Brussels,  

For the European Parliament 
The President 

For the Council 
The President 

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(cid:208) 74/346/EEC 
(cid:206)1 98/40/EC Art. 1 point 1 

ANNEX I 

1. 

DEFINITIONS 

1.1. 

1.2. 

1.3. 

1.4. 

‘Rear-view  mirror’  means  any  device  intended  to  give,  within  the  field  of  vision 
geometrically  defined  in  item  2.5  below,  a  clear  view  to  the  rear  which,  within 
reasonable  limits,  is  not  blocked  by  component  parts  of  the  tractor  or  by  the 
occupants  of  the  tractor  itself.  (cid:206)1 The  additional  mirrors  and  rear-view  mirrors 
designed  in  order  to  monitor  the  implements  while  working  in  the  fields  are  not 
necessarily open to component type-approval but must be located in accordance with 
the setting requirements contained in items 2.3.3 to 2.3.5.  

‘Interior  rear-view  mirror’  means  a  device  as  defined  in  item  1.1  which  is  fitted 
inside the cab or frame of a tractor. 

‘Exterior rear-view mirror’ means a device as defined in item 1.1 which is mounted 
on any part of the external surface of a tractor. 

‘Class of rear-view mirror’ means all rear-view mirrors having one or more common 
characteristics or functions. Interior rear-view mirrors are grouped in class I. Exterior 
rear-view mirrors are grouped in class II. 

2. 

REQUIREMENTS FOR FITTING 

2.1. 

General 

2.1.1.  Tractors  may  be  fitted  with  rear-view  mirrors  of  classes  I  and  II  only  bearing  the 
EC type-approval  mark  laid  down  in  Directive  ⌦ 2003/97/EC  of  the  European 
Parliament and of the Council1 ⌫. 

(cid:208) 74/346/EEC (adapted) 

2.1.2.  Rear-view mirrors must be fixed in such a way that they remain steady under normal 

driving conditions. 

(cid:208) 74/346/EEC 
(cid:206)1 98/40/EC Art. 1 point 2 

1 

OJ L 25, 29.1.2004, p. 1. 

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2.2. 

Number 

All tractors shall be equipped with at least one exterior rear-view mirror fitted to the 
left side of the tractor in Member States in which traffic drives on the right and to the 
right side of the tractor in Member States in which traffic drives on the left. 

2.3. 

Position 

2.3.1.  The exterior rear-view mirror must be so placed that the driver, when sitting on the 
driving  seat  in  a  normal  driving  position,  has  a  clear  view  of  that  part  of  the  road 
defined in item 2.5. 

2.3.2.  The exterior rear-view mirror must be visible through the portion of the windscreen 
that is swept by the windscreen wiper or through the side windows if the tractor is 
fitted with them. 

2.3.3.  The rear-view mirror must not protrude beyond the external bodywork of the tractor 
or  the  tractor-trailer  combination  substantially  more  than  is  necessary  to  obtain  the 
fields of vision laid down in item 2.5. 

2.3.4.  Where  the  bottom  edge  of  an  exterior  rear-view  mirror  is  less  than  2 m  above  the 
ground  when  the  tractor  is  laden,  this  rear-view  mirror  must  not  project  more  than 
0,20 m  beyond  the  overall  width  of  the  tractor  or  tractor-trailer  combination 
measured without rear-view mirrors. 

2.3.5.  Subject to the requirements of items 2.3.3 and 2.3.4, rear-view mirrors may project 

beyond the tractor's permissible maximum width. 

2.4. 

Adjustment 

2.4.1.  Any  interior  rear-view  mirror  must  be  adjustable  by  the  driver  from  his  driving 

position. 

2.4.2.  (cid:206)1 The driver  must be able to adjust the exterior rear-view  mirror without leaving 
the driving position.  The mirror may, however, be locked into position from the 
outside. 

2.4.3.  The  requirements  of  item  2.4.2  do  not  apply  to  exterior  rear-view  mirrors  which, 
after being displaced, are returned automatically to their original position or can be 
restored to their original position without the use of tools. 

2.5. 

Fields of vision 

2.5.1.  Member States in which traffic drives on the right 

The  field  of  vision  of  the  left  hand  exterior  rear-view  mirror  must  be  such  that  the 
driver  can  see  to  the  rear  at  least  that  level  part  of  the  road  as  far  as  the  horizon, 
which is to the left of the plane parallel to the vertical longitudinal median plane and 
which  passes  through  the  leftmost  point  of  the  overall  width  of  the  tractor  or 
tractor-trailer combination. 

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2.5.2.  Member States in which traffic drives on the left 

The field of vision of the right hand exterior rear-view mirror must be such that the 
driver  can  see  to  the  rear  at  least  that  level  part  of  the  road,  as  far  as  the  horizon, 
which  is  to  the  right  of  the  plane  parallel  to  the  vertical  longitudinal  median  plane 
and  which  passes  through  the  rightmost  point  of  the  overall  width  of  the  tractor  or 
tractor-trailer combination. 

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(cid:207) 

ANNEX II 

Part A 

Repealed Directive with list of its successive amendments 
(referred to in Article 6) 

Council Directive 74/346/EEC 
(OJ L 191, 15.7.1974, p. 1) 

Council Directive 82/890/EEC 
(OJ L 378, 31.12.1982, p. 45) 

Only the references made by 
Article 1(1) to Directive 74/346/EEC 

Directive 97/54/EC of the European Parliament 
and of the Council 
(OJ L 277, 10.10.1997, p. 24) 

Only the references made by Article 1 
to Directive 74/346/EEC 

Commission Directive 98/40/EC 
(OJ L 171, 17.6.1998, p. 28) 

Part B 

List of time-limits for transposition into national law and application 
(referred to in Article 6) 

Directive 

Time-limit for transposition 

Date of application  

74/346/EEC 

82/890/EEC 

97/54/EC 

98/40/EC 

2 January 1976 

22 June 1984 

____ 

____ 

22 September 1998 

23 September 1998 

30 April 1999 

1 May 1999(1) 

(1) 

In conformity with Article 2 of Directive 98/40/EC: 

“1. 

From 1 May 1999, no Member State may: 

– 

refuse, in respect of a type of tractor, to grant EC type-approval, to issue the document 
referred  to  in  the  third  indent  of  Article  10(1)  of  Directive 74/150/EEC,  or  to  grant 
national type-approval, or 

– 

to prohibit the entry into service of tractors, 

if those tractors meet the requirements of Directive 74/346/EEC, as amended by this Directive. 

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2. 

From 1 October 1999, Member States: 

– 

– 

may  no  longer  issue  the  document  referred  to  in  the  third  indent  of  Article 10(1)  of 
Directive  74/150/EEC  for  a  type  of  tractor  that  does  not  meet  the  requirements  of 
Directive 74/346/EEC, as amended by this Directive, 

may refuse to grant national type-approval in respect of a type of tractor which does not 
meet the requirements of Directive 74/346/EEC, as amended by this Directive.” 

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ANNEX III 

CORRELATION TABLE 

Directive 74/346/EEC 

This Directive 

Articles 1 to 4 

Article 5(1) 

Article 5(2) 

_____ 

_____ 

Article 6 

Annex 

_____ 

_____ 

Articles 1 to 4 

_____ 

Article 5 

Article 6 

Article 7 

Article 8 

Annex I 

Annex II 

Annex III 

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