Automatic driving license regulation: motorbikes not included

Table of contents

Automatic driving license regulation: motorbikes not included
Volker Rost

Automatic driving license regulation: motorbikes not included

Automatic driving license regulation: motorbikes not included

Automatic driving license regulation: motorbikes not included

Automatic driving license regulation: motorbikes not included

5 pictures

Automatic driving license regulation: motorbikes not included
zero

1/5
The Zero S is specified with a continuous output of 11 kW and weighs 185 kilograms, giving exactly the required power weight of 0.08 kw / kg. The top values ​​are 59 hp, 109 Nm torque and 140 things. Fast for one “125cc”.

Automatic driving license regulation: motorbikes not included
fact / Joachim Schahl

2/5
The automatic control is not about the mode of operation of the power transmission, but how the frictional connection from the motor to the drive takes place: manual clutch or automatic?

Automatic driving license regulation: motorbikes not included
Honda

3/5
Anyone who takes the driving school on a motorcycle without a clutch lever and is tested for it is only allowed to ride bikes without a manual clutch.

Automatic driving license regulation: motorbikes not included
Tyson Jopson

4/5
The B196 allows motorists to drive A1-compliant motorcycles with just a few driving hours. The KTM 125 Duke with 15 hp is included, as is the Zero S with 59 hp.

Automatic driving license regulation: motorbikes not included
Kawasaki.

5/5
Search image: clutch lever? Footshift? Electric motor? Everything is there. There are electric motorcycles with manual transmission and hand clutch. However, they are either still studies or are likely to be so powerful that they are out of the question for novice drivers anyway.

counselor

traffic & business

Automatic driving license regulation: motorbikes not included

New driver’s license, not for motorcycle
EU stands in the way

April 1st, 2021 brings the new driving license class B197. Here the antique automatic driver’s license is dusted off. Motorcycles were probably forgotten, here the regulation from 1986 still applies. Welcome to the future.


Jens Kratschmar

March 29, 2021

In addition to a new practical driving test, 2021 will change also the regulation of the automatic driving license. So far it has been like this: Anyone who was trained and tested with an automatic car was only given a driver’s license for such vehicles. If you wanted to switch manually, you had to pass an extra test. From 2021, a certificate from the driving instructor will be sufficient to show that the examinee has been trained and has mastered the game with the clutch. This is where the crux lies: It’s not about the type of gearbox, but about the type of frictional connection between the engine and the gearbox, so this is done manually or automatically. So far so good. And with the motorcycle.


Automatic driving license regulation: motorbikes not included


Honda

Those who take the driving school on a motorcycle without a clutch lever and are tested for it are only allowed to drive those without a manual clutch.

Unfortunately, the B197 only applies to class B, i.e. cars. Motorcycles are excluded. So anyone who is tested on a motorcycle that does not have a clutch lever is not allowed to drive a motorbike with a manual clutch or has to prove this in a further test. This also includes motorcycles or maxi scooters with a dual clutch transmission such as the DCT transmission from Honda, because here too the power connection is automatically regulated when starting and stopping.


Automatic driving license regulation: motorbikes not included


fact / Joachim Schahl

With the automatic control it is not at all about the mode of operation of the power transmission, but how the frictional connection from the motor to the drive takes place: manual clutch or automatic?

Driving schools can practically not use e-motorcycles

Some people may now scratch their heads, shaking their heads, because here and now we are only talking about a homeopathic dose of e-motorcycles, which mostly come without a manual gearbox and without a clutch lever. However, as the range of electrically powered motorcycles increases, so too does the number of driving schools that will or would like to take advantage of the concept. Because whether we like it or not: powered two-wheelers are the future. Or: Where, if not in the driving school, can young people, future motorcyclists and buyers be introduced to new technology and also be convinced by it?

Jochen Klima, Chairman of the Baden-Wurttemberg Driving Instructors Association: “It’s a bit like the hen and the egg. Which came first The learner’s interest in an electric motorcycle or the electric motorcycle in driving school? The current regulation unfortunately forces driving schools to decide against an electric motorcycle. And e-models with a manual clutch are rare, expensive and, in terms of performance, far too powerful for the current A1 or A2 regulations. Since B197 does not include the motorcycle sector, the regulation increases the incentive not to train and test on an e-machine.”


Automatic driving license regulation: motorbikes not included


Tyson Jopson

With the automatic control it is not about the mode of operation of the power transmission, but how the frictional connection from the motor to the drive takes place: manual clutch or automatic?

Electric training motorcycles have to be heavy

Another obstacle, which, in a purely formal sense, virtually prevents the use of electric motorcycles, is probably due to an incorrect formulation in the EU Driving License Directive. There is for the driving license classes A1 and B196, So the colloquial 125cc class, when using an electric motorcycle, a power-to-weight ratio of at least 0.08kw / kg is required. So it must be hard.

If the 11 kilowatts of continuous output were fully exhausted, 185 kilos would have to be applied. Compared to a 125cc combustion engine, you can make a good 50 kilos more and only at an enormous purchase price. As a fitting example, this would be one zero S with its A1-compliant 11 kilowatts of continuous output for at least 15,000 euros. But with direct drive, i.e. the test specimen would only get an automatic driver’s license. E-motorcycles that are comparable in price to conventional 125 cc are much too light to achieve the required power-to-weight ratio, so they are also canceled for training and testing.

Fun fact: the Zero even has 40 kilowatts of maximum output, i.e. 59 hp and puts a hefty 109 Nm of torque on the belt. That can be more than some seasoned motorcyclist has moved in his life in terms of engine power and people are allowed to do that with that 125 certificate or B196 owner drive legally.


Automatic driving license regulation: motorbikes not included


Kawasaki.

Search image: clutch lever? Footshift? Electric motor? Everything is there. There are electric motorcycles with manual transmission and hand clutch. However, they are either still studies or foreseeably so powerful that they are out of the question for novice drivers anyway.

An application by the driving instructor associations to the Federal Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure to initiate a change here was rejected because this directive comes directly from the EU. And in terms of the B197 regulation with the clutch, there is currently little willingness to make further changes.

By the way: automatic gearshifts that enable clutchless shifting while driving are not covered by this regulation, as the clutch still has to be disengaged by hand to start and stop.

opinion poll

Which electric concept on two wheels is the right one for you?

Voted 9051 times

If so, then only a powerful electric motorcycle.

I can imagine an electric scooter for commuting and city traffic.

A small, agile electric moped is definitely fun.

None at all.

Conclusion

One new regulation excludes motorcycles, another allows novice drivers with a 125 license to drive motorcycles that accelerate to 100 things in less than five seconds and are up to 140 things fast. Neither makes sense and the next generation will not be electrically mobile on two wheels.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *