Are electric micro-cars, NEVs, and LSVs street-legal in the US? Here’s how to know
In Part 1 of this series titled “Everything you need to know about electric micro-cars, NEVs, LSVs, & golf carts,” we discussed the various categories of micro-cars, neighborhood electric vehicles (NEVs), low-speed vehicles (LSVs), and golf carts. We also covered how these vehicles are becoming such popular car alternatives for so many people. Now in Part 2, we’ll dive into the important topic of what makes these vehicles street-legal for use on public roads.
As we discussed in Part 1 of this series, the term LSV (or low-speed vehicle) is the only important consideration here, as “NEV” is merely a colloquial nickname. The term LSV, on the other hand, is codified into law by the US Department of Transportation and is a federally recognized category of motor vehicles by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
That’s the key to making many of these tiny cars street-legal for use on public roads, though the downside of that is you’ll probably have to register, tag, and insure your LSV in most states in the US.
One point should be made extremely clear though: In almost every case, the question of whether or not an LSV is street-legal comes down to its manufacturer, not to you as the owner or driver. Outside of a few specific cases in a minority of cities and states, non-street-legal LSVs can not be modified or turned into street-legal LSVs by their owners. They need to be originally manufactured to meet federal regulatory guidelines.
Okay, now let’s talk about those guidelines (and some of the exceptions).
Federal regulation of low-speed vehicles
In order for LSVs to be considered for sale in the US to be used on public roads, they must be produced to meet federal regulations for LSVs. This means that they must be designed and manufactured from the outset for street-legal use.
The first step is ensuring that the factory is registered with the NHTSA. Before buying an LSV, you should always ask the vendor if the vehicles are registered with the NHTSA. If the answer is “don’t worry about it, they only go 25 mph,” then 99 out of 100 times you’re not looking at a street-legal LSV.
Without this critical step of being registered and approved as an LSV manufacturer by the NHTSA, proper VINs (vehicle identification numbers) can not be assigned to the vehicles for registration. A VIN that conforms to the same rules as those used on all street-legal vehicles in the US – including full-size cars and trucks for highway use – is just one of more than a dozen federal requirements for LSVs.
This is the step that most foreign-manufactured and imported LSVs miss, since very few overseas LSV factories are actually registered with the NHTSA, meaning they can’t offer a US VIN code. Chinese micro-cars that are imported to the US often have VINs on the frame, but they are Chinese VINs. That’s the case with my internet-famous mini-truck from China. It has a VIN, but it means nothing in the US since it’s a Chinese VIN.
Next, there are several other requirements that mimic those for full-size cars, from visibility to safety equipment. Low-speed vehicles must have backup cameras with very specific viewing angle requirements. Again, these are the same requirements used for full-size cars and trucks in the US. Slapping a camera on the back of a micro-car or golf cart isn’t enough to fulfill this requirement.
Other requirements like pedestrian warning systems (also referred to as pedestrian noisemakers) are required for LSVs with electric drivetrains. Once again, these have the exact same requirements as for new electric cars like Teslas, etc. Very specific octave levels and decibels levels must be programmed into the car’s noisemaker to warn pedestrians, especially vision-impaired pedestrians, of the vehicle’s presence. The sound must reach certain pitches at different speeds and must modulate as the vehicle’s speed increases and decreases. The exact regulation text for just the pedestrian noisemaker is dozens of pages long, believe it or not.
These are some of the more difficult and cumbersome regulations applied to LSVs since they share the same rules as existing cars, but they’re not the only ones. LSVs must also have lap belts or 3-point seat belts that meet DOT requirements for full-size cars as well as windshields that use specific DOT-approved glazing. Both the windshields and the seat belts must be produced by suppliers that are already registered with the DOT. Simply installing any basic seat belt isn’t enough.
Other requirements cover aspects related to lighting, braking systems, reflectors, mirrors, and more.
Where LSVs differ in street-legal requirements from full-size cars largely comes down to the more complicated safety requirements. Crumple zones, airbags, radar, and other major pieces of safety equipment aren’t required in LSVs, and the vehicles themselves aren’t required to undergo crash testing. If they were, the results likely wouldn’t be pretty due to the reduced safety equipment in the vehicles.
That’s one of the reasons that LSVs are limited to just 25 mph (40 km/h) top speed and can only be operated on roads with speed limits of 35 mph (56 km/h). Both of these are part of the federally mandated LSV regulations and are designed to prevent these vehicles from mixing with larger full-size vehicles at higher speeds, where the result of crashes are more likely to be fatal.
Some cities and states have more lax LSV laws
The above is not a complete list of the regulations for LSVs, but paints a picture of the somewhat complicated path required for companies to meet the federal regulations related to LSVs.
However, these are just the federal regulations. Most states describe low-speed vehicles in their state highway codes and have a section deferring regulations to match those at the federal level. In other words, they use the federal rules for LSVs in their own states. A few states set aside more strict requirements, while a few states offer more lenient requirements.
While the vast majority of US states use the federal rules for LSVs, Colorado is an example one state that sets its own more lenient rules that remit several of the more complicated manufacturing requirements. This makes it easier to register things like golf carts as LSVs, though this case is a rare one in the US.
Are golf carts street-legal too?
No, golf carts almost always not street-legal. This is true in nearly every city and state in the US.
Are there exceptions to this rule? Absolutely. But they usually only occur at the local level. That means a state, city, or township has to create a specific ordinance allowing for golf carts to be operated on public roads. There are a few towns that have become famous for this, such as Peachtree City in Georgia, but they are a minority.
To determine if golf carts are considered street-legal and can be used on public roads in your area, you should check with your local police department or Department of Motor Vehicles.
The only time that golf carts do meet federal standards for LSVs is when they are specifically produced as LSV golf carts. Most major golf cart manufacturers in the US do in fact produce LSV versions of their golf carts, meaning they were designed to meet federal low-speed vehicle regulations. The problem is that many have yet to update those models to the most recent version of LSV regulations, which added backup cameras and pedestrian noisemakers to the list of required equipment only a few years ago.
While many LSV golf carts have added backup cameras, most still lack a pedestrian warning system. In reality, you’ll likely never actually get cited by a cop for operating an LSV golf cart that doesn’t have a pedestrian warning system in it, mostly because very few cops would even know that they require one. But if you want to know the letter of the law, then without meeting full compliance, such LSV golf carts aren’t technically street-legal. And when it comes time to register the LSV, it may not be possible without the complete suite of required equipment.
Beware of unscrupulous dealers claiming ‘street-legal’ status
As LSVs have become more popular in the US, so too have shady vendors purporting to sell street-legal LSVs.
Most, if not all, are imported Chinese models that were designed for the Chinese market. Ironically, they aren’t even technically street-legal in China since there are no equivalent LSV laws in China. But they are still commonly used by elderly drivers in China where their name loosely translates to “happy grandpa” cars.
These Chinese models have begun being imported to the US in larger numbers. Models marketed as “Chang Li” vehicles are one of the most common, though Chang Li is simply a single manufacturer and most “Chang Li” vehicles in the US aren’t even produced by Chang Li. At this time, no Chang Li vehicle is street-legal in the US as they do not meet federal regulatory standards for LSVs.
These vehicles lack many of the requirements for street-legal LSV status, usually relating to DOT-stamped safety glass, pedestrian warning systems, proper lighting, DOT-certified seat belts, and other important details. Perhaps most critically, these vehicles do not feature NHTSA-compliant VIN (vehicle identification number) codes. While many come with a VIN, they are actually Chinese VINs and can not be found in the NHTSA database because the manufacturer is not registered with the US government to produce cars for export to the US.
These non-compliance issues haven’t stopped many of shady US resellers from hawking such vehicles with claims of “street-legal” plastered over their websites and marketing materials. But the fact is that nearly no Chinese-manufactured LSVs, NEVs, or micro-cars are currently street-legal in the US, unless they fit into certain city or state laws that have a looser set of requirements than federal low-speed vehicle laws. In fact, at the time of writing, I know of only two Chinese-manufactured LSVs that are currently street-legal in the US, the Wink and the Pickman. And in the case of the Wink, which I know more about after having tested them myself, that’s only because the company spent nearly two years designing the vehicles to be produced in China to US safety standards and properly registered their factory with the NHTSA.
What street-legal LSVs and golf carts exist in the US?
While the category is still in its infancy, there are already several options for street-legal LSVs in the US. Some are already on the road, while others are expected to enter the market later this year.
We will cover these options in detail Part 3 of this series, which will be coming later this week.
Stay tuned!
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Workers transport soil containing rare earth elements for export at a port in Lianyungang, Jiangsu province, China.
China Stringer Network | Reuters
Like the U.S., Europe is also feeling the pressure to keep China sweet in order to maintain supplies of rare earth elements, which are vital for its strategic industries in the region such as auto production, green energy and defense.
Europe is heavily dependent on China for supplies of the world’s 17 rare earth elements and has been looking to calm stormy waters with Beijing over supplies, while looking for alternative sources of critical minerals — including in its own back yard.
That’s a long process, however, and for now, Europe is as vulnerable as other major consumers of rare earths, and particularly the U.S., when it comes to Beijing’s ability to turn the tap off on supplies.
Officials from Germany and the Netherlands are in Beijing this week for talks with their Chinese counterparts on China’s controls on rare earths exports and semiconductor chips which have made European industries vulnerable to global supply chain disruptions.
China dominates the rare earths market from mining to refining, with data from the International Energy Agency showing that, in 2024, China was responsible for 59% of the world’s rare earths mining, 91% of its refining and 94% of the manufacuring of permanent magnets which are commonly used in electric vehicles, wind turbines, industrial motors, data centers and defense systems.
As the world’s single largest supplier of a component that’s critical to so much manufacturing, China’s dominance has made “global supply chains in strategic sectors – such as energy, automotive, defense and AI data centres – vulnerable to potential disruptions,” the IEA noted.
That potential for disruption came to the fore this year when, in April and October, Beijing announced licensing requirements, and later export controls, on its rare earth supplies and technologies.
Those controls were suspended for a year as a result of a trade truce reached in October between China and the U.S. reached but major rare earth importers such as the U.S. and EU, which imports around 70% of rare earth supplies — and almost all of its rare earth magnets — from China, are all too aware of its vulnerabilities to geopolitical disruptions.
Barriers to diversification
Last month, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced that the bloc was launching the “RESourceEU” plan aimed at reducing reliance on critical raw materials from China “in the short, medium and long term.” She said the bloc could do this by recycling existing raw materials, such as those in batteries, and by joint purchasing to stockpiling.
Von der Leyen also said the EU would boost investment in strategic projects “for the production and processing of critical raw materials here in Europe,” and would speed up work on critical raw materials partnerships with countries like Ukraine, Australia, Canada, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Chile and Greenland.
“The world we face today rewards speed, not hesitation, because today’s world is unforgiving. And the global economy is completely different than it was even a few years ago. Europe cannot do things the same way anymore. We learned this lesson painfully with energy; we will not repeat it with critical materials,” she said, referencing the bloc’s reliance, before the Ukraine war, on Russian oil and gas.
Valdis Dombrovskis, European Commissioner for Economy and Productivity, told CNBC Monday that the bloc was working to diversify its rare earth supplies but that this would take time.
“I would say there is some positive news, so China has suspended now for 12 months those additional export controls, which were announced in October, which gives us some time. But I also would say it emphasizes the need for the EU to diversify its rare earth and critical minerals supplies, because of many on those rare earths, we are depending more than 90% on China’s supplies,” Dombrovskis said.
Necessity the mother of invention?
Europe itself has reserves of rare earth materials with deposits found in Turkey, Sweden and Norway but the problem is that it doesn’t have the operations to mine those materials, let alone refine and process them — unlike China, which has decades of experience, investment and infrastructure that has fueled its global processing dominance.
Europe is also more encumbered with long approval processes and environmental standards when it comes to mining, meaning any regional plans to develop those rare earth deposits could take years. Public opposition is also a factor that has not shackled China.
A view of the NEO magnetic plant in Narva, a city in northeastern Estonia. A plant producing rare-earth magnets for Europe’s electric vehicle and wind-energy sectors.
Xinhua News Agency | Xinhua News Agency | Getty Images
The need to diversify from China quickly could cause officials to lower those barriers, however and there are already signs of action, with Europe’s first rare earth magnet production plant being opened in Estonia in September. Backed by funding from both Canada and the EU, the plant’s raw materials are coming from Australia and Malaysia.
“There’s probably a lot more deposits in Europe but … there are barriers to bringing that online,” Willis Thomas, principal consultant at CRU Group, told CNBC.
“But if we’re getting into a world where risks are being realized on trade tensions, I think that that will continue to push everyone to build out the supply chain and a bit more resilience on it, but it does take some time, and there’s limited expertise.”
What’s also worrying for Europe is that being unable to control the sources and supply of raw materials could mean that its technological and green ambitions suffer.
“Europe’s race towards net zero and digital leadership depend on materials it does not control,” Hamed Ghiaie, professor of Economics and Public Policy at ESCP Europe, and Filippo Gorelli, an analyst at Nexans, said in analysis for the World Economic Forum.
“For decades, Europe treated raw materials as a commodity issue, rather than a strategic one. That complacency is becoming costly,” they added.
“What is at stake is climate targets and economic resilience. Shortages of rare earths, gallium or germanium could slow semiconductor fabrication, AI development and even wind-power installation. In short, Europe cannot build a green or digital future on supply chains it doesn’t control,” they concluded.
Aviation startup Electra made history last month when its EL2 became the first hybrid-electric Ultra Short Take-off and Landing (uSTOL) aircraft to successfully complete helicopter-like take-offs and landings at the Watertown International Airport.
Founded to provide affordable air travel without airports, emissions, or noise, Electra’s stated goal was to build an aircraft that could deliver on the promises of eVTOL aircraft at a significantly reduced cost compared to its more drone-like competitors. In that context, the demonstration at Watertown isn’t a publicity stunt, but part of concerted effort to validate Electra’s uSTOL performance under real-world conditions at a commercial airport — exactly the kind of place that regional operators, cargo carriers, and emergency responders actually fly in and out of.
Hitting those marks now will help Electra clear a path for FAA certification and prove that the company can deliver on the $9 billion worth of promises its made (so far).
“Electra is grateful to the team at Watertown International Airport for enabling this demonstration of the EL2’s Ultra Short capabilities in an off-runway capacity,” explains Tom Carto, director of market development at Electra. “Our Ultra Short aircraft will offer the potential to increase the use of general aviation airports and expand the capacity of larger hubs by enabling takeoffs and landings on ramps and taxiways instead of runways, feeding in regional connections without adding to runway congestion. These transformative and practical capabilities will open the door to Direct Aviation and point-to-point connections in a way that will make it easier for people to get from the where they are to where they want to go.”
The EL2’s innovative “blown lift” design features eight electric motors on the plane’s wings, enabling take-off and landing in as little as 150 feet.
Electra says the final version of its aircraft will be able operate from airfields as small as 300 x 100 ft (90 x 30 m), or about one-tenth the length of a standard airport runway. That means that, even if these eSTOL aircraft don’t open up quite as many spaces for air travel as eVTOLs, do, they’ll still be extremely flexible – and more than capable of operating from the roofs of many existing buildings and parking structures.
Obviously
And, of course, the Air Force wants one.
NOTE: in response to some of the comments, I want to point out that the Electra is capable of sustained, electric-only powered flight and uses the genset for remote operations/extended range. I should have made that clearer. This is arguably more EREV than EV.
SOURCES | IMAGES: Electra; via Oswego County Business.
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The US Department of Energy’s Loan Programs Office (LPO) closed a $1 billion loan to restart Three Mile Island Unit 1, a nuclear reactor at Three Mile Island in Londonderry Township, Pennsylvania.
The money is being loaned to Constellation Energy Generation, which is renaming the 835 megawatt (MW) Three Mile Island Unit 1 the Crane Clean Energy Center. Constellation said in September 2024 that it would restart the reactor under a power purchase agreement with Microsoft, which needs more clean power to feed its growing data-center demand.
The project is estimated to cost around $1.6 billion, and the DOE says the project will create around 600 jobs. The reactor is expected to start generating power again in 2027.
Three Mile Island Unit 1 (in the foreground in the photo above) went offline in 2019 because it could no longer compete with cheaper natural gas, but it wasn’t decommissioned. It’s capable of powering the equivalent of approximately 800,000 homes. It’s on the same site as the Unit 2 reactor (in the background in the photo above) that went into partial nuclear meltdown in 1979, and is known as the worst commercial nuclear accident in US history.
When asked about the loan’s timing, Greg Beard, senior adviser to the Loan Programs Office, told reporters on a call that it would “lower the cost of capital and make power cheaper for those PJM [Pennsylvania-New Jersey-Maryland] ratepayers.” Data centers are driving up electricity costs for consumers.
Read more: DOE props up dying coal with $625M days after Wright mocks clean energy subsidies
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