Fine for body kit on a car

The popularity of tuning is not reduced even by administrative liability in the form of penalties that can be applied to the car owner. But you should know that by improving the car at your discretion, you can endanger not only your life, but also the safety of other road users. Therefore, it would be quite logical to be fined for body kit on your car if you operate the vehicle on public roads.

Administrative liability for unauthorized changes in the design of a car

Nobody forbids you to install individual structural elements that can significantly improve the appearance and technical characteristics of the machine. But you must officially register all such changes. Practice shows that this is quite problematic and requires significant financial and time costs. But there is no other way to solve the problem legally.

Let us note the fact that the current situation resembles precisely the desire to create as many difficulties as possible for the car owner, so that he himself refuses such alterations. And the increased attention paid to tuning by traffic police officers serves as indirect confirmation of this.

By driving onto public roads in a car equipped with additional non-standard structural elements, which include conventional body kits, you violate the requirements of paragraph 1 of Article 12.5 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation:

1. Driving a vehicle in the presence of malfunctions or conditions under which, in accordance with the Basic Provisions for the admission of vehicles to operation and the duties of officials to ensure road safety, operation of the vehicle is prohibited, with the exception of malfunctions and conditions specified in parts 2 - 7 of this article - entails a warning or the imposition of an administrative fine in the amount of five hundred rubles.

In most cases, a warning is issued, since even among most law enforcement officers, body kit is not considered a significant violation. But you are not insured against situations with a fine, as in other cases of communication with representatives of the traffic police.

What should you build a line of defense on?

Responsibility for this type of violation is based on the current Technical Regulations of the Customs Union on the safety of wheeled vehicles (TR CU 018/2011). But the situation is complicated by the fact that we are not talking directly about body kits. Annex 9 to this document clearly states the following cases:

Replacing the type of truck body.

Installation of additional fuel tanks.

Installation of lifts and winches on trucks.

Installation of special equipment.

Installation and dismantling of gas equipment.

Replacement of external lighting devices (including installation of xenon or diode lamps).

Re-equipping a car for people with disabilities.

This is exactly what you can build your own defense on when stopped by an inspector. But it should also be noted that independent actions in this direction rarely lead to the desired result. The main reason is the small size of the fine and the reluctance to waste one’s own time without a guarantee of a positive decision. You can only achieve the solution you require if you contact a professional auto lawyer who has experience in defending precisely such cases.

Such legal support will help resolve the issue with minimal costs. By the way, traffic police officers indicate in their explanations that you can equip your vehicle with such additional elements, but only in case of preparation for competitions and exhibitions. At the same time, you will not receive the right to drive onto public roads. These clauses can also be used effectively in court or during pre-trial proceedings.

Therefore, the optimal solution to the problem would be the help of a car lawyer or the official registration of all design changes made. And this process is long and very troublesome.

Tuning not in accordance with GOST: what types of tuning are subject to a fine

I bought an old nine, replaced the bumper on it, installed a spoiler, installed large wheels and, to complete the picture, applied airbrushing to the body - and now you are already the owner of a sports supercar. But, unfortunately, you can officially show off such a car only in the garage. After all, according to the law, you cannot drive a car that has been converted beyond recognition. But tuning is different from tuning.

Appearance and body

Everything here is quite liberal. If the PTS contains the changed color of the car, there are no questions for you. If you changed the color and forgot to report it, you face a fine - from 1,500 to 2,000 thousand.

For fans of airbrushing, there is also a simple rule: the image should not occupy more than 40% of the body area. The remaining 60% must be in the original color. Window tinting is completely prohibited, except for the rear hemisphere and the sun strip on the windshield . Fine - from 500 rubles.

Replacing car parts

As for spoilers and body kits, they can only be installed if you have the appropriate certificates. But if you want a bumper from another car model, you will definitely need to make a note in the title.

Optics

The requirements for it are perhaps the most stringent. Firstly, an unshakable rule: headlights should shine white, direction indicators - yellow, lights - red. The front fog lights have a white or yellow light, while the rear fog lights have a red light. Changing these parameters will entail problems with passing a technical inspection, and, consequently, with obtaining an insurance policy.

Xenon headlights

They are not prohibited if they have a washer and an automatic corrector that controls the position of the light. But if this is not the case, installation of xenon is subject to deprivation of rights for up to six months. LED lighting of the underbody, rims, sills and other body elements is also prohibited. Such tuning risks deprivation of rights for a period of 6 to 12 months.

No matter how much you would like to be like the characters in the movie “Fast and the Furious,” and no matter how much the sellers convince you that strobe lamps in headlights are not prohibited, do not rush to install them. The pulse mode of the headlights does not meet the requirements of GOST, and is included in the list of malfunctions for which it is prohibited to operate the car.

Steering wheel and wheels

The desire to replace a regular steering wheel with a sports one seems harmless, but this is an administrative offense. Fine - 500 rubles. This article includes replacing wheels and tires with non-standard ones. After all, the wheels are part of the steering, which means 195 tires on a Zhiguli are not acceptable. So are the 14-inch wheels on the 5.

Car noise

The roar of cars is also prohibited. Moreover, this applies to both loud sports exhaust systems, which do not comply with the standard noise level, and the banal absence of a muffler. The fine in this case is 500 rubles.

Forbidden tuning: how (and what) you can’t modify a car

Car modifications are a great way to stand out from the crowd. But here's the problem - for a heightened sense of beauty and a craving for individuality, you can pay before the law.

How many tuning cars drive on the roads and directions of the vast? According to some reports, over the past ten years, compatriots have modified about a million cars, but in fact, even more modified equipment has been modified. Such cars, attracting the attention of others, drove around and knew almost no grief until the traffic police began a raid in 2016. However, the documents prohibiting the operation of illegally converted vehicles - namely the technical regulations “On the safety of wheeled vehicles” and the technical regulations of the Customs Union - came into force a long time ago, in 2010 and January 1, 2015, respectively.

Punishment for operating a modified car is provided for in Part 1 of Article 12.5 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation, which reads as follows: “Driving a vehicle in the presence of malfunctions or conditions under which, in accordance with the Basic Provisions for the admission of vehicles to operation and the responsibilities of officials to ensure road safety, operation vehicle is prohibited, with the exception of malfunctions and conditions specified in parts 2 - 7 of this article - entails a warning or the imposition of an administrative fine in the amount of five hundred rubles.”

RIA Novosti / Konstantin Chalabov

If changes in the design have not been legalized, then a protocol of administrative violation is drawn up and the driver is instructed to eliminate the alterations within ten days. Vehicle registration may be temporarily suspended until the reasons are eliminated.

The legalization procedure is lengthy, multi-stage and in some places seemingly absurd. It will probably be simplified in the future - a corresponding initiative became known at the end of last year. Over time, they plan to include “travelling” in the list of government services, and the car owner will only need to visit the traffic police once to present a certificate for the installed components and a declaration statement about its installation in a car service center. But that’s later, in the vague future. In the meantime, let's talk about tuning, which may cost you money or even your license.

Body kits and kanguryatniks are not according to the rules

When the raids on tuning cars began, the owners of SUVs with specific modifications, of which there are many, suffered perhaps more than others - the traffic police targeted power bumpers, guardrails, winches, lifted suspensions and wheels of increased external diameter. For example, kenguryatniks are “registered” in the requirements of the Technical Regulations of the Customs Union on the safety of wheeled vehicles (clause 11, section 4): “It is prohibited to install on vehicles of categories M1 and N1 structures protruding forward relative to the bumper line corresponding to the outer contour of the vehicle’s projection on horizontal plane of the supporting surface, made of steel or other materials with similar strength characteristics.”

Let us recall that M1 are vehicles used for the transport of passengers and have, in addition to the driver’s seat, no more than eight seats, and N1 are vehicles intended for the transport of goods, having a maximum weight of no more than 3.5 tons. That is, we are talking about the lion's share of private passenger cars and off-road vehicles. Additional optics will also have to be registered if it is rigidly fixed to the car and receives energy from its on-board network.

What are the risks of tuning: muffler, spoiler, alloy wheels, bumper springs and others?

Automotive legislation regulates the issue of road safety - everything that affects the latter is prohibited (in moderation). It would seem that if non-original sports bumpers and a guard can somehow affect safety, then a spoiler, alloy wheels and a muffler certainly cannot. But the legislation in force in 2019 thinks otherwise. Below we will discuss the legality and penalties for such design changes.

Legality of tuning

So, the question of whether it is possible to install a spoiler, bumpers, non-original alloy wheels and other body kit and tuning elements, a muffler, a guard and other parts not provided by the factory on a car is regulated by 3 regulations:

Technical Regulations of the Customs Union on vehicle safety (hereinafter referred to as the “Technical Regulations”),
Order No. 399 on the procedure for registering vehicles (hereinafter referred to as the “Order”),
finally, traffic rules.

And we will start with the latest legal act - the Rules clearly tell us that if changes are made to the design of a car without registering them with the traffic police, then we cannot operate such a car.

7.18. Changes have been made to the design of the vehicle without permission from the State Road Safety Inspectorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation or other bodies determined by the Government of the Russian Federation.

From June 1, 2019, Government Decree No. 413 comes into force. The procedure for making changes to the design has not changed, but the procedure itself has become clearer and more regulated.

But why should the above tuning elements be changed?! And since this is exactly what the Technical Regulations say. It has a clear definition of making changes:

Making changes to the design of a vehicle - exclusion of components and equipment not provided for in the design of a particular vehicle, made after the vehicle is put into circulation and affecting road safety ;

All that remains is to understand what the components of the car are. And here the regulations have a clear answer to the question:

Vehicle components - components of the vehicle structure supplied to the assembly production of vehicles and (or) as replacement (spare) parts for vehicles in operation;

Also, paragraph 77 says that if the manufacturer has provided for the installation of a certain component or it has passed a conformity assessment as part of the car (safety tests), then its installation is possible:

77. Vehicles are not subject to inspection in the following cases:

when installing on a vehicle components intended for this vehicle and having passed the conformity assessment as part of this vehicle, which is confirmed by the documentation of the component manufacturer;
provided by the vehicle manufacturer in the operational documentation;

Thus, in order to answer the question about the legality and fine for a muffler, bumpers, alloy wheels, roof fairings, tow bar, roof rack and other tuning elements, we need to understand 2 things: are they provided for or not by design, do they influence they are on road safety.

But there is another important auto subtlety - the Technical Regulations contain an exhaustive list of components regulated by it. Does this mean that if some component is not regulated by this legal act, then it can be installed in any case, and it is no longer a component according to the letter of the law?

This is where disputes often arise between car lawyers. And the logic should still be followed: the regulations clearly prescribe what a design change is and that the components must pass tests as part of the car and be certified, and even if, for example, a spoiler is not regulated by the regulations (and also, on the one hand, is not component, since it is not included in the list of components; on the other hand, by definition of a design change, it is still prohibited), this still does not mean that it can be installed.

Now let's look at each of the tuning elements - whether it can be installed or not according to the law, and below we will look at fines and other risks (they exist), if this is prohibited - the fine is the same and is imposed for changing the design of the vehicle.

Illegal car tuning: take it down now!

Of course, street racers are in trouble not only for the traffic police, but also for normal drivers. All sensible people understand perfectly well that there should be no anarchy on the roads. And it is obvious that the cheerful morning trip of the “prodigy” Ruslan Shamsuarov and his company around Moscow and playing catch-up with the traffic police became the last straw that overflowed the patience of the traffic police. Everything is clear and seems to be correct. However, the speed with which drivers began to be disciplined is completely confusing, causing confusion and confusion.

Tightening the nuts

At the same time - and this is the most important thing - recently a message appeared on the Internet that the traffic police had increased attention to cars with non-standard equipment. Such cars are stopped, reports and fines are issued (the amount depends on the equipment), the cars are sent to impound lots, the registration is canceled... In extreme cases, they can even be charged with disobedience to police officers.

Now let's see what is meant by such non-standard equipment. These are mufflers, bumpers, spoilers, steering wheels, seats, suspension elements, gas-discharge light sources, additional external lighting devices, also not provided for by the design, “knuckle bars”, metal bumpers, “working light” headlights on the roof, “lightboxes” and monitors for advertising broadcasts, “fins” and “dummies”, modified interior layout, gas equipment, refrigeration units, body extensions, addition of sides on trucks not provided for by the vehicle design. The list is such that it allows you to slow down almost every third person - at least for additional external lighting devices. For gas equipment or non-standard steering wheel and seats - every fifth. And sent to the impound lot. In law.

Hang in there, street racers! And others

It is interesting that this tightening affects not only street racers, of which there are many, but also law-abiding citizens who drive quite safely, but... not on asphalt. Or on the so-called asphalt.

We have entire regions where there are almost more tuning cars than standard (“stock”) ones. For example, the entire Russian Far East, Sakhalin, Kamchatka. You haven't forgotten that this is also Russia, have you? What a drain there is! If you go out into nature at least sometimes (and everyone does this), equip your all-terrain vehicle with a lifted suspension, large wheels, a snorkel, power bumpers, an additional tank and winches. And not for the sake of beauty, but in order not to find yourself helpless in front of nature hundreds of kilometers from your home. However, in many areas of our country you won’t even be able to drive away from your doorstep in an unprepared car. But there is no money for a standard one with the same cross-country ability parameters and never will be. I won’t reveal a secret if I say that even decent off-road wheels cannot be installed on a car without changing the suspension. And no one in a sober mind would ever turn on “chandeliers” on public roads, but they are a great help in the dark on rough terrain.

Volunteers involved in search and rescue operations are now outside the law. Those who take tourists to remote and hard-to-reach places (there are many of them, for example, in the Crimea) ... You can also feel sorry for the sellers of additional equipment and mechanics who specialize in their installation. Amateur motorsport may suffer in part – primarily off-roaders. Well, you can simply forget about such events as the Moscow tuning show or Unlim 500+.

These are just specific examples - the tightening in one way or another affects the interests of many people. It is not surprising that Internet users immediately drew up a petition addressed to Rostechnadzor, the Ministry of Transport and the President of the Russian Federation to cancel the registration of non-prohibited changes in the design of cars. In just a few days, she collected 24,300 signatures.

What motivates the people signing the petition? Here are a few statements:

“Special services and the Ministry of Emergency Situations turn for help primarily to the owners of prepared cars, and with such laws there will be no one to help them,” Veniamin Ilyin, Kazan.

“I strongly doubt that larger wheels and a walkie-talkie increase the accident rate on the roads and interfere with other road users, but meter-by-meter potholes scattered along the entire road at intervals of 6-9 meters do not. Start with yourself!” — Dmitry Misharin, Nizhny Novgorod.

“We are encouraged to actively travel around Russia... But it is simply impossible to get to many places without making changes to the design of the car. Don’t deprive us of the opportunity to see Russia with our own eyes!” — Svetlana Menshova, Moscow.

“I sign, because otherwise the traffic cops on the road will have an extra reason to extort money, which is now in short supply,” - Vladimir Yasyrev, Yekaterinburg .

“I don’t have extra money for ill-conceived laws,” Sergei Khrupakov, Moscow .

“An extra reason for the “gays” to line their pockets,” - Dmitry Kadochnikov, Petrozavodsk .

Unfortunately, it is obvious that this decision literally pushes people to commit crimes, forces drivers to offer bribes, and traffic cops (that’s right) to accept them. Moreover, the amounts will be considerable. After all, the offense is considered serious, and the punishment is quite severe.

What has changed?

Of course, there has always been a ban on unauthorized modification of a car. As well as the regulations on the legalization of re-equipment. But this procedure is very lengthy, expensive and complicated even for a resident of Moscow and the Moscow region. I say this with full responsibility - I have a personal and unpleasant experience, which I plan to share with readers in one of the upcoming issues of “Behind the Wheel”. In short, everything possible has been done to ensure that the person himself abandons the idea of converting the car and officially registering it. And road inspectors, of course, know this. Perhaps that is why they treated “amateur activities” rather leniently. At least until now.

They say that such strictness is temporary, and that one of its reasons is the upcoming reform of the inspection institute. Another reform. We'll find out, we'll see. In the meantime, if you don’t want problems, it’s better to remove everything non-standard and try to legalize the alterations. But I warn you, it will be unbearably difficult.

I would like to advise officials who make such decisions to listen to the reasonable public, and not just to those who scream “hey!” on any occasion, and also consult with experts who look at the issue not one-sidedly, but from different points of view. It would not hurt to simplify the procedure for legalizing a converted car by entrusting decisions about the safety of a particular tuning to accredited organizations, and not to traffic police officers who do not trust experts and endlessly double-check the legality of their actions and conclusions. Believe me, this process has nothing to do with road safety.

What needs to be done to officially register the conversion of a car

Submit an application from an interested person (the owner or the owner’s representative by proxy) to an accredited testing laboratory with the provision of documents. For example, NAMI-PTIA.
Conduct a preliminary technical examination of the vehicle design in an accredited organization. If the result is positive, receive a conclusion.
Contact the territorial traffic police department that performs technical supervision functions and provide documents.
Obtain a traffic police resolution (required!).
Carry out the conversion work in accordance with the conclusion. At the same time, if it is planned to make changes to the design of the vehicle in the conditions of a certified enterprise, the applicant receives from the manufacturer of the work a “Statement-Declaration on the scope and quality of work performed” and duly certified certificates for the services provided. If the conclusion allows for the work to be carried out independently, the execution of the “Application-Declaration” is carried out by the owner. It is also necessary to collect duly certified copies of certificates of conformity for components and equipment used for conversion, spare parts and accessories that are subject to mandatory certification (in the absence of marking with a conformity mark). The technical condition and design of the vehicle after the changes are made are checked for compliance with the requirements of regulatory legal acts in the field of road safety at the SGTO or PTO. Based on the results of the inspection, a diagnostic card is issued for the vehicle, which is issued to the owner of the vehicle.
Contact an accredited organization to check the safety of the design and draw up a technical examination report after making changes.
Provide the traffic police with the vehicle and documents that are the basis for registering changes in the design of the vehicle.