Sprung!

[CJF077]

  plonky said:

If you haven't had a ticket in the last 10 years, write a letter away to the RTA, outlione your good driving record and get them to consider a Caution.

Now this is what you call great advice from a fellow officer of the law :thumbsuo:

Shame i didnt have you around when I lost my license for a year..

[chief]

As nearly all Victorians know already (due to the 3km/h over and your booked policy - yes even in 50 zones) the Australian Design Standard for speedometres is 10%, so a legal speedometer could say that you are doing 110 when your needle is dead on 100. If I had a bet I would believe that this is the case in your instance. On newer cars you'd expect most of them to be more accurate than the 10% but there will still be a few that will be a bit out.

Cheers

p.s. And yes I have been booked twice since I've got the T, do the crime pay the fine (unless its within 10% then you go to court).

[plonky]

Correct, Australian Standard is a 10% accuracy for the speedometer.

However, the manufacturer (Ford GM etc) make the speedometer to within 3% accuracy. Obviously this changes when different profile tyres and diameter wheels are fitted.

The only reason they can get away with the 3kmh crap in Victoria is because no one is willing to go to Court, admit the offence (speeding is strict liability) with an explanation as to why it is negligent to constantly look at the speedo so you don't stray over 3kmh instead of watching the road to the front, side and behind!

To get a fine from a mobile HWP you would have to be doing at least 13% more than the signposted limit!

[XR6PSI]

maybe someone can clarify this for me but I am pretty sure that ADR rules allow 10% overreading ie 110 dial is 100 true and only 3% the other way ie 100 dial is 103 true. is this accurate. Secondly another question is that up here in qld a nice lil lady friend just graduated from the police acadamy and she said to me that manufacturer of the radar guns up here rate them to be accurate within 5% ( hence to cover their arses I would say ). This true or was she mistaken.

Besides that what must be remembered here is that these are small percentages are amount the speedos are out so really I know if I m speeding and that theres a chance I'll get caught if I do then I'll cop it. And this is from someone who tomorrow in fact gets their license back after 1 year probation from you guessed it speeding now I promise I'll be a good boy and continue to not speed and not get caught

[aaronmihe]

bs888 do you run factory or aftermarket wheels? Are they a standard XR size? (including rubber?) Have you deviated fromt eh stock tyres fitted by Ford for that wheel size?

Any fo those things can also put a speedo out by yet another poofteeth. And we are talking poofteeths here...

The main problems about Victoria is that no-ones fought the system becuase it's very very hard to fight 'the system'.... Now that the VIC goverment is making millions of dollars a day they will do and pay almost anything to keep it that way.

People like Jeremy Pritchard et al do campaign in as many ways as they can over a number issues but they simply don't have the financial backing to take on and win - it would end up in High court for sure - probably all the way to supreme court....

In my undertsanding to get the whole thing moveing you'd need to:

Be fined for driving at say 4-5% above the posted limit in a car that you knew for sure had a speedometer accuracy within, but close to the Australian Design Rule limit, and preferrably one with a parallax error problem thanks to dash layout.

You'd also want to run tyres that pushed the bounds of the error to within the legal limits for VICRoads.

Why all this? Well you want to show that by compounding the legal 'inaccuracy' in the car and still making allowances for fair judgement of reading the speedo that you were doing in you best belief BELOW the posted limit.

A lot of things to line up - chuck in some big $$ and adetermination to getto court and go all the way rather than take the smack ont he wrist first offered. Big names that get off usually get offered a bargain to avoid tying up the legal system and avoiding their high paid legal team from making mince meat of the laws.

As for Police instruments (and speed cameras)... They aren't 100% accurate but most definately near enough when properly maintained, calibrated and used. You'd be pushing hard to overturn a speed offence detected with Laser, radar perhaps but as already mentioned by Plonky the HWP already do the right thing in most cars in most patrols.

For the most part the HWP guys are there to weed out the dickheads who really don't want to play by the rules, gett he dangerous drivers, overloaded/defective cars off the roads and not pick up everyone doing 9.98% over the limit. HWP drivers use judgement before pulling over cars....

I don't think many people mind getting pinged by HWP half as much as being wallet raped by a camera - in particular ones operating well inside the legal 'error' as set out in ADRS.

Ofcourse the standard comeback in VIC at the moment - made to those that have queried - is that it is the vehicle owners responsibility to ensure the speed indication device in the car is accurate to within the limit of the tyre wear rate at any time... (which may be 1-2%).

Knowing what we all know about tyres - difference brands have different rolling diameters etc means to be technically 'safe' in Vic means than when you get new tyres, youd have the usual wheel alignment, and a dyno run to determine speedo error, then pop over to your local Ford dealer and get the calibration of the speedo set using their WDS....

Probably add another $150+ to the cost of a set of tyres....! Ouch!

A.

[aaronmihe]

^----*looks at long post*

mmmm me thinks I stood on the soapbox there. Just another armchair expert.... (although I do try to keep up with this kind of stuff)

A.

[Velvet Glove]

And to answer your ACT question, if u end up having to pay the fine, you start with 12 points. Once you get your first fine you have 3 years with the remaining points.

Here is the ACT Govt link http://www.urbanservices.act.gov.au/transr...ads/points.html

My understanding is that you start with 12 on a full licence, 4 on Ps and 8 if you have done the P off course. I had to check this myself yesterday as it seems to change every 2 weeks.

As Plonky said send in the letter. It cant help to give it a shot. At worst you'll still have to pay the fine, at best you'll keep your cash and your points

[bs888]

Aaron,

I am running factory fitted 18's ( the wheels in my avatar are on my old BA which is now at your favorite Ford dealer in Braddon) at the moment so I dont think the speedo is out by any more than most Falcons which my experience shows to be about 3-4 k's.

This is one of the reasons I feel that the Officer concerned was just trying to provoke me into argueing with him, but as I said, I was speeding just not as much as he said.

I am one of those who believe that speed is not the main problem, only inappropriate speed, by that I mean if I am driving on a well maintained road in fine weather in a well maintained vehicle then most of the time the limits are too low.

I realise that not everybody has the same amount of experience that I have but in this day and age surely there is a better way of making our roads safer.

Maybe better driver education/training would be a good start.

Cheers, Bazza.

[bs888]

Thanks VG,

I will give it a try and see what happens.

Bazza.

[Falchoon]

Bazza, that car is much too fast and powerful for you, you'd better let me look after it... :lol:

Are you coming along to Kitty's Meet & Greet?

http://www.fordxr6turbo.com/forum/index.ph...?showtopic=6706