Vehicles and battery powered equipment, referred to by special provision 388, when carried as a load, as well as any dangerous goods they contain that are necessary for their operation or the operation of their equipment, are not subject to any other provisions of RID, provided the following conditions are met:

(a) For liquid fuels, any valves between the engine or equipment and the fuel tank shall be closed during carriage unless it is essential for the equipment to remain operational. Where appropriate, the vehicles shall be loaded upright and secured against falling;

(b) For gaseous fuels, the valve between the gas tank and engine shall be closed and the electric contact open unless it is essential for the equipment to remain operational;

(c) Metal hydride storage systems shall be approved by the competent authority of the country of manufacture. If the country of manufacture is not an RID Contracting State the approval shall be recognized by the competent authority of an RID Contracting State;

(d) The provisions of (a) and (b) do not apply to vehicles which are empty of liquid or gaseous fuels.

NOTE 1: A vehicle is considered to be empty of liquid fuel when the liquid fuel tank has been drained and the vehicle cannot be operated due to a lack of fuel. Vehicle components such as fuel lines, fuel filters and injectors do not need to be cleaned, drained or purged to be considered empty of liquid fuels. In addition, the liquid fuel tank does not need to be cleaned or purged.

NOTE 2: A vehicle is considered to be empty of gaseous fuels when the gaseous fuel tanks are empty of liquid (for liquefied gases), the pressure in the tanks does not exceed 2 bar and the fuel shut-off or isolation valve is closed and secured.

(e) Vehicles that are fully enclosed by packagings, crates or other means that prevent ready identification are subject to the marking and labelling requirements of Chapter 5.2.

Alternatively, for sodium ion battery powered vehicles, see special provision 404.