Australian classic car owners

[SS427]

We have been asked to locate a pro touring Chevelle for a customer who resides in Australia. Recently the topic came up regarding the car meeting Australian automotive laws more specifically, safety equipment and what is allowed and what is not. Have any of the Australian readers here purchased a car from the states and what all was involved getting the car to be able to enter your country and be registered. The buyer in this case is going to come to the states, pick the car up and sight see then fly back and have the car shipped. Just curious what all was involved with your purchases. Thanks in advance.
Rick

[LetsFNgo]

This isn’t really an answer, but the YouTube channel Mighty Car Mods is 2 Australian dudes who modify different types of cars. At one point they did a 240Z with a newer Nissan RB26 in it. In one of the episodes they show the car going through the Australian Engineering at and their testing process. https://youtu.be/Do3AgIxXbKY?si=RO_6WWS9ELaIJ6A-

[ACR]

I can definitely help out here. I'm in Western Australia, have imported a handful of cars for myself from the US (including one arriving in the next fortnight) and do all my own work in getting them complied/registered. Before anything else, the most important question needs to be asked: how far down the pro-touring rabbit hole is the potential Chevelle the client is looking for? There's an extremely strong chance it won't get import approval and be allowed into the country for road registration right off the get go. The laws have been toughened and tightened substantially over the last few years and pro-touring builds are basically a no-go to import.

[Rsconv68]

Yes!

[prototype]

I can definitely help out here. I'm in Western Australia, have imported a handful of cars for myself from the US (including one arriving in the next fortnight) and do all my own work in getting them complied/registered. Before anything else, the most important question needs to be asked: how far down the pro-touring rabbit hole is the potential Chevelle the client is looking for? There's an extremely strong chance it won't get import approval and be allowed into the country for road registration right off the get go. The laws have been toughened and tightened substantially over the last few years and pro-touring builds are basically a no-go to import.

Is asbestos banned on vintage cars?

[ACR]

Is asbestos banned on vintage cars?

Yes. We have zero-tolerance laws to asbestos imports and the onus is on the importer to prove the car has no asbestos which means you pay to have commonly suspected parts tested by an Australian NATA accredited laboratory. Think brake pads/drum shoes, engine gaskets, etc. To put this into real world perspective, the 69 Camaro I have arriving within the fornight is a four-wheel drum brake car and all the brake shoes had to be removed on the US side as they all had asbestos. One of the first jobs once I get it home is to install new drum brake shoes on all four corners (and probably replace the missing parts when the drums were disassembled which has happened before on a previous car). I have witnessed cars come through with engines in partial states of disassembly for similar reasons. Bureaucracy can turn a perfectly running and driving car into an in-op import and you'll pay for the privilege.

[LetsFNgo]

Is asbestos banned on vintage cars?

Funny enough in that YouTube series I posted about they had that issue with the 240Z they bought. It was a running and driving car in Japan, but couldn’t prove on import that the head gasket wasn’t asbestos. They lost/gave up the original engine and trans to get the car into the country. When they say 0%, they really mean 0%.

[Kurt S]

pro-touring builds are basically a no-go to import.
Why? It would seem that the emissions and fuel economy would be better with the newer drivetrain.

[ACR]

Why? It would seem that the emissions and fuel economy would be better with the newer drivetrain.

Don't bring logic into this - it's a losing battle every time. :hmmm:

The hilarity of this process (one of them) is the exact process that is responsible for allowing cars like Chevelles, Camaros, etc, into the country - the 25 year old rule. Sounds simple enough, right? Read on.

Your vehicle must have been originally built (or significantly modified) more than 25 years ago to qualify

So this suggests the vehicle must be greater than 25 years old AND if significantly modified, these modifications must've been done more than 25 years ago. Wait, what...?

If your vehicle has been significantly modified, you’ll need to show the modifications are 25 years or older by providing:

information on the nature of the modifications
dates they were performed, and
supporting material, such as photographs of each significant modification, and material to support the date of each listed modification.
The types of changes considered to be significant modification to a car or light commercial vehicle include:

body modifications
chassis modifications
modifications to the drivetrain
braking modifications, or
steering conversion.

So in a general broad statement, those categories of modifications cover a WIDE array of non-stock cars. I won't break down the exact modifications but a quick read of this link (https://www.infrastructure.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/guidance-note-significant-modifications-final.pdf) from the Australian Infrastructure Department website will give you a pretty quick picture on what is classified as significant modifications. Some of my favourites include drum to disc conversions, upsized brakes, modern rack and pinion steering, engine/transmission conversions (there goes 99% of pro-touring build eligibility), etc. Yes, all the modifications that can make a car safer and more fuel efficient are NOT allowed under this process. Yes, if you can prove that old, outdated and potentially worn out 25 year old + modifications were made... welcome to the country!

So this means:

Please note that if the significant modification is less than 25 years old your vehicle won’t be classed as an ‘older vehicle’. You can still apply through the single road vehicle application process, but for a ‘significantly modified vehicle’. (See below.)

which in turns gives you the options of:

Vehicle significantly modified less than 25 years ago
If the vehicle does not meet the eligibility criterion for an older vehicle, other options are available
to you:
• Restore the vehicle to original specifications.
• If the vehicle will not be used (or only used in exceptional circumstances) on a public road in
Australia, consider the significantly modified pathway under subparagraph 151(b)(v) of the
Rules – check with your state or territory registration authority to confirm whether
restricted registration would be allowed.
• Wait until the modifications become 25 years old.
• Consider if the vehicle is eligible for entry on the Specialist and Enthusiast Vehicles Register
and use the pathway under section 37 of the Rules where the vehicle would be modified by
a registered automotive workshop in accordance with an approved Model Report.

In other words, pro-touring builds = don't even bother. They can't meet any worthwhile and practical entry pathway available and haven't been able to for years. Yes, I've argued with the relevant Government departments but the law is the law currently.

Of course, the one caveat to this, you can import a pro-touring build - as a race car, which has significantly less strict requirements. The one problem? The import approval is forever marked as such and the car/VIN number will NEVER be eligible for road registration, even if you restore it to 100% stock.

[Pro Stock John]

Dang those are some tough laws.

I have a few AU FB friends and one of them used to have a hopped up GT50 (Ford 4 door). He made it sound like he wasn't allowed to drive it around (big cam, lots of engine mods). Is that the case?

[ACR]

Dang those are some tough laws.

I have a few AU FB friends and one of them used to have a hopped up GT50 (Ford 4 door). He made it sound like he wasn't allowed to drive it around (big cam, lots of engine mods). Is that the case?

It depends, something with a big camshaft and/or a lot of engine mods likely needs to go through our engineering process to be legitimately registered for road use, which has many complexities and restrictions, all of which are interpreted and applied differently on a state to state basis. Short answer, it may or may not be the case.