Provisional Translation
| OTO No. | 453 | Classification | MOT-37 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of Acceptance | July 18, 1991 | Ministry/Agency Receiving Complaint | Economic Planning Agency |
| Responsible Ministries | Ministry of Transport | Related Laws | Road Vehicles Law |
| Complainant | The American Chamber of Commerce in Japan (proxy complaint) | Exporting Countries | USA |
| Subject | Acceptance of U.S. automobile emission tests | ||
| Details of Measures | The Road Vehicles Law sets down standards for the safety of the structure and equipment of road vehicles and anti-pollution measures, and specific testing requirements and evaluation criteria for technical matters are laid down in the "Technical Standards for Safety Standards Relating to Road Vehicles." Vehicles which fail to meet these standards may not be operated. The standards for road vehicles lay down restrictions on emissions, and in order to relieve the severe air pollution in large cities, restrictions center on low-speed operation based on driving conditions in urban areas. In the U.S., on the other hand, restrictions are based mainly on high-speed driving conditions. This difference derives from the expected driving conditions in the two countries, and restrictions must therefore also necessarily differ. In this complaint, technical data on the correlation between Japanese and U.S. data on emissions have been provided and are being studied by experts from the technological viewpoint, but no clear conclusions have emerged so far and the ministry replied that this study would continue. Since Japanese and U.S. restrictions on emissions and testing methods are completely different, and since some vehicles conforming to U.S. emissions standards have failed to meet Japanese emissions standards, the ministry holds that it is difficult to accept vehicles conforming to U.S. emissions standards according to U.S. testing methods as is at this point. However, it replied to the United States government in January 1992 that it would accept test data carried out by public U.S. testing facilities using the same testing methods as in Japan. Meetings to discuss technical matters have been held with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency since March 1992. |
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| Classification of Processing | Cc | Directions | II-b |
| Remarks | |||