Disaster: approval of mods in Norway not accepted

EISTO

EISTO

Well-Known Member
Visit site
Happy Hung-over Saturday to all of you, I've just encountered a crisis in my Streetfighter project and need some advice. :wilynily:

This winter I've been converting my 2007 FZ1-S to a naked/streetfighter version. We are not talking about major stuff here; I've made no changes to engine or frame. The only technichal mods are stripping away the fairing, replacing the indicators and headlamp and mounting the naked version tail.

Last autumn, before i started working on this, I spoke to an inspector at Biltilsynet (the Norwegian equivalent of the DMV) to make sure I would do things the right way. He told me that this would be alright as long as I made sure all the new lights were e-marked, i.e. approved for European roads. Since all my planned mods were e-marked, I went ahead with the project.

Little did I now.....

Yesterday I booked an appointment at Biltilsynet for approval of my mods. While on the phone I spoke to another technical inspector who told me something COMPLETELY different. He said no-one were allowed to make ANY CHANGES WHATSOEVER to motorcycles registered first time in Norway after June 17 2003. :jaw drop:

It didn't matter whether all the individual mods in question were considered road legal, the bike as a whole would not be approved since -strictly and bureaucraticly speaking- it no longer fulfilled the certificate of conformity issued for the specific bike make and type. I could still (theoretically) get it approved, but the burden of documenting conformity of the whole bike would now be on my shoulders, not Yamaha's. In practical terms this would simply be impossible. The necessary resources (time, money and competence) are out of reach for a private idividual.

I was shellshocked. This means that a couple of thousand dollars worth of parts and hours upon hours of work would be wasted. Reversing my mods is not an option, I can't stand the look of the regular FZ1-S so the only option left is to sell it and buy an FZ1-N

Has anyone in this forum had experience with this issue before?




Best regards,

...a very depressed Einar
 
Last edited:
"He said no-one were allowed to make ANY CHANGES WHATSOEVER to motorcycles registered first time in Norway after June 17 2003"

oh my. Some rules there,
Put back to S and sale. Buy N bike be happy. Put N parts for sale. Ride.
 
If the N is available in Norway, and you used all OEM N parts, should it not be easy to have approved? I understand that bureaucracies usually don't operate wiring the realm of common sense, but you are essentially making a stock bike, just with different trim. Sounds like a real pain no matter how you slice it. I hope you are able to clear the hurdle and get riding with minimal money lost.
 
Eurocats,
Yes, some rules we have in Norway....The absurdity in his statement and the fact that another inspector gave a completely different opinion makes me think that there's something not quite right here. Unfortunately, the system at Biltilsynet is so inaccessible and slow-moving it would give an old DDR or Soviet bureaucrat a hefty erection. Therefore, I've given up getting a clear and reliable answer as to which rules I should adhere to and decided to ask other bikers for their opinion instead. There might still be hope. Hence this thread.

Your suggestion is a final resort. If all else fails.
 
Last edited:
jacobdahl said:
If the N is available in Norway, and you used all OEM N parts, should it not be easy to have approved? I understand that bureaucracies usually don't operate wiring the realm of common sense, but you are essentially making a stock bike, just with different trim. Sounds like a real pain no matter how you slice it. I hope you are able to clear the hurdle and get riding with minimal money lost.
Click to expand...

Thanks, Jacob. Yes, the tail is OEM parts (standard N-tail). It's the indicators and headlight that has the potential to f**k up the approval process. I will definitely ask them whether I can get away with buying FZ1-N headlight/indicators and re-register the bike as an FZ1-N instead.

Einar
 
Last edited:
I never heard anything so ridiculous in all my life, well, apart from the old UK law of "window Tax" that is.
If your fairing was damaged beyond repair and the only affordable option was to fit an aftermarket EU approved headlight and indicators to get you back on the road, what the heck could be wrong with that.
Can you not just say your bike has had some accident damaged parts replaced and do not mention the fact that it used to have a fairing. They may not even be aware that the S and N models are slightly different.

Damn Europratts!!!
 
that stinks so no one is allowed to customize their bikes well then the same should go for cars or trucks or is that a law also? good luck with that silly crap couldnt you put stock stuff back till inspection then switch it back or is this a yearly thing?
 
Update from the Land of the Bureaucrats

Thanks for all the moral support, folks.
This isn't a yearly thing although there is full control every second year. I've removed the limiter on the engine, restoring it to original power and in order to get it approved I have to turn up at Biltilsynet (remember, the MOT folks) for a visual inspection (God knows why)

I've now turned the system inside out to get a proper answer to this thing about mods. It seems there can be some leeway here after all. Two inspectors claim that the indicators and headlight might be ok given that they are approved according to ECE reg #50R (right-side driving). This is the case for the ShinYo headlight but the Oberon indicators seem to come short although Oberon themselves claim they are approved. Apparently the terms "e-marked" and "road legal" are not synonymous.
The jury's still out regarding the fairing and tail and I'm more confused than ever. Apparently, everything seems to depend on the inspector in charge on any given day and my confidence in Biltilsynet has suffered some serious blows. I still have no idea what I'll be faced with when I turn up for my appointment in a couple of weeks time.
 
Last edited:
well, i'll take the oberon's off ya if you can't use em ;)

and maybe just try to get it inspected like normal without telling them any changes were made, see if they even notice the difference.
 
Hehe, thanks Jared. I might take you up on your offer since I just ordered an alternative set of bar-end indicators from Xenolen that are fully road legal here in Norway (see marking on indicator glass in the pictures).
As you've seen in a separate thread of mine the Oberons are already modified for use on FZ1 handlebars but I guess you're alright with that?

Most people do just what you suggested when it comes to getting their bike through inspection. You are however risking to be fined and possibly (worst case scenario) rendering your insurance worthless if you're involved in an accident. That being said, I doublt they'll kick up much fuss in most cases.
 
Last edited:
EISTO said:
Hehe, thanks Jared. I might take you up on your offer since I just ordered an alternative set of bar-end indicators from Xenolen that are fully road legal here in Norway (see marking on indicator glass in the pictures).
As you've seen in a separate thread of mine the Oberons are already modified for use on FZ1 handlebars but I guess you're alright with that?

Most people do just what you suggested when it comes to getting their bike through inspection. You are however risking to be fined and possibly (worst case scenario) rendering your insurance worthless if you're involved in an accident. That being said, I doublt they'll kick up much fuss in most cases.
Click to expand...

those xenolen signals look awesome too! not sure how much shipping to the states is though but i think it's worth it. how come you europeans have so much cooler options haha

and wow, good luck with the inspection stuff, that's just insane.
 
Through the eye of the needle

Hi folks, thought I'd give you a quick -but significant- update to this thread.
Believe it or not, the bike was finally approved with all mods this week, see thread in "FZ1 Streetfighter --> Naked conversion project finally completed!").
When I finally got as far as the Norwegian DMV the inspector more or less turned the bike inside out, which is more or less what I did to my stomach at the same time. Having studied the lights and mods in detail (without uttering a word) he began looking at the slip-on and took a lot of pictures. He listended to the engine and noted E-marking here and there before withdrawing to "make a formal decision" as he called it. After 45 agonizing minutes he finally came back and just handed me the vehicle license. No comments whatsoever. Frankly, I couldn't believe it, and I feel more than a bit stupid after going al willy-nilly in this thread earlier.
It should be mentioned, however, that I replaced the Oberon bar-end indicators at the last minute before inspection. These would probably not have made it past his watchful eye and JaredP here at the forum was kind enought to to take them off me at a good price.

Anyway, this is good news for those Norwegians out there looking to do something similar to their bikes.
Thanks again for all the support!

From Oslo,
A very relieved Einar
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top