Light Economic Vehicle
Light Vehicle, commonly referred to as LV (pronounced either "El-Vee" or "Lehv", is a North Ottonian vehicle class for the smallest class of motor vehicle permitted on Federal highways. Vehicles which qualify for the classification are taxed at a lower rate than larger vehicles, and often are able to benefit from relaxed municipal parking ordinances. In addition to the financial incentives, the class of vehicles is popular in North Ottonia due to the often-narrow streets and densely-built urban areas common to the country.
The classification was created via legislation enacted in 1951 during North Ottonia's Reconstruction era as part of an effort to make motor vehicles more accessible for North Ottonian workers and families. The standards have been revised multiple times since then, and at present, to fall within LV standards, a vehicle may be no more than 1.5 m in width, 2 m in height, 3.5 m in length, and may not have an engine displacement exceeding 800 cc, or having any cylinder larger than 220 cc, whichever is smaller.
Due to a relatively limited market for such vehicles, most are manufactured in Ottonia. However, due to the existence of the similar (and more strict) kei category in the Daitoa Republic, Daitoan kei vehicles are sometimes sold in Ottonia as LEV's, and many Ottonian-built LEV's are manufactured in a kei-compliant variant for sale in Daitoa.
Vehicles which comply with LV standards are sold with lighter taxes at point of sale, are taxed less on an annual basis, and are subject to relaxed parking requirements. LV's make up an estimated 1/3 of all new vehicle sales in Ottonia, and as much as 40% of vehicles currently in operation.
History
The first legislation creating the category, the National Motoring Reform and Organization Act, was passed by the Folksmoot in 1951. Among other things, the law set federal tax rates, and established guidelines for taxes by constituent republics, on motor vehicles according to size, engine displacement, and purpose. Among those categories was the first definition of the Light Vehicle: any vehicle with 2, 3, or 4 wheels, with a length of 3 m or fewer, 1.2 m or less in width, and 2 m or less in height, with an engine displacement of 100 cc's (for a two-stroke engine), or 150 cc's (for a four-stroke engine). A vehicle conforming to those guidelines would be taxed at 1/2 the rate of a standard-sized trade vehicle, 1/3 the rate of a standard-size personal vehicle, and 1/4 the rate of a large vehicle, both at initial purchase and on an annual basis. The initial standards included motorcycles and motortricycles as well as automobiles and some light trucks.
In 1956, the engine displacement limit was increased to 400 cc across the board, this, combined with tighter emission standards passed in 1958, meant that 2-stroke engines were largely retired from the class by 1960. This, combined with adjustments that set the number of wheels for such vehicles at 4 and the creation of a new vehicle category for 2 and 3-wheeled vehicles finally removed motorcycles from the class.
The class's limits would be revised once again in 1970, with the maximum width increased to 1.4 m, the maximum length to 3.2 m, and the maximum engine displacement to 560 cc. During this time, the field diversified, as Svaartaron, Jormundkaar, SEDA, and Vulksmotor all increasingly settled into their respective niches in the market.