Engineering your car's mods ??

[B-Man]

Hmmm where to start this thread ???

Don't want to ask who has had their car engineered cause that may imply that most of us haven't had our mods engineered.

Same works vice versa...

But anyways - I want my next lot of mods / rebuilds etc to come with an engineer's certificate for all mods on my car.

Anyone want to share any experiences in this area with us ? (who's good, etc)

Was reading an article in Autosalon Mag this week and can see that this is a double edged sword - your damned if you do it (ie they can still defect you if you have the Eng. Cert. - But still, if you have no Cert. and they don't spot your non-compliance then you can get away with it)

What to do ?

I reckon the laws or something needs changing. No point having rules you can't enforce - AND No point having rules that can be certified and you still get busted causing wasted time, effort and money ! ! ! !

[Sumo]

I would think insurance would be a bit of an issue if you dont have your mods engineered and you have a prang? I was talking to a highway patrol copper and he reckons they can bust a car that has just driven off a showroom floor? It comes down to how much they want to be arseholes.

Sumo

[Airzone]

My cousin's a highway patroller. He reckons the slight tint on my headlights is enough for a defect - that's how it came out of the factory. All you gotta do it look at ALL tha Audi TT's and they have more tint on their headlights than my rear window.

[franks]

the RTA deem an engineers certificate as a document which states the listed modifications comply with the RTA and with ADR standards and therefore that vehicle should not be defectable.

you can read for yourself:

http://www.rta.nsw.gov.au/registration/dow...loads/vsi15.pdf

[Tex]

Brendan, the engineers have to be approved by the RTA to issue Engineer's Certificates, so I guess based on that they're all about as good as one another (EDIT: or so one would think, but after reading that link Frank posted it seems even the RTA don't endorse their approved signatories' work. Kinda weird, really).

As Frank said, certificates are supposed to verify that your vehicle complies to all the relevant standards, so as far as I can tell, the only way your car can be defected is if you sit back and take it. Remember, just because a cop issues a defect doesn't mean he/she's right. If it comes down to it, you may need to make a trip to the officer's station for a chat with their superior officer though...

It may pay to check out www.ajc13b.com as well, no doubt Steve has some useful info on all this there.

Brendan, given the fact you are a year or two outside the normal age bracket for a "hoon" (), and don't look like your average punk kid with a fast car, I'd be inclined to think you won't really have too much trouble with the Police... Of course, I could be wrong!

[fatz]

Q: excuse me mr engineer, could you engineer my car with a bigger turbo aftermarket comp ect.....?

Engineers answer:hahahahhahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahah

hahahahahahahahah

hahahahahahahah

hahahahahahahah

hahahahahaha

you dick

or words to that affect

pete

[B-Man]

Oh, OK - thanks for that Pete.

Cheer Tex.

[Neil]

B-man,,,I've spoken to few police officers and they all basically said the same thing "I don't give a crap about an Engineers Cert". Reason being,,,once you have the cert,,,whats to stop you upgrading your mods and hood-winking the Officer in to beleiving thats what was done when it was certed. Example,,,get a cert for a fmic of a small size and then installing a huge one afterwards.

Also the law says a police officer ONLY has to beleive your car is un-road worthy and he can issue you with a defect notice,,,,He doesn't even have to measure your ride height,,,If he THINKS it's to low it's defect time. The RTA and EPA are the ones with the final say on all mods to any car.

Sorry buddy but thats the way it is. Talk about grey areas in the law.

A few no-no's that police pic on:-

1/ Neons

2/ Load stereos

3/ Load Turbo cars (They think you have removed the Cat)

4/ Any wheel that looks big and non factory

5/ Bov's that Fart

6/ Underbonnet inspection that shows a Turbo in full view (they know it's not factory) and oil/air catch tanks

7/ And a whole lot more that ring alarm bells in there heads

Neil.

[franks]

that just makes my blood boil - what utter crap!!!!! >_<

if i had an EC and the cop said that to me - i'd give him a piece of my mind. IF they can find something NOT listed on the certificate then thats fine - defect away.

Police should not have the authority to defect a car, this should be the job of the RTA. if we follow the modification guidelines set out by the RTA what rights do police have - NONE!!!

[Neil]

Originally posted by franks

that just makes my blood boil - what utter crap!!!!! >_<

Franks,,,I totally agree,,,but check out the Honda Civic that just pulled up next to you with the 18's,,man it's on the floor and how load are those 3 10" subs.

It's no wonder the Police get to shits.

Neil.

[fatz]

ive just beeen lucky i pose

an engineeer will cover your car but if it has the above mods he will insist on a emmissions check

and with your mods there is no way in hey you would pass

pete

[Gonad Man]

I've heard that any car running programmable engine management is not roadworthy and can have an insurance claim rejected because of it. I'm guessing it's because you can pass a sniffer test then go and change your maps and screw emissions right up.

In some ways I'm glad the cops are out there defecting some vehicles. Any car that's dumped on its guts and has 5mm wheel travel will invariably handle like crap on anything rougher than a pool table and is a danger on the road.

As for morons who think the rest of the world (or Brighton at least) should be subjected to their crappy taste in music don't get me started.

It does annoy me though when well engineered street cars cop defect notices for mods that make them better to drive (therefore safer).

I've never got a defect notice before (but my old V8 Falcon should have) but what happens then? Do you go down to your local RTA or do you have to go back to an engineer and pay for another inspection? I'd imagine if the defect is for an engineer certified mod then the engineer who certified it wouldn't charge much to look at it and say that it is still as per the certificate and therefore the cop can jam the defect notice up his.......

Cheers,

Ben

[two40]

Last night I completed the last stage (had to add some bits and take some bits off) of engineering my car. I'm glad I did it all and along the way I learned alot of things. My advice, don't listen to what your mate said or what you heard somewhere, call an engineer and organise a face to face to windscreen meeting.

I've spoken to nearly all of the engineers listed on the RTA site and alot of them you can't even get in touch with and when you do they can't be stuffed spending ten minutes answering your questions because they have 20 other guys ringing them each day!

Originally posted by ndr

B-man,,,I've spoken to few police officers and they all basically said the same thing "I don't give a crap about an Engineers Cert". Reason being,,,once you have the cert,,,whats to stop you upgrading your mods and hood-winking the Officer in to beleiving thats what was done when it was certed. Example,,,get a cert for a fmic of a small size and then installing a huge one afterwards.

Sorry Neil but that's not completely true. When they engineer something they include the specs so you can't do that and so that cops won't think that.

Like alot of you have said, cops can defect you regardless of a certificate but the benifits of having one is you can clear your car at the EPA just by providing the certificate.

If you don't have one, you have to clear your car by making it legal which could mean thousands of dollars getting that stock cooler on and changing the exhaust system and buying new wheels etc. So in the end a small outlay of $400 can save you lots of headaches and lots of money.

In a few months one of the clubs events will include an engineer and you guys can ask him whatever you wish.

[hawks]

its true that the engineer notes the brands and sizes of what gear you have on your car, i have had to of my previous cars engineered (with one car i had to get a engineers report, it was listed on the defect slip)

having said that, i was never pulled over after i had my cars engineered. but it all comes down to the copppers attitude i think.

[B-Man]

George , if you don't mind, can you please PM me the details of your Engineer ?

Thanks,

[franks]

ok. what if you have an engineers certificate and you get defected for, lets just say, an exposed air filter. If your unlucky you cop a $200 fine and an inspection meeting with the EPA.

You turn up to the EPA and they clear you.

Do you have to still pay the fine?

[two40]

for questions like that a quick call to the RTA tech line on 1300 137 302 would be better than asking here. i'd be interested to know as well and i'd guess that you wouldn't have to pay it if you are cleared. just seems logical.

[Craved]

I heard an oil catch can was defecteable in a post by ndr,

is this all catch cans, i was under the impression that the oil/air separator was legal if it was plumbed back into the intake as per stock setup

is this true??

[Talej]

Originally posted by two40

face to windscreen meeting.

Jeepers that sounds a bit rough to get a certificate.

[YO880]

any updates on the catch can situation as described by Craved?