Making sense of the new licence.

Please note: this article relates to both the Nippi and Trippi not exceeding 125cc, catergorised as an A1 Tricycle - and assumes that the rider is 24 years old or more.  If you are younger the rules are a bit more complex ....

Regardless if in doubt contact the DVLA. Here is useful page of numbers and addresses:
https://www.gov.uk/contact-the-dvla


Okay lets get this out of the way first....
If you have a full driving licence for a car that was issued before  1 February 2001 you don't need to do anything as your licence when issued also included all motorcycles, scooters and Tricycles.  Go ahead Enjoy!  But be careful if you are a newbie ... Just because you are legal doesn't mean you know everything about riding, it still takes time to learn and in fact it could be said that while you don't need a CBT, it might be worth thing about, just for the experience.

Licences issued after 2001 ...
Since January 19 2013 the law has changed and it affects everyone who had the licence issued after 1 February 2001 as the previous category (B1) was abolished. (I will explain later what happens if you have an old B1 licence).

So if your completely new to this first you need to apply for a provision license:
https://www.gov.uk/apply-first-provisional-driving-licence

You can then ride a Nippi or Trippi as an A1 MOTORCYCLE for 2 Years on L plates, but within that two year year period you must apply for (& pass) Compulsory basic training (aka CBT) either as an A1 or A2  Category. After 2 Years your provisional will expire if you don't pass a CBT.

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Update August 2014: Some owners riding 50cc Trippis have reported that they have had no problem continuing to ride on L plates well past the two year probation / expiration.  Do this at your own risk!  If in doubt contact the DVLA. Riding with the incorrect licence could invalidate your insurance and you may be prosecuted.

Also please note despite the possibility mentioned above, many insurers are now requiring owners to take the A1 Theory before offering insurance. So the advice is if in doubt you could be better off at least sitting the A1 Theory.

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The CBT for trikes is slightly different than for motorcycles in that it involves less manoeuvring / wider cones and stuff like that to allow for a bigger machine. Another important difference is the result, if you take the test on a trike (or Nippi or Trippi) your new licence will only allow you to ride a Trike.  Also If you take a A1 CBT you will only ever be able to ride trikes of the A1 category.  If in the future you think you are going to want to move on to a different sort of trike over 125cc (over 11KW output) you will have to take a new A2 test. Unfortunately because the Nippi and Trippi are both A1 category Trikes its not possible (I don't think) to take an A2 CBT on one.

Again: Take a A1 CBT on a Trike and you can only ride Trikes and then no more 125cc.

If you already have been riding on a provisional years ...
The first and most important think to note is this only applies if you have a recognised disability  that was pre-existing before January 2013.

If you were riding on a B1 or provisional before and you have a disability you need to take a A1 CBT. Sorry here's the quote from the NABD:

"The B1 category of licence is to be scrapped. A disabled person riding a Trike on a provisional car licence before January 19th will have to apply for a provisional motorcycle licence and do a CBT course after the 19th before they can ride on the road again. A disabled person taking a test on a Trike will qualify for a licence restricted to Trikes. It will not qualify them to ride solo motorcycles or drive cars."

If you have an old B1 
If you passed a CBT before 19 January 2013 you need do nothing, however if you want to upgrade to something else over 125cc you will need to take a new CBT A2.

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Sources and further reading:

 https://www.gov.uk/contact-the-dvla

 https://www.gov.uk/apply-first-provisional-driving-licence

https://www.gov.uk/cbt-compulsory-basic-training/cbt-if-you-have-a-car-driving-licence

https://www.gov.uk/vehicles-you-can-drive/y/motorcycle/24-or-over

http://www.trikeshop.co.uk/trike_law.htm
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If you find anything wrong with this information don't shout angrily, just let me know and I will update it!

Thanks,
George, Founder (researcher and dogs body)

European Certificate of Conformity

If you want to export a Nippi to mainland Europe, you need to read this post on the news blog from November 2009.

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European Certificate of Conformity

This is important information for non UK residents who wish to export Nippis to other European countries.

I spoke to Terry Barnes today about COC's and along with my own investigations have come to this conclusion:

The Nippi does not currently have a European Certificate of Conformity. what does this mean?

In general principle at least the majority of vehicles in the EU have a COC. Simply that means that at least in theory you may freely purchase a vehicle in one European country and import it into another.

See here for more about that:

http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/library/ee_online/art26_en.htm

For vehicles without a COC, like the Nippi, it is necessary to apply in the destination country for a certificate for each vehicle imported. In order to obtain a COC the vehicle, or nippi, will be subjected to a road worthiness test (similar to a UK MOT) to insure that it complies with the country's regulations.

As yet I have no further information about individual country regulations. The best advice for now I can offer is to suggest you contact your local scooter main dealer and seek advice for your country.

According to Nippi Cars, to obtain a European Certificate of Conformity for the Nippi as a whole would cost them some £30,000. So unfortunately until that is done each non UK European owner will need to register their Nippi on an individual basis.

If you have imported a Nippi to your country, please let me/us know what you needed to do!

Official Handbook Nippi Fly 125, 4T

Thanks to Dean scanning his manual, you can now download as a PDF file, the official handbook for the Nippi Fly 125, 4T.

You should note that this manual is specific to the Fly 125 4T, so while some things like the instructions covering switch-gear and some of the suspension adjustments  may be good as a guide, if you have a different engine - or indeed and older Typhoon it can be only a guide.  Don't blame us if you mess it up!

The PDF is about 9.5MB so be prepared for that (and a bit of a wait).  Thank you.

Download here.

Enjoy!

George

Webmaster

Trippi Owners' Manual

Following on from a request, this is the FAQ's page after all, the guys on the Facebook group have found these PDFs ...

So we have a user manual for the Trike and service manual for a two wheeled PGO T-Rex 125 / 150cc.

Read this first please!

Before you Download the files there some things you need to know ...

The Trippi is not really a Trippi.  What? Yep!  The Trippi is actually a re-badged PGO T-Rex Trike (sometimes also referred to as a TR3) which is built in Taiwan and is available in some European countries straight off the shelf.  The two wheeled version is on sale in both Europe and the UK and rather confusingly is also know as the PGO T-Rex, but without the trike bit on the end.

Why is this important to know? Parts!

If you go to your local scooter dealer and say "Trippi", they'll probably look at you blankly and doubt your sanity if you persist! ... But say PGO T-Rex and they'll probably either have the part, or know where to get it.

Download the PDF's.

Trippi User Manual

PGO T-Rex 125 & 150cc Service Manual

Just a final mention, despite these being official manuals the translation is a little bit strange.  for example ...

"Be careful when passing the car which is parking. The driver may open the door and get off but ignore your coming."

"Please wear safety pant, gloves, helmet and fresh color jacket when riding."

Enjoy!
George
Webmaster

Piaggio Fly Manual ... Lacking a Wheel!

Thanks to Dean, we can now make available to you to download a workshop Manual for the Piaggio Fly 125 - 150.

 Update Plus.... 08/09/15 ...
We now have the 2 Stroke version for the 50 & 80cc!

Unfortunately this is not the actual manual for the Nippi that is based on the Fly, but its the closest we have got to date.

Obviously perhaps, there are some differences, most notably the lack of a third wheel, some of the fuses have moved - and of course there's no mention of a wheelchair!  But despite all that, for the most part the principles and much of the actual mechanicals are the same.

To emphasise, this is the workshop manual (not just simply the owners' manual) and is ideal if you plan to do more than just change the oil and brush up a spark plug. So you had better be familiar with one of these ...

.... If you aren't, please proceed with caution!

You can see the pdf by clicking the required link below, or right click for the save options.  please be aware these are big files so be patient please.

Download PDF here! (4t) Version

Download PDF here! (2t) Version.

George 

Do I need to wear a helmet on a Nippi or Trippi?

Strictly speaking legally no, a helmet is not required as both the Nippi and Trippi are regarded as trikes and so are therefore are exempt.  However in practice its still advisable to wear one, particularly on a Trippi.  Just because you ride carefully others don't always drive with the same care!

Besides a crash helmet and visor will offer some protection against the weather and objects that fly up from the road too.  And no one intends to have an crash, but that's why they call them accidents!

I don't live in the UK, can I buy a Nippi?

This is a very common question and one with a not a very satisfactory answer I'm afraid ...

Yes and no.  Its is possible but its not straight forward.

Essentially you can buy a Nippi and ship it to wherever you want.  However Nippi Vehicles, www.nippi.co.uk, as far a is currently understood, do not 'do' overseas sales - and similarly if you purchase a Nippi second hand you are responsible for shipping the vehicle.

You should also be sure that your country's road law permits the use of a Nippi on its roads.  This is normally got round by registering the Nippi as a custom import, but does mean that your Nippi will need to be checked and verified / registered in your own country and in some cases that may require modification to the rear lights and turn indicators (particularly in the US) to comply with local road law.

Sadly despite many requests though we as the Nippi Owners' Club are happy to help with advice, that's all we can do, advise.  We cannot help with organising of shipping or indeed purchasing Nippis for export - you have to do that yourself, sorry.