Regulation No. 74/483/EEC

Regulation 74/483/EEC , published by the European Parliament and of the Council , is a Council directive on the approximation of Member States' laws relating to external protrusions on motor vehicles.

For the purposes of this regulation, vehicle means any motor vehicle of category M25 designed for road use, having at least four wheels and a maximum design speed exceeding 1 km/h. Category M is generally used for passenger transport. Vehicles of category M1 are vehicles (mainly cars) having no more than eight seats in addition to the driver's seat.

No Member State may refuse to grant EEC type-approval or national type-approval to a vehicle on grounds relating to external projections, provided that such projections meet the requirements laid down in the annexes to the regulation. Nor may it refuse or prohibit the sale, registration, entry into service or use of any vehicle on grounds relating to such projections.

The Member State which has granted type approval shall take the necessary measures to ensure that it is notified of the part or any modification thereof specified in the Annex to this Regulation. The competent authorities of that State shall determine whether new tests shall be carried out on the modified vehicle type and whether a new report shall be drawn up. If such tests reveal non-compliance with the requirements of this Directive, the modification shall not be approved.

Any changes necessary to adapt the provisions of these annexes to the directive to take account of technical progress shall be adopted in accordance with the procedure laid down in directive 70/156/EEC.

The provisions set out in the Annex to this Directive entitled “General definitions, applications for EEC type approval, EEC type approval, general characteristics, special characteristics, suitability for manufacture” do not apply to exterior rear-view mirrors or accessories such as radio aerials and luggage racks. The purpose of these provisions is to reduce the risk or severity of injury to a person striking or scraping against the body in the event of a collision.

For the purposes of this regulation, the following definitions apply:

• Type approval of a vehicle means approval of a vehicle type with respect to its external features.
• It means a category of motor vehicles that do not differ in fundamental respects such as vehicle type, shape or materials of the exterior surface, with respect to their external projections.
• Exterior skin refers to the structural unit that forms the exterior of the vehicle and includes the hood, luggage compartment cover, doors, wings and visible reinforcement components.
• "Base line" means the line determined as follows: a cone with a vertical axis and a half-angle of 30 degrees is placed sequentially around a vehicle so that it contacts the outer surface of the body continuously and as low as possible. The base line is the geometric trace of these points of contact. In determining the base line, jack points, exhaust pipes or wheels are not taken into account. It is assumed that the gaps of the wheel arches are filled by an imaginary surface forming a smooth continuation of the surrounding outer surface.
• Radius of curvature refers to the approximate extent of rounding, as opposed to a precise geometric shape.

Application for EEC type approval:

• Application for EEC type approval for the external projections of a vehicle type is made by the vehicle manufacturer or its authorised representative.
• The following types of documents are submitted in three copies:
  • Photos of the front, back and sides of the vehicle.
  • Drawings of the bumpers with their dimensions.
  • Drawings of specific external projections, if appropriate, and drawings of specific sections of the external surface, if applicable.
• The technical service responsible for type approval tests is provided with:
  • A vehicle representative of the type of vehicle to be type-approved or a part or parts of the vehicle deemed necessary for the checks and tests prescribed in this annex.
  • Specific samples of specific components and materials used upon request of the above-mentioned technical service.

General features:

• The provisions of this annex do not apply, when the vehicle is loaded and all doors, windows and access covers are closed, to parts of the exterior surface which are either:
  • More than 2 m high.
  • Below the baseline.
  • Under static conditions, it is placed so that it cannot come into contact with a sphere of 100 mm diameter.
• Exterior surfaces of vehicles must not exhibit outwardly directed, pointed or sharp parts or protrusions of a shape, size, direction or hardness that would likely increase the risk or severity of bodily injury to a person striking or scraping against the exterior surface in the event of a collision.
• Exterior surfaces of vehicles should not exhibit any outward-facing parts that could be caught by pedestrians, cyclists or motorcyclists.
• Without prejudice to the provisions of the relevant articles of this annex, the radius of curvature of any projecting part of the outer surface shall not be less than 2,5 mm.
• The radius of curvature of the projecting parts of the outer surface made of a material with a hardness not exceeding 60 shore A may be less than 2,75 mm.

Our organization has a strong staff that closely follows the developments in the world in the field of science and technology and constantly improves itself. Among the numerous test, measurement, analysis and evaluation studies provided for businesses in various sectors, there are also test services within the scope of regulation numbered 74/483/EEC.