Subj: Misalignment and Changes for National Codes of Practice for Light Vehicle Modification

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Australian National Code of Practice

Construction & Modification of Light Vehicles (Unofficial Discussion Forum)

Website: http://www.ncop.org.au

Forum: http://www.ncop.org.au/forum

Facebook: http://facebook.com/ncop.org.au

?? January 2013

To all Federal, State and Territory Transport Ministers

Subj: Misalignment and Changes for National Codes of Practice for Light Vehicle Modification

Dear Honourable Transport Ministers,

I am one of many thousands of Australian motoring enthusiasts who are proud of their motor vehicles and enjoy the freedoms our vehicles permit to our everyday way of life and recreational activities, either it being on or off the main road. Many Australians, myself included, own and drive 4WD offroad passenger vehicles (MC Category), however one of the biggest problems currently affecting many Australian motoring enthusiast are the legislative vehicle modification laws imposed by each state and territory jurisdiction.

It has been many years in development, however the National Code of Practice for Construction and

Modification of Light Vehicles (NCOP), also known as Vehicle Standards Bulletin 14 (VSB 14), was supposed to

be a nationally based initiative to harmonise all state and territory jurisdictions with the same laws and to minimise confusion and red tape for motorists who wanted to modify their vehicles beyond basic factory specifications.

To quote the NCOP Introduction:

“The National Code of Practice for Light Vehicle Construction and Modification (VSB 14) has been

prepared by members of the Australian Motor Vehicle Certification Board Working Party in consultation with industry, user groups, government agencies and individuals with an interest in modifying light vehicles and/or building individually constructed light vehicles (ICVs)”.

The aim of the Code is to provide a nationally acceptable set of technical specifications that ensure that the manufacture of Individually Constructed Vehicles (ICVs) or the modification of production vehicles comply with the applicable requirements of the Australian Design Rules (ADR) and the Australian Vehicle Standards Rules 1999 (ASVRs).

Under current legislation, ADR and ASVR are implemented at the federal level, whilst each state and territory is responsible for the legislative governance of ICVs and vehicle modifications by motorists (after purchase), which in theory should comply with the NCOP specifications.

Unfortunately some state jurisdictions which have so far introduced the NCOP as legislation have mostly made amendments and differing interpretations in addition to the intended national code, resulting in misalignment of the NCOP between each state jurisdiction. This causes confusion for the majority of motoring enthusiasts who are seeking to modify their vehicles, prevents vendors and manufacturers from providing a national based catalogue of services, and causes national fleet management problems for large corporations. It further has

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the potential that interstate motorists could be “defected” because their modifications are illegal within the state in which they are travelling, further resulting in non-coverage of vehicle insurance if an incident or claim was to occur. On moral grounds, this should not be the vehicle owners fault.

The Australian NCOP Discussion Forum (unofficial site) has conducted an audit of all state and territory legislation regarding vehicle modifications for 4WD Offroad Passenger (MC Category) vehicles and drafted the following matrix to identify discrepancies and misalignment based on each state’s introduction of NCOP.

Table 1 - Matrix of Current State and Territory based Legislative Vehicle Modification Values Notes:

? = Indicates the value or requirement could not be easily located.

1. QLD & VIC governments have reduced the NCOP allowed vehicle lift from 150mm to 125mm.

2. NSW uses VSCCS as vehicle modification scheme and advises “vehicle lift” modifications should only be “guided” by NCOP

(VSB 14) or VSI-50, as neither of these standards is presently legislated in NSW. Current industry discussions indicate VSI-50 will eventually be approved as preferred modification legislation, hence the notation of 125mm in the above table.

3. VSI-50 allows an additional 25mm suspension if the registered operator is a member of an “affiliated 4WD Club” (fee paying),

raising max vehicle lift from 125mm to 150mm.

4. NT motorists are allowed to “Self Certify” vehicle lifts up to 100mm (tyres & suspension), but are required to provide the

Registration Authority with a wheel alignment report to ensure steering geometry is within manufacturer’s specifications. Current Vehicle Lift Allowances for All Australian State Jurisdictions

Jurisdiction NCOP Mis-Aligned Max Veh Lift Max Suspension Lift Max Tyre Lift Max Body Blocks Owner Can Self-Certify Lane Change Test QLD Yes Yes (QCOP) 125mm (Note 1) 50mm 25mm 50mm Tyres & Suspension to 75mm LT2 >75mm or body blocks NSW (Note 2) No (VSCCS) Yes (VSI-50) 125mm (Note 3) 50mm (Note 3) 25mm ? Suspension to 50mm ? ACT Yes No 150mm 75mm 25mm 50mm No LT2 >50mm

VIC Yes Yes

(VASS) 125mm (Note 1) 50mm 25mm 50mm Tyres & Suspension to 75mm LT2 >75mm or body blocks NT Yes No (IBV32) 150mm 75mm 25mm 50mm Tyres & Suspension to 100mm (Note 4) LT2 >100mm or body blocks SA (Note 5) No Yes 50mm 50mm 7.5mm 50mm No ? WA Yes Yes (Note 6) 150mm 75mm 25mm 50mm No LT2 >50mm

TAS Yes Yes

(Note 6) 150mm 75mm 25mm 50mm No

LT2 >50mm

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5. NCOP has not yet been adopted by SA government. Any combination of vehicle lifts greater than 50mm must have an

application submitted and pre-approved before commencing any modification (max suspension & lane change test requirements unknown – potentially determined on application).

6. Motorists must first submit an application to WA & TAS Transport departments for design “approval in principle” before

any NCOP related modifications are even allowed to commence through their approved engineer authorities (NCOP introduced, but must ask to use).

Despite NCOP being developed nationally in consultation with many national working groups, industry bodies, motoring councils, government agencies and state registration authorities, it is bemusing that each jurisdiction would now appear to introduce the legislation with their own additional state restrictions and requirements. The feedback garnished on this type of implementation process is extremely negative.

The outcomes as shown in Table 1, have been discussed with several industry associations, 4WD community groups, vehicle engineering certifiers and the general consensus is all states and territories should amend their NCOP implementations to reflect that of the Northern Territory’s, bring them all into national alignment. Out of all variations, the NT has introduced the NCOP in its unrestricted form.

We therefore recommend all states and territories adopt the values as listed in Table 2, as this will allow up to 100mm self-certified modification, only requires a wheel alignment report, has the least red tape, and caters for the needs of most “general” 4WD motorists.

Table 2 - Recommended Vehicle Modification for All States and Territories for National Alignment

Most modern 4WD vehicles will not be able to fit (nor the operators want) body blocks as part of the vehicle lift. Therefore the most common 4WD lift combinations will be naturally limited to 100mm, which is also an appropriate value and combination for “Self Certification”; this will also minimise much of the red tape involved in the approval process of the most common modifications.

All Australian motoring enthusiasts have the right to modify their vehicle within the limits of legislation; therefore if all states are in alignment with NCOP, there should be no need for any jurisdictions to require motorists to submit “approval in principle” applications (WA & TAS) - at least for “Self Certification” modifications.

Extended Modification Requirements

Despite the misalignment between states, the NCOP clearly does not provide adequate provision for modifications for MC Category (4WD Offroad Passenger) vehicle enthusiasts as it is purely written for an “on-road” environment and handling conditions.

This is evident in Table 3, which notates the minor modification differences allowable in “NCOP 11 - Section LS

Tyres, Rims, Suspension and Steering” between both “standard onroad passenger” (MA Category) and “offroad

passenger” (MC Category) vehicles. In essence, a standard MA category passenger vehicle such as a Holden Recommended Vehicle Lift Allowances for All Australian State Jurisdictions

Max Veh Lift Max Suspension Lift Max Tyre Lift Max Body

Blocks Owner Can Self-Certify

Lane Change Test

150mm 75mm 25mm 50mm

Tyres & Suspension to 100mm (Require Wheel Alignment Report) LT2 >100mm or body blocks

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Commodore sedan can increase its lift and ride height to a maximum of 132.5mm, while a purpose built MC category offroad 4WD vehicle such as a Toyota Prado will only gain up to a 17.5mm ride height advantage over a raised Holden Commodore.

Differences Between MA and MC Category Vehicles

Category Max Veh Lift Max Suspension Lift Max Body Blocks Max Tyre Lift Max Wheel Track Increase Max Tyre Width Increase MA (Car) 132.5mm 75mm 50mm 7.5mm 25mm 1:1.3 MC (4WD) 150mm 75mm 50mm 25mm 50mm 1:1.5

Table 3 - Differences Between MA and MC Category Vehicles

However while driving vehicles offroad on unsealed roads and terrain, it is standard practice that vehicles fitted with 4WD Hi / Low transfer gears, will also "Air Down" their tyres in order to increase their tyre's footprint on the ground, leading to increased terrain coverage and vehicle traction. The "Airing Down" of 4WD tyres is common practice in safe offroad driving, it increases the footprint, traction, stability and also minimises track / road damage through proper wheel traction (less wheel spin from smaller tyres / footprint); this is why larger tyres are more environmentally suited to offroad driving.

Unfortunately the side effect of "Airing Down" is that this decreases the ride height of the MC category offroad vehicle, further resulting in less ability to negotiate obstacles and various terrains. As the vehicles running gear is located closer to the ground and other obstacles the possibility of vehicle damage is highly increased. The diminishing clearance levels due to “Airing Down” (offroad prep) are captured in Table 4.

FRONT - Vehicle Clearance Heights and Tyre Pressures

Centre (mm) Centre Differential Clearance (mm) Right Axle Centre (mm) Variance from 35 PSI (mm) PSI 35 378 256 378 0 35 30 374 252 374 4 30 25 371 249 371 7 25 20 368 246 368 10 20 18 365 243 365 13 18 16 362 240 362 16 16

REAR - Vehicle Clearance Heights and Tyre Pressures

Centre (mm) Centre Differential Clearance (mm) Right Axle Centre (mm) Variance from 35 PSI (mm) PSI 35 382 242 382 0 35 30 377 237 377 5 30 25 373 233 373 9 25 20 370 230 370 12 20 18 366 226 366 16 18 16 364 224 364 18 16

Factory Vehicle Specs: 2012 Jeep JK Wrangler Unlimited (4 Door - LWB) - Tyre: 245/75R17 Table 4 - 4WD Vehicle Height When Prepared for Offroad Driving

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It’s important to note, that at 16 PSI, the unladen factory specification test vehicle is lowered 16mm in the front, and 18mm in the rear (measured at the lowest axle differential points). Therefore, the benefit of a maximum tyre increase of 25mm and higher ride allowable under the NCOP is mostly lost before driving offroad, due to Airing Down. Adding passengers, cargo, supplies, additional modifications and particularly towing a camping trailer will lower the vehicle even further.

Allowing an MC Category vehicle to achieve a lifted height of up to 150mm and restricting the wheel track increase to only 50mm, raises the vehicle’s centre of gravity (COG) without adequate compensating in overall stability; this increases the risk of vehicle roll. If a vehicle is lifted and expected to perform in 4WD mode offroad in adverse conditions and uneven terrain, the vehicle’s wheel track should also be compensated with an appropriate width increase to provide better stability closer to the manufacturer’s originally certified handling - making hard-line restriction ceilings such as 50mm dramatically increases risk for a lifted vehicle.

The Australian NCOP Discussion Forum reviewed numerous publicly available statistics on both the NSW MSR and QLD TMR websites regarding road accidents statistics over recent years. However where vehicle types have been broken down into specific categories such as motorcycles, trucks, buses and passenger vehicles, both MA and MC categories were represented together as one entity. There was no distinguishing between either offroad or onroad vehicle type, nor if the vehicles were fitted with any additional modifications. We therefore believe there is not enough statistical evidence to support the sentiment that modified 4WD vehicles are unsafe on public roads and should be restricted from larger modifications beyond those specified by NCOP. We do agree modifications of any type will change the handling characteristics of factory vehicles, but mid-range, and even larger modifications have also been found to be as safe, in many cases safer, than the original equipment installed by the manufacturer.

Nationally recognised “Modified Vehicle Code”

It’s a fact that many 4WD Offroad motoring enthusiasts want greater modification legislation freedom and many motorists already have vehicles registered which breach the extent allowable within each state. This document does not discuss how state legislation became misaligned, but does note motorists are truly confused about the legalities when it comes to modifying a vehicle for road use. It could be ignorance or purposeful rebellion of modification laws for greater offroad vehicle capability, but we presently have a substantial issue which seems to have been ignored for some time. It could be equally argued industry groups, vendors, resellers, and motoring bodies have been lobbying for greater legislation freedom for many years without success, therefore the motoring community has numbed itself in defiance.

With the recognition that many 4WD motorists wish to legally modify their vehicles beyond NCOP, the misalignment between state legislation and the current amount of illegal 4WD vehicles presently on our roads, we recommend the introduction of a new nationally recognised Modified Vehicle Code.

The “CM” license code (Car – Modified) can identify those motorists who are legally allowed to register and drive a highly modified 4WD (MC Category) offroad passenger vehicle on all Australian roads and which could be modified beyond the restrictions of NCOP. The vehicle would continue to comply with all ADR standards, appropriately engineered and certified, correct compliance plates fitted and successfully passed any handling, braking, lighting, sound and emission testing required to ensure continued safe road use of such a modified vehicle.

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A CM code license holder would be able to legally modify any 4WD offroad passenger vehicle as either the fully registered owner, or co-owner of such vehicle. Each modification must be fully engineered, approved and lodged with their state registration authority. A replacement registration certificate could be re-issued to the vehicle owner, appropriately listing the approved modifications for the vehicle and is for personal use only, as modification plates should be appropriately attached for such modifications.

All vehicles which are heavily modified would continue to comply with all ADR and ASVR requirements, except for the following exclusions:

 Wheels may extend up to 75mm beyond the bodywork, or mudguards (including flares) when the wheels are in the straight ahead position (to protect from panel damage while offroad);

 Fitment of specialist offroad equipment such as Portal Axels (these are not against ADR, for clarification only);

 Re-tread tyres are not to be fitted or used on any publically gazetted road (sealed or non-sealed);  Fitment of wheel spacers may be used only if appropriately engineered and mod plate fitted; and  May fit additional auxiliary driving lights or LED bar lights in any combination (placement

requirements are still to be in accordance with ADR 23/00).

Vehicle attitude must remain the same as per original specifications - the relationship between the front and rear wheel and suspension heights must not be changed, therefore the front and rear wheel and suspensions must be both raised by the same amount. Similarly, wheel track must only be increased in the same amount for both front and rear axles, with the tyre print of the rear wheels, directly following those of the front). Only full capability MC Category 4WD offroad passenger vehicles fitted with a transfer case drive assembly capable of both high and low 4WD modes would allowed to be heavily modified. Same make and model 2WD and AWD derivatives referred to as “soft roaders” (i.e. Toyota Kluger 2WD / AWD) would not be authorised for heavy vehicle modification, unless the engineered modification includes an upgraded driveline, axles, drive-shafts, suspension and Hi / Low transfer case similar to the 4WD variant vehicle.

Education and qualification for CM license code

It’s common in media outlets to find news articles where one dirt track or small area has apparently been “messed up” by someone driving a 4WD, and immediately there is a call to ban all 4WD access. It is assumed the current restrictions in vehicle modifications may be due to stereotypical presumptions that owners of heavily modified vehicles are offroad hoons, or their vehicles are unsafe for normal use on public roads. Although these ideologies are incorrect, they can be adequately addressed through the introduction of an appropriate education scheme based around safe modified vehicle usage (includes understanding legislation and safe modification) and the additional requirement of the licensee to successfully pass an approved “Modified Vehicle Examination” before being granted the “CM” license code.

As a heavily modified offroad passenger vehicle handles much differently to its factory spec base model, there should be a level of driver pre-experience and maturity before a licensee can apply for a heavily modified license code as a demonstration of suitability to safely drive this type of vehicle on public roads. This can be validated by the licensee having successfully held an un-restricted open drivers licence for a minimum of two years without receiving any “moving vehicle” infringement notices (non-parking offence), or 12 months with a supporting letter of competence issued with letterhead by the President or Secretary of an affiliated 4WD Club

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(this clause does not require the licensee applicant to be a fee paying club member, simply that senior club members have attested to their level of driver competence in numerous, difficult offroad situations – not intended to be legally liable, any club fees are to be self-administered).

In order to minimise the administrative burden on state registration authorities during initial stages, motorists who have completed a 4WD club safe driver program may automatically apply for the “Modified Vehicle License” without sitting the driver certification test, if the 4WD club provides a supporting letter of training competence to the registration authority, with the official club letter head and secretary details.

A heavily modified 4WD vehicle may be operated by a full open licensed motorist (without a CM license code), only if a fully certified CM license code license holder is in direct supervision of the vehicle and driver; this is similar to learner drivers. The supervising CM license holder must not be under the influence of drugs or alcohol, similar to learner supervisors, however there is no need to display any external “driver under training” type signage.

Single drive permit system

Many 4WD motoring enthusiasts have dedicated heavily modified 4WD vehicles, which unregistered, are solely used for dedicated 4WD offroad motoring purposes. However, as enthusiasts, many of these vehicles are in extremely good repair and capable of attaining appropriate registration for safe road use. Therefore state registration authorities should allow the issuance of a single drive based permit web portal, allowing a licensee to apply, pay, insure and print an appropriate permit, allowing a CM coded motorist to legally drive an unregistered highly modified 4WD MC category offroad vehicle between two pre-determined locations only. The single drive permit system can capture the details of the driver, owner (if they differ), vehicle details, trip details and dates, for the purposes of calculating and issuing the appropriate on-road liability insurance, and the permit which will need to be displayed in the front and back windows. The vehicle must be fully roadworthy and issued with an approved safety certificate from either state of originating trip, which must be carried by the driver and presentable to law enforcement and traffic officers on request.

The permit system is intended to provide legal coverage to experienced drivers and unregistered road safe vehicles between two known points. As the permit system may be open to abuse by motorists who are relying on the system as opposed to paying for full registration, a limit should be set by the Four Wheel Drive Australian national council, who monitor many industry events and can provide registration authorities on fair usage policies.

Inaccuracies within NCOP

There are technical discrepancies within the NCOP. For example, “NCOP 11 - Section LS Tyres, Rims, Suspension

and Steering” allows 4WD MC category offroad vehicles to fit alternate tyres which are up to 1.5 times greater

than the largest factory option available for any vehicle (standard MA category vehicles are restricted to 1.3 times greater). This theoretically would allow a standard family 4WD vehicle such as a Toyota Prado to replace its factory tyres of 265mm, with an alternate tyre up to 397.5mm wide (or 344.5mm if using a factor of 1.3). However as all vehicle categories, including 4WD, are limited to a wheel track and outer diameter increase of only 50mm, there is no tyre manufactured which is this extensively wide at a ratio at 1.3, let alone 1.5, for general purpose use.

Tyres are manufactured in many varying sizes, however as they change in size, so does the basic width-to-height ratio, otherwise they would be structurally unstable for general purpose use. However if NCOP restricts

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the outer diameter and wheel track increase to only 50mm, then a width increase of 1.5 (or 1.3) is totally unachievable. Therefore we can only ascertain the original intent of the NCOP was to cater for larger fitting tyres on 4WD vehicles and the additional wheel track and outer diameter restriction of 50mm was a later afterthought without any technical consideration.

Conclusion

By placing heavy restrictions on 4WD vehicle modification legislation, we’re ultimately restricting the rights and freedoms of an entire enthusiast motoring group that generally has a good culture and standing within the communities and environments in which they interact; not to mention the huge tourism potentials. Whilst its well-known there are many illegally modified 4WD vehicles on Australian roads, it’s the restrictive legislation and lack of support, acceptance and change from government legislators which ultimately makes these vehicles illegal, and unfortunately the illegal mods means no insurance coverage when a motorist needs it the most, even though the vehicles may be completely road safe.

We have a duty of care to acknowledge this issue and act appropriately. We need to accept 4WD enthusiasts want change, loosen the modification restrictions, ensure proper vehicle insurance coverage, harmonise state modification laws, reduce legislation confusion and reward good drivers with heavy modification freedoms. Instead of restricting the legislation so enthusiasts are not legally allowed to enjoy motoring activities in offroad environments, we should be embracing the community and providing an appropriate education strategy.

Surprisingly, “NCOP 2 - Introduction” section 3.12, quotes the “Trade Practices Act 1974” and states all products are to be fit for purpose and of merchantable quality. However all of the vehicle modification restrictions in Australia have forced good quality modified 4WD products which are made by many Australian companies into overseas markets, even though they are fit for purpose here in Australia.

Australian companies can make modified 4WD products certified for road use within other countries, but Australian motorists can’t use them for our own domestic purposes; there’s something wrong with that.