AAAA: New NSW Government suspension regulations a farce
In an attempt to hamper modifications made by car hoons, on 16 July the NSW Minister for Roads Michael Daley
announced changes in regulation that will cause havoc for both the automotive industry and thousands of drivers
on NSW roads with minor, currently legal suspension modifications.
The Australian Automotive Aftermarket Association (AAAA) is outraged by this poorly conceived new regulation.
The AAAA is the national industry association representing over 1250 manufacturers, distributors, wholesalers,
importers and retailers of automotive parts and accessories, tools and equipment.
The Minister announced the new regulation in a media statement headed Tough new rules for car hoons and said
the regulation will take effect from 1 August 2009. The regulation will mean that virtually all suspension
modifications and wheel and tyre upgrades will require certification by authorised engineers.
AAAA Executive Director Stuart Charity said this announcement shocked both the industry and driver groups alike.
The industry has worked closely with governments nationally for many years to develop and promote vehicle
modification guidelines designed to meet appropriate road safety requirements, said Stuart Charity. The industry
is alarmed at this unilateral and unreasonable announcement.
Neither the industry nor key driver advocacy groups have been consulted regarding this new regulation. No
consideration has been taken of the impact that this proposed regulation will have on the wide range of road using
industries that must make suspension modifications to their vehicles to improve safety and load carrying capability.
Among these roads users are the building, construction, mining and rural industries.
In addition, there are thousands of private vehicle owners that make suspension modifications to tow their animals,
boats and caravans, or simply to improve vehicle handling across a range of driving conditions, he said.
Unproven assumptions
Stuart Charity said the Minister, or his advisors, made untrue assumptions about the facts of suspension
modification and in the language used to announce this proposal.
Firstly and unbelievably they assumed that if you modify the suspension on your vehicle, you are a car hoon.
There is absolutely no evidence to suggest that this is fact. Recent AAAA research actually revealed that about
80% of the end users of modified suspension are aged between 26 and 49 years of age. Owners of 4WD vehicles
are one of the largest groups making aftermarket suspension modifications and 66% of them are aged between 36
and 49 years. So, the major users of aftermarket suspension modifications are not the 18 to 25 years old high risk
group. We also know that hoon drivers are only a small portion of the 18 to 25 years old group.
Secondly, they assumed that if suspension modifications are tougher to access, then there will be less hoon
behaviour on NSW roads. The reality is that those who behave illegally on the road are also likely to make illegal
suspension alterations.
A third issue is many of the modifications outlined in the Ministers press release that will require engineering
approval, are legal in every other state in Australia, making this NSW only scenario unworkable.
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Finally, the automotive aftermarket industry is totally dismayed at the arrogance exhibited by this announcement.
This industry has an annual turnover of $5 billion, exports of $600 million and employs 30,000 people. In NSW, the
AAAA membership is 400 companies employing 8,000 people. The AAAA enjoys close working relationships with
NSW Government organisations, including the Road Transport Authority, which appears to have ignored an
independent engineers report on the improved safety performance of suspension lift modifications submitted in
June 2009.
Given that the automotive aftermarket invests significant resources to ensure that road safety is paramount in the
design, engineering and performance of aftermarket products, it is impossible to understand how the industrys
long term contribution could be ignored on this occasion.
The real issue is that in trying to target car hoons, the NSW Minister has attacked the wrong cause. Hoon driving
is a driver behaviour issue. It is not a vehicle suspension issue, or even a vehicle modification issue.
We call on the Minister to immediately withdraw this ill-conceived, unworkable regulation and to engage in
appropriate stakeholder consultation with a view to developing common sense laws that have the support of key
industry and driver groups, said Stuart Charity.
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