One for the legal eagles

[paulcundy]

Does a car have to have the rear window?
Does it have to have the rear view mirror?
Regards
Paul C

[DanH]

Don't need rear view mirror, although I think you may have to have 2 mirrors without it (i.e. both wing mirrors).

Dunno about the rear window, but given the visibility in vans, early lambos or the S2 Exige etc I can't see it being required.

[Mr Noble]

Can I smell a forced air IC cooling system Exige style? Paul?

[DanH]

Mr Noble said:

Can I smell a forced air IC cooling system Exige style? Paul?

Or just a smooth rear clam to stop the aero separation due to the truncated roof. The race car has that, although they've pinched a window from somewhere to do it all properly

This months Evo is interesting as it has Gordon Murray annotating a tech diagram of the Zonda with comments about aero & etc. Fascinating.

[paulcundy]

Mr Noble said:

Can I smell a forced air IC cooling system Exige style? Paul?

No, as you know I've tried that and failed.

http://paulcundy.smugmug.com/gallery/359222/3/161163

The series MESC I'm racing in needs the original bodywork to be retained so Lee's M14 style rear back is not allowed. However remember the AMOC race meetings also have a free for all endurance race. In the endurance race I can do what I like to the bodywork. So I am looking into filling in the area between the butresses with a Lee style panel for those races.

Regards
Paul C


>> Edited by paulcundy on Friday 6th January 15:56

[joust]

AFAIK there is no need to have a rear window, and if you don't have one, you don't need the RVM, but you would need side mirrors. The Ultima AFAIK uses this to get over the SVA as it has no rear window.

www.ultimasports.co.uk/company/faq.html#30

J

[DanH]

Even with a rear window, you don't need an RVM as long as you have 2 mirrors. Elise owners have looked into this a lot as the mirror can be annoying in them (especially in an S2 Exige where its pointless).

[V6GTO]

DanH said:

Elise owners have looked into this a lot as the mirror can be annoying in them (especially in an S2 Exige where its pointless).

I believe a lot of BMW owners feel the same. [snigger]

[m12_nathan]

[worty]

Its all in the Road Vehicles (Construction & Use) Regulations 1986 (as amended) basically car first used after 1/6/78 have to have one offside external mirror and either one internal or one nearside mirror.
So no need for a RVM and no need for a rear window as far as I'm aware. However if you get prosecuted it wasn't my idea

[joust]

Here you go - the actual act

www.opsi.gov.uk/sr/sr1999/19990454.htm#38

Section 6 is what you want

"A wheeled motor vehicle not in items 1 to 5, which is first used on or after 1st June 1978 (or, in the case of a Ford Transit motor car, 10th July 1978)."

(i) At least one mirror fitted externally on the offside of the vehicle; and
(ii) at least one mirror fitted internally, unless a mirror so fitted would give the driver no view to the rear of the vehicle; and
(iii) at least one mirror fitted externally on the nearside of the vehicle unless a mirror which gives the driver an adequate view to the rear is fitted internally

J

[paulcundy]

Dear Justin,
Thank you very much. Just what I needed.
Regards
Paul C

[worty]

Err thats the Northern Ireland Statutory Instrument although the SI that applies to England is almost identical
HTH
worty

[GKP]

However, the Lotus 340R had a small triangle of glass nestled in the rollover bar to act as a rear window. This was needed to satisfy production car regs.

[joust]

worty said:

Err thats the Northern Ireland Statutory Instrument although the SI that applies to England is almost identical HTH worty

Sorry - you are quite right. Early morningtitus

I *think* this is the one you want

www.opsi.gov.uk/si/si2001/20010025.htm

Section 7

2 It shall also be fitted with at least one interior mirror which meets the adjustment, rear view and vibration requirements unless no interior mirror could provide any view to the rear.

3. If no interior mirror is fitted or if no interior mirror meets the rear view requirements, a nearside exterior mirror shall be fitted which meets -
(a) if the vehicle is right hand drive or has a central driving position, the rear view and vibration requirements; or
(b) if the vehicle is left hand drive, the adjustment, rear view, and vibration requirements.

The interesting one is

"The vibration requirements"
In order to comply with the vibration requirements, a mirror shall be fixed to the vehicle in such a way that under normal driving conditions, it neither moves so as to change the field of vision, nor vibrate to an extent which would cause the driver to misinterpret the nature of the image received.

Anyone that has an M12 will laugh at the one

J

[joust]

GKP said:

However, the Lotus 340R had a small triangle of glass nestled in the rollover bar to act as a rear window. This was needed to satisfy production car regs.

Can't seem to find anything in the statutory or SVA regs to support that? From memory the 340R was a homolgated model so there may have been EU requirements?

J