Commonsense win for Victorian P-platers

VicRoads has changed the rules that govern turbo cars and P-Platers.

In
a rare win for commonsense, the Victorian Government road authority
will move away from an abitary 'no turbo' ruling to a power-to-mass
based system whereby vehicles up to 130kW/tonne are approved for
probationary drivers.

The news comes after the recent launch of the new four-cylinder Ford
Falcon EcoBoost -- which uses forced induction to improve the output and
efficiency of a lower capacity (2.0-litre) engine --prompted a re-think
by the state’s authority. The move could see many other low capacity
turbocharged models made available to P-plate drivers

In a peculiar twist, P-plate drivers are allowed to drive higher powered normally aspirated variants of the same vehicle, such as the 195kW six-cylinder Falcon with its power-to-mass ratio of 114kW/tonne and the 210kW Commodore SV6 with 121kW/tonne. By contrast probationary drivers are not allowed to drive lower output turbocharged models such as the four-cylinder Ford Falcon with a PMR of 108kW /tonne or Volkswagen Golf 77TSI with its diminutive 62kW/tonne.

Under the old rules, P-plate drivers had to request an exemption to drive such vehicles, as stated below:

“Drivers issued with a probationary licence may (upon receiving an exemption) drive some lower performance turbocharged or supercharged vehicles. The definition of a lower performance turbocharged or supercharged vehicle is a vehicle with six cylinders or less that is turbocharged or supercharged with a power to weight ratio of less than 100kW per tonne; or turbocharged or supercharged with a power to weight ratio between 100 and 125kW per tonne and that is considered to be a family type vehicle (four seats or more) rather than a sports type vehicle. A family type vehicle is a sedan, station wagon or hatch normally used to carry families/passengers with four or more seats and is equipped with child restraint anchorages. A family type vehicle does not include a sports car (two door coupe,” VicRoads Probationary Vehicle Restrictions, 2009.

VicRoads website has not yet been updated to reflect the change and P-plate drivers should exercise caution before getting behind the wheel of any supercharged or turbocharged vehicle. In future, to make things simpler for P-plate drivers and authorities alike, manufacturers will soon have to stamp the car’s build plate to prove it meets PMR restrictions, a move Ford has already moved to implement on its Falcon EcoBoost range.

Other authorities around Australia have indicated that they would move to follow Victoria’s example as national guidelines are sought to make the rules more logical for drivers travelling or moving from state-to-state.

Read the latest Carsales Network news and reviews on your mobile, iPhone or PDA at the carsales mobile site