Inspection of Under-Speed Vehicle, Utility Vehicle, or Mini-Truck
This information below outlines the steps you must take to have your vehicle certified to operate on public roadways.
Definitions:
“Under-speed vehicle” means a three- or four-wheeled vehicle, including a vehicle commonly known as a golf cart, with an attainable speed on a paved level surface of not more than twenty miles per hour and with a gross vehicle weight rating less than three thousand pounds.
“Mini-truck” means a vehicle that has four wheels, is propelled by an electric motor with a rated power of seven thousand five hundred watts or less or an internal combustion engine with a piston displacement capacity of six hundred sixty cubic centimeters or less, has a total dry weight of nine hundred to two thousand two hundred pounds, contains an enclosed cabin and a seat for the vehicle operator, resembles a pickup truck or van with a cargo area or bed located at the rear of the vehicle, and was not originally manufactured to meet federal motor vehicle safety standards.
“Utility vehicle” means a self-propelled vehicle designed with a bed, principally for the purpose of transporting material or cargo in connection with construction, agricultural, forestry, grounds maintenance, lawn and garden, materials handling, or similar activities.
“All-purpose vehicle” means any self-propelled vehicle designed primarily for cross-country travel on land and water, or on more than one type of terrain, and steered by wheels or caterpillar treads, or any combination thereof, including vehicles that operate on a cushion of air, vehicles commonly known as all-terrain vehicles, all-season vehicles, mini-bikes, and trail bikes. “All-purpose vehicle” does not include a utility vehicle as defined in section 4501.01 of the Revised Code or any vehicle principally used in playing golf, any motor vehicle or aircraft required to be registered under Chapter 4503. Or 4561. Of the Revised Code, and any vehicle excepted from definition as a motor vehicle by division (B) of section 4501.01 of the Revised Code
*This inspection process does not apply to ATVs, UTVs, or APVs. Side-by-side ATVs or UTVs do not qualify as a utility vehicle
Included in this information packet is a copy of the Department of Public Safety (DPS 1373) Inspection of under-speed, utility, and mini-truck vehicles, so you can make sure your vehicle meets the requirements before scheduling your inspection. Here are the steps you will need to complete to certify your vehicle for operation on public roadways:
- To have your vehicle properly inspected, you will need to contact the Lorain County Sheriff’s Office to arrange for an Inspector to come to your location for the inspection, or bring the vehicle to the Sheriff’s Office.
- A Inspector will contact you to schedule a time to have your vehicle This is the first step in legalizing your vehicle for operation on a roadway. (Written documentation showing State Minimum Liability Insurance coverage on the under-speed vehicle must be shown at the time of the inspection.) Once all inspection requirements have been met, you will be given an Inspection Certificate to take to the Title Office.
- Next, you will take your Inspection Certificate, Proof of Insurance, and Proof of Ownership to the Title Once they have verified that everything is in order, they will issue you a Certificate of Title.
- Finally, you will need to take the above items to a Deputy Registrar, where they will verify you have completed the above steps, and then you will be issued the license plates for your under-speed or low-speed vehicle.
*Operation of your under-speed vehicle must be in accordance with ALL motor vehicle laws located within the Ohio Revised Code, including having a valid operator’s license. This includes not operating the vehicle on any roadway where the posted speed limit is greater than 35 MPH. (ORC 4511.214)
The following are excerpts from the Ohio Revised Code of the requirements that must be met for your under speed vehicle to be operated on the roadways.
- ORC 4503.21: No person who is the owner or operator of a motor vehicle shall fail to display in plain view on the front and rear of the motor vehicle the distinctive number and registration mark, including any county identification sticker and any validation sticker issued under sections 4503.19 and 4503.191 of the Revised Code, furnished by the director of public safety.
- ORC 4507.02: No person shall permit the operation of a motor vehicle upon any public or private property used by the public for purposes of vehicular travel or parking, knowing the operator does not have a valid driver’s license issued to the operator by the registrar of motor vehicles under this chapter or a valid commercial driver’s license issued under Chapter 4506 of the Revised Code.
- ORC 4509.101: No person shall operate, or permit the operation of, a motor vehicle in this state, unless proof of financial responsibility is maintained continuously throughout the registration period with respect to that vehicle, or, in the case of a driver who is not the owner, with respect to that driver’s operation of that vehicle.
- ORC 4511.214: No person shall operate a low-speed vehicle upon any street or highway having an established speed limit greater than thirty-five miles per hour. This does not preclude you from merely crossing an intersection with a roadway where the speed limit is greater than 35 MPH.
- ORC 4513.05: Every motor vehicle shall be equipped with at least one tail light mounted on the rear which, when lighted, shall emit a red light visible from a distance of five hundred feet to the rear. Either a tail light or a separate light shall be so constructed and placed as to illuminate with a white light the rear registration plate and render it legible from a distance of fifty feet to the rear.
- ORC 4513.06: Every motor vehicle shall carry at the rear, either as a part of the tail lamps or separately, two red reflectors of such size and characteristics and so maintained as to be visible at night from all distances within three hundred feet to fifty feet from such vehicle.
- ORC 4513.071: Every motor vehicle shall be equipped with two or more stop lights which shall be mounted on the rear of the vehicle, actuated upon application of the service brake, and may be incorporated with other rear lights. Such stop lights, when actuated, shall emit a red light visible from a distance of five hundred feet to the rear
- ORC 4513.16: Any motor vehicle may be operated under the conditions specified in section 4513.03 of the Revised Code when it is equipped with two lighted lights upon the front thereof capable of revealing persons and substantial objects seventy-five feet ahead,
- ORC 4513.21: Every motor vehicle when operated upon a highway shall be equipped with a horn which is in good working order and capable of emitting sound audible, under normal conditions, from a distance of not less than two hundred feet.
- ORC 4513.23: Every motor vehicle shall be equipped with a mirror so located as to reflect to the operator a view of the highway to the rear of such vehicle.
- ORC 4513.24: No person shall drive any motor vehicle on a street or highway in this state that is not equipped with a windshield.
- ORC 4513.261: No person shall operate any motor vehicle unless the vehicle is equipped with electrical or mechanical directional signals.
