I can't believe I just titled this thread like that...
...My question is; Has anyone tried to make their engine assisted bicycles complient with "moped" laws? :yuck: i.e. installed brakes lights, turn signals horn and all that unneeded stuff
on our
BICYCLES ...
I looked into this when I started building my motor-bike. In Illinois, there's no point because you can't register a bicycle as a motor vehicle anyway.
The only vehicles that can be titled and registered in IL are those that bear a federal-issued 17-digit VIN, and that fall into a roadworthy classification. (ATV's for instance are titleable motor vehicles, but they are not certified as roadworthy because the federal motor vehicle classfication they fall under is not roadworthy)
There's something in the IL motor vehicle code about the state issuing VIN's to vehicles that don't have them--but this is
only for
vintage and antique vehicles that can be shown to have met roadworthiness standards
at the time of their manufacture. The state will not issue you a VIN for a motorized bicycle built today, unless you registered as a manufacturer with the federal government and met all the federal requirements for the vehicle classification you wish to apply the vehicle to.
For that matter, the state won't issue you a title on a Ford Model-T you build from scratch today--but if you use the frame of a vintage one, then you can get it titled and registered. Most US states do not have titling and registration provisions for people building entire vehicles from scratch.
.....
If you were willing to go the hassle and expense, probably the easiest way to build a vintage-looking autocycle would be to buy a titleable motorcycle or scooter, obtain a current title and registration on it and then modify it as you wished--keeping within DOT requirements (you'd be buying reproduction tires from Coker for example, because no bicycle tires are DOT rated).
I'd
really like to try doing this, but it just ain't gonna happen for a while.
~
