World Forum for Harmonization of Vehicle Regulations
The World Forum for Harmonization of Vehicle Regulations is a working party of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE). It is tasked with creating a uniform set of regulations for vehicle design to aid global trade.
The forum works on regulations covering vehicle safety, environmental protection, energy efficiency and anti-theft performance.
1958 Agreement
The core of the Forum's work is based around the 1958 Agreement, formally titled "Agreement concerning the adoption of uniform technical prescriptions for wheeled vehicles, equipment and parts which can be fitted and/or be used on wheeled vehicles and the conditions for reciprocal recognition of approvals granted on the basis of these prescriptions". This forms a legal framework whereby participating countries agree a common set of UNECE Regulations for type approval of vehicles and components. When an item is type approved for a regulation by one participating country, then the approval is accepted by all other participating countries.
Originally, the 1958 Agreement allowed participation of UNECE member countries only, but in 1995 the agreement was revised to allow non-UNECE members to participate.
Items approved as meeting an UNECE Regulation are marked with an E and a number, within in a circle. The number indicates which country approved the item, and other surrounding letters and digits indicate the date and precise regulation met.
List of participating countries
As of 2006, the participants to the 1958 Agreement, with their UNECE country code, are:
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Most countries, even if not formally participating in the 1958 agreement, recognise the UNECE Regulations and permit the use and importation of ECE-approved vehicles.
List of UNECE Regulations
As of 2007, there are 123 UNECE Regulations. Most regulations cover a single vehicle component or technology. A partial list of current regulations applying to passenger cars follows (different regulations may apply to heavy vehicles, motorcycles etc).
General lighting
- R37 — filament lamps
- R48 — installation of lighting and light-signalling devices
- R3 — retro-reflecting devices
- R4 — illumination of rear registration plates
- R6 — direction indicators
- R7 — front and rear position (side) lamps, stop-lamps and end-outline marker lamps
- R19 — fog lamps
- R23 — reversing lights
- R38 — rear fog lamps
- R77 — parking lamps
- R87 — daytime running lamps
- R91 — side-marker lamps
- R119 — cornering lamps
- R123 — AFS lamps
Headlamps
- R31 — Halogen sealed-beam unit (HSB unit) motor vehicle headlamps emitting an asymmetrical passing beam or a driving beam or both
- R45 — Headlamp cleaners
- R98 — Headlamps equipped with gas-discharge light sources
- R99 — Gas-discharge light sources for use in approved gas-discharge lamp units of power-driven vehicles
- R112 — Headlamps emitting an asymmetrical passing beam or a driving beam or both and equipped with filament lamps
- R113 — Headlamps emitting a symmetrical passing beam or a driving beam or both and equipped with filament lamps
Instrumentation/controls
- R35 — arrangement of foot controls
- R39 — speedometer equipment
- R46 — rear-view mirrors
- R79 — steering equipment
Safety
- R11 — door latches and door retention components
- R13-H — braking (passenger cars)
- R14 — safety-belt anchorages
- R16 — safety-belts and restraint systems
- R27 — advance-warning triangles
- R42 — front and rear protective devices (bumpers, etc.)
- R43 — safety glazing materials and their installation on vehicles
- R94 — protection of the occupants in the event of a frontal collision
- R95 — protection of the occupants in the event of a lateral collision
- R116 — protection of motor vehicles against unauthorized use
Environmental/performance
- R10 — electromagnetic compatibility
- R51 — noise emissions
- R68 — measurement of the maximum speed
- R83 — emission of pollutants according to engine fuel requirements
- R84 — measurement of fuel consumption
- R85 — internal combustion engines or electric drive trains — measurement of the net power and the maximum 30 minutes power of electric drive trains
- R101 — measurement of the emission of carbon dioxide and fuel consumption
- R117 — rolling sound emissions of tyres
UNECE versus FMVSS
The most notable non-signatory to the 1958 Agreement is the United States, which has its own Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards and does not recognise UNECE approvals. As such vehicles cannot be imported or exported between the U.S. and most of the rest of the world without appropriate modifications. Canada has its own Canada Motor Vehicle Safety Standards, broadly similar to the FMVSS, but Canada does also accept UNECE-compliant headlamps.
One of the most contentious differences is the design of headlamps; see that article for more information. The Citroën DS article offers a pictorial illustration of US-model vs. UNECE-model headlamps during the 1940-1983 era when US regulations required sealed beam headlamps.
It is not currently possible to produce a single car design that meets both UNECE and FMVSS approvals, but it is growing easier as both sets of regulations evolve. Given the size of the U.S. vehicle market, and differing marketing strategies in North America vs. the rest of the world, many manufacturers produce vehicles in three versions: North American, rest-of-world right-hand drive (RHD) and rest-of-world left-hand-drive (LHD).
See also
- Headlamps
- Automotive lighting
- car safety
- Not Invented Here syndrome
- NHTSA
- Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 108