Wisconsin DVIR and vehicle inspection rules

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Last reviewed November 12, 2026.

This page summarizes what we could verify from official sources about how Wisconsin applies driver vehicle inspection and related vehicle-inspection rules. It is not a complete reprint of Wisconsin law.

Interstate operations

If you operate a commercial motor vehicle in interstate commerce to, from, or through Wisconsin, the federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs) apply, including 49 CFR Part 396 and the DVIR rules in § 396.11 and § 396.13. State rules do not replace those federal interstate requirements. Start with What a DVIR is and who must complete one.

State agency

For Wisconsin-specific questions, including how the rules apply to operations that stay entirely inside Wisconsin, contact Wisconsin State Patrol, Department of Transportation.

What official sources say about state adoption

Official Wisconsin Administrative Code, chapter Trans 327, is titled “Motor Carrier Safety — Intrastate.” Trans 327.03 adopts specified federal motor carrier safety regulations and states that they shall be enforced in relation to carriers, drivers, or vehicles which operate in intrastate commerce in the same manner as though the regulations were set out in full in the chapter. Trans 327.03(5) expressly adopts 49 CFR Part 396, inspection, repair and maintenance.

Intrastate operations and variations

Official exemptions in Trans 327.09 include the following, among others:

• The provisions of Trans 327.03 do not apply to a driver of a school bus when the school bus is being used for authorized educational or extracurricular school-related activities.
• The provisions of Trans 327.03(2) (the adopted Part 391 driver-qualification rules, not Part 396) do not apply to drivers who operate motor vehicles with a manufacturer’s GVWR equal to or less than 26,000 pounds, except that this provision does not apply to vehicles transporting hazardous materials requiring placarding or vehicles transporting 16 or more passengers including the driver.
• The chapter does not apply to any farm truck or dual purpose farm truck combined with any semitrailer or farm trailer, or any vehicle combined with a horse trailer, if the combination’s gross combination weight rating, registered weight, and actual gross weight do not exceed 26,000 pounds, the combination does not include a commercial motor vehicle described in s. 340.01(8)(c) or (d), Stats., and the combination is operated solely in intrastate commerce.

The 26,000-pound item in Trans 327.09(2) is an official exception to adopted driver-qualification rules, not a stated exception from adopted Part 396. Confirm how Trans 327 applies to a particular vehicle or operation, including the definitions in s. 340.01, Stats., with the Wisconsin State Patrol.

Related federal guides

• What a DVIR is and who must complete one
• The post-trip driver vehicle inspection report
• The pre-trip inspection and reviewing the last DVIR
• Defects, repairs, and driver acknowledgment
• Record retention and carrier responsibilities
• Electronic DVIRs
• All state guides

Sources

• Wisconsin Administrative Code, Trans 327 (official Wisconsin Legislature)
• Wisconsin State Patrol

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