plonky

What you all must understand is that firstly there are the Australian Road Rules. In 2000 these became the uniform framework for traffic law in Australia. Each individual State has then relied upon the ARR's or drafted legislation relevant to that State that takes precedence over the ARR. Therefore if the ARR declares that a foglight can only be used in inclement weather,or, not in a built up area, then that law is the BASIS for each State. In NSW therefore the ARR cannot be removed or overidden UNLESS the State legislation improves upon the intent of the ARR. Therefore if in NSW it is an offence to use a foglight unless it is inclement weather etc, the NSW Legislation improves upon that what is written in the ARR. What makes each State differenent is that in NSW, the Road Transport (Vehicle Standards) Regulation defines what is appropriate for that State in conjunction with the ARR and Australian Design Rule. In NSW a fog light is deemed to be that light which (not indicator or parking) is below the centre of the headlight and can be manually switched off/on. The colour of the lense is of no importance. There are rules in fitment to additional lights/fog lights, and they include they must be in pairs, be of a certain width apart and a certain height off the ground but no higher than the centre of the headlight. An example would be a Hiboy ute with a light bar on the roof such as those driven by Ag college wankers. The lights are too high off the ground. Each State may have slight differences in relevant legiislation but that is only an adapatation of the original Australian Road Rules. Now if we want to get in to Environmental Protection Agency (Motor Vehicle Accessories) stuff............you'll then see that there are two ways to cost yourself more money than the modifications are worth! Chuck laps or drive around like a galoot and you'll find that 'an authorised officer' (read POLICE) under the EPA Act may deem that the slight exhaust modification, fitment of Blow off Valve that vents out into the atmosphere, removal or modification of your standard airbox etc etc, affects your back pocket to a significant tune of thousands of dollars as well as paying for a mandatory drive by noise test at the EPA at Lidcombe, as well as the manufacturer voiding your warranty as well as fitting all the standard stuff back onto the car. Either that or drive sensibly around town, don;t be dumb enough to get caught in a 40 School Zone, 60 or an 80 zone and if you do give it a boot, makes sure it's on a good road (100k plus limit) and if you are stopped be really nice and humble and you may be pleasantly surprised. You don;t need to be a Rhodes Scholar to realise that there are a number of multi Agency operations in Sydney specifically designed to focus on young hoodlums, lappers and anti social galoots who are right into the Turbo scene. Some coppers are a bit slow on the infringements for Turbo cars/modifications but they will always ask the EPA/RTA blokes and there are some HWP guys that love pounding the hoodlums in the their "fulsik" modified grey imports, because they will run out of money before the HWP run out of pens.

Wow ! There's $74.00 worth of fear in this post LOL Really, the bloody things are annoying because of the glare they throw off back towards oncoming traffic and the ONLY way they benefit the driver is a wide beam spread which is great in mountainous or twisting terrain. There is still a TIN for "lights cause Glare" and this relates to lights which are improperly adjusted or inappropriately used which cause glare to oncoming traffic. I don;t know why Ford Australia bothered with the fog lights because driving lights (as per the original GT etc) would be a MUCH better proposition. In all the cars I have owned with factory fogs (WRX, SSS Pulsar, Mercedes, Alfa Romeo etc) I've never used them. Fog lights and RICE......both the same.

I think you would have to be very shortsighted to write off the XR8 so quickly. Both the XR6T and the XR8 are chalk and cheese. Both have their qualities as do their liabilities. I have just returned from two days of testing both cars at an unnamed driving facility. Some of you may guess where this is. Both the Turbo and XR8 are automatic (we don't use manuals for a number of reasons) I found the weight of the V8 a distinct advantage. At high speed the car is much more tied to the ground and the torque advantage pushes the car through the air a lot better. The Turbo comes into its own on road designs that allow for linear throttle application allowing for boost, however in real world terms both cars trade off weight against power, torque and lag. In a real world application there is not much between the V8 and the Turbo. Both cars need to be driven very smoothly, especially with the quick steering rack in the BA. For our purposes the V8 is the superior car due to the following reasons: Instant torque and power at any rev range, especially for booting out of slow corners or from standing starts, the strength of the engine, 'box, drivetrain and brakes; the high speed stability due to the weight (especially in wet weather) and the added bonus of the magnificent induction noise. I have no doubt that people who have a Turbo are happy with it and the "bolt on" mentality makes it easy for people to enhance the power of their car. There is a lot of urban myth about bolt on stuff so I could only suggest getting stuff from people who know what they are doing. The V8 will always put out more power and torque due to it's increased capacity. A good big one will always beat a good little one. However, the more power you put out of the engine is always going to be compromised by the ability of the drivetrain to cope with it. That and the EECV which will override a number of things to protect the drive train. Both the XR8 and the Turbo must be pretty good if this Forum has to come to a level where Ford fanatics have to argue about which is the best car in the range, rather than constructively appreciate that either of them have an advantage over Brand Crap. Sort of sounds like the Ford V8 Supercar Teams ! Spend more time punting each other off the track and arguing between each other than collectively making sure that Ford is the winner and not Brand Crap. After all, the Opposition don't WIN power, the Government LOSE power.

Definitely Canberrans! Having driven down there on numerous occasions and having stopped many of them, I have found that they are some of the most inconsiderate and ignorant drivers I have seen (apart from Sydney drivers) Probably because they are the flora and fauna of the ACT (protected species = Public Servants)

I'm fortunate enought to get MOTOR, WHEELS, Street Machine and SPEED every month. I think Michael Taylor at MOTOR and Curt Dupriez at SPEED are champion guys who have a good understanding of what they write. It is important to realise however, that magaxines are meant to be sold, so therefore the content has to appeal to a broad bunch of people and taps into whatever is popular at the time. I subscribe to Mopar Muscle from the USA and it is a stellar magazine. The amount of information in this mag is mind blowing as is the parts availability for Chrysler Muscle cars (I still can't get over the fact that you an BUY over the counter, 574 CID Wedge motors with 800 HP running on Unleaded for 16,000USD.) Wheels has become a bit of a MOTOR clone, and in the new car game you will always get monthly magazines testing the same cars so it becomes a bit of an overkill. Not a fan of Fast 4's (an oxymoron) and Bodykits or other magazines of that ilk. More the fact that they are a case of style over substance and you need a second language to pronounce some of the names of the car owners LOL. If Mickey T and Curt read this, next time lunch is on ACP not me!

I guess another way you could look at it, if you modify/increase the ECU to provide increased boost, remap the program for the auto(if you have one), allow for the increased load at the differential, compensate for the increased fuel pressure by way of a fuel cut defender etc then you may go a long way to increasing the performance of the car. Modify the exhaust....increase the diameter, fit silencers that are no longer triple chamber but straight through (totally illegal with the EPA in NSW...it must be exactly how it was produced including the same number of silencers etc....I know boooring), replace the standard blow off valve with one that vents into the atmosphere (again an offence under the EPA rules in NSW....big fine for a big wank sound) remove the standard airbox and replace it with a rampod style filter to let in more air (again a big fine with the EPA and again....nothing but a big wank), and you still really haven't improved the performance of the car from standard. The WRX is a different animal and the XR6T will eventually go the same way. The WRX benefited from having parts developed (at great cost and research to make sure that it complies with the relevant legislation) by companies such as STi, Prodrive and I would speculate MRT (in a milder form as they are more for off road work). These products are then proven and compensate for the middle ground that FoMoCo would be required to maintain for a standard production car. I would wait until specialists that have the codes to read the EECV and have access to developmental data to buy proven products for your car. I think FPV would be the ideal company who may expand into these fitments at a later date. The amount of garbage that is available for the WRX compared to the amount of good gear is totally imbalanced. With my Subaru the only thing I bothered to put on my car was gear that Prodrive recommended. This in particular included suspension gear and I elected to retain the 16" wheel as Prodrive stated that they were the best compromise for grip, strength and longevity. I hope some well meaning people don't learn expensive lessons for the sake of trying to think the aftermarket is bigger and better than the manufacturer. Gearboxes, diffs, clutchs etc ......are all expensive weak links for big power increases. It's not like you can bolt a Ford 9 inch/Chrysler Dana 9 1/2 inch/Chrysler 8 3/4 inch rear end into the back, or find a 727 Torqueflite/Top Loader/Nu Process A833 gearbox, to drop into your car. Steel cranks, rods, aftermarket alloy heads by Indy/Edelbrock etc don't grow on trees. I know for a fact that Subaru Australia would have guys spy at the drags to record rego numbers for Rexes and correllate them with the cars that are returned for warranty matters. If you think a successful business like FoMoCo or Brand Crap don't do things like that then you're kidding yourselves!

Have to agree with Harasn! The front end treatment of modern cars doesn't allow for much air flow. I do know that with SS has an overheating problem and as such the small premium plate is to be used on the car if possible. Depends on the area they are destined for (country NSW or city, cold or hot climate) A similar thing has been done with the Falcon. As you will notice the front end of both the Falcon and Brand Crap no longer have the driving lights and the little light bracket, but have little red and blue things (a waste of time quite frankly) and the front is to be kept clean every day. I'm quite happy to chat about the problems with Brand Crap (as I can;t stand driving the things) but I remain mute about any developmental hiccups with the Falcon. A cold air box/induction is great for the car (my WRX certainly enjoyed it) but it's pretty hard to improve upon the design that Ford (or any manufacturer for that matter) has come up with. It is much simpler to have fun with bulk horsepower motors such as the 440 Magnum in the Dodge, and it is easier to modify things that were designed over 40 years ago!

I don;t believe that the XR8 is slower than the SS. The Falcon has a large amount of torque and they have only been around for a short time. The 0-100 and 0-400 times have been either 'up in wheelspin' or 'bogged down'. This is purely due to drivers technique. On the other hand the SS has been around for at least 4 years with the Gen3, and the drivers technique has been perfected. As Michael Taylor from MOTOR has clarified, Jonathon Hawley managed a 0-400 in 13.97. This is the fastest time ever recorded for an SS, even faster than a time set by Expensive Daewoo test drivers and faster than a Clubsport tested by the same guy that day. Don;t write off the XR8. Once the auto comes out and is tested, the times will be much more consistent and them you will have a good idea of what they can do. From my understanding the XR8 has been tested in the high 5's and mid 13's by tests drivers at Ford. If the Falcon wasn;t a threat to Brand Crap, why would they make a big deal about the 'weight advantage' of the GM Holden, particularly when it comes to the SS and HSV models.

Considering our guys make the decision which car they order, the majority have been ordering the Brand Crap SS due to the fact that it has a lighter weight (so they've been lead to believe) Once you factor in all the equipment you carry the cars are actually pretty heavy. I distinctly remember a couple of guys that put their VXSS on the weighbridge at Mt Wilson and with two up, all the gear in the boot, radio, radar etc the porky pig weighed 1985kg. They thought the weighbridge was wrong (it wasn't) and I laughed when the XR8 was 1750kg. Of course the observer was told that he was too fat. Haven't weighed a BA yet but will put an XR8 on the weighbridge once we get it (and get some time to get over there)

My avatar is the model of one of the biggest, baddest, meanest Mopars ever made....The Dodge Super Bee. Came standard with the 383 Magnum and Nu Process A833 4 speed with a 4.11 Sure Grip 8 3/4 rear end. The fastest ones cames with the 440 Magnum Six Barrel or the 426 Street Hemi. Out of the factory on Goodyear Polyglas tyres they ran a standard 12.2 sec quarter and could seat five adult in comfort. The Plymouth version was the Plymouth Road Runner. It too came with the 383 Magnum, 440 Magnum Six Pack and the 426 Street Hemi. Suprisingly the 440 Six Pack was the car that set the 12.2 sec quarter beaten only by a 427 Alloy head/block Corvette and the 427 FE AC Shelby Cobra. The Street Hemi is the engine that is the basis for all Top Fuel dragsters and are putting out over 3000 to 5000 horsepower in the US today.

Sorry guys, it's not meant to be a horror story or a crack at anyone who rides bikes. I've been riding for 23 years and even though I had the acco, it hasn't taken the shine off bikes at all. I love bikes, will be back riding them again and understand the risks on a bike the same as other risks (like driving in Sydney traffic) PS I did race 250 Production bikes for 2 years back in the '80's. Great fun but expensive.

I just sold my Ducati 748SP. Beautiful bike with Texas Industries carbon cans etc etc. Haven't been able to ride for the past 12 months after a was cleaned up on my BMW. Basically I don't know what happened. I was riding along on a country road and the next thing I know is 12 days later in Hospital. The BMW was completely written off (unfortunately it won't be replaced in the office. The Boss is a bit gun shy about almost losing a man and bike) The damage on the bike indicates that I was clouted by a car that didn;t stop. I was found on the road 3 hours after the acco. I was unconcious, broke my femur, pelvis, all of the metacarpals in my left hand, broke four ribs, punctured both lungs, bruised my brain and my right arm was ripped off my shoulder and kept inside my leather jacket. I was airlifted to Hospital and died on the flight. I had three transfusions and was on life support for 12 days. Accidents like that can happen, even to the best of us. The AIS showed that the car crossed over the centre lane and hit me on the bike. Some one out there is a lucky guy....I'll kill them if I find them. Almost any injury can be put behind you if you want. I am back at work on full duties and still on the SPG as an operational unit. Sometimes it hurts a bit but you get that....... Before the Ducati I had another Duke. A 900 SS. Before that was a 1997 FLHR Harley Davidson Road King with Screaming Eagle air cleaner and cans. Before that was a Ducati 900SS Darmah. Before that was a Z1RMK2, a GPZ900R, a Z900 Mad Max replica, a Z1000 and a RG250 (race bike). Nothing beats bikes for fun!

Silverhawk, fortunately we can agree to disagree. That is our luxury in a democracy. I am well aware of the various ideologies as I have studied Politics as a speciality. You reach the heart of the point where you agree that the 'nanny, draconion revenue raising thinking' is prevelant in Government. This is the fundamental basis for socialism. The State assumes the role of the carer, disciplinarian and provider in return for surrender of individual thought and the desire to treat everyone equally. You can work hard or you can do nothing, you will always be entitled to the same as everyone else. This is exactly why the anti-car brigade are such a strong force in Government. There was even a government study released last week that rated a number of cars as the biggest therat to the environment due to pollution and fuel consumption. Not surprisingly V8 and 6 cylinder cars headed the list and smaller 4 cyl cars/duel fuel cars such as the Prius, were rated highly. This is designed to shame people who enjoy the use of their car (for personal freedom) as opposed to using it as a purely utilitarian form of transport. Now correct me if I'm wrong, but the fuel consumption of a modern V8 is far superior to the same type of vehicle 10 years ago. Also, with the introduction of unleaded fuel the initial power loss and emission increase has now been reversed. Simply the free market dictates exactly how the community should run. Back in the '70's with the oil scare, it was predicted that world oil reserves would be dry within the following 5 years. The market dictated that larger engines would have to be made more efficient and use less fuel, whilst providing the same or increased power. I would argue that is exactly what has happened in the US and the technology has spread to other countries. There is now no projected end time for oil reserves, and if it came to a stage where they were becoming scarcre, the market would dictate that the price would become so prohibitive that an alternative fuel such as hydrogen would be developed for passenger car use. The same would go with the car. For all the arguments that the car pollutes the world (blah, blah, blah) fails to take into account that before the car were horses. Horses emit waste, they die, they need to be fed. Imagine a city like London with dying and diseased horses everywhere, horse manure and urine all over the footpaths and the subsequent hygiene problems. Then the car made the horse and carriage redundant and the car industry has responded to the market by providing bigger, faster, safer and more efficient products. This is because the largest market in the world (the United States) responds to free market principles and is very anti -socialist. The US citizen doesn't rely on handouts, they work for their goods and services. The harder they work, the less tax they pay and the more they can buy. In Australia everyone wants something without having to work for it, and whinge and whine when they have to pay for it themselves. If we didn;t rely so heavily on the Government giving handouts then our taxes would not be as disgracefully high as they are. It is ignorant to suggest that I am regurgitating '50's Capitalist argument. Socialism is a failed ideology. No one is equal, egalitarianism is the product of Judeo-Christianity and unless we actively reduce Government assistance/intervention into the status of the individual over group proportionalism, Australia will end up an economic failure like France, Germany and Russia. Even the NSW Premier and his Transport minister don't have a drivers license. Doesn't that tell you something?

I think it is a very good idea by Mr Anderson. The Federal Government has been doing a fantastic job running the country and he has really hit on the sentiments of the average road user. Each State Govt. is run by the Labor Party. In NSW alone the Treasurer has been able to deliver surplus budgets purely because of a number of reasons. Firstly, the housing boom has delivered a windfall of stamp duty to the State Govt. The tax breaks for business at a Federal level have been capitalised by the State by reaping another windfall. Thirdly the revenue raised by stationary speed cameras is huge and indiscriminate. I am totally opposed to stationary cameras run by the RTA. They are nothing but another form of tax. I totally support the use of HWP Police with mobile radar for speed detection, and LIDAR for speed detection in school zones etc. A mobile HWP officer also detects driving offences not just speed offences, and a good operator (as opposed to a lazy one) is not radar dependent. Most lazy HWP average about 100 TINS per month where a good worker averages 250 to 300 TINS per month. There is no quota at all (if there was the non performers would be speared out to be replaced by workers) and I totally reject any suggestion that there is. The increase in the use of stationary cameras, the lowering of the threshold (down to 3% in some States), the reduction in Police performing Highway Patrol duties (NSW is down from over 1000 to about 450 officers), all indicate that the State Govts. are using stationary cameras to raise capital to fund election promises, keep their Union mates happy and pander to minorities who make a big noise by being able to throw money at their complaints to keep themselves in office. About 100 years ago, the fastest most people travelled is about 40 mph (eith in atrain or on the back of a horse) It is impossible to develop the hand/eye coordination required for driving unless you have been trained as there is NO SUCH THING as a born driver. All good defensive drivers have been trained. The State Govt has basically slowed down USL (urban speed limits) to the same speed that people travelled over 100 years ago. This is in cars that have enormous development in passive and active safety, reasonable roads to travel on a good sight distances and lighting. The weak link is the education of the driver. Labor Govt's would prefer if everyone travelled on collective public transport because the individuals right to freedom in travel (the car) erodes the collective ideas of Socialism and points the spotlight back onto the Government for their duty of care for failing to provide sufficient education to motor vehicle drivers. Any time any one of you whinge and complain about cameras, have a real good think at the State taxes you pay and the type of mentality of Labor Governments that you may have voted for. Then you can accept the responsibility for voting these socialists into office!

In regards to the prices on cars in the US, it seems that it really only affects new/late model performance cars. Whilst a BMW M3 would be very nice, I have been doing a fair bit of research on some genuine US muscle cars. The Americans have begun buying and restoring the legendary cars from the early '60's to early '70's and there is a real passion for originality/matching numbers. I have been looking for a Dodge Super Bee 440 Six Barrel / Plymouth Road Runner 440 Six Pack, and for a matching number good condition car (no rust) the sale prices have risen dramatically. 25 to 35 USD. For a Hemi powered 'Cuda, Charger, Road Runner, Super Bee, Coronet R/T etc with books, matching numbers etc etc, they are now up around the $50k to 85k USD ! If you owned and original Hemi you can virtually name your price. This also goes for Ford Fairlane Thunderbolts, Galaxy 427's and so on. Even Brand Crap cars are outrageously priced, (396 SS Chevelle, 427 Corvette, RS/SS Camaro, Yenko Camaro etc) Whilst a rusted/seized/partially dismantled Super Bee etc would be much cheaper, it becomes and expensive exercise unless a decent car is bought in the first place. The only reason I could suggest as to why some of the cars mentioned (M3, Audi S8 etc) are considerably cheaper is that the US doesn't have to rely on trade, it has all the resources it needs to be self sufficient, has a ready made market of 250 million people and if it wanted to it could close it's borders and not trade with any other nation. I hope that never happens because Australia would collapse virtually overnight, and the rest of the world would follow.

Found it from Ford Forums after I got banned. Enough said and I won't go into it! Edit: http://www.fordxr6turbo.com/forum/index.ph...p?act=SA&a=5&s=

Having been driving current XR8's for the past number of years I have an intimate understanding of them and their ability. For all the rubbish that amateurs have heaped upon them, I know they are an incredibly competent car for a family car. Having just got into an XR6T I had to remind myself that it was built by Ford, as it is much better than I have ever hoped for. It drove very much like my MY99 WRX and the high speed stability was a vast improvement over the AU XR8 220. I agree that it is pointless talking chalk and cheese....the XR (6T or are fantastic cars that can fit five adults comfortably, have a wide parts availability, provide a higher level of comfort and luggage room and perform extremely well and are reasonably priced. As a matter of fact they are much better value for money than my E320. Little cars with little engines remind me of little man syndrome. They have to puff up their chests with steroids and run right on the threshold of reliability just to prove a point to other little boys. One would have to wonder why the little import cars are so cheap...maybe the novelty wore off quickly. I'm sorry to offend any genuine forum poster with the vitriol however a good big one will ALWAYS beat a good little one. I know what a 4200lb Dodge will do over a quarter (that's 2 tonne for the metric) and I certainly wouldn't be put off by a little import. If I get beaten....so what !! It would have to have had some serious work done to it, made out of tin foil, run on slicks and have a big fart can sticking out the back. American Muscle cars like Roadrunners, Super Bee's, Hemi 'Cuda's etc were all running 12.2's from the factory on Goodyear Polyglas tyres back in the late '60's. Any talk of comparing apples with oranges is just bench racing. I like the XR6T and I would prefer to talk XR6T/XR8 than compare Snivelling Slippia's, GT aaaargh's, etc Again for the genuine posters, sorry about the vitriol

XR8 bonnet on an XR6T..same as a Type R sticker on an Integra LS or a Clubsport bodykit on a VS 6 cyl. Personally why pretend to be a V8 when you have a Turbo....as a matter of fact wouldn't it be better to be a Q ship than 'Rice'. XR6T looks fine the way it is and the comment is not intended to be an insult but is intended to ensure that an XR is to be feared in it's standard appearance. Cheers

The XR6T is a temporary measure until the auto is finalised for the XR8. The XR6T has not been without it's problems (which I won't go into) but suffice to say Ford Aust has been pretty helpful in rectifying the problems with the car. The XR8 auto will be supplied to the NSW Police on a priority basis and at this stage there both XR6T/XR8 will be available. For those posters that are 16 and younger that don't wan't the 'cops' to have the car, well that's just too bad. The NSW Police fleet is a 300 million dollar business, and if Ford is fortunate enough to make sales into the fleet to compensate for the high proportion of GM Expensive Daewoo cars, then good luck (and good business) to them. The BA Falcon is a bloody great car (as was the AU before it) but it is not as perfect as you would all like to believe. For an unmodified family sedan, the XR8/XR6T does a pretty damn good job for the extreme driving conditions the Police cars (particularly HWP) cars are under. s much as I hate to say it, the GM Late model camira is reasonably competent (even though the gearbox/diff is a significant weakness and the oil consumption is woeful) I certainly appreciate brand loyalty but the BA is not without it's problems. If you wanted to drive something with real straighline speed, then drive a big block Chrysler (440 Magnum/426 Hemi). If you want to drive a sophisticated, powerful and good handling car, the drive an E Class Mercedes, or BMW M3/5. For what it is, and the price range it is pitched towards, the BA XR6T/XR8 is without peer and does make a fantastic Highway Patrol car!!