China is drafting tougher rules on how cars are designed and tested before they go on sale. The draft bans foldable and flexible screens, and requires zero-gravity seats, swivel seats and pop-up roofs to be locked out while the car is moving.
It also stops passengers from using voice commands to operate the headlights, wipers, doors or bonnet. Before a new model can be approved, carmakers would need to complete at least 30,000 km of reliability testing and a full year of hot and cold weather testing.
The draft notice was published on October 10, 2026 by the ministry of industry and information technology (MIIT). It was drawn up together with the ministry of public security, the ministry of ecology and environment and the State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR).
It is open for public comment until November 10, 2026. Feedback is sent by email to the MIIT using a form attached to the notice.
Why China is doing this
The draft says China’s car industry has been innovating quickly, with new technology reaching cars and models being updated faster than before. This has given buyers more choice and improved what cars can do.
However, it says some carmakers have been following trends and rushing out new products without testing them properly. This has raised safety and environmental risks.
The aim is to stop designs with safety hazards, and cars that have not been fully tested, from reaching the market.
The notice is based on China’s Product Quality Law, Ecological Environment Code, certification and accreditation regulations, MIIT Order No. 50, which governs the approval of vehicle manufacturers and their products, and the MIIT’s review requirements for vehicle approval.
It follows several earlier moves. China has already banned hidden door handles and yoke steering wheels from January 1, 2027, and made physical controls mandatory for key functions. In August, SAMR recalled 4.3 million cars over hidden door handles.
Key dates
- January 1, 2027: new models with innovative designs, or that need R&D testing, must declare extra technical details and submit test evidence when applying for approval
- July 1, 2027: models already approved that use innovative designs must submit the same details and evidence
Approval here means a listing in the MIIT’s Announcement, the official catalogue of vehicles that can be made and sold in China. The extra details become part of the MIIT’s approval and production conformity checks.
Models that were not tested according to the new guidelines, were not tested enough or come with false evidence will not be approved.
For models already on sale, those that still have not submitted the details and evidence after July 1, 2027, and that have safety hazards, must stop production immediately. The carmaker must file a recall plan with SAMR and recall the cars.
Technical service bodies must also stop accepting certificate of conformity information for those models. Where a national standard already sets a transition period for production and sales, that standard applies instead.
Under the Ecological Environment Code, test information must be made public and reported to the environmental authorities.
The new design rules
The design rules are set out in an attached guide called the Technical Guidelines for Automotive Product Innovative Design. Each design must still meet the relevant national standards, with the guide adding extra checks on top.
Door handles and doors
Fully hidden door handles are banned. Door handles must meet the GB 48001 door handle safety standard, and must be shown to work in extreme environments and to be usable in an emergency. They need a mechanical backup and enough space for a hand.
Doors that pull themselves shut electrically (soft-close doors) must have anti-pinch protection. Their reliability, anti-pinch safety and emergency release must be assessed, and they must open manually if the power fails or there is a fault.
Cars with doors made of non-metal materials must meet the GB 20071 side impact standard and pass reliability and durability tests on the doors.
Physical buttons and touch controls
Touch and pressure-sensitive controls that replace physical buttons must be assessed for touch reliability, protection against accidental presses and how clear their feedback is. They must meet the GB 7258 vehicle safety and GB 4094 control symbol standards.
Key safety functions such as the lights, wipers and demister/defroster can use touch controls only if they also have physical controls. Their ease of use, reliability and safety must be assessed across all driving situations.
Emergency escape devices, the emergency brake and the switch that cuts power to the drive system must all be physical controls with clear markings.
Screens and head-up displays
Foldable and flexible displays are not allowed.
Infotainment screens, large displays and complex head-up displays must meet the GB 7258 and GB 11562 (driver’s forward view) standards. Carmakers must also assess how the information shown affects driving safety, how reliable the screens are in extreme environments and how safe they are in a crash.
Voice and gesture controls
Voice, gesture and other new ways of controlling the car must be assessed for reliability. This covers visual coordination, how sensible the operation is, convenience, how easy information is to read, completeness of functions and safety.
While the car is moving, anyone other than the driver must not be able to directly operate the demister/defroster, headlights, wipers, doors or bonnet by voice or other new control methods.
Seats and pop-up roofs
Zero-gravity seats and other seats that recline to a large angle, swivel seats and seats that fold flat into a bed must meet the GB 15083 seat strength standard. They must also be assessed for anti-pinch safety, crash safety, how reliably the adjusters lock and whether they could accidentally press other controls.
Carmakers must use technical means to restrict when these seat functions can be used. They cannot be used while the car is being driven.
Pop-up roof cabins must meet the GB 26134 roof crush standard. They must be assessed for anti-pinch safety, crash safety and wind resistance, along with any hazards in how they are used. Like the seats, they must be locked out while the car is moving.
Steering wheels
Cars with non-round steering wheels must meet the GB 7258 and GB 17675 steering system standards. The wheel must also be fully assessed for how easily and safely the driver can use it.
Lights and bumpers
One-piece lamps, lamps that stick out from the body, and exterior “light language” (lights that display messages or patterns) must meet the GB 7258 and GB 4785 lighting installation standards. Carmakers must assess their effect on the safety of other road users, and how expensive they are to repair. They must also review what the light displays show.
Unconventional bumper designs must be assessed for active and passive safety, material reliability and repair costs. Examples given include tow hook mounting holes on the bumper, lamps that stick out past the bumper, and bumpers that double as the air suspension’s air tank.
Mirrors and air suspension
Cars with only camera-based mirrors must meet the GB 15084 indirect vision standard. Carmakers must also assess the effect on safety when mud or water blocks the cameras.
Air suspension must meet GB 7258 and be fully tested for reliability under heavy loads, over long distances and on difficult roads. It must also be shown to work normally in extreme heat and cold.
Acceleration and regenerative braking
Cars that can do 0-100 km/h in under five seconds must meet GB 7258. Carmakers must also assess how well drivers adapt to that acceleration in different situations, and any safety hazards that come with it. China’s ministry of public security proposed limiting 0-100 km/h to no quicker than five seconds by default last year.
Cars that slow down with regenerative braking when the driver lifts off the accelerator must also meet GB 7258. Carmakers must assess how well drivers adapt to this, and what protects against the driver pressing the accelerator by mistake.
Driver assistance and autonomous driving
Cars with driver assistance or autonomous driving must meet GB 47955 (safety requirements for combined driver assistance systems) and GB 44721 (safety requirements for autonomous driving systems).
Carmakers also need the ability to develop and test these systems properly. They must provide for functional safety, safety of the intended functionality, cybersecurity, data security, software updates and safety monitoring.
The systems must be fully tested on real cars in the situations they are designed for. Their limits and safety responses must be clearly defined, control strategies must be reasonable and owners must be told about them. Safety must be managed properly through development, production and use.
Trucks, emissions and methanol
New energy trucks whose load space does not match their rated payload, such as N3 class tipper trucks with a payload utilisation ratio below 0.4, must be assessed for the risk of overloading and exceeding legal limits. The same applies to tankers with an unreasonable vehicle and tank design.
Heavy vehicles with ultra-low precious metal catalytic converters must show that their exhaust after-treatment keeps emissions within the GB 17691-2018 China 6 limits as it ages, over the vehicle’s whole durability mileage.
Heavy vehicles with catalytic converters coated in precious metals other than platinum, rhodium and palladium must be tested for emissions of precious metal compounds and other toxic substances over their durability mileage. They must not add new toxic emissions.
Light and heavy vehicles with methanol engines must be tested for methanol, formaldehyde and other special pollutants, and stay within limits over their durability mileage. The relevant standards are GB 18352.6-2016 (light vehicles, China 6) and GB 17691-2018 (heavy vehicles).
Other new designs
Any other innovative design not covered must be fully assessed for safety, stability, driving safety, occupant protection, road safety and ease of use. This includes any situations where it could create safety hazards or emission risks.
How designs must be tested
The guide also sets general rules for testing these designs:
- Carmakers must fully record test data and results, covering functional safety, safety of the intended functionality, cybersecurity, data security and emissions
- Test evidence can come from a qualified testing body or the carmaker’s own lab, with a commitment that it is genuine. Reports for mandatory national standards must come from a qualified testing body
- Risk assessment must happen early, during design, with failure analysis under complex conditions and extreme situations. Designs that fail cannot be fitted to cars
- Where there is no national or industry standard, a design must still meet requirements for health and the safety of people and property
- Testing must include real-car tests at the very least, plus simulations and bench tests where needed, with traceable data
Minimum testing before a car can be approved
A second attached document, the Technical Specification for Automotive Product R&D Testing and Validation, sets out what testing must be done before a car can be approved. It applies to passenger cars, while trucks and buses use it as a reference.
The principles are safety first, full validation and carmaker responsibility. The carmaker is primarily responsible for testing, and is legally liable for the results being genuine and complete.
Among the requirements:
- Carmakers must set up a proper management system for R&D testing
- A testing plan must be drawn up once development targets are set, listing the tests, methods, standards, deadlines and who is responsible
- The plan is submitted with the application for approval, and a carmaker cannot apply until every test is complete
- Problems found in testing must be fixed and fully tested again. If a problem is not fully solved, a hazard remains after retesting or the fix is not approved internally, the carmaker cannot apply
- Original records, reports and supporting documents must be kept for at least six years
- Carmakers must inspect key parts and software from suppliers, such as driver assistance, smart cockpit, battery packs, electronic controls and motors, and cannot simply accept suppliers’ own test reports
- Variants that add a new drive motor, electronic control system or energy storage device need real-car tests of those changes, and other variants must also be tested for what has changed
These are the tests a new model must go through on real cars:
- Reliability and durability: at least 30,000 km of reliability testing on rough roads, ordinary roads, highways and mountain roads under multiple loads, following the type test procedures for the relevant type of vehicle, including new energy vehicles
- Structural reliability: fatigue life under repeated loads and strength under extreme conditions for the body, frame, suspension, steering and brakes, plus the wiring, exhaust after-treatment, tyres, wheels, lamps and anti-corrosion coatings
- Software reliability: testing throughout development, from individual systems to the whole car. Carmakers must be able to test software functions and code, and keep software safe and reliable over the car’s whole life. Driver assistance, autonomous driving and smart cockpit systems must be tested on real cars in everyday use and in extreme situations that could be hazardous. Over-the-air (OTA) updates must be fully tested, with internal approval records attached when they are filed
- Environmental testing: at least one year, in cold, then hot, then cold conditions (“two winters and one summer”), using several test cars that cover the whole period and every key configuration
- Heating and cooling: basic heating and cooling, plus heat management on slow and fast climbs, at high speed and in traffic jams, and heat damage around the engine bay and battery compartment in extreme conditions
- Protection and sealing: the car and its key parts must be tested in rain, and key electrical parts must meet the required protection ratings
- Other performance: ride comfort, handling, acceleration, top speed, steep hill climbing and power, plus battery cycle life and durability for EVs
The environmental tests must cover the powertrain, chassis, electrical systems, thermal management, energy storage, intelligent driving and cockpit. They must check performance, heating and cooling, charging and discharging, energy consumption, driver assistance or autonomous driving, and the controls.
Conditions to be covered include high temperatures, high altitude, extreme cold, sunlight, sand and dust, salt spray, rain and snow, and electromagnetic interference, both on their own and combined.
Carmakers can test in the opposite season elsewhere or in climate chambers, as long as these are no less effective than real roads. Combined conditions that are hard to recreate must still be tested on real roads.
The tests must follow a list of 22 national and industry standards. Carmakers can use their own standards instead if they are at least as strict, but must state this in their test evidence and show it is no less strict. Tests with no listed standard can follow the carmaker’s own standards. The list will be updated as standards change:
- Reliability and durability: GB/T 12678 (reliability driving tests), GB/T 18388 (EVs), GB/T 19750 (hybrids), GB/T 39132 (fuel cell vehicles)
- Structural reliability: GB/T 47315 (structural durability road simulation bench tests)
- Environmental testing: GB/T 28958 (low temperature performance), GB/T 12542 (heat balance road tests), QC/T 732 (accelerated corrosion), GB/T 40512 (outdoor exposure)
- Heating and cooling: GB/T 12782 (heating performance), QC/T 658 (air-conditioning road tests)
- Protection and sealing: GB/T 12546 (heat insulation and ventilation), QC/T 476 (bus rain sealing)
- Other performance: GB/T 4970 (ride comfort), GB/T 6323 (handling), GB/T 12543 (acceleration), GB/T 12544 (top speed), GB/T 12539 (hill climbing), GB/T 18385 (EV power performance), GB/T 19752 (hybrid power performance), GB/T 31484 (battery cycle life), GB/T 46991.1 (EV battery durability, light vehicles)
The 51 details carmakers must declare
When applying for approval, carmakers would have to declare up to 51 new technical details. The first 41 cover innovative designs and the last 10 cover testing. Only details that apply to the car need to be filled in.
Carmakers must sign a letter of commitment that the details are complete, accurate and match the actual car. Where they cover the car’s functions and performance, the carmaker must submit genuine, valid and sufficient test evidence.
- Steering wheel: its shape, such as round, near-round or half (yoke)
- Doors: the type of outside and inside door handles, whether fully hidden handles are fitted, how the doors close (electrically or by hand), whether they have anti-pinch protection and how it works, and whether any doors are made of non-metal materials
- Physical controls: whether there are physical controls for the gear selector, lights, horn, windscreen demister/defroster, wipers, power windows, auxiliary braking, emergency parking brake, drive system power cut-off and driver assistance activation
- Touch controls: the type and strength of feedback from touch buttons
- Driving controls: how the driver controls acceleration, braking, steering, lane changes, lights and signals
- Voice control: how voice and other new methods are stopped from accidentally operating key driving functions (covering where commands are accepted from, speech recognition and confirming commands), and whether anyone other than the driver can switch the demister/defroster, headlights, wipers, doors or bonnet by voice or gesture while moving
- Mirrors: whether only camera-based mirrors are fitted (interior and exterior), and the weather conditions they work in, such as temperature, visibility and rainfall
- Convenience: designs that can make things harder to operate, such as integrated button controls for the windows, turn signals controlled by buttons on the steering wheel, drawer-style armrest storage, hidden cupholders at the driver’s seat and hidden boot release switches
- Repair costs: one-piece lamps, lamps that stick out, combined assemblies and other designs that are easily damaged, hard to repair or expensive to fix, and the after-sales support for them
- Driver assistance: whether the car has a driver assistance signal lamp
- Seats: whether zero-gravity, swivel or seat-to-bed functions are fitted, when they are restricted, how occupants are protected and whether they can be used while driving
- Pop-up roof: whether one is fitted, when it is restricted, how occupants are protected and whether it can be used while driving
- Light displays: whether the car has exterior light language, whether owners can set their own messages, and the restrictions, display methods, situations, content and review process
- Screens: whether the car has an infotainment screen, large display or complex head-up display, when the entertainment functions are restricted, and whether foldable or flexible screens are used
- Air suspension: whether it is fitted
- Emergency devices: whether the inside emergency door release, emergency parking brake, drive system power cut-off and emergency boot release are clearly marked
- Acceleration: whether 0-100 km/h can take less than five seconds, and in what mode and under what restrictions
- Regenerative braking: whether the car brakes itself when the driver lifts off, the maximum deceleration and what stops the driver pressing the accelerator by mistake
- Emissions: whether the car uses ultra-low precious metal after-treatment, catalytic converters coated with precious metals other than platinum, rhodium and palladium, or a methanol engine
- Testing: whether reliability and durability, structural reliability, software reliability, environmental, heating and cooling, protection and sealing, battery cycle life and durability, and other performance tests have been completed, whether the environmental testing lasted at least a year and whether the cold-hot-cold test was done
What carmakers must do
Production: cars coming off the line must match the specification that was approved and certified under China Compulsory Certification (CCC). Carmakers must tighten supply chain management, and when a defect is found, file a recall plan with SAMR and recall the cars.
Marketing: carmakers must be truthful about the limits, conditions of use and testing of new designs. They cannot make false, exaggerated or misleading claims, show features being used in ways that break traffic laws, or encourage drivers to neglect their responsibility to drive safely.
Owner’s manuals: carmakers must provide concise, illustrated manuals and user training that explain how to use new features correctly, their limits and conditions, and what to do in an emergency. They cannot hide a design’s technical limitations, and must help prevent misuse.
After-sales: carmakers must honour their warranties and state their after-sales commitments and emergency measures for new designs. They must supply proper spare parts, repairs and advice during the warranty period, and be able to handle disputes. They are encouraged to buy product liability insurance covering these systems.
Incidents and crashes: when a carmaker learns that one of its cars has had a malfunction or a crash, it must investigate and look for safety risks. It must record the key data and make sure that data is genuine and complete.
When the police investigate a crash, carmakers must promptly provide data and technical help, including the technical details they declared.
Tighter checks on testing labs and certification
Testing bodies must test new designs according to the guide and specification, record all data and results, and report to the MIIT. They must issue truthful reports and keep their original records, with samples and data that can be traced.
CCC certification bodies and labs must record key tests on video from start to finish. They must make sure certified cars match the samples that were tested and step up checks after certification, including sampling from factories and buying cars from the market for testing. A higher share of spot inspections will also be unannounced.
Technical service bodies that review applications for the MIIT must check new designs and testing closely, and report their conclusions to the ministry. The MIIT will regularly publish examples of applications that failed.
The MIIT will keep tracking new designs and quality problems, adding new software and hardware designs that affect safety to the guide and updating the declared details. SAMR will speed up its revision of the CCC implementation rules for cars, with new certification methods, and improve how models with new designs are approved and supervised.
All four agencies will push for new standards to cover risky designs that national standards do not yet address.
Penalties
Carmakers that do not declare as required, provide false information or fail to meet standards face joint penalties. These include being ordered to fix the problem, being publicly named, having a model’s approval suspended or revoked, having registration of the cars refused, and fines.
SAMR and the MIIT will carry out on-site inspections of testing bodies. Testing bodies that do not test properly, make errors or issue false reports can be fined or lose their qualifications, depending on how serious the case is.
Provincial and local authorities must check that the rules are followed and make sure carmakers in their area meet their responsibilities. Local market regulators will help SAMR with defect recalls.
