ECE 104 contour marking: which colour goes where, on which vehicle?

Tape colour on the side and rear, which vehicles must carry it and where it sits are read from UN R48 paragraph 6.21 and R104.

9 August 2022Updated 28 September 2026

Short answer

Tape is white or yellow on the sides and red or yellow at the rear; the front is optional, trailers only, and only as a white line. Heavy vehicles and trailers wider than 2.1 m need full contour at the rear, and those longer than 6 m need partial contour on the sides.

The rule sits in UN R48 paragraph 6.21 and the tape itself is defined in R104. Under the R48 Rev.7 text, full contour at the rear is mandatory on N3, on N2 above 7.5 tonnes and on O3 and O4 vehicles wider than 2.1 m; partial contour on the sides is required on the same vehicles when they are longer than 6 m. Tape is not fitted to M1 and O1 vehicles.

Position	Colour	Form
Side	White or yellow	Partial contour: lower line and upper corners
Rear	Red or yellow	Full contour: all four edges
Front	White	Trailers only, optional line

The strip is 50 to 60 mm wide and carries the circled E approval mark every 0.5 m. The lower line runs 250 to 1,500 mm above the ground and the upper line sits within 400 mm of the top of the vehicle; the marking covers at least 80 per cent of the width and of the length.