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Vehicles, derived from the Latin word, vehiculum, are non-living means of transport. Most often they are manufactured (e.g. bicycle
Bicycle

The bicycle, bike, or cycle is a pedal-driven, human-powered transport with two bicycle wheel attached to a bicycle frame, one behind the other....
s, car
Automobile

An automobile or motor car is a wheeled motor vehicle for transportation passengers, which also carries its own car engine or motor. Most definitions of the term specify that automobiles are designed to run primarily on roads, to have seating for one to eight people, to typically have four wheels, and to be constructed principally f...
s, motorcycle
Motorcycle

A motorcycle is a Single track, two-wheeled motor vehicle powered by an Motorcycle engine. Motorcycles vary considerably depending on the task for which they are designed, such as Touring motorcycle travel, navigating Naked bike, Cruiser , Motorcycle sport and Motorbike racing, or off-road conditions....
s, train
Train

A train is a connected series of vehicles that move along a track to rail transport from one place to another. The track usually consists of two rail tracks, but might also be a monorail or magnetic levitation train guideway....
s, ship
Ship

A ship is a large watercraft that floats on water. Ships are generally distinguished from boats based on size. Ships may be found on lakes, seas, and rivers and they allow for a variety of activities, such as the ferry or cargo ships, fishing, cruise ship, Coast guard, and warship....
s, boat
Boat

A boat is a watercraft of modest size designed to float or plane on water, and provide transport over it. Usually this water will be inland or in protected coastal areas....
s, and aircraft
Aircraft

An aircraft is a vehicle which is able to flight by being supported by the air, or in general, the atmosphere, of a planet. Examples include balloons, airplanes and helicopters....
), although some other means of transport
Transport

Transport or transportation is the movement of passenger and cargo from one location to another. Transport is performed by various modes of transport, such as aviation, rail transport, road transport, ship transport, cable transport, pipeline transport and space transport....
 which are not made by humans also may be called vehicles; examples include iceberg
Iceberg

An iceberg is a large piece of freshwater ice that has broken off from a snow-formed glacier or ice shelf and is floating in open water. It may subsequently become frozen into pack ice or come to rest on the seabed in shallower water, causing ice scour....
s and floating tree trunks.

Vehicles may be propelled or pulled by animals, for instance, a chariot
Chariot

The chariot is the earliest and simplest type of carriage, used in both peace and war as the chief vehicle of many ancient peoples. Chariots were built in Mesopotamia by the Mesopotamians as early as 3000 BC and in China during the 2nd millennium BC....
, a stagecoach
Stagecoach

A stagecoach is a type of four-wheeled closed coach for passengers and goods, strongly sprung and drawn by four horses, usually four-in-hand....
, a mule-drawn barge
Barge

A barge is a flat-bottomed boat, built mainly for river and canal transport of heavy goods. Most barges are not self-propelled and need to be towed by tugboats or pushed by towboats....
, or an ox-cart
Cart

A cart is a vehicle or device designed for transport, using two or four wheels and normally pulled by one or a pair of draught animals. A handcart is pulled or pushed by one or more people....
.






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Vehicles, derived from the Latin word, vehiculum, are non-living means of transport. Most often they are manufactured (e.g. bicycle
Bicycle

The bicycle, bike, or cycle is a pedal-driven, human-powered transport with two bicycle wheel attached to a bicycle frame, one behind the other....
s, car
Automobile

An automobile or motor car is a wheeled motor vehicle for transportation passengers, which also carries its own car engine or motor. Most definitions of the term specify that automobiles are designed to run primarily on roads, to have seating for one to eight people, to typically have four wheels, and to be constructed principally f...
s, motorcycle
Motorcycle

A motorcycle is a Single track, two-wheeled motor vehicle powered by an Motorcycle engine. Motorcycles vary considerably depending on the task for which they are designed, such as Touring motorcycle travel, navigating Naked bike, Cruiser , Motorcycle sport and Motorbike racing, or off-road conditions....
s, train
Train

A train is a connected series of vehicles that move along a track to rail transport from one place to another. The track usually consists of two rail tracks, but might also be a monorail or magnetic levitation train guideway....
s, ship
Ship

A ship is a large watercraft that floats on water. Ships are generally distinguished from boats based on size. Ships may be found on lakes, seas, and rivers and they allow for a variety of activities, such as the ferry or cargo ships, fishing, cruise ship, Coast guard, and warship....
s, boat
Boat

A boat is a watercraft of modest size designed to float or plane on water, and provide transport over it. Usually this water will be inland or in protected coastal areas....
s, and aircraft
Aircraft

An aircraft is a vehicle which is able to flight by being supported by the air, or in general, the atmosphere, of a planet. Examples include balloons, airplanes and helicopters....
), although some other means of transport
Transport

Transport or transportation is the movement of passenger and cargo from one location to another. Transport is performed by various modes of transport, such as aviation, rail transport, road transport, ship transport, cable transport, pipeline transport and space transport....
 which are not made by humans also may be called vehicles; examples include iceberg
Iceberg

An iceberg is a large piece of freshwater ice that has broken off from a snow-formed glacier or ice shelf and is floating in open water. It may subsequently become frozen into pack ice or come to rest on the seabed in shallower water, causing ice scour....
s and floating tree trunks.

Vehicles may be propelled or pulled by animals, for instance, a chariot
Chariot

The chariot is the earliest and simplest type of carriage, used in both peace and war as the chief vehicle of many ancient peoples. Chariots were built in Mesopotamia by the Mesopotamians as early as 3000 BC and in China during the 2nd millennium BC....
, a stagecoach
Stagecoach

A stagecoach is a type of four-wheeled closed coach for passengers and goods, strongly sprung and drawn by four horses, usually four-in-hand....
, a mule-drawn barge
Barge

A barge is a flat-bottomed boat, built mainly for river and canal transport of heavy goods. Most barges are not self-propelled and need to be towed by tugboats or pushed by towboats....
, or an ox-cart
Cart

A cart is a vehicle or device designed for transport, using two or four wheels and normally pulled by one or a pair of draught animals. A handcart is pulled or pushed by one or more people....
. However, animals on their own, though used as a means of transport, are not called vehicles, but rather beasts of burden or draft animals. This distinction includes humans carrying another human, for example a child or a disabled person.

A rickshaw
Rickshaw

Rickshaws are a mode of human-powered transport: a runner draws a two-wheeled cart which seats one or two persons. The word rickshaw came from Asia where they were mainly used as means of transportation for the social elite....
 is a vehicle that may carry a human and be powered by a human, but it is the mechanical form or cart that is powered by the human that is labeled as the vehicle. For some human-powered vehicles the human providing the power is labeled as a driver.

Vehicles that do not travel on land often are called craft
Craft (vehicle)

The word craft in its most common sense now is a short and definite word for a vehicle or Ship that is used for transportation on the sea, in the air or in space....
, such as watercraft
Watercraft

A watercraft is a vehicle, vessel or craft designed to move across water, including saltwater and freshwater, for pleasure, recreation, physical exercise, commerce, transport and military missions....
, sailcraft
Sailcraft

For sailcraft referring to a boat etc., see*sailboat*yacht*dinghy*ice boat*land yachtSailcraft can also refer to sailing skills...
, aircraft
Aircraft

An aircraft is a vehicle which is able to flight by being supported by the air, or in general, the atmosphere, of a planet. Examples include balloons, airplanes and helicopters....
, hovercraft
Hovercraft

A hovercraft, or air-cushion vehicle , is a craft , designed to travel over any smooth surface supported by a cushion of slowly moving, high-pressure air, ejected downwards against the surface below, and contained within a "skirt." Hovercraft are used throughout the world as a method of specialized transport where ever there is the nee...
, and spacecraft
Spacecraft

A spacecraft is a Craft or machine designed for spaceflight. On a sub-orbital spaceflight, a spacecraft enters outer space then returns to the Earth....


Land vehicles are classified broadly by what is used to apply steering and drive forces against the ground: wheeled, tracked
Tracked vehicle

A tracked vehicle is a vehicle that runs on caterpillar track instead of wheels. Typically used as part of an Engineering vehicle once additional attachments have been added....
, railed, or skied
Ski

A ski is a long, flat device worn on the feet designed to help the wearer slide smoothly over snow. Originally intended as an aid to travel in snowy regions, they are now primarily used for recreational and sporting purposes....
.

Bicycle

see Bicycle
Bicycle

The bicycle, bike, or cycle is a pedal-driven, human-powered transport with two bicycle wheel attached to a bicycle frame, one behind the other....
s (see also Vehicular Cycling
Vehicular cycling

Vehicular cycling, or VC, is the practice of driving bicycles on roads in a manner that is visible, predictable, and in accordance with the principles for driving a vehicle in traffic....
) see main article History of the bicycle
History of the bicycle

Vehicles for human transport that have two wheels and require balancing by the rider date back to the early 19th century. The first means of transport making use of two wheels, and thus the archetype of the bicycle, was the Germany Dandy horse dating back to 1817....


Tricycle

see Tricycle
Tricycle

A tricycle is a three-wheeled vehicle. The term may or may not include Three_wheeled_vehicle, depending on the law or local preference....


Quadricycle

see Quadricycle
Quadricycle

Quadricycle, quadracycle, quadcycle, quadrocycle refers to any vehicle with four wheels.More specifically the term may refer to:...


Velomobile

see Velomobile
Velomobile

A velomobile or bicycle car is a human-powered vehicle, enclosed for aerodynamic advantage and protection from weather and collisions. They are virtually always single-passenger vehicles....


Electric road carriages

see electric vehicle
Electric vehicle

An electric vehicle is a vehicle with one or more electric motors for propulsion. This is also referred to as an electric drive vehicle....
 see history of the electric vehicle
History of the electric vehicle

The history of the electric vehicle began in the mid-19th century. An electrical vehicle held the vehicular land speed record until around 1900....


Steam road carriage

see steam car
Steam car

A steam car is a Automobile powered by a steam engine....


Steam tricycle

See steam tricycle
Steam tricycle

A steam tricycle is a steam engine three-wheeled vehicle....
At the other end of the scale, much lighter steam vehicles have been constructed such as the steam tricycle from the Comte de Dion in 1887.

Petroleum (gasoline / diesel) motor-carriages

See Benz Patent Motorwagen
Benz Patent Motorwagen

The Karl Benz Patent Motorwagen , built in 1885, is widely regarded as the first automobile, that is, a vehicle designed to be propelled by a motor....
See Ford's model T
See Automobile
Automobile

An automobile or motor car is a wheeled motor vehicle for transportation passengers, which also carries its own car engine or motor. Most definitions of the term specify that automobiles are designed to run primarily on roads, to have seating for one to eight people, to typically have four wheels, and to be constructed principally f...


Road trains


A road train
Road train

A road train or roadtrain is a trucking concept used in remote areas of Australia, Mexico, the United States, and Western Canada to move bulky loads efficiently....
 consists of a conventional heavy truck
Truck

File:Red truck USA.JPGA truck is a type of motor vehicle commonly used for carrying goods and materials. Some light trucks are relatively small, similar in size to a passenger automobile....
 pulling three trailers or more, used in rural areas of Australia
Australia

Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the southern hemisphere comprising the Australia of the world's smallest continent, the major island of Tasmania, and numerous list of islands of Australia in the Indian Ocean and Pacific Oceans....
 to move bulky loads such as livestock efficiently.

The motorcycle

See Motorcycle
Motorcycle

A motorcycle is a Single track, two-wheeled motor vehicle powered by an Motorcycle engine. Motorcycles vary considerably depending on the task for which they are designed, such as Touring motorcycle travel, navigating Naked bike, Cruiser , Motorcycle sport and Motorbike racing, or off-road conditions....
See Gottlieb Daimler
Gottlieb Daimler

Gottlieb Wilhelm Daimler was an engineer, industrial designer and industrialist, born in Schorndorf , in what is now the Germany. He was a pioneer of internal-combustion engines and automobile development....


Mechanical rail-vehicles

see Train
Train

A train is a connected series of vehicles that move along a track to rail transport from one place to another. The track usually consists of two rail tracks, but might also be a monorail or magnetic levitation train guideway....
s
see Tram
Tram

A tram, tramcar, trolley, trolley car, or streetcar is a railroad car, of lighter weight and construction than a train, designed for the transport of passengers within, close to, or between villages, towns and/or cities, on tracks running primarily on streets....
s


Mechanical road vehicles

see Car
Automobile

An automobile or motor car is a wheeled motor vehicle for transportation passengers, which also carries its own car engine or motor. Most definitions of the term specify that automobiles are designed to run primarily on roads, to have seating for one to eight people, to typically have four wheels, and to be constructed principally f...
s
see Bus
Bus

A bus is a road vehicle designed to carry passengers. A bus can generally seat a maximum of anywhere from 8 to 200 passengers; many more passengers than a minivan....
es
see Truck
Truck

File:Red truck USA.JPGA truck is a type of motor vehicle commonly used for carrying goods and materials. Some light trucks are relatively small, similar in size to a passenger automobile....
s
see Van
Van

A van is a kind of vehicle used for transporting goods or groups of people. It is usually a box-shaped vehicle on four wheels, about the same width and length as a large automobile, but taller and usually higher off the ground, also referred to as a light commercial vehicle or LCV....
s


Mechanical water vehicles

see Boat
Boat

A boat is a watercraft of modest size designed to float or plane on water, and provide transport over it. Usually this water will be inland or in protected coastal areas....
s
see Ship
Ship

A ship is a large watercraft that floats on water. Ships are generally distinguished from boats based on size. Ships may be found on lakes, seas, and rivers and they allow for a variety of activities, such as the ferry or cargo ships, fishing, cruise ship, Coast guard, and warship....
s


Mechanical under-water vehicles

see submarine
Submarine

A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below water. It differs from a submersible, which has only limited underwater capability....
s
see submersible
Submersible

A submersible is a type of underwater vessel with limited mobility which is typically transported to its area of operation by a surface vessel or large submarine....
s
see diving bell
Diving bell

A diving bell, also known as a wet bell, is a cable-suspended airtight chamber, open at the bottom like a moon pool structure, that is lowered underwater to operate as a base or a means of transport for a small number of divers....
s
see diving chamber
Diving chamber

A diving chamber or submersible chamber has two main functions* as a simpler form of Submersible to take underwater divings underwater and to provide a temporary base and retrieval system in the depths;...
s


Mechanical land and water vehicles

see Amphibious vehicle
Amphibious vehicle

An amphibious vehicle , is a vehicle or craft , that is a means of transport, viable on land as well as on water - just like an amphibian.This definition applies equally to any land and water transport, small or large, powered or unpowered, ranging from amphibious bicycles, ATVs, cars, buses, trucks, RVs, and military vehicles, all the way...
see Amphibious ATV
Amphibious ATV

Small off-road, and typically six-wheel drive, amphibious vehicles were developed in the early 1960s and quickly became popular in both the US and Canada....
see Hovercraft
Hovercraft

A hovercraft, or air-cushion vehicle , is a craft , designed to travel over any smooth surface supported by a cushion of slowly moving, high-pressure air, ejected downwards against the surface below, and contained within a "skirt." Hovercraft are used throughout the world as a method of specialized transport where ever there is the nee...


Mechanical air vehicles

see aircraft
Aircraft

An aircraft is a vehicle which is able to flight by being supported by the air, or in general, the atmosphere, of a planet. Examples include balloons, airplanes and helicopters....
see Wing-In-Ground effect vehicle


Mechanical snow vehicles

see snowmobile
Snowmobile

A snowmobile, also known in some places as a snowmachine, is a land vehicle for travel on snow that is commonly propelled by a continuous track or tracks at the rear and steered by skis at the front....


Types of vehicles

  • Auto rickshaw
    Auto rickshaw

    An auto rickshaw or tuk tuk is a motor vehicle that is one of the chief mode of transport across many parts of South Asia and East Asia, especially as a vehicle for hire....
    s
  • Bicycle
    Bicycle

    The bicycle, bike, or cycle is a pedal-driven, human-powered transport with two bicycle wheel attached to a bicycle frame, one behind the other....
    s
  • Bus
    Bus

    A bus is a road vehicle designed to carry passengers. A bus can generally seat a maximum of anywhere from 8 to 200 passengers; many more passengers than a minivan....
    es
  • Car
    Automobile

    An automobile or motor car is a wheeled motor vehicle for transportation passengers, which also carries its own car engine or motor. Most definitions of the term specify that automobiles are designed to run primarily on roads, to have seating for one to eight people, to typically have four wheels, and to be constructed principally f...
    s
  • Coach
    Coach (vehicle)

    In British English and Australian English, the term coach is used to refer to a large motor vehicle for conveying passengers. To differentiate from other types of bus, a coach has a luggage hold separate from the passenger cabin....
    es
  • Van
    Van

    A van is a kind of vehicle used for transporting goods or groups of people. It is usually a box-shaped vehicle on four wheels, about the same width and length as a large automobile, but taller and usually higher off the ground, also referred to as a light commercial vehicle or LCV....
    s
  • More...


Legislation


European Union

In the European Union the classifications for vehicle types are defined by :
  • Commission Directive 2001/116/EC of 20 December 2001, adapting to technical progress Council Directive 70/156/EEC on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to the type-approval of motor vehicles and their trailers
  • Directive 2002/24/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 March 2002 relating to the type-approval of two or three-wheeled motor vehicles and repealing Council Directive 92/61/EEC


European Community, is based on the Community's WVTA (whole vehicle type-approval) system. Under this system, manufacturers can obtain certification for a vehicle type in one Member State if it meets the EC technical requirements and then market it EU-wide with no need for further tests. Total technical harmonization already has been achieved in three vehicle categories (passenger cars, motorcycles, and tractors) and soon will be extended to other vehicle categories (coaches
Coach (vehicle)

In British English and Australian English, the term coach is used to refer to a large motor vehicle for conveying passengers. To differentiate from other types of bus, a coach has a luggage hold separate from the passenger cabin....
 and utility vehicle
Utility vehicle

Utility vehicle is used to describe a vehicle, generally motorized, that is designed for a specific task....
s). It is essential that European car manufacturers be ensured access to as large a market as possible.

While the Community type-approval system allows manufacturers to benefit fully from the opportunities offered by the internal market, worldwide technical harmonization in the context of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) offers them a market which extends beyond European borders.

USA


Acronyms and abbreviations


See also

Trikke Hpv
: Main: List of basic vehicle topics

External links

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