General technical requirements for vehicles subject to research and development in Vietnam from January 1, 2025

General technical requirements for vehicles subject to research and development in Vietnam from January 1, 2025​ (Image from the Internet)

On November 15, 2024, the Minister of Transport of Vietnam issued Circular 52/2024/TT-BGTVT stipulating technical requirements for motor vehicles and specialized vehicles under research and development having the demand to participate in road traffic.

What is a vehicle subject to research and development in Vietnam?

According to Clause 1, Article 3 of Circular 52/2024/TT-BGTVT, motor vehicles and specialized vehicles under research and development having the demand 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 technical safety and environmental protection but having the need to participate in road traffic for evaluation of the vehicle's durability and adaptability to the weather conditions, environment, and traffic conditions in Vietnam or for the purpose of improving the product's technical safety and environmental protection quality.

General technical requirements for vehicles subject to research and development in Vietnam from January 1, 2025​

Article 4 of Circular 52/2024/TT-BGTVT stipulates the general technical requirements for research and development vehicles from January 1, 2025, as follows:

(1) Research and development vehicles must belong to one of the following categories:

- Manufactured, assembled from unused parts;

- Improved or modified from unused vehicles and using unused parts for improvement or modification;

- Improved or modified from research and development vehicles in the trial phase and using unused parts for improvement or modification;

- Tested on roads abroad.

(2) The vehicle's dimensions and weight must comply with the following regulations:

- For automobiles: national technical standards on technical safety quality and environmental protection for automobiles;

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

- For four-wheeled motorized passenger vehicles: national technical standards on technical safety quality and environmental protection for four-wheeled motorized passenger vehicles;

- For four-wheeled motorized cargo vehicles: national technical standards on technical safety quality and environmental protection for four-wheeled motorized cargo vehicles;

- For motorbikes and scooters: national technical standards on technical safety quality and environmental protection for motorbikes and scooters;

- For specialized vehicles (excluding trailers and semi-trailers towed by tractors):

+ Overall length of the vehicle must not exceed 12.2 meters;

+ Overall width of the vehicle must not exceed 2.5 meters;

+ Overall height of the vehicle must not exceed 4.0 meters;

+ Total design weight and axle load design weight must comply with national technical standards on technical safety quality and environmental protection for specialized vehicles and must not exceed the road's load capacity.

- For trailers and semi-trailers towed by tractors:

+ Overall width of the vehicle must not exceed 2.5 meters;

+ Overall height of the vehicle must not exceed 4.0 meters;

+ Total design weight and axle load design weight must comply with national technical standards on technical safety quality and environmental protection for specialized vehicles and must not exceed the road's load capacity.

(3) There must be design documentation, in which the calculation results must show the vehicle's compliance with the national technical standards stated in Clause 2 of this Article.

(4) Motor vehicle parts including: lithium batteries used as an energy storage source on the vehicle (in case the vehicle uses lithium batteries as an energy storage source), mirrors, lights, glass, tires, alloy rims must be of a type certified or have testing results meeting the requirements in Vietnam or from a competent foreign organization.

(5) If the vehicle is coated or painted in camouflage, it must not obstruct the driver's view through the windshield, mirrors, and must not affect the function and operation of headlights, signals, and emergency exits.

(6) The phrase "Trial Vehicle" must be displayed in front and at the back of the vehicle. For trailers and semi-trailers towed by automobiles or tractors, the phrase "Trial Vehicle" must be displayed on the front of the towing vehicle and the back of the towed vehicle. The size and spacing of the phrase "Trial Vehicle" are regulated as follows: letter height not less than 60 mm, letter width not less than 35 mm, spacing between letters is 15±5 mm.

(7) Automobiles, four-wheeled motorized passenger vehicles, four-wheeled motorized cargo vehicles, specialized vehicles (excluding trailers and semi-trailers towed by tractors), motorbikes, and scooters must be equipped with tracking devices ensuring the recording of the vehicle's journey, speed; a dash camera ensuring the recording of images in front and behind the vehicle while in road traffic (excluding motorbikes and scooters, the dash camera must record images in front of the vehicle). These devices must operate throughout the test-driving period on the road.

(8) The vehicle must undergo trial operation on internal roads for a minimum of 10 km, be required to pass the factory inspection, and be issued with a Factory Quality Inspection Certificate.

(9) When loading the vehicle, the actual total mass of the vehicle must not exceed the total design weight as specified by the manufacturer and must meet the following requirements:

- The number of people on the vehicle must not exceed the maximum allowable number, including the driver as specified in Article 5 of Circular 52/2024/TT-BGTVT;

- Only simulated loads; equipment for trial operation; information recording equipment, technical condition of the vehicle may be carried. These items and equipment must be securely fixed during the trial operation on the road.

(10) The vehicle must undergo technical safety and environmental protection inspections as stipulated by the Minister of Transport.

More details can be found in Circular 52/2024/TT-BGTVT effective from January 1, 2025.

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