More on the vehicle mod debate

Thanks Dave for posting the link.
Well worth the read, some very valid points
Now to digest it and take it on board.
Cheers.

Giday Tour boy

My young bloke is running around today, reverse engineering his Lux, so that he can get a certificate.
The Lux has been modified since 2003, inspected every year, read all the reports on this site and others and followed up, result - has to get a new engineers certificate.

Cheers

Agreed An excellent read. I always thought a lot of these mods looked illegal.

Yes; an excellent read but well, lets see what the final outcome is. We all know what bureaucracy and political spin does to a good idea.

He is right though in one point that won't change. The types that drive these illegally modified cars will keep on doing so regardless of the law. So lets hope the enforcement agencies get more than just money for photo copier paper, so that they can do their job properly.

Thanks for the link Tour Boy

Phil

I hope that 'blogger' has sent the text in a letter to a few pollies (esp. opposition) rather than just posting it on a website in the hope it will be noticed by the relevant people...

Dave,
thanks for the info.

Just a note on the young hoons, my lad had an XR6 Turbo, 280kw at the wheels. He speced up his own suspension and had it modified, he even made them change the spring rates when they supplied the wrong coils.

Well me says to him, you are a coc%$ead making it that low. Well I had to eat my words, it was the best handling vehicle I have ever driven and it was not rough and didn't bottom out.

Have a good one

I wonder if that has been forwarded to the Minister. He is very wet behind the ears, and obviously drinks with Scruby.

Jack

Well written, commonsense and with good perspective.

Dave

Got an amail this morning from ARB so I rang them to see what was happening. Answer was that as of yesterday arvo it has been put on hold till they come up with some proper ruling for modified vehicles. He said basically what they were trying to do was stop any form of modifications to any 4wd's even a basic 2 inch lift. He said currently anything over a 2 inch lift needed to have an engineer report although most have never had one done. I informed him of wanting to get the prado done and if so will there be any issues further on down the track if they implement any change of the rules. He said basically if they implement any rules they will mainly target 4wd's with the big lifts 4 inch ++. He said it would shut down too many workshops that do modifications ?? ARB have sent me a link to click on and voice my opinion

http://mailer.volume.net.au/link.php?M=16687&N=456&L=703&F=T

and they sent me this one as well

http://mailer.volume.net.au/link.php?M=16687&N=456&L=704&F=T

Regards Steve M

There are some very basic points that most everybody apperars to be missing in the VSI 50 rules.

It is not about lifts or drops for vehicles ... its about what the govt intends to class as "modifications" to a vehicles suspension ... and the govt processes intended to be imposed on the motoring oublic for carrying them out.

NSW govt wishes to impose a fixed "vehicle height" on your vehicle ... whether it be sedan, ute, sports car, 4wd, a classic rebuild, whatever.

This height would be measured from the wheel centre to the bottom of the wheelarch on your vehicle.

Any changes to that "vehicle height" would be deemed a "modification" requiring approvals / inspection / certification.

So if one replaces a steel bullbar with an aluminium one and the weight factor causes a change in the height the govt has specified for your vehicle ... It has been "modified" and is "illegal" until inspected and the veh specs adjusted on the records of your vehicle according to the wording of VSI 50.

REMEMBER ... The wording of VSI 50 is ...

"Apart from minor wheel changes allowed in VSI No. 9 Guidelines for alternative wheels and tyres, it establishes that any raising or lowering of a vehicle from its original ride height is a major modification, and it limits the change in ride height of a vehicle intended to be used on roads or road related areas to ± 50 mm.

plus or minus 50mm ..... thats not a 2" lift kit ... thats any variation from your vehicles recorded trim height from 1mm to 50mm ... from its "original ride height".

A major modification ..... pfffft ........ How many NSW drivers really want to to add a $900 + inspection fee to the cost of a new bullbar ... or winch ... or rear tyre carrier/towbar changeover ... or removing auxilliary fuel tanks etc ... because of a 5mm or whatever variation in ride / trim height ????

How many interstate drivers would like to see the NSW rules adopted in their state ... just because NSW did it ????

Some points that I think should be presented now that there is a consultation process about to occur are.

1/..VSI 50 needs to dropped completely.
2/..Suspension adjustments of up to 50mm and within the one third bumpstop travel - should be left as a non approval circumstance.
3/..Changes to suspension over the one third bumpstop travel and / or requiring vehicle structural changes, need to CONTINUE to be requiring approval / inspection / certification.
4/..Better enforecemnet of existing rules that deal with illegally modified vehicles - need to be demanded.