The Australian Automotive Aftermarket Association (AAAA) has welcomed the new Gross Combination Mass (GCM) modification code released by the Queensland Government’s Department of Transport and Main Roads (TMR).
The AAAA says the landmark GCM code is a huge win for Queensland recreational motorists and aftermarket product manufacturers.
Towing capacity limitations of many vehicles sold in Australia has driven increased demand for legal and safe modifications by vehicles owners to support increased payloads, including towing caravans and trailers.
Queensland’s new GCM code details the upgraded sum of the maximum weight a vehicle can both carry and tow, providing assurance and clarity for consumers and aftermarket manufacturers. Also updated in the code was re-rating of the Gross Vehicle Mass (GVM) which refers to the weight of the vehicle when fully loaded.
The announcement is an example of strong industry and government cooperation according to the AAAA.
It says the aftermarket industry undertook a great deal of work in conjunction with TMR to develop appropriate testing and validation protocols for GCM upgrades, expediting the process towards the updated code.
“We want to thank the Queensland Department of Transport and Main Roads for their consultation and cooperation with the industry,” AAAA government relations director Lesley Yates says.
“Our automotive engineers worked collaboratively with the professional TMR engineers, and the discussions were certainly robust but in the end productive and the best result for consumers and safety.
“Queensland are now the national leaders for in-service modification rules, they are ready to meet the market demand without compromising road safety and safe engineering practices,”
The AAAA says it has been proactively engaging with regulators across the country in a formal manner via their initiative to form the game-changing Gross Combination Mass (GCM) technical working group.
It says the working group brings together the modification industry experts to ensure best practice regulatory outcomes.
“I want to thank all the AAAA members that participated in the working group – this was a lengthy process requiring a lot of hours and expert engineering input from our members’ technical staff,” AAAA chief executive Stuart Charity says.
“We look forward to productive conversations with the other states to see if they can consider the Queensland Code as a best practice and a good way forward for industry and consumers
“The process we undertook to develop the GCM Code provides a model for proactive collaboration between industry and government and will provide a platform for the development of future testing and validation protocols for other areas of vehicle modification,” he says.
Charity says AAAA members that want to contribute to this process should attend the National Light Vehicle modification summit being held at the Autocare Convention in Brisbane on June 9.
National Light Vehicle Modification Summit tickets are available at www.autocare.org.au/modsummit
