Circular No. 52/2024/TT-BGTVT stipulates technical requirements for motor vehicles and special-purpose motorcycles under research and development that have a need to participate in road traffic.

CIRCULAR

REGULATIONS ON TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS FOR MOTOR VEHICLES AND SPECIALIZED MOTORCYCLES BELONGING TO RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT OBJECTS WITH THE NEED TO PARTICIPATE IN ROAD TRAFFIC

BASED ON THE ROAD TRAFFIC ORDER AND SAFETY LAW dated June 27, 2024;

BASED ON THE DECREE NO. 56/2022/ND-CP dated August 24, 2022 of THE GOVERNMENT stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of THE MINISTRY OF TRANSPORT;

At the proposal of the Director of the Science, Technology, and Environment Department and the Director of the Vietnam Registration Agency;

The Minister of Transport issues this Circular to regulate technical requirements for motor vehicles and specialized motorcycles belonging to research and development objects with the need to participate in road traffic.

Article 1. Scope of Regulation

This Circular regulates technical requirements for motor vehicles and specialized motorcycles belonging to research and development objects with the need to participate in road traffic.

Article 2. Applicability

This Circular applies to research and development facilities producing motor vehicles and specialized motorcycles belonging to research and development objects with the need to participate in road traffic and related organizations and individuals.

Article 3. Explanation of Terms

In this Circular, the following terms shall be understood as follows:

1. Motor vehicles and specialized motorcycles belonging to research and development objects with the need to participate in road traffic (hereinafter referred to as research and development vehicles) are types of vehicles classified according to the regulations of the Minister of Transport, not yet certified for quality, safety technical standards, and environmental protection but have the need to participate in road traffic to evaluate vehicle durability and adaptability to weather, environmental, and traffic conditions in Vietnam or for the purpose of improving product quality, safety technical standards, and environmental protection.

2. Road testing is the participation of research and development vehicles in road traffic.

3. Research and development facility is a domestic production and assembly enterprise that has been evaluated to ensure compliance with quality, safety technical standards, and environmental protection requirements as stipulated by law.

4. Unused spare parts are assemblies, systems, and components of vehicles that have not been used for production or assembly or for any other purpose.

5. Unused vehicle is a vehicle that has not been registered for circulation or used for any other purpose.

6. Factory Quality Inspection is the process by which the research and development facility inspects the safety technical systems of research and development vehicles according to the manufacturer's standards.

7. Factory Quality Inspection Certificate is a document issued by the research and development facility for each research and development vehicle according to the model prescribed in the Appendix attached to this Circular and printed on the factory quality inspection certificate form for domestically produced and assembled vehicles.

8. Dummy Load is a simulated load used to test the vehicle's load-bearing capacity and operation under different conditions to assess the quality, safety technical standards, and efficiency of the vehicle, including concrete blocks, metal blocks or plates, water tanks, sandbags, and load simulation equipment.

9. Foreign authorized organization is an organization for certification or technical service organization listed in the member countries' lists participating in international treaties related to road transport vehicles, of which Vietnam is a member.

Article 4. General Technical Requirements

1. Research and development vehicles must be one of the following cases:

a) Produced or assembled from unused spare parts;

b) Improved or modified from unused vehicles using unused spare parts for improvement or modification;

c) Improved or modified from research and development vehicles undergoing road testing using unused spare parts for improvement or modification;

d) Already undergone road testing abroad.

2. The size and weight of the vehicle must comply with the following provisions:

a) For automobiles: national technical standards on quality, safety technical standards, and environmental protection for automobiles;

b) For trailers and semi-trailers: national technical standards on quality, safety technical standards, and environmental protection for trailers and semi-trailers;

c) For four-wheeled passenger vehicles with engines: national technical standards on quality, safety technical standards, and environmental protection for four-wheeled passenger vehicles with engines;

d) For four-wheeled cargo vehicles with engines: national technical standards on quality, safety technical standards, and environmental protection for four-wheeled cargo vehicles with engines;

e) For motorcycles and motorbikes: national technical standards on quality, safety technical standards, and environmental protection for motorcycles and motorbikes;

f) For specialized motorcycles (excluding trailers and semi-trailers pulled by tractors):

The overall length of the vehicle must not exceed 12.2 meters;

The overall width of the vehicle must not exceed 2.5 meters;

The overall height of the vehicle must not exceed 4.0 meters;

The total design weight and the total design weight distributed on the axle must comply with the national technical standards on quality, safety technical standards, and environmental protection for specialized motorcycles and must not exceed the road load limit.

g) For trailers and semi-trailers pulled by tractors:

The overall width of the vehicle must not exceed 2.5 meters;

The overall height of the vehicle must not exceed 4.0 meters;

The total design weight and the total design weight distributed on the axle must comply with the national technical standards on quality, safety technical standards, and environmental protection for specialized motorcycles and must not exceed the road load limit.

3. There must be design documentation, in which the calculation results must demonstrate that the vehicle complies with the national technical standards specified in Clause 2 of this Article.

4. Motor vehicle spare parts include: lithium batteries used as energy storage sources on vehicles (in cases where vehicles use lithium batteries as energy storage sources), mirrors, lights, glass, tires, alloy wheels, and must belong to types that have been certified or have passed tests meeting requirements in Vietnam or foreign authorized organizations.

5. In cases where vehicles are marked or painted with camouflage on the exterior, it must ensure that it does not obstruct the driver's view through the windshield, rearview mirrors, does not affect the function and operation of lighting, signals, and emergency exits.

6. The phrase "Xe chạy thử" must be displayed on both the front and rear of the vehicle. In the case of trailers and semi-trailers pulled by automobiles or tractors, the phrase "Xe chạy thử" must be affixed to the front of the pulling vehicle and the rear of the pulled vehicle. The dimensions and spacing of the phrase "Xe chạy thử" are specified as follows: the height of each letter must not be less than 60 mm, the width of each letter must not be less than 35 mm, and the distance between letters must be 15±5 mm.

7. Passenger automobiles, four-wheeled motorized passenger vehicles, four-wheeled motorized cargo vehicles, specialized motor vehicles (excluding trailers and semi-trailers pulled by tractors), motorcycles, and motorized vehicles must be equipped with journey tracking devices that record the vehicle's route and speed; and a journey camera that records images from the front and rear of the vehicle while traveling on roads (except for motorcycles and motorized vehicles, where the journey camera only needs to record images from the front of the vehicle). These devices must operate throughout the entire time the vehicle is being tested on the road.

8. The vehicle must undergo internal test driving at a research and development facility for a minimum of 10 kilometers, pass the factory inspection requirements, and receive a Factory Quality Inspection Certificate.

9. When loading cargo onto the vehicle, the total actual weight of the vehicle must not exceed the design total weight specified by the manufacturer, and the following requirements must be met:

a) The number of people on the vehicle must not exceed the maximum number of passengers allowed, including the driver, as stipulated in Article 5 of this Circular;

b) Only dummy loads, equipment necessary for testing, and devices recording technical information and status of the vehicle may be carried. Such equipment must be securely installed during road testing.

10. The vehicle must undergo safety and technical inspection and environmental protection inspection according to the regulations of the Minister of Transport.

Article 5. Specific Technical Requirements for Each Type of Vehicle

1. For passenger automobiles:

The maximum number of passengers allowed, including the driver, when running tests on the road must not exceed five people for passenger automobiles or three people for other types of automobiles but must not exceed the number of passengers allowed by the vehicle's design to ensure the safety of the test vehicle.

2. For trailers and semi-trailers:

a) The automobile used to pull trailers and semi-trailers must meet the traffic participation conditions stipulated in Clause 1 of Article 35 of the Road Traffic Safety Law and the requirements stated in Clause 1 of this Article;

b) Cargo transportation is not permitted on the pulling automobile except for carrying dummy loads;

c) During road testing, the total length of the convoy, the total weight of the tractor-trailer combination or the automobile-trailer combination, and the total weight distributed on each axle of the convoy must not exceed the load limit and road width restrictions set forth by the Minister of Transport.

3. For four-wheeled motorized passenger vehicles and four-wheeled motorized cargo vehicles:

The maximum number of passengers allowed, including the driver, when running tests on the road must not exceed three people but must not exceed the number of passengers allowed by the vehicle's design to ensure the safety of the test vehicle.

4. For motorcycles and motorized vehicles:

The maximum number of passengers allowed when running tests on the road must not exceed two people, including the driver, but must not exceed the number of passengers allowed by the vehicle's design to ensure the safety of the test vehicle.

5. For specialized motor vehicles (excluding trailers and semi-trailers pulled by tractors):

The maximum number of passengers allowed when running tests on the road must not exceed two people, including the driver, but must not exceed the number of passengers allowed by the vehicle's design to ensure the safety of the test vehicle.

6. For trailers and semi-trailers pulled by tractors:

a) The tractor used to pull trailers and semi-trailers must meet the traffic participation conditions stipulated in Clause 1 of Article 35 of the Road Traffic Safety Law and the requirements stated in Clause 5 of this Article;

b) During road testing, the total length of the convoy, the total weight of the tractor-trailer combination or the tractor-semi-trailer combination, and the total weight distributed on each axle of the convoy must be applied similarly to the regulations for the tractor-trailer combination or the automobile-trailer combination as specified in point c of Clause 2 of this Article;

c) Cargo transportation is not permitted on the tractor except for carrying dummy loads.

7. Specifically, for vehicles under development for full autonomous control functionality, the following additional requirements must be met:

They must have been tested abroad and comply with the technical safety requirements of one of the countries participating in international treaties related to road transport vehicles that Vietnam is a member of.

Article 6. Responsibilities of agencies and organizations

1. Responsibilities of research and development facilities:

a) Bear responsibility for ensuring the technical safety and environmental protection quality of research and development vehicles throughout the production, assembly, quality inspection at the time of factory release, and road testing processes;

b) Bear responsibility for the authenticity of: vehicle design documents; factory release quality inspection results, contents printed on the Quality Inspection Certificate at the time of factory release; inspection and evaluation results of the vehicle's condition before road testing, during maintenance periods; origin and source of the vehicle; spare parts used to produce and assemble the vehicle;

c) Bear costs and legal responsibilities for issues arising during road testing;

d) Provide information about the quality inspection results at the time of factory release of research and development vehicles to the Vietnam Registration Agency;

đ) During regular maintenance, research and development facilities must inspect and ensure the condition of components and systems including: engine, steering, brakes, suspension, wheels, tires, lighting and signaling devices operate normally. The regular maintenance cycle follows the manufacturer's regulations but shall not exceed the maintenance cycle for similar vehicles;

e) Establish and retain records for a minimum of three years from the end of road testing for each research and development vehicle. Records include the following types of documents: vehicle design; origin of the vehicle and spare parts (as specified in Clause 4, Article 4 of this Circular) used to produce and assemble the vehicle; quality inspection at the time of factory release; internal road testing results, road testing results. Specifically, location and speed data must be retained for a minimum of six months, image data for a minimum of seven days from the date of completion of testing;

g) Provide stored records to authorized agencies when requested.

2. Responsibilities of the Vietnam Registration Agency:

a) State management over technical safety and environmental protection quality in the activities of production, assembly, and road testing of research and development vehicles;

b) Conduct periodic and spot inspections of research and development vehicle road testing activities.

Article 7. Effective Date

1. This Circular shall take effect from January 1, 2025.

2. Research and development vehicles that have been issued temporary license plates for road testing prior to the effective date of this Circular may continue to test until the expiration of the temporary registration period granted by the police authority.

ANNEX

SAMPLE QUALITY INSPECTION CERTIFICATE AT FACTORY RELEASE