Jamezilla

A very good point Kyles. Perhaps the 'drinks event' is an area best left alone for now - I don't think my liver could handle another one soon anyway. Snowman and I should keep training though, you know... just in case... Maybe more emphasis on cruise/bbq events - like, as Clarky said, the Christmas BBQ - are more applicable. You can't throw the vortex in a pub Soo - I guess to leave this one at that. A pity there wasn't more of you. Is kinda fun going drinking with 'new' friends... but in the end it didn't stop us having a good time... and I wont even mention the nachos. We'll have some fond memories (at least when the photos are developed) - and hey, we met Sammi's dad - who's as close to a celebrity as SAU has And let no-one forget: Billy Dee Williams is the only Lando

Uni was fun. Some work... but not much. Not compared to the real world anyway... Enjoy it while you can Engineering - E'Week Beer-lympics were a highlight. You'll drink a lot.

Yeah - I think they'll need to be 'edited' somewhat Probably all blurry, or of my thumb or something...

Ex: Yeah saw that... but going to be OS. Is good though - more events the better.

Earliest use of the word 'tirade' in context for 2004 E: The disappointment we felt on Sunday was mostly due to the pre-event keenness of people. Sure, it's not like much effort went into it... I just would have expected a better turnout from people who wanted an event like this, and said they'd be coming. It's a bit frustrating that the same people are the only ones ever to come to these things. We're trying to build a bit of a 'community' here... aren't we? Perhaps I've got it all wrong That said - we had fun. Louise took photos - just need to get them developed. I won $1,000,000 in a bet that Carl Weathers is NOT Lando. Still waiting to collect though... 7 pints + 3 pots each = 13.86L of Heineken.

Ooooh - not so loud. Headache. But yes - what Snow said. Funky also had the good grace to pop in. He was on his way to another function - but made the effort to say hi. I think we were still pretty well behaved at that stage. We saw lots of Skylines drive past... but where was everyone?? I had a big night on Saturday (tried to watch all 5 Rocky films in one sitting - got messy before Clubber) - but was still able to crawl out of bed for another 12-hour 8-pint stint. Hell - even Sammi's old-man popped in for something (can't quite remember...) Richo: Also - Remind your buddy I want my $1,000,000. Billy Dee Williams all the way baby!

Thanks guys. Spoke to Police on Friday evening - they're happy for me to replace my tyre placard with one like Merli's (I got from UPI). Do good to know my car can go from defective to fine - by changing a sticker. So dumb. Such a waste of time... Anyhoo. Something to be wary of. Thanks again all for your help. I'll be sending a letter to the Police and VicRoads regarding this. Will keep you posted. James

Well. Well. Well. Team SAU VIC - Me, Snowman, Horus and Funky. Where was everyone? Sure - we drank enough to make up for it... but jeeze guys. It's not like this was a surprise event. No-one even called We were there from 2.00pm to 11.00pm - so no-one can say 'you must have left'. Shame.

Should be on inside of driver's door jamb, or on door itself. Is white sticker.

Ah... yeah. Something like that

I'll be there around 1.00pm - 1.30pm. Got to warm up first

Yep. This is the problem for not having anything else defectable on the car Except maybe my super-high-flow catalytic-pipe-converter flame device... but then they didn't see that. Getting it fixed for my EPA test anyway.

Merli: Thanks heaps! Just getting a few more to build my case Zahos: Unfortunately it states the requirement for 670 load tyres. As these were the local TMU, they are bound to pull me up again - I want to make sure I do everything by-the-book. If only to show how stupid these import regulations are... in that there are none. Either way - I am not getting new tyres. Mine are perfectly good And they can jam their fine...

Legally: It needs to match your tyre placard. Technically: I've seen 19"s and I've seen 18 x 10"s. Not sure what offset etc though.

Sewid: If your rim sizes aren't listed - that's defectable also. Make sure you get a sticker that shows your diameter and a variety of widths. I am getting a copy of the ADR rim/tyre book from Bob Jane to show what tyres are legal on what rims. Will PDF the Skyline applicable pages and make available here. Inasnt: That's what the cop suggested. But... they have been told to look for this (only recently mind you), so if you don't have a placard - they'll probably defect you for that. Easier to have one that says your tyres are legal. Merli: So much running around to prove something they already know. All because of a sticker. Stupid. Thanks heaps for your help Are you still able to email the photo of your placard?

So. How can you avoid this? Simple - make sure your placard matches your tyres (or is less than your tyres). If it isn't, peel it off and put another one that says it's OK. So simple, and so stupid. The cross-reference from the VIN to DOTARS will never be performed from a random roadworthy test (or in Vic, a targetted, defect station). They look at the number - make sure the numbers match up on your car. Where to get a placard? Speak to your local compliance workshop. It is just a sticky piece of paper afterall. Dean at UPI here in Melb has given me another one which states a minimum tyre index of 90, but has 245 tyres for an 18 x 9.5". I have a copy of the ADR book from Bob Jane saying that 265s are legal on that size rim. Was my car ever unsafe? No. This was my principle concern - I didn't want an accident to result for having tyres that weren't up to scratch. But they are. They are good tyres, well suited to the vehicle, and well above the Nissan and DOTARS legal requirement. I will not be paying a fine. I don't need new tyres. I will get this defect cleared - but at this stage, no-one can answer me as to how to do it. Just make sure you don't cop a load of this bureaucratic bullsh*t.

As you may know from other threads, I was defected for having 93 weight-index tyres (650kg load) on my R33 GTR - as my tyre placard stated the car required 94 weight-index (670kg or above). * note: skip to the next post if you already know the story * My first point of call was Bob Jane, who recommended and sold me the Sumitomo HTR Z II tyres - to get some replacements fitted. It was, at this stage a SAFETY issue. Turns out 265/35/18 tyres are nearly all a 93 index - which is BTW, a high number. The pursuit XR6-Turbo that booked me had 630kg rated tyres - lower than me. They weigh 1800kg, WITHOUT the lights and other police stuff. Knowing my rims were a pretty standard size (18 x 9.5") and that other GTR owners would no-doubt have similar size tyres, I began questioning whether this was in-fact a SAFETY issue at all - and started looking to see what other cars were wearing... It seems my tyre placard is the exception to the rule. All other GTRs are using the 93 index tyres - but have a minimum requirement of 90-index or 600kg load. Some (including an R34 GTR) had an even lower minimum of 545kg, 580kg etc So why the difference? Surely my GTR would need the same capability tyre as the one next-to it? Well... this is where my defect stops being a SAFETY issue, and becomes a BULLSH*T compliance issue. The fact that my GTR left the shores of Japan as a 'Nissan' with a minimum load rating of 540kg is irrelevant. It has been complied now as a [insert compliance company here] Skyline GTR. In my case - AVO in Melb. Now... when AVO complied their R33 GTRs, they did so with 4-different tyre/rim combinations. None of which were 18 x 9.5" with 265/35/18 93Y tyres. They happened to have 670kg tyres on the car... which was above Nissan's limit of 540kg, and thus legal - and I have a sticker to prove it. Says I should have 10" rims too... According to the sticker, and the Police, these 4-options are the only options I have available, anything else is illegal and unsafe. However, another GTR, complied by another company, may have had the same rim/tyre combination as my car, thus if I had had THAT sticker, my car would have been legal. And safe. All because of a sticker. How did I find this out? The Police? Nope. They have no-idea. The sticker said x, my tyres said less than x, officer said UNSAFE - because the sticker says so. Now THAT's police work. VicRoads? Hahaha - next... Compliance workshops? Nope. No-one is sure what the 'rule' is as every workshop has to comply the cars on an individual basis. I had to ring DOTARS in Canberra, supply my VIN, to which they used to cross-reference their database to show who complied my car and to what rims etc they had complied to. Something the Police would never have the ability to do BTW. So... now what? Is my car SAFE? Can I put a new placard sticker on to match my tyres? Would that sticker have prevented an accident? I don't know. It would pass a roadworthy - but according to the Police, they aren't worth the paper they are printed on. Overall - the Police/VicRoads - the people who I need to clear this defect - are not sure what to do. My car is clearly SAFE. Safer in fact than it has to be, safer also than the Police car that booked me... all this running around has proved nothing except that there are 4 'bodies' involved, none of whom know the answer, none of whom seem to communicate. Leaving me in the lurch with a big yellow sticker and the inability to drive my car past 5.00pm today...

That R34 could use a cut/polish... Perhaps he can help me put an RB26 in the Lada

Heh - OK

Well... I can't really complain about anything. They inspected my car as they are being told to do. The sticker said 670+, my tyres said 650 - therefore, defect. Sure it's a pain, but they are doing their job. At the end of the day, the police weren't wrong about the tyres, the sticker is wrong. If I had been running tyres that were grossly under the vehicle's weight rating, it could be very dangerous. I wont pay a fine but I also wont get the hours of running around trying to sort this out credited to me. I WILL write a letter to Stonnington TMU - detailing what happened, but more as an informative note so they know for future reference. The real complaint is to VicRoads for not having a standard placard for GTRs. And they'll be getting a letter too

Oh - and your car is looking good. Was being loaded onto Jack's new remote-control truck at ICE.

Nope. I not pay fine

Have just been to see Dean at UPI - and now have a 'new' placard that states 600kg as a minimum. Also visited Ice - and took photos of the placard on the GTRs there: 1 was for 600kg, 1 was for 580kg (R34 GTR). As NRB said - technically, these tyres were illegal for my car. It just so happens that it might have been the placard that was wrong, and not the tyres - but I didn't know that, and I wouldn't have expected the police to either. The officers involved have all been very helpful - it's their job to inspect cars. Sure, they didn't inspect anyone else... but still. The lead officer was actually concerned that he made a mistake - as the 93 index is pretty high. His XR6-Turbo had 615kg tyres on it, and I'm sure there' snot that big a weight difference between the cars. Hell - with all the pursuit gear, his may be heavier than mine! What it would seem though - is the placard on my car is the exception to other cars. I will present my case to VicRoads - showing that most GTRs are asked to be above 600kg, some above 580kg - and my tyres are rated at 650kg. I'll keep you posted on how I get on. Also - once this is sorted, I'll fit the 600kg placard to the car (it states it's for an R33 GTR, whereas mine does not) - so this never happens again But... I guess it's something to be mindfull of. Thanks again all for your help.

Just spoke to TMU after reading these... He was surprised it was so high anyway. He said that if I can show ample proof to VicRoads that the car is within manufacturer limits - and that other vehicles have a different placard, then I'll be fine with my current tyres. Even suggested I get a new placard to match Mesh: Can you email me a photo of yours also? Will chase up with the compliance plate holder about 'who' puts these tyre placards on, and where they get the figures from. The plot thickens... Thanks all for your help

600kg - argh. If only I had THAT sticker on my car. Cop said they would never have picked it up if I didn't have the sticker at all. So stupid. Can you take a photo and email through for me? [email protected]