We Need your help

princessblade · Post by **princessblade** » Mon Jun 16, 2003 10:31 am

Saturday i went down to southport to look at all the cars that go down there and to show off mine. All the people that go down there have all different cars and it is a fun night out. When we got there the police had blocked the car park and any of the cars that were there got told to move on and at the end of the car park were police checking over every car and then towed 100 of them away, they will be held in a compound for three months. a lot of young people lost there car just for paking and admiring other cars. All we need is a place all car lovers can met without being hassled by the police. Why are they trying to take all the hotted up cars of the road when they should be looking at all the unsafe bombs driving around there the ones that cause accidents not the modified cars.
I just want anyones opinion if u think this is fair or not?????? I am shock by the QLD police response to the movie "2 Fast 2Furious" as this is what sparked this crack down. So be careful FTO drivers i have been pulled over 5 times by the cops for no reason just so they can look under my bonnet and mine is a stock passion red gpx. Goodluck everyone with a nice car my thoughts are with you.

from kirsti

p.s. i am putting a petition together soon and if you are interested i will email it to you we need about 10000 signitures before the government will stand up and do anything about it. This is the time to move as there is an election next year so i will keep you posted. All car clubs of Queesnland are going to be informed.

Hez · Post by **Hez** » Mon Jun 16, 2003 8:58 pm

well im not in qld but i saw it on the news. It is very unfair to the ones dat are doing the right thing but then again there are always those who go crazy with the cars and are very violent on the roads.
Its very clear that police target younger driver with nice cars and i was also a vitcim of dat(also passion red). I really think they should be targeting drink drivin or speedin rather defecting our cars.

did u get pulled over kristi?

princessblade · Post by **princessblade** » Mon Jun 16, 2003 9:03 pm

i didnt get pulled over on saturday night but in the last week i have been pulled over 5 times just for driving they couldnt get me for anything else so they looked over my veichle each time to look for defects which is not fair.
kirsti

Jase · Post by **Jase** » Mon Jun 16, 2003 10:36 pm

Are you from the coast or brissy? I haven't been pulled over in the last 12 months in my FTO but then again i haven't been cruising since i've had it.(Too old). Now i don't agree with what happened, but last friday night coming back from a mates place i was driving through surfers and it shocked me how many turbo imports were racing through town. Now these are quick cars and the speeds they were doing in a 70 zone were ridiculous. As long as there are idiots like this around you and evey other import driver are gonna get picked on. As long as your car's legal and you're not speeding/racing you've got nothin to worry about.
My 2 cents.

Chrisp · Post by **Chrisp** » Mon Jun 16, 2003 10:54 pm

Ive been driving import coupes for 4 years now and (touch wood) havent been pulled over once. Mind you my cars dont have crazy lights, stickers or supa loud exhausts, but they are obviously sports cars. I live in melb. So I think you can be lucky or unlucky, but it helps if u dont draw attention to yourself by driving like a dick !
Jase is right... all those people who drive at crazy speeds create a bad rep for the rest of us out there. So enjoy your cars (like i do), keep modding them, but dont do the wrong thing on the roads and hopefully we can convince some of those judgemental cops to change their mind about us and leave us alone.

Theremin · Post by **Theremin** » Mon Jun 16, 2003 11:47 pm

As far as I know the police can't impound a vehicle for 3 months just because it's parked in the wrong place or not roadworthy. They can impound a car for 3 months for a second street racing offence. Maybe that's what it was.

I've been driving around Bris for about 9 months now, have been on a few cruises including down to BWCP a couple of times and am yet to be pulled over for anything. Maybe I've just been lucky!

indyfto · Post by **indyfto** » Tue Jun 17, 2003 3:21 am

Yeah I saw that on the news too...I was under the impression that Police are not legally allowed to look under your bonnet (except maybe if they have a warrant or something) as under bonnet stuff is handled by the RTA/Qld Transport etc...? I must also have been lucky in my FTO - I have clocked up ~ 30000kms in 18 months and only been pulled up once (not incl. random breath tests) which was my own fault for driving with undercar neons on

I'm just glad I wasn't in the BWCP like I was the weekend prior along with ~ 5 other FTOs!

Also when you say you have been stopped for no reason - surely Police require a valid reason to execute a stop on a vehicle otherwise they'd be stopping everyone left, right and centre? I'm not trying to sound like I'm saying that you haven't been pulled over for no reason but for me common sense should prevail and that would mean that Police only stop you if you they witnessed you do something or see a defect on your car.
May I ask if any cops were female that pulled you over as it could just be that you are a chick driving a nice car that gives the male coppers enough "reason" to think they can pull you over to check YOU out and just check over your car as an excuse...just a thought

Brad.

princessblade · Post by **princessblade** » Tue Jun 17, 2003 11:24 am

it would be flattering if they were pulling me over to check me out, but they have been a mix of males and females. Some of the defects they picked up were, a commodore with stock tow balls and the commodore had to take it off on the side of the road, since when have stock tow balls been illegal. Police were also ignoring engerneering compliance plates and fining people anyway. it is sad.
So do u cruise with other FTO owners that would be so cool.

MattG · Post by **MattG** » Tue Jun 17, 2003 8:43 pm

I think what Princess posted was a bit inaccurate.
the version found on the MOGWA forums is as follows:

Broadwater car park just before 9pm, executing meticulous inspections on
more than 200 vehicles.
Police identified 233 offences ranging from defective vehicles, repair
notices, traffic infringements, undue noise, unlicensed driving and
drink-driving.
Four cars were also confiscated, angering many young drivers who claimed
they were being unfairly treated as road thugs.
Statistics from the operation revealed another 95 motorists were caught
speeding, including one clocked at 160km/h in an 80km/h zone and three
others who reached 178, 160 and 159km/h in a 110km/h zone.

"If they are going to modify their cars, they have to get the
engineering certification necessary by law.
"Tonight we've looked at a couple of hundred cars at least. Most of what
we've had has been noisy exhausts, the cars are too low, the tyres are
bald and modifications have not been approved."

Police are free to defect unroadworthy cars. They do this all the time in NSW. I would be worried if police did NOT defect unroadworthy cars.
If you are going to mod your car, it is simple to get and engineering certificate if you have done the modifications in the correct way.
If you are going to race your car, do it in a safe area like a racetrack where you won't kill innocent people on the road (recently an 8yo kid was killed whilst watching some street drags near my house).

About 10 years ago a similar thing to what happened in Brisbane, happened in Auburn NSW. There was a carpark everybody used to meet at to go drag racing. I went with 2 friends. One friends car wasn't working properly so we left early. The next day we heard 9 cop cars pulled up after we left that night and defected everybody.

M@

indyfto · Post by **indyfto** » Wed Jun 18, 2003 2:15 am

princessblade wrote:So do u cruise with other FTO owners that would be so cool.

Not quite. See the other topic for the Qld specific forum where we cruise together "regularly".

I was cruising with one other FTO and when we arrived at BWCP there was another FTO there. Then another two arrived later...none of us had met before. Just a coincidence as I've been down several times and been the only FTO there

Breza · Post by **Breza** » Wed Jun 18, 2003 11:03 am

I still reckon they were checking you out.................

Although I have been RBT'ed a fair bit lately on the north side.

Cheers

Chris

Jase · Post by **Jase** » Wed Jun 18, 2003 7:24 pm

MattG got it in one. They don't defect cars for no reason at all. A mate of mine got hammered by the cops recently. Too low, rear wing incorrect thickness and the wheels were too big. If everyone who modified their cars kept in touch with an engineer none of this would happen. Read somewhere the other day that BOV's that vent to atmosphere are illegal. Anyone heard different?

Hez · Post by **Hez** » Wed Jun 18, 2003 7:43 pm

yeh i believe so but i think plum-backs are ok.
correct me if im wrong.

Breza · Post by **Breza** » Thu Jun 19, 2003 12:29 pm

Yep, They are illegal.

Not that most of us FTO owners have to worry.

Used to have a modded Liberty RS Turbo..................found out the hard way.

Exposed pod filters in the engine bay are no no as well I am afraid......................................

That's why APS have their pods mounted in the gaurd and Fords new XR's have enclosed pod filters hooked up ta a cold air intake.

Cheers

Chris

Jase · Post by **Jase** » Fri Jun 20, 2003 8:58 pm

Was just reading an article on the Broadwater thing. One of the cars that was pulled of the road was a hilux ute. Thing is the guy had cut the chassis to fit his airbag suspension. Without getting engineer approval. What a tool. BTW what's the deal with pod filters? Just fitted mine last week. Don't want any hassles with the cops.

princessblade · Post by **princessblade** » Fri Jun 20, 2003 10:19 pm

Some of the defects were the own drivers faults i cant deny that but i was watching the others getting defaults even with compliance plates for that mod and they were told even though qld transport approved them they are still are not accordance to the australian design standard and that is where people are very confused, so i am not came to put anything on my car as i dont know what is legal is what is. I felt so bad for the people who were doing the right thing and getting defaults and still being classed as a hoon. I am not a Hoon and i like nice cars but i am getting looks from old people and people in normal family cars like you shouldnt be on the road cause you are a hoon. Death stares i guess you can call them. oh what to do

Jase · Post by **Jase** » Fri Jun 20, 2003 10:54 pm

I agree, what to do? Like you said don't do any mods without contacting transport first. I'm gonna have to go find out what the problem with pod filters is? Well, we can all sit around and have a bitch on our next cruise.

Jase.

princessblade · Post by **princessblade** » Fri Jun 20, 2003 11:02 pm

That would be good.
I am putting a petition together because the police are acting on what the government is telling them to do so we need to make the government realise that not all of us are hoons and i think that most of us arent hoons so we should need to feel we are criminals and that is what myself and a lot of my friends are feeling at the moment. So if anyone is interested just tell me and i can email the petition to you we need about 10000 signatures to let the governemt know we drive nice cars and we vote.