To get a driver’s license for a passenger car in Sweden, you must be 18 years old.
However, EPA tractor, A tractor and moped car are all three examples of car-like vehicles that you can drive on a moped driver’s license already at the age of 15. Common to the three vehicle classes, in addition to the top speed, is that they must all be equipped with a so-called LGF triangle at the rear.
The question that remains is how the three vehicle classes differ. We go through that here.
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The EPA tractor came first
The EPA tractor originated in the 1920s, when farmers converted cars to be registered as farm machinery, according to Sweden’s Hembygdsförbund.
In 1940, the EPA tractor became its own type of vehicle. The name of the cheap tractor was taken from the low-price chain EPA. Over the years, popularity among farmers waned, and the EPA instead became a popular way for 15-year-olds to hit the roads.
In 1963 the rules for A tractors were introduced, and since 1975 it is no longer possible to register a traditional A tractor.
The A-tractor is a successor to the EPA tractor – Photo: Johan Nilsson/TTEPA or A-tractor – that’s the difference
Basically, the EPA tractor and the A tractor have many similarities, as they are both converted cars that are classified as tractors, and cannot be driven faster than 30 km/h.
The rules for A tractors are stricter, as their top speed must be limited to 30 km/h.
For an EPA, there are no specific rules for what the top speed should be, but instead the requirement is that the gear ratio should be 10:1, which limits the speed resources. An EPA must also not have suspension on the rear axle.
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What is a moped car?
Unlike the EPA and A tractors, a moped car is registered as a moped class 1 or EU moped.
This means, among other things, that the top speed is 45 km/h instead of 30 km/h. The power in a moped car may not exceed 6 kW, and it may not weigh more than 425 kilograms.
Moped cars can be driven at 45 km/h – Photo: Claudio Bresciani/TT
In addition to the driver, a moped can have room for one passenger. They must both wear a seat belt and then do not need to wear a helmet.
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