4x4 Licence

Amen.

why listen to a poly we put them there to listen to us???????1999 NISSAN NAVARA DUALCAB
DIESEL 3.2 & SPRINGY CARLTON TOY
2 awestruck kids (dads driving!)

The sad thing is Mr Idiot public sees it as good...

as long as the government make changes Mr Idiot thinks they are always for gOod.

reminds me of the simpsons, where one says something they all cheer... MONORAIL MONORAIL MONORAIL..

I think this needs a Dick Johnson quote:

"Don't take high performance cars (4X4'S) off the road...........Take under-performing drivers off the road instead"

As a Nationally Recognised 4wd Driver Trainer I feel there may be merit in a 4WD licence. Holders of such a licence may be given permission to travel into National Parks and other areas previously closed to them. They may also be given reduced insurance premiums. On another note, your L\Cruiser\Patrol is over twice as heavy as a conventional car and therefore takes more competence and experience to drive particularly on wet roads or loose surfaces. Like a truck or bus licence a 4WD licence could be an upgrade of your origional licence and would be issued after haveing proven your capabilities and knowledge of your vehicles abilities on a variety of offroad conditions. I drive 4WD tour coaches to Cape Tribulation during our tourist season and I could write a book about the things I see suposedly experienced people do on the Bloomfield Track. We also have several serious accidents here every year with inexperienced people,
patricularly overseas tourists in hire 4WDs. A licence proving ability would greatly reduce these. Cheers Rob

Sorry but I have to strongly disagree.
I won't crap on with various reasons, I'll just use 1 perfect example.
The government/public minority groups were against jet skis which could be ridden with a normal boat licence. They now have a licence just for jet skis, has tht solved any problems? No.
Some jet skiers (not all) are still driving round like d*ckheads, and I think the same would happen with a 4WD licence, it won't solve any problems, it won't get rid of the cowboys it will just be something else to pay for every year.
Tim

The whole system of licensing drivers need to be looked at.

Our kids get taught how to get a licence, not how to drive. The first time any of em gets to control a vehicle in a skid or under emergency braking is when their lives depend on it.

It's not good enough really. If I was the regulators i would be improving the current licensing requirements first to make sure that when sonmeone gets a licence they can also drive, have sympathy for the vehicle, sympathy for other road users and an understanding of Risk management. These principles apply to every vehicle on the road not just 4WDs.

One country in Europe, it takes 6 mths and $4000 to get your license.. Cant remember where, but you have to drive in all conditions, rain, etc, change flat tires, change oil, general basic maintance..

Then they also do the skid pan, etc... proper driver training. not how to drive around the block.

But I can see a 4x4 license being backed by ever 4x4 driver trainer on the planet. Its a gold mine for them... 100,000 4x4 on the road, average of 4 drivers each cost of $400 per course, Talk about a retirement fund.. About $160,000,000

With the problem still being the same, what difference is there in a 4x4 or car? What other things are you going to show a kid? Go slower around a corner as they are higher, brake earlier as they dont stop as well as a GSXR 1000???

There is not that much difference in a Commode and a 4x4 to drive ON THE ROAD.. Offroad yes, lots of difference, but thats not what this is about. Its street driving thats the problem.

Then with less sales of 4x4 prices of new 4b's will skyrocket, most models wont be brought into the country anymore as there will be less demand, less options, insurance costs will rocket, its all bad as I see it.

I see no advantage at all in a 4x4 license.

Doesn't matter what you drive . . . there's always a nut behind the wheel.

Yep, and the nut on the end of the throttle always seems to be the one that causes the most problems. Regardless of race, colour, creed or licencse - or vehicle !!

howdy all

i cant see what the problem is as i thought all 4bs were invisible by the no of d heads that cut me off in a day or is it just my gu or are we developing a generation of hereos who want to die because i get the feeling that it wont belong before i end up getting one and then it will be that barstard in the 4bs fault. but any awy if we are the invisible group why have a license at all

steveimagine a 03 gu 4.2tdin the picture
as i am having trouble sizing the picture

Hi guy's

Sorry to argue your point here, but i'm a 23 male. Have earned every penny, and am onto my 3rd car now, not because of accidents, but by earing the money, working and upgrading. I have purchsed my first 4wd a mitsubishi challenger 2002 model last year, but my mates and i have been going away for years now in there 4wds. We treat the tracks, frazer, morton etc with the upper most respect. I would just like to say, it has nothing to do with age, it is a mentality factor. Have you seen the way motorbikes ride on our road, zipping in and out of traffic, driving up between two cars on the unbroken line to the front, and speeding off when they change, and the street drags, hot heads.......as if a 4wd could compete in a street drag....... Maybe the police should use some of there speeding fine revenue towards hotting up there cars to be able to keep up with the street drags, catching them and fining them for causing the trouble.

Sorry, once again a small minority is destroying it for the rest of us.

While we're at it do you think I can get a licence to scratch my arse or perhaps to drop my guts in my own home, or are they on next years agenda.

Hello all

As a qualified motorcycle instructor of 14 years, ex truckie - local & interstate, and driver averaging 30,000k each year, I think we all need to cool down and stop getting mad; then start getting political and gaining some justice.

When compulsory rider training was introduced in most states in the late 80s early 90s it reduced the number of fatal accidents amongst first year riders by 70%. This gave the polies something to attempt to justify better training or specialised licencing with but they warped it as usual.

At the time the polies agreed to phase in better quality driver training for all road users. It never happened because it would lose too many votes from Joe Public.

Instead we got half baked changes to P plates and mickey mouse log book systems for L drivers to gain their licences without thorough training or reasonable guided experiences. For years anyone could declare themselves a "Driving Instructor". Today any adult can "instruct" a relative or friend or stranger in the finer arts of driving providing they don't charge a fee or call themselves an instructor!

At the same time it got harder to get a motorcycle, bus, truck or taxi licence.

The reality is that most accidents are caused by inexperienced drivers. No matter how long they have held a licence most drivers have limited experience and panic in an unfamiliar situation.

The only solution is quality instruction of all new drivers by qualified and reqularly examined driving instructors. This must be accompanied by regular testing of drivers - it could be once every 5 years for example - but it must be regular and systematic. It won't be popular with Joe Public but it will save lives, injuries and reduce hospital waiting lists. It will also take the heat off 4wds as it is not we who cause most accidents but we are an easy target.

How many of us actually got their licence in a 4wd? I know I didn't and neither will most 4wders EVER. Let's ensure the basic training is quality before any more minorities are targeted.

I'm interested in your constructive feedback but not half-baked knee-jerk reactions or blaming others. Let's join together and really exert some influence on improving the driving in Australia. WE CAN DO THIS THROUGH THESE FORUMS, HASSLING POLITICIANS, USING THE LOCAL MOTORING CLUBS AND ASSOCIATIONS - heck even the press and media.

Remember its the motorcyclists and professional drivers who have the toughest road to obtain their licences today. Are we next or should it be everyone evenly and fairly?