CELEX: 51992PC0336
Language: en
Date: 1992-09-23
Title: Proposal for a COUNCIL DIRECTIVE ON STATUTORY MARKINGS FOR TWO OR THREE-WHEEL MOTOR VEHICLES

9 . 11 . 92                                Official Journal of the European Communities                                          No C 293 / 43
                  Proposal for a Council Directive on statutory markings for two or three-wheel motor vehicles
                                                            (92 / C 293 / 07)
                                                   COM (92) 336 Final — SYN 434
                                       (Submitted, by the Commission on 28 September 1992)
 THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES ,                              should be entrusted to the Commission in order to simplify
                                                                        and expedite the procedure; whereas it is advisable,
 Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European                  whenever the Council grants powers to the Commission for
 Economic Community , and in particular Article 100 a                   the implementation of the rules laid down in respect of two or
 thereof,                                                               three-wheel motor vehicles, to provide for an advance
                                                                        consultation procedure between the Commission and the
                                                                        Member States within an Advisory Committee,
 Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,
 In cooperation with the European Parliament,
                                                                        HAS ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE :
 Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social
 Committee ,
                                                                                                      Article 1
 Whereas it is necessary to adopt measures intended gradually
 to introduce the internal market over a period expiring on 31
 December 1992; whereas the internal market comprises an                This Directive and its Annex shall apply to statutory
 entity without internal frontiers within which the free                markings for all types of two or three-wheel vehicle as
 movement of goods, persons, services and capital is                    defined in Article 1 of Council Directive 92 /. . ./ EEC of . . .
 guaranteed;                                                            on the type-approval of two or three-wheel vehicles .
 Whereas in each Member State two or three-wheel vehicles
 must , in respect of their statutory markings, display certain                                       Article 2
 mandatory technical characteristics which differ from one
 Member State to another; whereas this disparity constitutes a
 barrier to trade within the Community ;                                The procedure for the granting of component type-approval
                                                                        in respect of the statutory markings for a type of two or
                                                                        three-wheel vehicle and the conditions governing the free
Whereas those barriers to the establishment and operation of            movement of said vehicles shall be those set out in Council
the internal market can be removed if the same requirements
                                                                        Directive 92 /. . ./ EEC       in    the     Chapters II      and    III
are adopted by all of the Member States in place of their
                                                                        respectively .
national regulations;
Whereas the drawing-up of harmonized requirements for
statutory markings for two or three-wheel vehicles is                                                 Article 3
necessary in order to enable the type-approval and
component type-approval procedures laid down in Directive
                                                                       Any amendments necessary to adapt the requirements of the
92 /. . ./ EEC to be implemented in respect of each" type of
said vehicle (');                                                      Annexes to technical progress shall be adopted in accordance
                                                                       with the procedure laid down in Article 4 of this
                                                                        Directive .
Whereas , given the scale and impact of the action proposed in
the sector in question, the Community measures which are
the subject of this Directive are necessary, or even
indispensable , to attain the objective set, namely Community                                         Article 4
vehicle type-approval ; whereas this objective cannot be
adequately achieved by the Member States individually;
                                                                       In all cases where reference is made to the procedure set out in
                                                                       this Article, the representative of the Commission shall
Whereas there is a need for the rapid adjustment of the                submit to the Committee set up by Article 12 of Directive
technical requirements set out in the Annex to this Directive          70 / 156 / EEC (2 ) a draft of the measures to be taken . The
to take account of technical progress; whereas this task
                                                                       ( 2 ) OJ No L 42, 23 . 2. 1970 , p. 1 , as last amended by Directive
(') OJ No L .                                                                92 / 53 / EEC ( OJ No L 225 , 10 . 8 . 1992 , p. 1 ).
 ---pagebreak--- No C 293 / 44                            Official Journal of the European Communities                                    9 . 11 . 92
Committee shall deliver its opinion on the draft within a time      comply with this Directive not later than 1 August 1994 .
limit which the chairman may lay down according to the              They shall forthwith inform the Commission thereof.
urgency of the matter, if necessary by taking a vote.
                                                                    They shall implement these provisions with effect from
                                                                    1 October 1994 .
The opinion shall be recorded in the minutes; in addition ,
each Member State shall have the right to ask to have its           2.     When the Member States adopt these provisions, the
position recorded in the minutes. The Commission shall take         provisions shall contain a reference to this Directive or shall
the utmost account of the opinon delivered by the
Committee . It shall inform the Committee of the manner in
                                                                    be accompanied by such a reference when they are published
                                                                    in official form . The procedures for making such reference
which its opinion has been taken into account.                      shall be laid down by the Member States.
                          Article 5
                                                                                              Article 6
1.    Member States shall bring into force the laws,
regulations and administrative provisions necessary to              This Directive is addressed to the Member States .
 ---pagebreak--- 9 . 11 . 92                                  Official Journal of the European Communities                                          No C 293 / 45
                                                                     ANNEX
            REQUIREMENTS ATTACHED TO STATUTORY MARKINGS FOR TWO OR THREE-WHEEL MOTOR
                                                                    VEHICLES
            1.         GENERAL
            1.1 .      All vehicles shall receive a plate and markings as described below . That plate and those markings shall be
                       affixed by the manufacturer or his authorized representative .
            2.         MANUFACTURER'S DATA PLATE
            2.1 .      A manufacturer's data plate , a model of which is shown in Appendix 1 shall be firmly attached , at an
                       easily accessible point, to a part which is normally not likely to be replaced during use; it must be easily
                       legible and contain the following information in an indelible form , in the following order:
            2.1.1 .    name of manufacturer;
            2.1.2 .   type-approval mark as described in Article 8 of Council Directive 92 /        / EEC on the type-approval of
                       two or three-wheel motor vehicles ;
            2.1.3 .    the vehicle identification number (VIN );
            2. 1 .4.   the make and reference of the type(s) of silencer . This does not apply to mopeds and motorcycles since
                       this information is contained on the plate provided for by Council Directive 93 /       / EEC on measures
                       against tampering with mopeds and motorcycles;
            2.1.5 .   the static sound level : . . . dB(A ) at . . . rev / min .
            2.2 .     The type-approval mark as required by item 2.1.2 ., the static sound level value and the number of
                      rev / minute as required by item 2.1.5 . are not included in the component type-approval of statutory
                      markings . However , those pieces of information shall be attached to all vehicles manufactured in
                      conformity with the type that has been approved .
            2.3 .     Manufacturers may affix additional information below or to one side of the mandatory markings ,
                      outside a clearly marked rectangle which contains only the information required by items 2.1.1 . to
                      2.1.5 . ( see Appendix 1 ).
            3.        VEHICLE IDENTIFICATION NUMBER
                      The vehicle identification number consists of a structured combination of characters assigned to each
                      vehicle by their manufacturer. Its purpose is to enable any vehicle to be identified unambiguously via its
                      manufacturer — without any need for any other information — for a period of 30 years. The
                      identification must meet the following requirements:
            3.1 .     the vehicle identification number must be entered on the manufacturer's data plate. It must also be
                      hammered or punched in such a way as to avoid obliteration or change on the chassis or frame at a point
                      such that it can easily be accessible , and it must be situated on the right half of the vehicle ;
            3.1.1 .   the vehicle identification number must be in three parts:
            3.1.1.1 . the first part consists of a code assigned to the vehicle manufacturer enabling that person to be identified.
                      The code shall consist of three characters (letters or digits) issued by the competent authorities in the
                      country in which the manufacturer has his registered address in line with the practice of the international
                      agency acting on the authorization of the International Organization for Standardization ( ISO ). The
                      first character designates a geographical area, the second a country within a geographical area and the
                      third character a particular manufacturer. Where the manufacturer produces less than 500 vehicles per
                      year the third character is always a 9. In order to identify that manufacturer the authority referred to
                      above shall also issue the third , fourth and fifth part-3 characters ;
 ---pagebreak--- No C 293 / 46                               Official Journal of the European Communities                                           9 . 11 . 92
            3.1.1.2. the second part consists of six characters (letters or digits) for the purpose of describing the general
                      characteristics of the vehicle (type, variant and version); each characteristic may be represented by two
                      characters . If its manufacturer does not use one or more of those characters the unused spaces shall be
                      filled by alphabetical or numerical characters, the choice being left to the manufacturer;
            3.1.1.3 . the third part shall consist of eight characters the last four of which are required to be numerical and, in
                      combination with the two other parts, must enable a particular vehicle to be clearly identified. Any
                      unused position must be filled by a 0 in order to obtain the requisite total number of characters;
             3.1.2.   the vehicle identification number must, wherever possible, occupy a single line. By way of an exception
                      and for technical reasons it may also occupy two lines. However, in this case there must be no breaks
                      within any of the three parts;
                      the beginning and end of each line must be marked by a symbol which is neither an Arabic numeral nor a
                      capital Latin letter, nor must it be possible to confuse this with any such character. An exemption may be
                      granted if the number is entered on a single line on the manufacturer'? data plate. The introduction of
                      said symbol within a line between the three parts ( Item 3.1.1 .) is also authorized ;
                      There must be no spaces between the characters .
            4.        CHARACTERS
            4.1 .     Latin letters and Arabic numerals must be used for all of the markings provided for in Items 2
                      and 3 .
            4.2 .     In the vehicle identification number:
            4.2.1 .   letters I, O and Q , or dashes, asterisks or other specific signs are prohibited;
            4.2.2 .   letters and figures shall have the following minimum heights:
            4.2.2.1 . 4 mm in the case of characters entered directly on the chassis or frame or any other similar vehicle
                      structure ;
            4.2.2.2 . 3 mm in the case of characters entered on the manufacturer's data plate.
 ---pagebreak--- 9 . 11 . 92                                Official Journal of the European Communities                                       No C 293 / 47
                                                                 Appendix 1
                                                   Example of manufacturer's data plate
            The example below shall in no way affect the information actually set out on manufacturer's data plates, nor the
            dimensions of the plate itself, the figures or letters. It is given solely by way of an example .
            The additional information referred to in item 2.3 may be entered below or to one side of the information required
            in the following rectangle.
                                                    STELLA FABBRICA MOTOCICLI
                                                                   e3 5364
                                                   3GSKLM3AC8B120000
                                                              ROSSANI XT 28
                                                          80 dB (A) — 3 750 t / m
            Legend:
            In the above example of a plate the vehicle at issue has been made by 'Stella fabbrica motocicli' and type-approved
            in Italy (e3 ), under number 5364 .
            The identification number ( 3GSKLM3AC8B120000) means as follows:
            — first part ( 3GS ):
                — 3 : geographical area ( Europe );
                — G : country within the geographical area ( Germany );
                — S : manufacturer ( Stella Fabbrica Motocicli );
            — second part ( KLM3AC ):
                — KL : type of vehicle;
                — M3 : variant ( vehicle bodywork);
                — AC: version ( vehicle engine);
            — third part ( 8B120000 ):
                — 8B12: identification of the vehicle and combination of the two other parts of the identification
                             number ;
                — 0000: unused positions that have been filled by a 0 in order to make up the total number of characters
                             required .
            The only type of silencer fitted to the vehicle is of the Rossani make and its reference is XT28 .
            The static sound level is 80 dB(A ) at 3 750 rev / min .
 ---pagebreak--- No C 293 / 48                              Official Journal of the European Communities                                       9 . 11 . 92
                                                               Appendix 2
                 Information document in respect of statutory markings for a type of two or three-wheel motor vehicle
             (to be attached to the application for component type-approval where this is submitted separately from the
                                                  application for vehicle type-approval)
             Order No ( assigned by the applicant):
             The application for component type-approval in respect of statutory markings for a type of two or three-wheel
             motor vehicle shall contain the information set out under the following points in Annex II to Directive
             92 /. . ./ EEC :
             — 0.1
             — 0.2
             — 0.4 to 0.6
             — 9.3.1 to 9.3.3 .
                                                                Appendix 3
             Certificate of component type-approval in respect of statutory markings for a type of two or three-wheel motor
                                                                  vehicle
                                                                 MODEL
                                                                                                       Name of administration
             Report No                              by testing body                           date
             Component type-approval No:                               Extension No :
             1.   Make or trade name of vehicle :
             2 . Type of vehicle:
             3.   Manufacturer's name and address:
             4 . Name and address of manufacturer's representatives ( if any ):
             5.   Vehicle submitted for test on :
             6 . Component type-approval granted / refused (*):
             7.   Place :
             8.   Date :
             9 . Signature:
             (') Delete as appropriate.