Tougher test rules aim to ensure vehicle safety

China is moving to tighten safety oversight of vehicle innovation, with draft rules that would set clearer limits on new design features and strengthen testing and validation requirements for new cars.

The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, together with three other government departments, released a draft notice earlier in October aimed at strengthening oversight of innovative vehicle designs and the testing and validation during research and development.

Under the proposal, fully concealed exterior door handles would be prohibited on passenger vehicles. The use of "zero-gravity", swivel and fold-flat bed seat configurations would also be prohibited while a vehicle is moving. Automakers would have to assess such seat designs for anti-pinch protection, the reliability of their locking mechanisms and occupant protection in a crash.

Foldable or flexible central infotainment displays would also be prohibited. Automakers using virtual controls for lights or windshield wipers would have to retain physical controls.

Vehicles would have to provide conspicuously marked physical controls for emergency escape, emergency braking and cutting power to the drive system. While a vehicle is moving, occupants other than the driver would not be allowed to use voice or gesture commands to control certain safety-related functions. The restriction would cover windshield defrosting and defogging, headlights, wipers, doors and the hood.

Li Yanwei, a member of the expert committee of the China Automobile Dealers Association, said the proposal would shift the regulatory focus from checking whether a finished vehicle meets standards to examining the adequacy of testing conducted during development.

The draft would link risk assessments during development with applications for regulatory approval and production conformity checks, helping identify potential safety problems earlier, he said.

From 2027, automakers seeking regulatory approval for models with innovative designs would have to submit relevant technical parameters and supporting validation materials.

The draft adds 51 technical parameters that applicants would have to report. Of them, 41 relate to innovative designs and 10 to R&D testing and validation. Models that have not undergone adequate testing, or whose applications contain false validation materials, would be denied approval.

For approved models, automakers would have until July 2027 to submit information. If an approved model remained noncompliant after the deadline and was found to pose safety risks, its manufacturer would have to halt production and recall affected vehicles.

The draft would also require automakers to complete at least 30,000 kilometers of reliability and durability testing. Environmental testing would have to last at least one year and span two winters and one summer.

Counter-season testing and environmental-chamber testing could be used if they were shown to be no less effective than on-road testing. On-road testing would still be required when the combined effects of multiple environmental factors could not be adequately replicated.

Automakers would have to conduct sufficient testing and validation of over-the-air software updates and include records of internal approvals in the related filings. They would also have to clearly state the conditions and limitations governing the use of new features in marketing materials and avoid false, exaggerated or misleading claims.

Li said the proposal would curb the practice of launching models before testing was complete and then addressing problems through software updates. However, he said the draft still needs to clarify testing conditions, load parameters, the scope and rigor of validation, and failure criteria. It also needs to specify how automakers should demonstrate that simulation-based tests are equivalent to on-road testing.

The China Association of Automobile Manufacturers called on automakers to conduct safety assessments from the outset of product development, strengthen reliability and environmental testing, and avoid prioritizing novelty over safety.

wangyuchen@chinadaily.com.cn