| Category |
Description |
Entry into Service/Registration Requirements |
Road Worthiness Testing Requirements |
| L1e |
Light two-wheel powered vehicle |
All new vehicles imported into Ireland must comply with European Community Whole Vehicle Type Approval (EU) No 168/2013
An EC Certificate of Conformity is required at registration
|
Motor cycles are not currently subject to roadworthiness testing
|
| L2e |
Three-wheeled moped |
| L3e |
Two-wheel motorcycle |
| L4e |
Two-wheel motor cycle with side-car |
| L5e |
Powered tricycle |
| L6e |
Light quadricycle |
| L7e |
Heavy quadricycle |
L Category Vehicles
L-category vehicles is a term covering a wide range of different vehicle types with two, three or four wheels. Examples of two and three wheeled vehicles include; powered cycles, two and three-wheel mopeds, two and three-wheel motorcycles, and motorcycles with side-cars. Examples of four-wheel L-category vehicles, also known as quadricycles, are on-road quads used on public roads and mini-cars.
Type Approval
Category L vehicles need type approval certification in order to be registered for use on Irish roads. Type approval is a European wide system of approval which ensures a vehicle passes a number of tests before it is allowed to be used on a public road. Once a manufacturer receives vehicle type approval in one EU Member State, it can then be sold in all other EU Member States without any further conformity tests.
Legislation
EU Regulation No. 168/2013, which came into effect on 1st January 2016, replaces EC Directive 2002/24/EC and sets out the safety and environmental regulations that category L vehicles must comply with before being sold within the EU. This regulation, transposed into Irish law by SI 614 of 2015, introduces some significant changes as follows:
- Revised L category vehicle definitions
- A number of new L category vehicle sub-categories
- Compulsory fitment of Automatic Headlamp On (AHO) for all motorcycles registered after 1st January 2016,
- Compulsory Automatic Braking System (ABS) on larger bikes, and
- New emission standards.
These are outlined in more detail in Annex I of 168/2013.
End of Series Exemption Scheme
This is a scheme which allows vehicle manufacturers and distributors to apply for additional time to register and sell end of series vehicles. End of Series vehicles are those that may have conformed to all the relevant standards at the time they were built but due to the passage of time and changes to standards and regulations they may now not meet all of the current requirements to allow them to become registered. For more information on this, please visit our end of series web page.