Queensland lifts 4WD lift laws

The Queensland government have introduced new 4WD lift modification laws that bring Queensland into line with other states and territories.

The rules change following a much-publicised operation on the Gold Coast last month, during which dozens of 4WDs were issued with defect notices for illegal suspension modifications.

Queensland Transport and Main Roads Minister Mark Bailey said that vehicles with Electronic Stability Control (ESC) can now be raised up to 75mm (incorporating a maximum of 50mm suspension and 25mm tyre increase) without certification.

This is an increase of 25mm over the previous Queensland rule that allowed a total of only 50mm (suspension) lift on ESC-equipped 4WD vehicles.

The new rule allows a vehicle equipped with ESC to have a suspension lift measured at 50mm and a tyre overall diameter increase of 50mm (thereby increasing ride height by 25mm).

While he noted that Queensland already allows a total 75mm lift for non-ESC 4WDs, the Queensland Minister said that the rule changes allowed ESC vehicles to share the same lift rules applied in other states.

“The move to 75mm without certification for ESC vehicles will ensure consistency with the rules in NSW and Victoria,” he said.

Non-ESC 4WD lifts have also been increased, with the maximum combined lift that can be certified (with engineering approval) going from 125mm to 150mm.

The government claims this is the first major change for Queensland’s 4WD lift laws since lift laws were introduced in that state in 2012.

“Importantly, this will make Queensland’s maximum lift, with certification, consistent with the National Code Practice and other states,” he said.

The changes also more closely align Queensland’s requirements with Australian standards (the National Code of Practice, VSB-14).

A 50mm suspension lift without engineering certificate was approved for ESC vehicles under the national code Vehicle Standards Bulletin 14 (VSB14) in November 2015 and adopted shortly after in Queensland under the Queensland Code Of Practice for vehicle modifications.

According to the Queensland Police Service ‘Operation Lift’, a three day police operation on the Gold Coast in early September, was “aimed at identifying four-wheel drives which have been illegally modified, comprising the stability of the vehicle and subsequent safety of all road-users”.

While some of the vehicles that were defected would now be legal, Bailey said at the time that the operation did not enforce anything new in terms of Queensland’s suspension and lift laws.

It’s not the first time the Queensland government has been in the media spotlight for poor handling of changes to the state’s vehicle modification laws, as two months ago it had to back down from proposed stringent weight upgrade laws.

While the 4WD lift laws are now in line with other key states, Minister Bailey debunked a myth floating around on social media regarding vehicles legally modified in other states falling foul of the law in Queensland.

“A modified vehicle registered in another state or jurisdiction can legally drive in Queensland, provided that vehicle continues to comply with the modifications that were approved in that state or jurisdiction,” he said.