Federal Motor Vehicle tests

[Dino L.]

Can someone explain the government regulations around new vehicle building and Corvette kit cars as well as modified Corvette hot rods. If you are a manufacturer of a kit car, does the maker of the kit car have to pass federal testing? How do they assign vin numbers for vehicle registration

[artarmstrong]

Re: Federal Motor Vehicle tests

Explaining the Government Regulations would be a VERY complex issue, but basically it go something like this.............
FMVSS, Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards only apply to the MANUFACTURES of NEW motor vehicles-----not to ANY of the "after market" modifiers. The "after market" modifiers purchase the "certified" new vehicles form the manufacture and do not have to re-certify it before they sell, THEIR USED VEHICLE, to the public.

The VIN assignment is another complex issue, but the bottom line is, that most "after market" modifiers will go to great lengths to insure that they retain the ORIGINAL new vehicles manufactures VIN, so they DON'T BECOME A NEW VEHICLE MANUFACTURE, which would require FMVSS certification.

Art

[John H.]

Re: Federal Motor Vehicle tests

Dino -

As Art said, this can get complex, which is why "kit" manufacturers leave the registration details to the purchaser/assembler of the kit. Procedures vary by state (the Feds aren't involved in registration), usually requiring a safety inspection of the finished car and assignment by the state of an "assembled vehicle" VIN when the inspection is passed and they issue the title. I've built four kit cars (three Cobras and a Grand Sport), and all were handled that way.

Modified cars or "hot rods" are registered just as if they weren't modified, as long as they still have an original VIN plate and title; if you build one from scratch and have no original VIN and title, it's registered in the same manner as a kit car.

FMVSS, NHTSA, DOT, AND EPA certification is a horrendously expensive and drawn-out multi-million dollar process, and is only applicable to original equipment vehicle manufacturers, not modifiers, converters, or kit manufacturers.