Help - Importing a beach buggy

[tasng4]

Hi,

I'm wondering what, if any, restrictions there are importing a beach buggy. I know that beach buggies, or kit cars, are no longer permitted to be built in France since the change of regulations (though I don't know the date the regulations changed). I have seen buggies in France and would like to import mine, if my understanding is correct I can import one but it has to satisfy certain regulations.

Does anyone know/understand these regulations?

[Kango]

No idea but guessing if you have a UK registered one that has passed an IVA test so built to a recognised standard it may help also having a long wheel base on a standard vw pan would also help. From my understanding the french authorities do not like modified cars. May be worth looking on french hot rod sites for any info there.

You could buy a french buggy then put a new body shell on it so the mechanical parts are stil the same and registered.

[tasng4]

I forgot all about this post but I've learnt a lot about this subject.  Basically there's an EU communique C2007-C68-04 which states that a car registered on one EU state can be re-registered in ANY OTHER EU STATE without having to have any of the tests done again.  The receiving state must request from the sending state all the information relating to the tests carried out.  The receiving state would then apply these results to their importing process.  However, this is different for kit cars and some cars imported directly from Japan into the UK (E.G. The Toyota Surf).

The problem is getting the receiving state (in my case France) to accept this.

[idun]

I suppose my question is why are they no longer 'permitted' in France?

And the gun thing? What is that about, my first reaction was you were out of your tiny mind, and that is exactly what I think, so not just you, when I hear americans talking about guns, especially Trump!

[Loiseau]

+1, idun!

[tasng4]

Perhaps rather that judge me and post insulting comments you should

raise your point with me first.  This phrase was taken from  the film

True Romance and refers to having things you don't really need, for

example I have cars I don't really need but I have them any way.  I have

been a member of this forum since 2007, way before the whole Trump

thing.  It could equally have been "It's better to have shoes and not

need them than need shoes and not have them".  Or would you accuse me of

thinking Imelda Marcos was a nice person?

[Chancer]

The only reason that I can see of adding a tag line or whatever the footnote is called is to say something about yourself, your tastes, your likes your thoughts etc, I personally find them naff and its for that reason that I never read them!

 

You should accept that by creating one some people are going to judge you by it, indeed why else create one?

 

 

[idun]

Well as you average about 11 posts a year, is it a wonder that I missed them? And even if I had seen that little footnote in 2007, I would have said the same, sans the comment about Trump!

I agree guns are not in themselves dangerous, trouble is that the planet is peopled by ne'er do wells, and idiots along with the deranged and once in such hands, then guns are literally, 'lethal' wouldn't you know.

And my question was why the french don't want beach buggies, is it by chance to protege la cote littorale et des dunes?

[tasng4]

To answer your question despite your attitude.  As far as I understand beach buggies, kit cars and the like have not been allowed in France since about 1990 as that's when CT's were introduced.  This, in effect, prohibited the building/modifying of cars and they would be substantially different to what the manufacturers designed.  There are kit cars and beach buggies in France but these were all registered before the introduction of CT's.  Although you can still build a kit car but you need to build 2 as one will have to be crash tested and you would need to be registered as a vehicle constructor.  Hence you can't buy Caterham's unless they're bought through the French importer who completes the build.

[Mr Wiggy]

Getting back on track.

Lomax is a kit car, both three and four wheel versions and there are quite a few of both of these models on French plates and some even owned by French people. I therefore assume that it this buggy has all the relevant paperwork, it shouldn’t have any problem in registering the Buggy.

[dave21478]

They dont want kit cars, buggys and radically modified vehicles on the road because they dont fit into handy little tick-boxes on a form or computer screen.

When you take your hatchback in for CT, the tester enters the Type Mines from the carte gris and the computer spews out the info relevant to that model.....where to find the stamped chassis number and VIN plate, what engine it should have fitted, what emissions standards it needs to meet, what size tyres are homologated, whether it has all wheel drive that needs supplemental idler rollers for the brake test machine and on and on and on.....

There is no way to integrate some home made chassis with a Zetec engine, type 9 box, Megajolt engine management etc into this system, there is too much variation between these sorts of cars and apparently CT testers have to have everything laid out clearly with no oppertunity for using common sense or discretion.

If your particular car is from a small production run that has been registered in France in the past, you should in theory be able to register another one as the data should be on their system and it will have a Type Mines.

I say "in theory" though as its very different in practice. Some time back I registered a van version of a normal car. Apparently never homologated in France, I had to jump through several hoops with Drire and Prefecture, spend a lot of time and a fair bit of money for the French equivelent of Single Vehicle Approval, which was only poassible because I had a letter from the manufacturer stating the vehicle was mechanically the same as the car version, the only difference being the number of seats and rear windows.

With all that done, I finally got my Carte Gris and was happy. Until I bumped into someone some time later with exactly the same car that he had bought in France a few years previously and had no trouble at all with - typical example of the left hand not knowing what the right hand is doing at the Prefecture.

I browse LeBonCoin a lot, looking for interesting vehicles and I see various cars that should in theory not be possible to register here. I have seen a few home built Locost style kits, various US stuff and other modified cars that do not have type approval, Certificate of Conformity etc.... Probably a case of knowing the right people....ie being drinking buddies with someone high enough up at a Prefecture or DRIRE somewhere.

[Aardvark]

On the surface it does seem like the French authorities are simply unable to think outside the box and want us all to drive the same limited range of boring clonemobiles but somehow some interesting stuff does seem to slip in.  I have been looking at the FFVE website and was wondering if that is a way to get something nice.   In fact on one of their pages beach buggies are mentioned.  There are lots of  v8 powered rods and customs on the FSRA website that appear to be on French plates so there must be a loophole somewhere.

[tasng4]

The F.F.V.E. route is really designed for "vehicules de collection" i.e. older than 30 years (which generally means pre-cert of conformity).  I have imported MGB's, and Austin 1100 and a couple of MG Midgets this way.

[Mr Wiggy]

This Lomax car is advertised on Le bon coin and is based on a Citroen 2cv chassis therefore it has a valid CT. Even the Lomax three wheeler is so based on the 2CV for the same reason. This is now where the problem lies as I assume the B-B doesn't utilise a VW chassis, if it did then there would be no real problem as it would be using all the VW running gear with the buggy body attached.

vends lomax tres boone état

année 1995

25000 KM

CHASSIS DE 2 CV

CONTROLE TECHNIQUE OK

MOTEUR DE CITROEN LNA OU 2 CV

ELLE SERA VENDU AVEC UNE CARTE GRISE FRANCAISE

SUPER AGREABLE A CONDUIRE POUR UNE PETITE VOITURE QUI SORT DE L ORDINAIRE ET TRES FACILE A CONDUIR

[Mr Wiggy]

I have just been back on Le Bon Coin and what did I find a Beach Buggy for sale on French plates and is using a VW chassis.

[dave21478]

Remember that just because there is one on LBC, it doesnt mean its properly registered or legal, despite what the advert may say.

Having a beetle (or any other) chassis and running gear doesnt necessarily mean a kit will pass CT or go through the Prefecture on the Beetle chassis and papers.

Yes, there are some kits made by certain manufacturers where this is allowed, but there are plenty that are not.

[Mr Wiggy]

I actually came across a French web-site from a link on an UK site which was all about specials, the type we are all talking about, unfortunately I have miss-placed this link but it was very similar to the Lomax owners club web-site. This site had a Beach buggy on French plates so as you say tsang4 if you have all the relevant paper-work then surely you should be able to register your Buggy after all Secma built a 1200cc buggy that looks more like a desert racer which is road legal.

[AnOther]

Just because on or two individuals slipped a Beach Buggy past their prefecture doesn't mean that anybody will meet with the same success elsewhere !