10% GVM Upgrade - Code LS11 Queensland

Did you discuss an upgrade with a mechanical engineer? They can go beyond what the "kits" give you. We got 500 kg upgrade for our Toyota. No "kit" involved.

Just a thought mate.

Phil

No haven't approached an engineer as I was told by the rta from memory something about the chassis have never been tested or something along that line to be able to accept one go figure maybe they never thought of that back then. The GU patrols can be upgraded though and amazingly they're basically the same chassis mines probably stronger being one of the early models and the springs, shocks are the same ones.

I even asked them about my vehicles chassis extension of 850mm because the wheelbase is longer it should be able to carry more because the load on the road is spread over a greater distance. Like some of the older rigid trucks are that I use to drive same chassis engine and running gear only thing different was their wheelbase but it didn't work for me so I haven't pursued it since then.

Fair enough.

I would have thought that the older the car, the stronger the chassis.

I just don't believe individuals in the public service as they tend to not "think outside the box". I want it written down etc. Sorry people, but both at work and living in the ACT I came up against it often. Maybe if you used the word "truck" and not "car" the member may have thought of a Kenworth etc. You never know.

I am not 100% about your chassis extension but making a length of steel longer and moving one support (your axle) further away from the center, actually lowers the weight you can carry especially at the center.

Try it with a stick and you will see that the longer the stick, the easier it is to break it. Stand on a short length (a few inches) of 4x2 and you wont break it. Get a long bit (meters long) and it will sag in the middle or if long enough break.

Anyway, I am drifting. Interesting but off topic. Take care.

Phil

Tim F3, I can't answer your questions as I just found it by chance as I was "doodling around" waiting for a phone call last night. Will be checking it out further next week.

Cheers
Batsy

Tim F3 you can contact the rta they should be able to help you with how to go about getting an upgrade. When I asked the QLD rta a couple of yrs ago they gave me a list of 5 companies that can do legal suspension upgrades up here ARB, Lovells etc but it has to be relevant to your model of your vehicle and there were no kits for GQ patrols I did ring a couple of the suppliers just to confirm that. So if your lucky enough it might be a simple process.

The thing to bear in mind is that you can upgrade anything providing you can demonstrate that it is structurally sound and is safe. The companies with approved kits, like Lovell's, have done all that work for the vehicles they have kits for.

In many cases the cost of achieving this compliance is too expensive for an individual to undertake.

Cheers, Baz - The Landy

As I understand the "upgrade" situation when one has a Lovell's , ARB or Dobsons etc GVM upgrade installed it has to be from new/near new & is basically springs & dampers ie no chassis or mounting point alterations in general. When this is done the vehicle has a modification plate attached indicating a new GVM.
Does this plate describe the upgraded spring & it's rate & the upgraded damper & it's bump & rebound pressure, if not how can this "upgrade" be verified at a later date ? A vehicle owner can change springs/dampers at will & if necessary re paint the replaced parts in the same colour as the Lovell's,ARB or Dobsons parts so as to "look" like the original upgraded parts.

Cheers
Batsy

My understanding is the kits are available for a specific vehicle type. For example, a Toyota 79 Series Dual Cab, regardless of age of the vehicle the upgrade kit can be fitted.

Once certified it is up to the registered owner to ensure ongoing compliance with the original approval.

Could you get away by doing what you suggest?

Possibly, but I'm not sure why you would want to change the parts given they have been tested for suitability. In fact, in that instance why would you go to the expense of putting in an approved kit if you are going to change it? You may as well just put on what you want and run the gauntlet of being over GVM - either way you would not be compliant in any case...

Cheers, Baz - The Landy

I guess you could also cross out the original GVM on the rego papers and just write your own on there as well.

I don't know what all the fuss is about with getting a GVM upgrade done, in QLD anyway.
I know about the difference between pre and post registration rules and regulations.

Mine was 7 months old when got done.
I went to TJM in Rockhampton and told them what I required, they told me it would take a week or so to get the required bits and the paper work organised. A week later I got the call and dropped the vehicle off in the morning.
That afternoon I got a call to say it's finished, come and pick it up.
They had all the paper work all done, a new plate attached to the fire wall.
Also I got new bigger side indicators fitted. To this day I do not know why.

The next morning I went to the Main Roads office and got the paper work done there in about 20 minutes.
The lady behind the desk printed me some new paper work showing the upgraded weights.

Next Rego papers turned and the upgraded weight was shown 3760kg instead of 3300kg.

As far as the rebound of the springs goes, my head is full of enough unnecessary crap as it is, with out having to remember that sort of trivia.

Cheers

All fair comments Blue M but your vehicle was 7 months old, try obtaining an upgrade for a 3, 5, 10 plus year old vehicle & it's nigh on impossible now.
The biggest hurdle now is having an engineer sign off on the LS11 specs & paying the fee, maybe $1000-$1500. That's a big ask when there are basically calculations only to be done when the vehicle/s generally will have quality suspension upgrades already.
More information is needed before I could justify outlaying this amount of money.
Maybe I just continue to run minimalist.
Cheers
Batsy

My deepest & sincere apologies TomH.
Hope you can forgive me.

Cheers
Batsy

Yes, you would have thought that having to move to a standard rail gauge would have been a clue to standardisation!

Shaker, read the history of standard rail gauge and how it came about. Nothing to do with politics or anything between states.

Wildmax, you will probably find that all states will follow QLD and it will become Australia wide. Some states just need a little kick to get them going, and others need a bag of nitropril to achieve the same result

Who made the decision to have a different gauge between States?

The individual colonies prior to Federation. Obviously co-operation was a forbidden word in the political dictionary even then !!

No No No Wildmax you're just too impatient to get those imaginary borders removed and get the country running how it should be as 1 country and not 8 individual countries. It's taken nearly 200 yrs to sort the education system out and it's still not right so you'll have to wait your turn for the motor industry. Maybe your great great great grand kids will have better luck lol.


9900Eagle I think ultimately it was the government that made the final decision or decisions because there were too many governing bodies involved and stuffed the whole thing up possibly deliberately because they were pretty pig headed about the rail gauge they wanted for their individual state.

Qld used the narrow gauge rail purely because of cost.

How right you are Batt's; I should have realised that 200 years was not enough time to sort the mess out !!!