40 replies to this topic

[TSG]

The Queensland Government has finally seen the light and made some more exceptions to its P Plate laws, you may now be eligible to drive a Moderately-powered Turbocharged or Supercharged vehicle under the following conditions.

You may apply for a certificate of exemption if the vehicle you wish to drive meets all of the following:

• has a turbocharged or supercharged engine that is not diesel powered
• has a power-to-weight ratio of not more than 125kW/T
• does not have any other features of a high-powered vehicle as outlined above.

The power-to-weight ratio means the ratio (expressed in kilowatts per tonne) calculated by dividing the car’s maximum engine power in kilowatts by the kerb weight and multiplying the product of the division by 1000. For example, the power to weight ratio of a vehicle that has a maximum engine power of 195kW and a kerb weight of 1667kg would be calculated as follows: (195÷1667) × 1000 = 117kW/tonne

This means that many cars such as supercharged or turbocharged Mercedes, Audi’s and Volvo’s with great 4 and 5 star Ancap ratings are now available to P Plate drivers.

Source: http://www.tmr.qld.g....-vehicles.aspx


By my calculations, my Auto B4 could be driven by a P Plater here now with its 118kW/T standard, but not the Manual. A GC8 WRX could not because its only just too light, 126kW/T standard. It opens up many other Subaru Models to P Platers. Some of these cars could be stealth modified with an ECU tune to make well over the specifications but I can't see them Dyno running every car they give an exemption to, they'll likely just use Redbook standard values.

I got my license when our P plater laws where so relaxed I didn't even need to display my P plate (back in 05/06). It got very strict very quickly the following year. But they are starting to iron it out now it seems

[Jordan]

@ Alex. Remember our little E-Battle.

This is what i was going for.
Unlike New South Wales though, the Queensland government at least has the littlest bit of intelligence.

[Shaz]

Yet neither governments have yet to introduce mandatory driver training as part of the provisional license scheme.

Fingers crossed one day they come to their senses.

Cheers,
Shazza

[Morgan]

Yet neither governments have yet to introduce mandatory driver training as part of the provisional license scheme.

Fingers crossed one day they come to their senses.

Cheers,
Shazza

THIS!!!!

[Jordan]

Has anyone heard anything of NSW planning to do the same?

[TSG]

Do you mean like a performance/safety course on a skidpan/track? I think you have to clock up a certain amount of hours here with a driving instructor... not sure though.

I think they just hope that after 120 hours (faked for the most part) is enough to justify not having a proper driver training course. I did about 40 hours probably, until my driving instructor thought I was ready to take the P plater test.

I think people will be pretty upset if they have to pay for a driver training course ontop 120 hours of driving. But to be honest every young driver should be forced to lose control of the vehicle and recover. People learn from their mistakes and in a controlled environment that would be very beneficial. Might even scare a couple people into not driving like a dickhead.

[Jordan]

Do you mean like a performance/safety course on a skidpan/track? I think you have to clock up a certain amount of hours here with a driving instructor... not sure though.

I think they just hope that after 120 hours (faked for the most part) is enough to justify not having a proper driver training course. I did about 40 hours probably, until my driving instructor thought I was ready to take the P plater test.

I think people will be pretty upset if they have to pay for a driver training course ontop 120 hours of driving. But to be honest every young driver should be forced to lose control of the vehicle and recover. People learn from their mistakes and in a controlled environment that would be very beneficial. Might even scare a couple people into not driving like a dickhead.

The argument why they arent doing it, is because it is teaching kids how to hoon/beadickhead, and that they will end up doing it more on the street.

[Morgan]

They need to teach you how to get out of control. Then they need to teach you how to control the car.

Skid pans, rally tracks, defensive courses. Anything and everything.

They don't let you drive over 80km/h on your L's, then stick you in a car by yourself and expect you be a perfect driver. There's ONE statistics point to P platers as being bad drivers and it's because they don't know how to use a car properly.

[TSG]

Yeah I am glad they never employed those silly speed restrictions here, its just dangerous when you come up on a L or Red P Plater in NSW and they are doing 80/90 on the freeway. Everyone overtaking and swerving the get past them. In a 110 zone (F3 has that I think?) that can be a 30km/h difference, you pass them like they are standing still.

[alexGT]

time flies, when i look back i'm glad i didn't have a turbo car on my p's.

[Morgan]

Yeah I agree that they shouldn't be allowed to drive high powered cars. They need proper training though

[AussieTemplar]

I've done a few defensive driving courses, but I'm still not allowed turbo.

/sense.

[Adam]

time flies, when i look back i'm glad i didn't have a turbo car on my p's.

+1

[Ben_20EJT]

Yet neither governments have yet to introduce mandatory driver training as part of the provisional license scheme.

Cheers,
Shazza

i took a driver training day at oran park when i was on my Ls, best thing ive ever done and i recomend it to any young driver and think it should be part of getting your Ps, yer after 120 hours you can drive a car but what about when something happens, some one pulls out of a side street infront of you etc. ive used the skills i lernt there (and motorkhana since i was 13) to get me out of so situation other drivers put me in, eg, so fuckwit cut me off, just pulled out of a side street infront of me, i was in a iload van with 7 ppl in to it (workshop bus for picking ppl up etc), could have jumped on the brakes and gone into the drivers door, but used what i lernt and got around him with out a scratch. was on my red Ps then. oppy lock iload anyone? not fun.

also, fark, if nsw did this, id neck myself, i want boost badly and only got 9 days till i can get my fulls. i think you would see a stack load of gt fozzys getting around with sleeper mods and p plates. but im happy in a way i havnt been able to drive turbo as its given me time to learn about everything and get the time driving and no the road, but verry soon it will be turbo time for me.

[aekOne]

haha p-platers could drive turbos and V8's when i got my licence

[Shaz]

haha p-platers could drive turbos and V8's when i got my licence

Same.

Had a 365rwkw Soarer on my Red P's.

[Adam]

I had no money to buy said cars!

[aekOne]

Same.

Had a 365rwkw Soarer on my Red P's.

haha yeah well on my red p's i had a POS honda prelude vti-r with about 9kw

[Xon]

120 hours, what a joke. There are plenty of 40+ year olds out there that probably have a few hundred thousand hours of driving that couldn't drive their way out of a paper bag. Yesterday I watched a full licenced driver ignore a red light, and the taxi stopped in front of them, and hit the taxi so hard it's spare wheel came out of the boot.

What's the point in requiring 120 hours of experience if the person teaching them to drive will let them cruise along with one arm hanging out the window while half turned around in their seat chatting to their friends in the back? Don't hold your breath waiting for a grain of intelligence to creep into RTA policy.

Well done to QLD though. Looks like those rules would qualify a P plater to drive a WRX?

[Ren-dog]

GOD DAMNIT I JUST BOUGHT A N/A!!!

Lol, I'm happy with what i got for now, but i am pissed off, would have made the car hunt heaps easier.
You know what would be nice? a 6th gear lol.

In a way im glad i have a N/A in others i still want more power... I think driver training should be mandatory, but... I have been on my P's for two weeks, and i have learnt way more then i did during the 100 hours of my L's.

Its one thing to be instructed, its another to figure it out yourself.

Last weekend i went to Townsville, Massive learning curve going from a small town to a large city, i think in many ways it has made me a better driver and i have learnt a lot from it.

I personally think the hours should be cut, the test should be a little more thorough, and people should be allowed to go somewhere and practice driving, Not just following rules. Following rules never made anyone a good driver, it made them a law abiding driver but not a good one. Its pushing the boundary's and finding the limit and learning how to control the uncontrolled. We learn from mistakes. We learn quickly when we break $400 worth of car parts.

Thats how i have learnt anyway. I like to think of myself as a better driver then the average, but im no pro. I want to get into track work and that kind of stuff, nothing like reaching the limit in a safe environment.