Vehicle rules and facts - Theory

Vehicle rules and facts

General facts regarding vehicles

A cars crumple zone helps to redistribute the force of an impact when a collision occurs. Crumple zones are located both at the very front and the very back of the car. They make sure that the car will collapse inward in a rather gentle matter compared to if there wouldn't be any crumple zone at all.
Nowadays, many car batteries cannot be filled with distilled water. Those batteries are often sealed and maintenance-free.
If you’re trying to start another car with jumper cables, for instance by using your car battery, then you need to make sure that the batteries are connected in the right way. Otherwise it can cause damage to the electrical systems and can possibly even lead to a battery explosion due to the forming of oxyhydrogen. However,the current in a car battery has almost no chance of being lethal because the current is too weak for it to be lethal.
The minimal speed for an airbag to be activated is 20-30 km/h. So you don't have to worry about the airbag being inflated in case of a small accident when the speed is very low. Airbags are designed like that because an airbag can possibly be dangerous due to the great force it’s inflated with. And besides that, at low speeds you don't really need the protection of an airbag in most cases.
There is a big difference between the effect of loosing gripbetween a rear-wheel driven car and a front-wheel driven car when at very poor road conditions, for instance on icy roads. A rear-wheel driven car that looses grip could result in the back of the car being trown out and this leads to loosing control of the car. A front-wheel driven car that looses grip car will often lead to only the steering becoming less controllable, the car will however still be keeping its course which it might not do in case of a rear-wheel driven car.
A fuel tank in most cases has a capacity of about 40 litres. The average fuel consumption on highways for many cars is around 7 litres per 100km. Then you can quite easily calculate the approximate amount of distance you can still drive with the amount of fuel left;

- When you have half of the tank left ( about 20 litres) = 20 / 7 X 100 = 285 km

- When you have a quarter of the tank (about 10 litres) =10 / 7 X 100 = 143 km

The noise of the engine will often be higher than the noise of the tyres at low speeds. The noise of the tyres will, however, be higher than the noise of the engine at higher speeds (from about 30-50 km/h for cars and 50-70 km/h for heavier vehicles).
The maximum speed capacity of a vehicle is the maximum speed for which that vehicle is build. If your car has been build for a maximum speed capacity of let's say 170 km/h and you change the engine to a stronger one or tune up the engine power and the maximum speed the car could drive now would be 200 km/h. Then that could lead to dangerous situations, because the engine could make the car drive at higher speeds than the rest of the car has been build for.
A vehicle will never be deregistered automatically, not even if you haven't paid the road tax or if it has been banned from driving. Thus, keep in mind that if you want your car to be deregistered, you need to do this yourself, for instance by using the app Mina Fordon.
As you can see on the registration certificate (image 1) below here, it states that there are 6 seatsincluding the driver's seat. This means that 1 of these 6 seats is the driver seat and the other 5 seats are passenger seats. As long as you do not exceed the maximum allowed amount of total passengers of the car, you can bring as many passengers as you like.A supervisor for practicing driving also counts as a passenger.

registration certificate

Image 1: Registration certificate

General rules regarding vehicles

All new cars must be fitted with reflectors, this is to increase the car's visibility when it’s dark. Even when all the lights of the car are off, the car will be easier to be seen by other road users because of these reflectors. For instance in an unlidded parking area during night time.
You’re only allowed to install additional lights if your vehicle has been prescribed for those. Besides that; a general rule when it comes to adding lights to your car, is that the front of the car may not display any other lights than white or yellow.
Every car is registered for a maximum amount of passengers, this information you can find in your car's certificate of registration. The maximum amount of passenger seats a private car is allowed to be equipted with is however 8, note thatthis is in addition to the driver's seat. That means that the total amount of allowed passengers can always be only up to 8, but it also means that if a car has 8 passengers seats that 9 people are allowed to traveling in that car, because that is including the driver, which is not considered as a passenger.
It’s not allowed for a vehicle's width to exceed 260 centimetres, including load, to be driven on public roads. If the total width exceeds 260 centrimetres it’s only allowed to be driven on a private road.
You’re not allowed to combine dipped headlights with daytime lights or foglights.But it is allowed, andvery common, to drive with dipped headlights combined with parking lights.
There are no regulations that make you obliged to service your car regularly, the only requirement is the roadworthiness test. However, servicing your car is important because it reduces the fuel consumption. Therefore you should always follow the service recommendations and service instructions specifically for your car.

Roadworthiness inspection

The roadworthiness test is an obligatory inspection that a car has to pass within certain intervals. The following rules apply since 20 May 2018:

- a new car has to be inspected latest 36 months (3 years) after the month it was used for the first time

- the second inspection should be conducted latest 24 months (2 years) after it passed the first inspection

- after that the general rule applies; latest 14 months after the month the most recent inspection was conducted (so this rule applies to every car that is older than 5 years)

The last day of the inspection period is always on the last day of the month.

At a regular roadworthiness test an environmental check will be conducted, as well as a noise level check.
The roadworthiness test has certain intervals regarding when a car shall have to pass these tests (as mentioned above), a registration inspection is however not an inspection that has to be done regularly. Only if you make any major changes on the vehicle that could influence its driving- or safety capacity, for example changing the engine type or the vehicle's dimensions, then it has to undergo a registration inspection within one month.
If you would retrofit a type-approved towbar on a type-approved car then the car does not need to undergo a registration inspection at all. This also applies to type-approved light trucks. If your car is not type-approved then it has to undergo a registration inspection.
All minor faults you get at a roadworthiness test should be taken care of as soon as possible, even those for which you don't have to come back for a follow-up test. If you do not take care of these minor faults before the next inspection then that would lead to the requirement of a follow-up test at that inspection. The reason they are less strict when it comes to minor faults is that otherwise it would be very inconvenient and costly to have to come back for an inspection every time for a minor fault. You should take care of these issues as soon as possible and not use the car more than you need before these issues are fixed.
For the roadworthiness test you need to go to an inspection company that has the approval to perform these tests. So you can not perform these tests yourself, even if you have the required equipment, nor can you go to any random workshop.
If you do not let you car be inspected in time for the roadworthiness test, then it will automatically be banned from driving. If that happens you’re only allowed to drive it to a workshop to repair it or to an inspection company to let it be inspected for the roadworthiness test, if the car is still registered.
If a police officer has a reason to suspect your car isn't safe to drive then they are allowed to stop you and conduct an inspection. In that case they will inspect the characteristics that are required for traffic safety.

This means that a police officer is allowed to check your car at any times on the road. This could even lead to the car being banned from driving if there are any major faults. This type of inspection is called a flying inspection.

Be aware that governmental institutions like the Swedish Transport Agency (Transportstyrelsen) and the Swedish Transport Administration (Trafikverket) will not send you any letter to let you know that the last date for inspection is near. It’s your own responsibility to know when the next inspection is due to take place latest. Inspection companies can however send you offers some time before the last date for inspection.

Insurance

After an insurance company has paid out a compensation for damage it’s possible for them to reclaim that payment or a part of that payment. This is called the right of recourse. This could happen for instance if the policy-holder has been drunk driving or has shown severe negligence.
The traffic insurance premium always has to be paid to the insurance company you choose to let your vehicle be insured. Governmental institutions, like Swedish Transport Agency (Transportstyrelsen) and the Swedish Transport Administration (Trafikverket), do not manage insurances.
The claim form (also referred to as 'notification of damage form') is a form that is designed to be filled in if an accident has taken place. It’s not required for you to have this form with you while traveling, but insurance companies do recommend you to always have one with you. You could also use a normal paper to write down all details, but this form will make it easier for all parties involved.

Registration of vehicles

The certificate of registration for a privat car consists of 2 parts, a blue and a yellow document. Part 1 (blue) should be in the car when you’re traveling, part 2 (yellow) should be stored safely and not in the car (for example at home) because this part is used for changes of ownership or de-registration.
Registration plates often have only 3 letters and 3 digits, but since 2019 some can also have a letter at the last character. Most plates have a sequence like this; ABC 123. This means that since 2019 you could encounter plates like for instance; ABC 12D
The general regulation regarding registration plates states that a registration plate may neither have less than 2 nor more than 7 characters, of which the blank space in between the letters and/or numbers also counts as a character. Therefore, you will not encounter a registration plate that has for instance both 4 letters and 4 digits.
The Swedish Transport Agency (Transportstyrelsen) should receive changes of ownership of a vehicle within 10 days. The easiest way to do this is by using the app Mina Fordon.
You can deregister your vehicle if you’re not using it, so you can avoid paying the vehicle tax and third-party insurance while it's not being used. The easiest way to do this is by using the app Mina Fordon.

Classifications and permissions

The B driving licence entitles you to drive the following vehicles;

- a private car and a light lorry, each with a total weight of max 3.5 tonnes

- off-road motor vehicles

- three and four-wheeled motorcycles (so not a light motorcycle, which refers to a two-wheeled vehicle)

- mopeds class I and class II, tractors, heavy equipment class I and class II

Note: all-terrain vehicles and snowmobiles require an additional driver's certificate if you obtained your driving licence before 1 januari 2000

Also keep in mind that the B driving licence entitles you to drive a three-wheeled motorcycle up to 15 kW if you’re younger than 21 years old. In order to drive a three-wheeled motorcycle above 15 kW you need to be at least 21 years old.
Class I mopeds are allowed to drive max 45 km/h, class II mopeds are allowed to drive max 25 km/h.
Mopeds, whether they are class I or class II, are not allowed to be driven on motorways.

Weight

The taxable weight is the same as the kerb weight (also known as unladen weight), for private cars.
The car's kerb weight (also known as unladen weight) is the overall weight according to the certificate of registration in fully operational condition and the weight of the driver. The kerb weight also includes the spare wheel and tools that belong to the vehicle, fuel, water and oil. But this does not include any load.
The total weight of a car is the kerb weight (also known as unladen weight) + the maximum load.
A light lorry has a maximum permitted total weight of 3.5 tonnes, a heavy lorry has a total weight of more than 3.5 tonnes.

Vehicle rules and facts

General facts regarding vehicles

A cars crumple zone helps to redistribute the force of an impact when a collision occurs. Crumple zones are located both at the very front and the very back of the car. They make sure that the car will collapse inward in a rather gentle matter compared to if there wouldn't be any crumple zone at all.
Nowadays, many car batteries cannot be filled with distilled water. Those batteries are often sealed and maintenance-free.
If you’re trying to start another car with jumper cables, for instance by using your car battery, then you need to make sure that the batteries are connected in the right way. Otherwise it can cause damage to the electrical systems and can possibly even lead to a battery explosion due to the forming of oxyhydrogen. However,the current in a car battery has almost no chance of being lethal because the current is too weak for it to be lethal.
The minimal speed for an airbag to be activated is 20-30 km/h. So you don't have to worry about the airbag being inflated in case of a small accident when the speed is very low. Airbags are designed like that because an airbag can possibly be dangerous due to the great force it’s inflated with. And besides that, at low speeds you don't really need the protection of an airbag in most cases.
There is a big difference between the effect of loosing gripbetween a rear-wheel driven car and a front-wheel driven car when at very poor road conditions, for instance on icy roads. A rear-wheel driven car that looses grip could result in the back of the car being trown out and this leads to loosing control of the car. A front-wheel driven car that looses grip car will often lead to only the steering becoming less controllable, the car will however still be keeping its course which it might not do in case of a rear-wheel driven car.
A fuel tank in most cases has a capacity of about 40 litres. The average fuel consumption on highways for many cars is around 7 litres per 100km. Then you can quite easily calculate the approximate amount of distance you can still drive with the amount of fuel left;

- When you have half of the tank left ( about 20 litres) = 20 / 7 X 100 = 285 km

- When you have a quarter of the tank (about 10 litres) =10 / 7 X 100 = 143 km

The noise of the engine will often be higher than the noise of the tyres at low speeds. The noise of the tyres will, however, be higher than the noise of the engine at higher speeds (from about 30-50 km/h for cars and 50-70 km/h for heavier vehicles).
The maximum speed capacity of a vehicle is the maximum speed for which that vehicle is build. If your car has been build for a maximum speed capacity of let's say 170 km/h and you change the engine to a stronger one or tune up the engine power and the maximum speed the car could drive now would be 200 km/h. Then that could lead to dangerous situations, because the engine could make the car drive at higher speeds than the rest of the car has been build for.
A vehicle will never be deregistered automatically, not even if you haven't paid the road tax or if it has been banned from driving. Thus, keep in mind that if you want your car to be deregistered, you need to do this yourself, for instance by using the app Mina Fordon.
As you can see on the registration certificate (image 1) below here, it states that there are 6 seatsincluding the driver's seat. This means that 1 of these 6 seats is the driver seat and the other 5 seats are passenger seats. As long as you do not exceed the maximum allowed amount of total passengers of the car, you can bring as many passengers as you like.A supervisor for practicing driving also counts as a passenger.

registration certificate

Image 1: Registration certificate

General rules regarding vehicles

All new cars must be fitted with reflectors, this is to increase the car's visibility when it’s dark. Even when all the lights of the car are off, the car will be easier to be seen by other road users because of these reflectors. For instance in an unlidded parking area during night time.
You’re only allowed to install additional lights if your vehicle has been prescribed for those. Besides that; a general rule when it comes to adding lights to your car, is that the front of the car may not display any other lights than white or yellow.
Every car is registered for a maximum amount of passengers, this information you can find in your car's certificate of registration. The maximum amount of passenger seats a private car is allowed to be equipted with is however 8, note thatthis is in addition to the driver's seat. That means that the total amount of allowed passengers can always be only up to 8, but it also means that if a car has 8 passengers seats that 9 people are allowed to traveling in that car, because that is including the driver, which is not considered as a passenger.
It’s not allowed for a vehicle's width to exceed 260 centimetres, including load, to be driven on public roads. If the total width exceeds 260 centrimetres it’s only allowed to be driven on a private road.
You’re not allowed to combine dipped headlights with daytime lights or foglights.But it is allowed, andvery common, to drive with dipped headlights combined with parking lights.
There are no regulations that make you obliged to service your car regularly, the only requirement is the roadworthiness test. However, servicing your car is important because it reduces the fuel consumption. Therefore you should always follow the service recommendations and service instructions specifically for your car.

Roadworthiness inspection

The roadworthiness test is an obligatory inspection that a car has to pass within certain intervals. The following rules apply since 20 May 2018:

- a new car has to be inspected latest 36 months (3 years) after the month it was used for the first time

- the second inspection should be conducted latest 24 months (2 years) after it passed the first inspection

- after that the general rule applies; latest 14 months after the month the most recent inspection was conducted (so this rule applies to every car that is older than 5 years)

The last day of the inspection period is always on the last day of the month.

At a regular roadworthiness test an environmental check will be conducted, as well as a noise level check.
The roadworthiness test has certain intervals regarding when a car shall have to pass these tests (as mentioned above), a registration inspection is however not an inspection that has to be done regularly. Only if you make any major changes on the vehicle that could influence its driving- or safety capacity, for example changing the engine type or the vehicle's dimensions, then it has to undergo a registration inspection within one month.
If you would retrofit a type-approved towbar on a type-approved car then the car does not need to undergo a registration inspection at all. This also applies to type-approved light trucks. If your car is not type-approved then it has to undergo a registration inspection.
All minor faults you get at a roadworthiness test should be taken care of as soon as possible, even those for which you don't have to come back for a follow-up test. If you do not take care of these minor faults before the next inspection then that would lead to the requirement of a follow-up test at that inspection. The reason they are less strict when it comes to minor faults is that otherwise it would be very inconvenient and costly to have to come back for an inspection every time for a minor fault. You should take care of these issues as soon as possible and not use the car more than you need before these issues are fixed.
For the roadworthiness test you need to go to an inspection company that has the approval to perform these tests. So you can not perform these tests yourself, even if you have the required equipment, nor can you go to any random workshop.
If you do not let you car be inspected in time for the roadworthiness test, then it will automatically be banned from driving. If that happens you’re only allowed to drive it to a workshop to repair it or to an inspection company to let it be inspected for the roadworthiness test, if the car is still registered.
If a police officer has a reason to suspect your car isn't safe to drive then they are allowed to stop you and conduct an inspection. In that case they will inspect the characteristics that are required for traffic safety.

Be aware that governmental institutions like the Swedish Transport Agency (Transportstyrelsen) and the Swedish Transport Administration (Trafikverket) will not send you any letter to let you know that the last date for inspection is near. It’s your own responsibility to know when the next inspection is due to take place latest. Inspection companies can however send you offers some time before the last date for inspection.

Insurance

After an insurance company has paid out a compensation for damage it’s possible for them to reclaim that payment or a part of that payment. This is called the right of recourse. This could happen for instance if the policy-holder has been drunk driving or has shown severe negligence.
The traffic insurance premium always has to be paid to the insurance company you choose to let your vehicle be insured. Governmental institutions, like Swedish Transport Agency (Transportstyrelsen) and the Swedish Transport Administration (Trafikverket), do not manage insurances.
The claim form (also referred to as 'notification of damage form') is a form that is designed to be filled in if an accident has taken place. It’s not required for you to have this form with you while traveling, but insurance companies do recommend you to always have one with you. You could also use a normal paper to write down all details, but this form will make it easier for all parties involved.

Registration of vehicles

The certificate of registration for a privat car consists of 2 parts, a blue and a yellow document. Part 1 (blue) should be in the car when you’re traveling, part 2 (yellow) should be stored safely and not in the car (for example at home) because this part is used for changes of ownership or de-registration.
Registration plates often have only 3 letters and 3 digits, but since 2019 some can also have a letter at the last character. Most plates have a sequence like this; ABC 123. This means that since 2019 you could encounter plates like for instance; ABC 12D
The general regulation regarding registration plates states that a registration plate may neither have less than 2 nor more than 7 characters, of which the blank space in between the letters and/or numbers also counts as a character. Therefore, you will not encounter a registration plate that has for instance both 4 letters and 4 digits.
The Swedish Transport Agency (Transportstyrelsen) should receive changes of ownership of a vehicle within 10 days. The easiest way to do this is by using the app Mina Fordon.
You can deregister your vehicle if you’re not using it, so you can avoid paying the vehicle tax and third-party insurance while it's not being used. The easiest way to do this is by using the app Mina Fordon.

Classifications and permissions

The B driving licence entitles you to drive the following vehicles;

- a private car and a light lorry, each with a total weight of max 3.5 tonnes

- off-road motor vehicles

- three and four-wheeled motorcycles (so not a light motorcycle, which refers to a two-wheeled vehicle)

- mopeds class I and class II, tractors, heavy equipment class I and class II

Note: all-terrain vehicles and snowmobiles require an additional driver's certificate if you obtained your driving licence before 1 januari 2000

Also keep in mind that the B driving licence entitles you to drive a three-wheeled motorcycle up to 15 kW if you’re younger than 21 years old. In order to drive a three-wheeled motorcycle above 15 kW you need to be at least 21 years old.
Class I mopeds are allowed to drive max 45 km/h, class II mopeds are allowed to drive max 25 km/h.
Mopeds, whether they are class I or class II, are not allowed to be driven on motorways.

Weight

The taxable weight is the same as the kerb weight (also known as unladen weight), for private cars.
The car's kerb weight (also known as unladen weight) is the overall weight according to the certificate of registration in fully operational condition and the weight of the driver. The kerb weight also includes the spare wheel and tools that belong to the vehicle, fuel, water and oil. But this does not include any load.
The total weight of a car is the kerb weight (also known as unladen weight) + the maximum load.
A light lorry has a maximum permitted total weight of 3.5 tonnes, a heavy lorry has a total weight of more than 3.5 tonnes.

Driver and vehicle

Traffic regulations

Driving

Environment and road conditions

Safety

Getting your Swedish B driving licence

Road signs

Driver and vehicle

Traffic regulations

Driving

Environment and road conditions

Safety

Getting your Swedish B driving licence

Road signs

Driver and vehicle

Traffic regulations

Driving

Environment and road conditions

Safety

Getting your Swedish B driving licence

Road signs

Driver and vehicle

Traffic regulations

Driving

Environment and road conditions

Safety

Getting your Swedish B driving licence

Road signs