Modifying your car now 'illegal'

[Gnarls]

Our DA ward councilor just posted this on Facebook:

(Doesn't copy and paste well)

City has no designs on legally modified vehicles A front-page report in today’s Cape Argus claims that the City of Cape Town plans to target drivers of modified vehicles. The article is worryingly inaccurate and the misinformation has spread to other media platforms, including social media. For the record, the City of Cape Town’s Traffic Service is mandated to enforce the provisions of the National Road Traffic Act No. 93 of 1996 – a national piece of legislation which states that any modification of or tampering with a vehicle’s safety design renders the vehicle unroadworthy unless it is done by the manufacturer or a registered body builder. If a registered body builder decides to make any alterations, they are required to re-register the vehicle and send it to the South African Police Service for clearance before the alteration is considered legal. This is very rarely or never done on motor cars and will normally take place when dealing with heavy vehicles like buses or trucks. In addition to the National Road Traffic Act, the SANS 047 (South African National Standard) is extensively used by our motor vehicle examiners when conducting roadworthy checks on vehicles. The SANS 047 is very specific on unroadworthy issues such as suspensions and springs, steering columns, vehicle headlights and fog lamps, tinting of windows, and brakes, etc. The City has no issue with motor vehicles that have been modified legally and in line with the legislation and standards as outlined above. What we do have an issue with is the large number of vehicles that are modified illegally, rendering them unsafe. Alterations done by mechanics, welders, boilermakers, etc. who are not registered to do so are illegal and the law is very clear about the issue. Contrary to the information in the article, City traffic officers are clamping down on modified vehicles and the statistics from our illegal street racing operations indicate as much. Of the more than 400 vehicles that had gathered for an illegal street race in Ottery this past weekend, only seven were suspended for illegal modifications and all of them were involved in races, because operationally it would be virtually impossible to check each and every vehicle at the location. Eight suspects were arrested for participating in illegal races, putting their lives as well as the lives of other road users in jeopardy. Currently, City traffic officers can arrest motorists who participate in illegal races on charges of reckless and negligent driving. Officers can also suspend illegally modified vehicles from the road, in spite of the article incorrectly quoting me as saying we cannot. What we want (and I have made this clear on a number of occasions) is the enactment of new regulations that will allow us to impose stricter penalties on illegal street racers, with very specific emphasis on those who evade or elude lawful instructions from an authorised official to pull over, including impounding their vehicles. We are also calling for harsher impoundment fees for these vehicles and want to ensure prison time for the offenders. The act of being a spectator at the races also needs to be included with a suitable penalty, as we are inundated with complaints about their behaviour and the impact on surrounding residents. We want to discuss with the National Prosecuting Authority and the Transport MEC certain significant cases where the courts have failed to address this matter adequately and where repeat offenders have been let off too lightly by prosecutors and magistrates who apparently do not understand the gravity of the situation.

 

[SaiyanZ]

I have:

Front 255/30/20 vs stock 225/45/18

Rear 285/30/20 vs stock 245/45/18

on my car. Guess I'm going to jail.

 

[Fazda]

That streetraces don't want to use because they don't want to toe the line and adhere to the rules.

It's funny that these are the same people who's using our streets as racetracks, and for the same reasons - not wanting to follow the rules.

These are the same idiots who are screaming bloody murder on Facebook.

When are these Cretins going to realise that rules are there for their own safety?

Much as I am a car fanatic and love almost everything to do with cars, I would happily see this particular crowd have their cars taken away and crushed!

 

[silver6933]

They tried this in durban. All the cars impounded were returned. Once lawyers got involved, it was deemed in the end to be harassment.

Guess who paid the lawyers??

Quote from IOL
Here, the regulation expressly states that components which were not specified by the original manufacturer had to be rejected.

So all aftermarket parts will be illegal, way to go to make a car less affordable.

Including ferodo brake pads, for example Nissan OEM brake pads are ATE

 

[Chris14]

And what about all the 4x4 owners with their raised suspensions, hugh bull bars and hugh wheels? a laugh I say!

 

[OzzieCapie]

And what about all the 4x4 owners with their raised suspensions, hugh bull bars and hugh wheels? a laugh I say!

They probably have a Hugh 'Grant'

 

[thestaggy]

That streetraces don't want to use because they don't want to toe the line and adhere to the rules.

It's funny that these are the same people who's using our streets as racetracks, and for the same reasons - not wanting to follow the rules.

Yep. I recall a Carte Blanche piece on illegal racing and one of the tool-bags-in-chief said they want to race illegally because of the rush. Increased risks, dodging cops, etc. Real pieces of crap if you ask me.

 

[Tinuva]

Saw this posted on FB.

 

[Zyraz]

Modifying your car is now 'illegal'

http://www.iol.co.za/motoring/industry-news/modifying-your-car-is-now-illegal-1.1807531#comment-1812380855

Modifying your car is now 'illegal'

Cape Town - The motor industry is in uproar over the Cape Town traffic department’s efforts to clamp down on modified cars as part of their actions against illegal street racers.

Even seemingly simple modifications, such as wider or larger wheels and tyres, larger exhausts, or any fittings not clearly specified by the car’s manufacturer may now have a motorist running the risk of having a car declared unroadworthy.

The city’s traffic officers have been stopping cars they saw as having been modified and removing their licence disks, forcing the owners to go through a roadworthy process.

Traffic department spokesman Richard Coleman pointed out that regulations stated no modifications could be made to any vehicle that was not specified by the manufacturer, and that all work on cars had to be done by individuals or organisations who carried a letter of authority regarding the specific car.

Essentially, no modifications were legal, including lowering a car or changing the wheel size, he said.

Not completely convinced this was thought through thoroughly.

Lets just look at tires ...

Does this mean every person that changed rim size from stock size to a bigger rim size has to now all buy a new set of original sized rims and the tyres to go with it ? $$$???
Are they insane?
Do they realize how many people have got bigger mags on their cars ?


... and then qoute taken from the comments shows how deep this goes.

" OK, yes, semi-slick tires, perhaps not the best idea for road use on your Golf Mk1.
However, what about the fact that some modifications can drastically improve safety - such as better headlamps, whether a bulb or a HID system? Better suspension for breaking, cornering, traction and ride softness or hardness? Polyurethane replacement bushes and mounts? The crappy rubber ones are made to fade so that we keep buying more of them while they destroy our vehicles further, at least those of us who keep them long enough to replace these.
What about bigger brakes, sometimes warranting the use of bigger wheels for clearance?
What if said brakes and wheels came straight from the manufacturer of the vehicle, or from a well-recognized manufacturer of aftermarket parts, proven to be of higher quality and specification than the originals?
What about a flatbed panel filter, you want me to keep buying the k*k paper one every time I service, why when I can just get one that lasts, with proven results, almost as long as the car will last?
What about snorkles on 4x4s? You've got to be kidding me! "

 

[Slamz]

^^^^ lol

 

[Vegeta]

They're clamping down on Mitchells plain tuning. Or Brakpan Modifying as it's known on the other side of the country.

4x4s with modified off road suspension, bumpers and snorkels won't be touched and that's when this whole thing will come to an end once people start pointing out that they need to harass the farmer with his bakkie modified to carry farm animals. Or the Afrikaners in their land cruisers let alone the Vaalies with their off road Fortunas

 

[xrapidx]

How the hell do you double post over 30min apart?

 

[akescpt]

im gonna put e46 rims on my e36 so it looks im gonna be in the shyte.

I wish they would bust the idiots who put those insanely bright bulbs into their headlights. cant be legal to have normal beams that bright.

 

[Agent_Smith]

Yep. I recall a Carte Blanche piece on illegal racing and one of the tool-bags-in-chief said they want to race illegally because of the rush. Increased risks, dodging cops, etc. Real pieces of crap if you ask me.

Fast n the Furious wannabe's...

They get the facilities provided for them but turn their noses up at the offer. Well screw em I say.

 

[phoenix99]

IMO a lot of this could be solved/helped by adopting an MOT system similar to the UK where we all have to roadworthy our vehicles every year.

Then there will be no question as to what car is or isn't supposed to be driving. All the cops need to ask for is an updated roadworthy.

However this could only work if we also clamp down on all the illegal roadworthy testing stations.

 

[DanH]

No more canopies on bakkies....

 

[me_]

I think more often than not, mods lead to a more dangerous car. The traffic cops don't have the ability to determine whether a mod is safe or not so it's easier to just restrict all mods. Manufacturers spend millions of dollars testing to make sure a car is safe and the components won't fail. How many aftermarket parts have been that strenuously tested with every make and model?

- While wider tyres may give better grip in the dry, they are more prone to aquaplaning in the wet
- Often people get up-sizing wrong and use the wrong profile - someone earlier mentioned using a 195/15 instead of a 185/15. This would give a different diameter for the tyre and the speedometer would be affected. Also, ABS and other systems may be affected.
- Larger wheels and tyres are heavier so they put more stress on bearings, suspension and steering rack. If these fail while driving, they could cause an accident with another vehicle.
- If aftermarket lights aren't fitted correctly or aren't designed properly, could blind oncoming cars without the driver even realising.

 

[Drifter]

I think more often than not, mods lead to a more dangerous car. The traffic cops don't have the ability to determine whether a mod is safe or not so it's easier to just restrict all mods. Manufacturers spend millions of dollars testing to make sure a car is safe and the components won't fail. How many aftermarket parts have been that strenuously tested with every make and model?

- While wider tyres may give better grip in the dry, they are more prone to aquaplaning in the wet
- Often people get up-sizing wrong and use the wrong profile - someone earlier mentioned using a 195/15 instead of a 185/15. This would give a different diameter for the tyre and the speedometer would be affected. Also, ABS and other systems may be affected.
- Larger wheels and tyres are heavier so they put more stress on bearings, suspension and steering rack. If these fail while driving, they could cause an accident with another vehicle.
- If aftermarket lights aren't fitted correctly or aren't designed properly, could blind oncoming cars without the driver even realising.

Bollocks, you can have a 195/185 with the exact same diameter if the profile is the same. The 195/185 refers to the width of the tyre.

 

[me_]

Bollocks, you can have a 195/185 with the exact same diameter if the profile is the same. The 195/185 refers to the width of the tyre.

Yes, but the 15 is a percentage of the width in relation to the height.
So a 185/15 has a height of 27.75 and a 195/15 has a height of 29.25...

The difference is smaller on lower profile tyres, but incorrect sizing can be an issue.

 

[Drifter]

Yes, but the 15 is a percentage of the width in relation to the height.
So a 185/15 has a height of 27.75 and a 195/15 has a height of 29.25...

The difference is smaller on lower profile tyres, but incorrect sizing can be an issue.

Wrong, the 15" is the size of the wheel in inches. So you will get a 195/50 x 15 and a 185/50 x 15, just like you can get a 195/50 x 16.