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Engineers Modification Certificate in Brisbane


oldmates260z

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I am looking at getting an idea of what would be involved in getting a RWC for the following mods in Brisbane for the Zed that is for sale under the classifieds:

 

- Front Hilux callipers

- Skyline disc set up on rear

- Patrol master cylinder

- Tokiko adjustable shocks

- lowered King springs

- Rx7 leather front seats

 

Does anyone have any experience getting these done in Brisbane, what would be the likely cost and who may be best to take it to?

 

Initial enquiries make it look expensive and troublesome

 

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If an engineer is on the ball they will querey

 

F+R Brakes (will need brake testing completed) + handbrake hookup

Aftermarket seats + belts (normally check for seat mounting points, harness mounts)

 

Suspension (track/height) but thats no issue unless youve gone crazy.

 

From my experience get it all done at once, instead of stages and be upfront with your engineer.

 

 

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From an insurances and liability/legality view, it should be "Blue Plated" ie a mod plate engineer inspection.

About the only thing modded, is the rear brakes, the bracket holding the caliper to the strut.

 

All other components sound to be standard bolt in/on items, incl front calipers.

Dont refer to the front calipers as HiLux, they are Sumitomo, the rear setup, runs Datsun standard disc, with a Nabco(?) caliper assy, all standard Datsun items off other Datsun cars

 

The issue you may get though, is the bracket used to hold the rear calipers to the rear strut assy.

( front is a straight bolt on, no issue) a regular RWC shop may not pick it, but, if something unfortunate was to happen, the onus will be all on the driver, and not the bloke that did the RWC, or the bloke that originally built it all up.

 

Why didn't original builder get it mod plated? Assume you have bought it as un registered, if not, original guy was being a bit dodgy there!!

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Thanks guys, good advise.

 

The car did not need a mod plate on Club Rego so I am buying it unregistered. All the mod's seem straight forward and what a lot of guys seem to have done (approved or not). I guess it will be up to the engineer that looks at it. I want it all fully legal and correct, we need to keep the standards on these things high.

 

Its not too dodgy as I am actually buying my old car back from the guy that bought it from me 4 years ago. I sold him a completely stock 260Z and he has done a great job of doing it up but never driving it. Well I am happy to drive it so back she came to me :)

 

He did the brake mod's in line with the instructions on this site....so when I get it approved we know its all good..hey.

 

Stay tunned for results......

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Hey Oldmate.

 

Don't be scared of the engineering approval process. While there is a little bit of creativity you need to apply (eg referring to make of caliper not car it came off), the process is in place because a lot of very dodgy cars were being produced via modifications that were dangerous (my engineer recently refused to test a Corvette that had been presented for brake testing with a tek screw holding the ADR compliant seat belt retractor into the fibreglass body). It really does happen.

 

Provided you do your mods properly, and they actually work (for example, my engineer was not obsessed with which parts I used in the brake system, he just reviewed the work had been done properly, and then tested it to ensure it could meet the fade test and max G requirements, and all was well).

 

It's worth getting it done in this day and age of litigation. If God forbid you are involved in a serious accident, your insurance may be void and you leave yourself open to being sued as well as charges being laid. It's a false economy to try to save money in this area. Plan it properly, execute it properly, and the engineering process is no problem.

 

Cheers

 

 

Jamo

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Hey Oldmate.

 

Don't be scared of the engineering approval process. While there is a little bit of creativity you need to apply (eg referring to make of caliper not car it came off), the process is in place because a lot of very dodgy cars were being produced via modifications that were dangerous (my engineer recently refused to test a Corvette that had been presented for brake testing with a tek screw holding the ADR compliant seat belt retractor into the fibreglass body). It really does happen.

 

Provided you do your mods properly, and they actually work (for example, my engineer was not obsessed with which parts I used in the brake system, he just reviewed the work had been done properly, and then tested it to ensure it could meet the fade test and max G requirements, and all was well).

 

It's worth getting it done in this day and age of litigation. If God forbid you are involved in a serious accident, your insurance may be void and you leave yourself open to being sued as well as charges being laid. It's a false economy to try to save money in this area. Plan it properly, execute it properly, and the engineering process is no problem.

 

Cheers

 

 

Jamo

 

+ 1

 

If you do the job properly, are sensible, and work with the engineer you won't have any major drama's

 

Cheers

 

PB

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Thanks everyone, I want the Zed 100% right and 100% legal, the way they should all be.

 

As far as getting an engineer, Queensland Transport has a full list you just give them your area and the mods that require approval.

 

I am going to "Budget Brakes" in Greenbank because he is just around the corner from me and when I spoke to him he "sounded" like he knew what he was on about and had a well organised workshop.

 

If all goes well I will post his contact info for anyone who is interested.

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A bit of quick help guys.....the Engineer has picked up that the steering drive shaft is only a few mm away from the engine mount, the photo below is poor but shows it.

 

It looks to me that the style of mount used has a steel U shaped section around it that I think the original 260Z mount does not have and this is causing the problem.

 

Has anyone a photo of an original mount to see if it is different than what I have fitted?

 

The geometry cannot be wrong, all it can be is the mount.

post-482-1440237289_thumb.jpg

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The photo is a bit hard to interpret, but, the standard Z mount does not have the steel U section from memory. If it's too close, either cut it off, or go with a replacement isolator that does not have it. With the right isolator, there is stacks of clearance to the steering shaft.

 

Jamo

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It may be possible to re-orient them for more clearance too. The metal wings are essentially there to limit the travel of mount under extreme loads and to control movement in the event the rubber fails altogether. If the clearance can't be remedied by re-orienting, then you can trim the steel wing back to provide the required clearance and not compromise the performance or safety of the mount.

 

Cheers

 

Jamo

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They are the same as oem mounts, they also have a dowel on the backing plate to ensure they locate the correct way.

 

The angle on the steering uni looks a little sharp, has the rack rotated fowards a little? This would make the steering shaft higher, making it closer to the engine mount.

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The rack has a bracket that looks like an exhaust u-bolt clamp, but with a bump stop added to it that dictates the radial orientation of the rack...if you want to lay it back a bit, this is the part you adjust to get the angle where you want it.

 

Jamo

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Well that was a far better experience than I expected, Jeff Scott at Budget Brakes at Greenbank find. Was really helpful and understanding to get the Zed plated and roadworthy. Having a couple of Datsun 1200 utes out the front was a good sign....

 

No issues with any of the upgrades as long as they were well done, only picked up a  few things, most not critical:

- gear knob must have a shift pattern on it....apparently this is what the police pick up the hoons for!

- the issue above with the proximity of steering shaft to engine mount...

- the slotted discs were backwards, all four...this is very common error but not critical to normal road performance

 

So I am registered and street legal, so much fun driving a Zed again :)

 

Thanks again guys for your input

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