I know it's illegal to narrow the track of your front end but if you add dropped spindles and disc brakes which add to your track, taking the extra width out of your beam is not really narrowing it, it's just returning it to standard.
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65 manx,74 camper,60 Rat beetle.....and many more to come
vwvic wrote:I know it's illegal to narrow the track of your front end but if you add dropped spindles and disc brakes which add to your track, taking the extra width out of your beam is not really narrowing it, it's just returning it to standard.
I hate to keep harping on legalities, but this statement is only true when looking at the track widening rule, you forgot the initial fact of fitting non-modified/approved steering components and dropped spindles are not an approved item as they change the geometery, widen the track AND have not been tested to meet vehicle manufacturers/Australian standards.
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Since there seems to be so many automotive legal specialists on here. Q# Toyota recalled 6 million vehicles last year. Those cars that slipped throught the recall net with a manufacturers fault. Are they legal & insurable ? Makes what 100 narrowed beams in all of Oz seem quite petty to me. My2c
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It all goes well until you are involved in an accident that gets investigated by the machinery department, it is obvious to me that none of the so called 100 cars that have a narrowed beam fitted in this country are legally registed and there fore cannot be insured, you would have had to tell the insurance company in your disclaimer that you have a modification that does not meet the guidelines or can be legally used on the road. every mod I have carried out on my cars are plated in Queensland, a lot of effort and work, as for Toyota they do not have to go through the same system as we do, they do all there engineering work them self and design vehicles that meet the ADR's, they are then responsible if there are any issues that arise. it is a totally different situation to narrowing a front end in your back yard with a hack saw and a welder of some description, one post on here had a guy complaining about how weak welds were when his front end broke in half. best thing I ever did was remove the narrowed beam from my Ghia.
So from what learnt from this thread having a narrowed beam is similar to a still bought from a homebrew shop,a wild caught reptile or a bong bought from a tobacco shop,only illegal if inspected or caught ?
Shaun,Part-time secret snake relocator,full time reptile keeper and small collector of ugly projects bugs ...🤪
G'day all. when I joined the navy in 65 we were told by a shore patrol petty officer everythings legal till you get caught. let alone the insurance side. has anybody on here have a fully engineered registered narrow beam vehicle if you have please share with people the process of legalising it. It's only the matter of time before QLD transport start to crack down on beams like the 4x4 lift kits unfortunately being my age I don't get the rat look or the narrowed beam affect.
ernie
Now your playing the game.🥷 Its all to do with money and who gets caught holding the bag. Same as the mod plate system. If the a car is modified and plated with certain parts and I fit exactly the same parts why do I have to jump through all the hoops again? When an approved packaged has already been established and validated. Money thats why, not safety. A small royalities fee would be paid to the original approver thus providing incentive for more developers, not the closed shop, cash grab we suffer now. My2c
car modders mod their cars because they want to......not to prove its legal or safe. Many things in the ADR rules are a joke, where others are miles overdone.
Easy way is to mod it....and not tell anyone so your safe and lonely
Boozo wrote:car modders mod their cars because they want to......not to prove its legal or safe.
Don't get me wrong - I'm not a hater and can appreciate that everyone has different tastes in car mods and share the love for VW's - that's why we're here.
This topic of legality comes up far to often and fortunately Australia is not a Third World country where anything goes. There's a good reason mods should be safe. I agree some of the rules are over the top but that's life.
I could'nt give a rats ....hole if you narrow your beam and it snaps in half at 100kph or the bump steer is so horrific that it sends you flying off the road; but I would be pretty pissed if you crashed into me or killed a member of my family.
The time is coming when the Transport Dept. will say enough is enough - it will happen.
Can I repeat the question has anyone notified their insurer that they have non approved / engineered car mods and been told - "thats fine, mate you're fully covered"
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G'day vwo60. I agree let's see a fully approved beam job that's in an insured car. I know the hoops I have to jump thru for the mods to the front end on ECLECTIC in having to spread it for the spindles to fit & it doesn't have adjusters or narrowed. I think this post has run it coarse
ernie
The old straw man argument. Don't care what you do as long as a member of my family/puppies/kittens/nuns is not killed or injured. How about defending your position based on facts, not what ifs. How many narrowed beam cars have been invovled in fatal accidents in Australia? And do you really think that your going to be wiped out by a modified beetle!!! When everyday you are driving towards underserviced semi-trailers & B-doubles (fact) and silly teenagers texting while driving (fact) on your way to work. Its like some of you work for the insurance council of Australia. My2c
Facts are quite simple, reducing the safety of the vehicle for the sake of appearance never ceases to amaze me, I am just dumb struck to see that people think it is OK to run a 8" narrowed beam with no shocks, you are just as likely to have that accident in any vehicle but increasing that chance by doing crap like that is ridiculous, Luftmeister, do you run a narrowed beam and are you insured.
I think they call it Hot Rodding & its been going on since before I was born & before lawyers & beaurecrats and insurance companies ruled Oz! Life is not one size fits all. And tomorrow is promised to no man. No matter how much insurance you have. My2c
Can you get insurance against boring!
LUFTMEISTER wrote:I think they call it Hot Rodding & its been going on since before I was born & before lawyers & beaurecrats and insurance companies ruled Oz! Life is not one size fits all. And tomorrow is promised to no man. No matter how much insurance you have. My2c
Can you get insurance against boring!
LUFTMEISTER wrote:I think they call it Hot Rodding & its been going on since before I was born & before lawyers & beaurecrats and insurance companies ruled Oz! Life is not one size fits all. And tomorrow is promised to no man. No matter how much insurance you have. My2c
Can you get insurance against boring!
very well said sir. Hands will shake when and if we meet
g'day again. Let's hope the transport dept & polizia don't do a summernats & sit outside the nationals checking for defects then we will see who has legal narrowed beams or canaries to take home. no more on the subject. had enough discussion with out any conclusion as to who's engineered & legal.
ernie
That glass looks foreign made, so will have to be recertified by an Australian engineer to be certain it complies with Australian Beer Regulation # 58008 to be sure it is up to the job of operating with a lower stance of beer!👍
