The new notice will allow camping facilities to be installed in the cargo box area while maintaining the use of cargo trucks under a separate concept from existing special camping vehicles. (image: Busan Metropolitan Government)
SEOUL, May 28 (Korea Bizwire) — A planned legislative changed will soon make it possible to modify vehicles into recreational vehicles commonly known as ‘camping cars’ in South Korea, without having to change the vehicle’s model designation.
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said Wednesday that it will revise and implement regulations on tuning cars, which includes provisions for recreational vehicles such as campers.
Currently, camping cars are registered and managed as cars, vans, and special cars in accordance with the classification criteria under the Automobile Management Act during manufacturing and tuning.
In the case of cargo trucks, they can be tuned into camping cars, but they lose their main function as trucks, which required a change of type to special cars.
Some drivers even remodeled their trucks by placing the camper on their cargo boxes, but failed to get approval for tuning due to safety standards and other issues.
Under the revision, the new notice will allow camping facilities to be installed in the cargo box area while maintaining the use of cargo trucks under a separate concept from existing special camping vehicles.
The revised notice defines a camper as a “separable attachment installed in the goods loading unit of a cargo vehicle for use in outdoor camping.”
In addition, safety standards for attaching a camper will be established so that tuning approval can be obtained legally.
The revision also provides a basis for tuning vehicles that use only internal combustion engines into hybrid vehicles that use both electric and internal combustion engines.
Until now, tuning of the motor was allowed only when the output was the same or increased. However, the revision will also allow low-pollution vehicles to tune their engines under the Clean Air Conservation Act.
Accordingly, it is expected that the hybrid tuning of diesel trucks and the replacement of liquefied natural gas engines will become more popular in the future.
The tuning market has been on the rise since the government implemented measures to boost automobile tuning announced last year.
According to the ministry, the number of modified camping cars registered from Feb. 28 to May 15, when the deregulation took effect, was 1,446, about three times higher than the same period last year.
Kevin Lee (kevinlee@koreabizwire.com)
There is vry little information about changing a van into a camping car. There should be a guide as what to do if you want to convert a van. Whay the Comminity Building have to be invelved in the decision process? I you meet the weight requirement for the vehicle it should be OK. Why do I have to get permission from them to modify my van?
Now days people want to modify their vans and SUV but can’t because there is so much red tape they have to cut thru. The goverment should put out a guide line to make it easy to understand and follow to makr the convertions.
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