Whole Vehicle Type Approval
There are to be changes to the way in which vehicles are approved and sold within the European Union, prompting alterations to the current national approval schemes in force in the UK.
European Community Whole Vehicle Type Approval (ECWVTA) is being extended from 2009 to cover all vehicles including trucks, trailers, buses and coaches. At present, only cars are covered by ECWVTA. This comes into force in October 2007 and there are deadlines for compliance over the next seven years according to vehicle type. By 2014, it will be compulsory for all vehicles.
ECWVTA requires a vehicle prototype to be tested. If the sample passes the test and the production arrangements also pass inspection, then vehicles or components of the same type are approved for production and sale within Europe, without further testing.
National approval schemes will still exist for vehicles built in small volumes or on an individual basis.
More information can be found in FTA’s briefing note.
