Victoria tweaks GCM upgrade laws

Victoria has changed the rules for Gross Combined Mass (GCM) upgrades of in-service vehicles, making those signing off on modifications more accountable.

Under the new rules, engineers approving GCM modifications for vehicles registered in Victoria must provide evidence to VicRoads that safety has not been compromised as a result of the modification, rather than only quoting the Federal approval number (for when a new vehicle is modified with the same GCM upgrade).

“We are not banning towing capacity increases and existing vehicles in the process of being certified will not be affected by these instructions,” a VicRoads spokesperson told carsales.com.au.

“These instructions advise that VASS signatories will need to provide other evidence to support their approval of towing capacity increases exceeding the original manufacturer’s rating, rather than solely providing a Commonwealth approval number as their evidence.”

In a circular sent this week to Vehicle Assessment Signatory Scheme (VASS) Signatories (engineers who are permitted to approve vehicle modifications in Victoria), VicRoads said that they must now provide evidence relating to the specific vehicle being modified. This might include having verified that the vehicle qualifies for a GCM upgrade kit with a VIN number check, obtaining confirmation and endorsement for the modification from the Second Stage Manufacturer and driving the vehicle post-modification to vouch for the modification being safe.

These and other requirements must be noted in an ‘evidence pack’ that the signatory has to submit to VicRoads after providing the Approval Certificate for the GCM upgrade.

Lovells Managing Director Simon Crane said, “We can work with the new rules in Victoria, they are much like those already used in NSW”.

Lovells is a Secondary Stage Manufacturer that offers certified suspension kits for both new and already-registered vehicles requiring GVM, towing and GCM revisions. The primary method for GCM upgrades is to upgrade suspension.

The Victorian move follows a Federal ban announced in June for any future weight upgrade approvals that include Gross Combination Mass (GCM) or towing capacity for new, unregistered vehicles.

Victoria is one of the few states to not ban weight upgrades for in-service vehicles.

Queensland began a blanket ban on GCM upgrades for in-use vehicles early this year. Contrary to some media reports, the decision was not retrospective – so it didn’t affect those vehicles previously modified and which have GCM revision noted.

In the Northern Territory, both GCM and towing upgrades are also illegal.

Meanwhile, in Tasmania towing capacity upgrades are not allowed for vehicles already registered (but can have a certified GCM upgrade).

Crane said that Lovells and other manufacturers under the auspices of the Australian Automobile Aftermarket Association (AAAA) are lobbying the Federal government to reconsider its ban on GCM/towing upgrades on future new vehicles. The AAAA wants the Feds to agree on a test standard for GCM and towing upgrades.

“We want to adopt a standard that we all agree is a valid verification of a given load. But we haven’t got there yet -- we haven’t agreed on the standard but there are a number of consulting groups, mainly comprising of consulting engineers... trying to find [appropriate parameters for a] test trailer,” he said.

GCM upgrades are usually only in demand for utes, which have a high towing capacity and a high payload capacity but often cannot legally carry their maximum payload and tow to their maximum capacity at the same time due to their GCM limit.

One of many such examples is the Ford Ranger, which has a GVM of 3200kg and a towing capacity of 3500kg, for a total of 6700kg. But Ford only permits a 6000kg GCM, meaning owners must subtract weight from both the vehicle and trailer to ensure that the 6000kg limit is not exceeded.