ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the regulatory regime as it currently operates and considers the extent to which the setting of a standard for this product – the motor vehicle – in the European Union (EU) frames vehicle production. It argues that the standardised regime defining a motor vehicle and its emissions will continue to have great significance to United Kingdom producers and focuses on determining EU applicable standards. The chapter considers how the EU rules of origin apply to supply chains and finished products, specifically by reference to the vehicle industry. The idea around vehicle standards was that regulation supported market forces in the car market by removing barriers in markets. Two methods by which the EU seeks to achieve technical harmonisation of vehicles: the creation of the EU-specific ‘Whole Vehicle Type Approval System’ and participation in the worldwide international harmonisation conducted under the auspices of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe.
